Addicted To You by Krista and Becca Ritchie
Series: Addicted #1
Publisher: K.B. Ritchie
Source: Netgalley
ISBN: 9780989339209
Release Date: August 22, 2013
Pages: 328
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She’s addicted to sex. He’s addicted to booze…the only way out is rock bottom.
No one would suspect shy Lily Calloway’s biggest secret. While everyone is dancing at college bars, Lily stays in the bathroom. To get laid. Her compulsion leads her to one-night stands, steamy hookups and events she shamefully regrets. The only person who knows her secret happens to have one of his own.
Loren Hale’s best friend is his bottle of bourbon. Lily comes at a close second. For three years, they’ve pretended to be in a real relationship, hiding their addictions from their families. They’ve mastered the art of concealing flasks and random guys that filter in and out of their apartment.
But as they sink beneath the weight of their addictions, they cling harder to their destructive relationship and wonder if a life together, for real, is better than a lie. Strangers and family begin to infiltrate their guarded lives, and with new challenges, they realize they may not just be addicted to alcohol and sex.
Their real vice may be each other.
Addicted To You was an interesting book about deeply flawed people. The book wasn’t what I thought it was going into it. I thought it was going to be a salacious novel about sex addiction. I was wrong. The author could have easily sensationalized Lily's addiction, but she chose to focus on Lily’s cravings, her constant fight with her them, and how an addiction that her family would never understand almost destroyed her life.
Lily and Lowen (Lo) both have addictions, one for alcohol, one for sex. They have been covering for each other for years.
"We lied for each other and hid our infidelities, playing the role of doting boyfriend and girlfriend. The deeper we sink, the harder it is to crawl out. I fear the moment when… someone discovers our secrets. At any moment, everything can crumble beneath us."
Lily hides her addiction from her family knowing they won’t ever understand. She wishes that she would have a drug or alcohol problem instead, because at least her family would understand and not be mortified and shocked of a sex addiction. Instead Lily has pulled away from her family. Never taking phone calls or emails from them. Missing important family gatherings. Neither Lo nor Lily was helping the other by pretending to be in a relationship. They enable and covered for each other.
As I was reading the book you can just see their addictions spiralling out of control and you knew they were going to hit rock bottom. You know they have to hit that point to take control, but it wasn’t pretty. Even after the epic moment it wasn’t clear cut okay let’s get some help now.
Soon as Ryke stepped on the scene I was intrigued. I wanted to know where this was going. He seemed so involved at helping Lo without ever meeting him before. And it went where I thought, but I still didn’t see everything coming that unfolded.
I hope to see more of Lily with her sisters because the dynamic was great. They didn’t always get along, and fought all the time, but think they would be more understandable then what Lily gave them credit for.
