Things We Hide from the Light (Knockemout Series, 2)

This was one of my highly anticipated releases in 2023, and I was not disappointed!

We head back to Knockemout for book 2, featuring Knox’s college girlfriend Lina and his brother, Nash. And let me just say, I did NOT expect to love this book as much as I did, and I did not expect to fall in love with Nash the way that I did, and I did not expect to love Knockemout more than I already did. So needless to say, this book was everything I needed it to be and more, and I can’t wait to return to Knockemout later this year for book 3!

This book opens just weeks after the end of Things We Never Got Over, where Nash is still trying to heal from his wounds… and Lina is still in town “visiting” her friend Knox while working “in insurance.” I love how Lucy Score weaves romance, drama, and quite a few twists throughout this series, while also bringing in some lighthearted humor.

“Baby’s breath is stupid. Fight me.”

“Until I got here and met Nashhole.”

“What’s happening? Did the fat blob just punch Nash? Who are the other two blobs?”

Like I mentioned, I ended up loving Nash and Lina, and I loved them together. Nash is having a hard time recovering from his gunshot wounds, being the natural protector that he is. He wants to keep everyone safe, and he’s doubting himself because he couldn’t even keep himself safe. He wears the weight of the world on his shoulders and wants to do the right thing for everyone, but especially for his family and his community.

Lina is fighting her own demons. Her own trauma erected walls around her life so that she remained firmly in control of things, but those walls ended up shutting out all the good relationships that could’ve blossomed, leaving Lina feeling lonely while clinging to her independence. It’s a struggle for her to let go of her control to let anyone in, let anyone touch her (both physically and emotionally), which becomes impossible when she moves next door to Nash.

“I live alone and I like it. I hate sharing the remote. I like not having to consult with someone else before ordering dinner. I don’t want to have to move the seat of my car every time I drive. The idea of passing my decisions through an ‘us’ filter leaves me feeling vaguely nauseated. I love my parents but their constant need to check up on me drives me insane, and that problem could become yours if this goes anywhere. I like to splurge on clothes and shoes, and I’m unwilling to justify that. I get up early and I work a lot. I don’t want to have to change that to accommodate someone else.”

Nash waited a beat. “Okay then. The only TV I watch is the occasional football game. The remote can be yours the rest of the time. I don’t mind cooking, but if you tell me you want takeout burgers, I’ll get you takeout burgers. I promise to always move your seat back to the original position after I drive. I wouldn’t mind having some nosy parents worry about me for a change. I like the way you dress just fine so I’ve got no problems with your shopping habits. Long as you let me spoil you once in awhile. As for the schedule thing, I think you’re just reachin’ because, Angel, I’m a cop. Enough said. And when it comes to making decisions together, I need a say in your personal safety. I expect you to want a say in mine. Any decisions that affect us together, we make together.”

Nash won’t take no from Lina, but he’s the MOST respectful he can be about it (swoony for sure). I love how Nash wants to have the conversations and be on the same page so that there is no misunderstanding regarding their relationship. While he does do some of the dumb stuff men do, like push her away when he thinks he’s becoming dependent on their relationship, these two match each other step for step along the way.

“For the record, this is you pushing me away and this is me sticking.”

I love that they both found what they needed, and they both pushed back. The tension between them screamed off the page, and I love that even their physical relationship came secondary to that tension, the push-and-pull. While their physical relationship was SO GOOD, it was everything else that made me love this book!

“Listen to me, baby. You freak out all you want. I’ll still be here when you’re done.”

It would be a disservice not to mention the town of Knockemout and the secondary characters in this story. One of my other favorite things about Lucy is that she creates a WORLD for each of her books, and that world just feels so full of love and hope and gratitude and friendship that you can’t help but want the same thing in your own life. That’s true within the pages of Things We Hide From the Light as well. The Knockemout PD (and how Piper wandered around the bullpen to get treats) and the U.S. Marshal inserting himself into the community and how residents show up for businesses like the cafe and Honky Tonk and the gym and the library and everyone who showed up to the school for career day and the various community events like the library… it truly adds up to something special that makes you just love these people even more. Not to mention that ALL THE LOVE is on display in these pages… makes the world seem like a more hopeful place than it can be IRL, and I’m not complaining at all.

“Friends make friends better.”

Rating: 5 big, fat, heart-eyed stars from me

Book two in the series, Things We Hide From the Light is an amazing follow up to Things We Never Got Over.

Nash Morgan is trying to recover from his shooting at someone's hands. Oh, his body might be healing but his memory and his heart haven't. He is lost in the darkness of his depression and find his way out is next to impossible. That is, until Knox's ex-girlfriend, Angelina Solavita, shows up. She might be hiding a wealth of secrets but she's a love 'em and leave 'em kinda gal with a hard candy shell covering her soft chocolate soul. Nash needs a reason to feel something, and Lina is the perfect reason. But he has someone trying to kill him, a rogue cop trying to take over and too many people thinking he needs someone to watch over him. Lina included.

Hell of a story. More twists and turns than a country road in the mountains. Vivid characters that make me wish I lived in Knockemout for real. A plot that just sucks you in and keeps you reading long past the point you need to put it down. Not want to put it down, thank you. And I didn't want to put this down until I'd read the last word. And just like the first book, I was cheering loud for these two to find their Happily Ever After and doing a little ugly crying along the way.

I can't wait to read Lucian's story. And I give this one 5 out of 5 stars.

Okay so I read the first book and I had a pretty passionate review about it. My main qualm was these are adult characters acting like children (handling relationships and emotional drama very poorly). Well a year later I decided to read the second book because I was actually honestly curious how Nash and Lina would get together. I think a couple things that made this book better for me:

1. Lucy Score's writing is really drawn out. The first time I read her book "Things We Never Got Over" (the first Knockemout one), I was very annoyed I spent 500+ pages reading a book that could have been 300 pages. HOWEVER this time I knew her book would be long b/c shes very into character development and I just know her writing style is long. I think that helped me actually enjoy and appreciate the development here. The reality is I want to be in this town. The people seem so great and I care about these characters. I love this friend group. AND THAT is the beauty of these long books. YOU JUST STAY AND CARE. It's like relationships where being there for the daily moments helps you get to know the person. I got to really know these people. So why is this important?

2. Lucy tackles complex relationship trauma and allows room for us to watch the characters actually heal. The thing is these characters are not like secure or healthy LOL. These are traumatized (and physically attractive) grown adults like all 30+ plus (I'm pretty sure everyone is in their 30s and maybe Knox is even in his 40s??). They all have relationship trauma (parents who left them, alcoholism, toxic siblings who are criminals, medical problems, near-death experiences, etc, etc). I think Lucians family has some even crazier stuff cause that man is dark. but alas more on Lucian when we read book 3. ANYWAYS, the point is these characters are not going to just quickly fall in love in a 200-300 page book. They are too afraid, too self-sabatgoing, and frankly all insecure attachment styles (the main adults in the book). BUT GUESS WHAT? If we stay with them long enough, watch them fight their battles which we do...its actually more BELIEVABLE how they end up being strong enough to conquer their fears and choose love. and choosing love when its hurt you its SUPER FREAKING BRAVE. THESE ARE SOME BRAVE CHARACTERS HERE. I MEAN VERY BRAVE. Love can be scary when you've got a lot of baggage...these people end up figuring it out.

Thoughts on the book: 3. Okay so Nash and Lina are the love story. I mean its interesting like Nash was so grumpy in this book for the middle of it?! I was like is this Nash or Knox? But sometimes Nash was written and it was a little tooooo similar to Knox. Like they even encouraged it by saying "he's so broody" right now. Nash was supposed to be like the sweet guy, and I guess he still is. But like he's also very much like his brother. I guess that's also life though. Lina is a bad-a$$. Very different than Namoi, I mean Lina's got that spunk. But many bad-a$$ woman do get scared when it comes to love...so it was funny seeing Lina be so like shy and nervous LOL. Lina is probably an avoidant attachment, and Nash is like a fearful-avoidant/disorganized style (Nash has got a LOTTTTTT of trust and betrayal wounds...my goodness). I think their relationship is very much like respect/best friends/teasing each other in a way that felt fun to read. I liked them. Maybe they were like a little more boring tbh than the previous book. And the spicy scenes took a long time to happen and it was like cute, but nothing like super crazy. These two really felt like best friends idk. Like it was cool to watch them work together and be a team. I felt like they were a bit more of equals. More mutual respect (Very different than how I felt with Knox and Naomi). Also yes kind of strange Lina and Nash got together so fast and allegedly didn't know each other?! How does Nash not know his brother's best friend/former partner? Not super clear. Also the relationship is basically like guy sees hot girl when he's lonely and depressed, really wants to do the deed with her, she pushes him away causes he's depressed, but then actually they hang out and fall in love and then sex comes in. So I actually kind of liked that too. A different kind of progression. Score made us wait. I like when guys have to wait, they get all passionate and patient. And sex is more like the cherry on top. Okay! So yeah maybe this was a good couple. I think I support!

Anyways...would I recommend this book? Yes but know that this book is kinda long-winded. And only read it if you've read the first book in the series b/c what Lucy does well is character development so its definitely good to know the characters from before as well.

AND THE EPILOGUES OMG!! I actually felt so happy when I finished those two epilogues. The epilogues might be the best chapters in the book. But part of why it's so good is because you've got to know the characters for long in the previous pages. Alright...off to the next book :)

Score has a way of making a fictional world come alive in vivid color, and there's none more lively than Knockemout, VA. For a small town, this place is full of excitement, with colorful characters that make you want to keep reading just to see what happens to them.

Nash Morgan, chief of police, hasn’t been himself since being shot on the job. Despite still healing from his injury, he takes the job of protecting his town seriously, yet it's all he can do to show up and go through the motions. That is, until he gets to know his new neighbor. Just being in her orbit calms him and makes him feel alive.

Lina Solavita is in town temporarily, until she can complete the assignment for the insurance company she works for, and her investigation has lead her to Knockemout. It helps that her good friend and the guy she dated for a minute in college, Knox Morgan, lives there since it gives her a cover for being in town without having to reveal her hand.

There's a lot to love about this one, but there were some things I was unimpressed by. Although it took until past halfway for things to get steamy, once they started it seemed like Lina and Nash were constantly going at it so much that it felt gratuitous and really didn’t move the story along. (This will be a plus for some of you.😉) I was disappointed that Lina was the fix for Nash's issues rather than him working things out on his own and for himself, and some of the male-female power struggles were tiring. Then there's the nod to inclusivity, and I’ll be glad when the handful of contemporary romance writers who have changed their writing this way realize that by including controversial topics not pivotal to a story, they're excluding a whole group of readers who have a different viewpoint.

There were enough things that still made this a fun read for me. I love the quirks, charm, and uniqueness of small-town Knockemout, and the geriatric neighbor, Mrs. Tweedy, is pure comic gold. She's freaking brilliant and stole most every scene she was in. The rest of the characters are larger than life, authentic, and relatable, with bad-a$$ Lina being my favorite. The excitement of the drama and suspense had me on the edge of my seat and putting the book down at this point wasn’t even a consideration. I’m talking epic, and Lina really shines here. And the epilogue? It's the sweetest, most heartfelt but still humorous cherry on top of this phenomenal romance sundae. And trust me, you’re going to want to get your hands on the bonus epilogue!

All in all, this is a fun, entertaining read full of laugh-out-loud humor and tons of touching, relatable emotion. You'll be charmed by the town of Knockemout and fall head over heels for the people there. Full of heart, heat and humor, this one will give you hours of enjoyment during your reading escape.

This is book two in the “Knockemout” series and can be read as a stand alone. With that said you will miss out on many relationships so I suggest reading book one first.

I didn’t realize I could love these characters even more. I knew I loved Nash but I just didn’t realize how much. Especially the grumpy Nash. Lina is lock butt and I love her energy. These two are explosive together. Their story isn’t a slow burn but the spicy and finally dropping walls is definitely turtle speed.

This book is quite long and though I absolutely adore everyone in this book I know this book could be much shorter. I, also, had the mystery figured out pretty early in the book. BUT I am ok with that because I loved just following these guys around. The Lucian, Knox, and Nash trio is something I never knew I desperately needed.

Lina and Nash have walls built to the moon and I enjoyed watching them chip them down piece by piece. This was a great book and I am so excited to now get into Lucian and Sloane’s book!!

*** 4.5 Stars ***

Things We Hide From the Light (Knockemout #2) by Lucy Score is a slow-burn small-town contemporary romance told in first person, dual POV. The story follows the relationship between police chief Nash Morgan and Lina Solevita, his new neighbor and brother’s college girlfriend.

Nash is recovering from a recent gunshot wound, and he has no memory of the incident. The perpetrator is still at large, and Nash is extremely frustrated by his failed attempts to remember. He’s also dealing with anxiety, nightmares, and panic attacks—and hiding his struggles has made his once light and happy demeanor now dark and broody.

When Lina moves into the apartment next door, she sees Nash struggling and does what she can to help him. Their attraction to each other is magnetic, and despite Lina’s aversion to physical contact, she doesn’t mind Nash’s touch. He’s determined to win her for keeps, but Lina doesn’t do relationships, and she’s keeping secrets that could change everything.

I enjoyed Nash and Lina’s story. I loved how everything turned out so much that, for a moment, I forgot the things that irked me and almost gave it 5 stars. But when I sat down to write my review, and compared it to Things We Never Got Over (which I loved and rated 5 stars without hesitation), these minor irritations were what I remembered most. Namely, the length of the novel and superfluous number of named characters.

Like book one, this was a long book, but where Things We Never Got Over captivated me in a way that I didn’t notice the passage of time, Things We Hide From the Light felt long. There were also waaaaay too many named characters. I have a template where I track several things when I read so I can refer to it when I’m ready to review. This helps me remember, because I often read several books before I go back to review them. One of the things I track is named characters and who they are in relation to the lead characters. In this book, I quit doing this at around 65% percent because the list was ridiculously long. So, before writing this review, I grabbed my list and counted the names. There were 87 unique names on it, and 44 out of the 87 were full names that included both a forename and surname. Remember that I quit keeping track at 65% into the novel? I wonder how many names I’d have if I kept track to the end.

Apparently, everybody in the town of Knockemout was given a name—LOL—and that’s fine. But if a character is not important to the story—and most of them were not—I don’t need to know their name or anything about their background. That’s just a bunch of extra words that distract from rather than enhance the story, and it feels like a rookie mistake when I know that Lucy Score is far from a rookie author. She’s actually one of my favorites. But I couldn’t ignore these things, which is why I ended up rating this 4.5 stars and rounding down.

Overall, I really enjoyed Nash and Lina’s story. I liked them both as characters and thought they were well-suited. It was also fun to revisit with characters from the previous book. I enjoyed the suspense and how the mystery unraveled. Like I said before, I really loved how everything turned out. Until my memory kicked in, I loved it so much that I was ready to rate it 5 stars. I’m looking forward to Lucian and Sloan’s story.