Hopeless

By: Elsie Silver

Narrated by: Jason Clarke, Angelina Rocca

Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

Beau Eaton is the town prince, a handsome military hero with a tortured past. I’m the outcast bartender, a shy girl from the wrong side of the tracks.

He’s 35 and all man, and I’m 22 and all...virgin.

He’s also my fiancé. Correction: my fake fiancé.

We start out as a bet. He doesn’t believe that anyone holds my last name against me. So he offers me his to prove a point.

It’s win-win. He gets a break from his concerned family’s prying, and I get a chance to shed my family’s reputation while I save up to ditch this small town.

He says all I have to do is wear his ring, follow his lead, and pretend I can’t keep my hands off of him in public.

But it’s what happens between us in private that blurs all those carefully drawn lines.

It’s what transpires behind closed doors that doesn’t feel like pretending at all.

This engagement was supposed to be for show. This agreement? It has an end date.

He once told me he’d never fall in love.

And yet here I am, head over heels for my fake fiancé.

©2023 Elsie Silver (P)2023 Elsie Silver

Worth the wait!

I feel like I’ve waiting so long and with so much excitement for this book! I have loved Beau since the first book, and his story surely did not disappoint! I really like Bailey too!

This is now my second favorite behind heartless! Cade and Willa’s story is still the best, but this is a close second!

The perfect ending to the Chestnut Springs series!

Tropes: fake dating/engagement, age-gap, slow burn, small town

What a bittersweet journey. Hopeless is the final book in the Chestnut Springs series, and while I couldn't wait to finally get my hands on Bailey and Beau, I'm so sad the series has come to a close.

Bailey Janson can't find her place in Chestnut Springs. With the last name that she has, she believes she forever doomed to be the town's pariah. That is until she finds the town's golden boy Beau Eaton at her bar every night looking more broken than she's ever seen him. Beau hasn't been the same since his return to Chestnut Springs. He's drowning in a sea of numbness, but sweet little Bailey Janson begins to breathe life back into him. In order to get his family off his back and help Bailey secured a job, Beau proposes that him and Bailey get fake engaged. Their engagement is supposed to be fake, but neither one of them can deny that real feelings are starting to get involved.

ALL THE STARS. Hopeless was everything I wanted it to be and more. Beau was the broody, closed off man I was expecting and Bailey was the one person who could bring him back to life. Her out of pocket one liners had me legitimately laughing out loud. I couldn't wait to hear what wacky question Bailey was gonna whip out next. And lets hear a little commotion for the banter. The banter was next level with these two. The BUTTERFLIES I got every time these two were going at it. And the spice? I truly believe that a slow burn build up makes the spice so much hotter and that was no different here. I swear I was sitting on the edge of my seat just waiting for them to finally get it on. And when they did? PHEWWWW. Of course we get the rest of the Chestnut Springs squad popping up throughout the book and it really was the perfect end to the series.

I loved Hopeless so so so much and can't believe this series is over now. Now it's time to go start over from the beginning!

LOVED IT!! A MUST LISTEN

Elsie always has the best narrators for her books and this was one was no different

Jason & Angelica do such an amazing job voicing Beau and Bailey to life!! They pull you into the story and fully immerse you in with the characters.
It was so good that I put off finishing it for a few days because I just didn’t want it to end!

Pure Perfection

I loved literally everything about this audiobook. The story, the characters, the narration. Elsie Silver is my new favorite!

Beau has the biggest heart, and I love how he protected Bailey no matter what she or they faced. He was broody and sexy and impulsive and a hero not only for his country but for Bailey.

The text messages among all the characters were priceless.

Bailey was so special. The things that would come out of her mouth were sometimes hilarious, sometimes insightful, sometimes naive, sometimes palm-slapping embarrassing. She constantly made Beau blush and scold her. “You can’t go around saying things like that, Bailey.” :) She was the perfect feisty match for Beau. They both have my heart.

The story and all they faced together. The conversations. The unwavering devotion. The growth of both characters. The found family. It. Was. All. Perfect,

Loved Beau & Bailey! Sad to say goodbye to Chestnut Springs!

5/5 ⭐️
2.5/5 🔥

✨ Small Town
✨ Age Gap
✨ Virgin Heroine / Tortured Hero
✨ He Falls First
✨ Fake Fiancé 
✨ Slow burn (but good tension 🤭)

I probably did about 80% audio/20% reading and let me just say… Angelina Rocca and Jason Clarke were perfect! Highly recommend the audio! Couldn’t have picked a better duo for Beau and Bailey! 👏🏻

If y’all thought Willa was a vibe, wait until you meet Bailey. The girl is completely unfiltered. I was dying at the things that came out of her mouth. Let’s just say she had Beau lost for words on more than one occasion. Bailey is young but you can see her strength. She’s constantly punished for the sins of her brothers and all she wants is to be valued for who she is and not where she came from. I loved her character so much! And Beau with his protective nature and the way he went to bat for Bailey…swoon! I really appreciate the way his trauma/healing was handled and especially how Bailey was his rock during those moments. 𝟐:𝟏𝟏 😭💚 I absolutely loved their pairing!

I’m sad that Chestnut Springs has come to an end but I think this was a perfect conclusion. I’m looking forward to what Elsie has in store for us!

Another amazing listen!!!

5 stars (obviously)
2/5 chili peppers

tropes: fake engagement, age gap, broken boy, small town, found family, virgin FMC, opposites attract

Where do I begin? I'm NOT READY TO LEAVE CHESTNUT SPRINGS! You may have to drag me kicking and screaming. I've loved this series with my whole heart and what a way to end it. Elsie, as always you are incredible. You've written a beautiful story. I was swooning over Beau while simultaneously wanting to pull him into a hug. Bailey is such a strong FMC. She's got wit and SO MUCH strength. Life has really given her the shitty end of the stick but she never gives up. She keeps working and fighting for what she wants. I LOVED watching these two just support and love each other. They were both broken in a way and found a way to fill in each others cracks.

2:11 am, the river, the tub, don't even get me started.

I devoured this audio. My favorite male narrator of all time?? Say less. These two just pulled me in and I was invested!

Please read this book, unless you haven't read Flawless, then start there and read this series in order knowing you'll be ruined for all other series moving forward.

Congrats Elsie!! You've done it yet again, I'm proud to be your friend and cannot wait to see where you take us next.

Fake engagement

This audiobook is so good the narrators did a great job bringing Hopeless to life. Jason Clark did a good job bringing out. Beau's protectiveness over Bailey. Angelina did great showcasing Bailey's trauma from her family. I love the way. The Eaton family excepted Bailey with open arms.. I loved how the narrators voiced the side characters. Especially how Jason Clark delivered Harvey's announcement at the end of the story.

Age gap hero

This has been such a great series!! Each book so special. This one is no different.

Beau and Bailey have a pretty amazing story. He’s from a respected family and she’s not. Because of her father and brothers she’s been lumped into the same category and been treated awful because of it.

Beau has always had a soft spot for the quiet hardworking Bailey. She works so hard but can never get ahead because of her family.

Beau is feeling pretty lost these days after being forced to retire from the military. He finds a friend in Bailey and becomes very protective of her and the way people treat her. As time goes on they develop a real friendship and one night they come up with a plan to help them both out. Becoming fake fiancées seems like a good idea at the time. That’s until real feelings start coming into play!!

This book had all the feels and I cried the last 10 minutes of the audiobook, all happy tears!! Jason and Angelina were perfect for these roles. I really didn’t want this book to end!!

Excellent Conclusion to the Series

I always thought Jasper's story would be the last, that he would be the most "damaged" and the most mysterious so I had been surprised when his story was the third book. After listening to Beau's story, I understand why he was last.

War hero and girl from the wrong side of the tracks come together to bring us the fake fiancé trope. It was just the right amount of angsty and deliciously dirty, which was made even better by Jason Clarke's deep growly voice. This was my first Angelina Rocca audiobook and she did not disappoint. I need to find some more of her work. I had the opportunity to meet her at her first signing, and she was absolute delight, which just makes me want to support that much more.

love!

love it! I love the character growth of Bailey 😍 and no but I wish there was more lol