I have another super exciting review to share with you today! Wrong to Need You by Alisha Rai was on my list of most anticipated books this fall, so I’m beyond excited that I got a chance to read it early and share my thoughts with you.

The publisher provided me with an advanced digital copy of Wrong to Need You via Edelweiss in exchange for a review.

Wrong to Need You is the sequel to last summer’s hit, Hate to Want You. Jackson Kane fled his hometown a decade ago after being wrongly accused of a crime he didn’t commit. Now he’s back, and he’s still in love with Sadia Ahmed—the widow of Jackson’s brother who is struggling to stay afloat and take care of her young son after her husband’s untimely death.

I liked this book a lot. I really liked how Sadia was portrayed and that the struggles of coping with her life after her husband’s death weren’t pushed aside, and I liked seeing Jackson deal with his feelings rather than run away from them, which he’s essentially been doing for the last 10 years. I also really liked that they had a lot of growth in their own lives that wasn’t necessarily connected to their relationship with each other, like Sadia with her sisters and Jackson with his mother.

I think one of my favorite parts of this book was Sadia’s sisters. I loved seeing the dynamic between them all and how Sadia grew to the point where she was able to stand up for herself and also view herself from their perspective and see how much they loved and respected her. Seriously, the family dynamic was awesome and they were probably one of my favorite parts of the book. It almost makes me wish I had multiple sisters instead of just one (who was quite the handful growing up!).

I also really liked the depiction of mental health in Wrong to Need You, though I personally can’t speak to how accurately everything was portrayed and handled. I liked that Sadia wasn’t totally together and had to use a lot of little tricks to help herself get through the day, but that the reader (and eventually Sadia) could still see how strong she was. And I don’t want to spoil anything, but I really liked how Jackson helped her when she got too overwhelmed.

As for the Kane and Chandler family feud, I think Rai did a great job developing the relationships between the two families. Again, I’m hesitant to spoil anything, but I really liked the progression from the first book and am excited to see it continue into the third book.

One thing I wasn’t thrilled with was that Jackson had been in love with Sadia since they were teenagers and she had no idea. I thought the only romance trope I didn’t care for was second chance romances (romances in which the couple have a history together and have previously been in a relationship with each other), but it turns out that I don’t care for unrequited love, either. Fortunately he didn’t put his life entirely on hold for her, but I can’t help but think how different their lives could have been if he’d spoken up before Sadia started dating Paul.

The big question is, if you loved Hate to Want You, is the sequel just as good? Honestly, I can’t really answer that. I liked the first book, but second-chance romances are probably my least favorite in general, so I wasn’t the biggest fan of it even though I could see the potential. This one is a lot slower paced and (surprisingly) less angsty, so it has a much different vibe, though I think you still see some of the same issues and character development.

Personally I really liked Wrong to Need You and thought it was a great sequel; I would even venture to say that I liked it more than the first book. If you loved Hate to Want You, you have to check it out! And if you haven’t, I think you should give this series a try if you’re looking for a raw contemporary romance with really rich characters and relationships that doesn’t shy away from dealing with mental health. I can’t wait to see what Rai has in store for us in the third book!

Wrong to Need You by Alisha Rai is on shelves November 28.