Unbound by Peyton Corrine: My Book Review

Check out my book review of Unbound by Peyton Corinne to see what I think of her latest college romance that has all the feels!

*Disclosure: This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Unbound Summary:

Paloma Blake is, at best, antagonistic. But beneath the hairspray, attitude, and promiscuity is a scared girl whose trauma runs deep. Still, the walls she’s built are strong, ensuring everyone only sees Paloma’s sexy façade. Everyone except for Bennett.

Bennett Reiner, the carefully controlled, neurodivergent goalie, has his routines and sticks to them, which helps him keep a hold on his OCD compulsions and the crippling anxiety that comes with them. The quiet and meticulous Bennett sees everything, especially the girl beneath Paloma’s ever-present masks. And he always has.

Unbeknownst to their friends, Bennett and Paloma were each other’s first real love, which ended in crippling heartbreak. Bennett still doesn’t know what happened, and Paloma is determined to stay away from the comfort she used to find only in his arms. For years, Bennett has remained her protective shadow, coming to Paloma’s rescue whenever she asked, keeping her as close and safe as she’ll let him. But, like a tumultuous sea to a constant shore, Bennett and Paloma find each other once more.

Alternating between scenes from their past and present, Unbound contrasts the tentative tension and passionate beginnings of first love with the devastating loneliness and deep yearning of having that love ripped away from you without truly knowing why. As Bennett discovers the truth about Paloma’s past, the threads to his careful control start to come unbound, and both begin to realize that letting go of everything else might be worth it, if it means they both get the real love they once shared again.

Unbound: My Book Review

Peyton Corinne has created a series of new adult romance books that blends the world of college hockey and mental illness, and I knew that Unbound would do just the same. All of her books in the Undone series have blended timelines and I have been waiting for Bennett’s story and it was actually more emotional than I expected.

Peyton does not hold back in this one which addresses topics such as neurodivergence, OCD, anxiety, grooming and abuse. While my heart bled for both Bennett and Paloma, it was evident from the start that these two are soulmates who wholeheartedly deserved a happily ever after.

As the book summary denotes, this book moves between chapters about the past and present which I think is a smart way to unpack their story. At the beginning, Bennett and Paloma are not together but obviously missing and grieving each other but you don’t know what caused their separation.

I really enjoyed the first few past chapters that showed how they first met in the hockey locker room and again in a freshman poetry class to see just how connected they were to one another from the start. Two wounded souls who could be themselves with one another.

The chemistry between Bennett and Paloma is the best part of this book (as well as the poetry they share). I loved how they supported one another when they allowed themselves too. However, I felt like this book was a bit longer than it needed to be given that nothing else really happened in this story once they fell in love, except time going by seeing them hurting in the present, which is the only reason I didn’t rate it higher. Plus, there were several chapters in the middle that focused on Paloma in the past that just felt excessive to drive home the point of her self-harming behavior.

So, while I think Peyton did an incredible job exploring the various mental health and trauma issues in this story, it just made me feel sad from start to finish but I recognize that this is just a “me” thing. Even once they got back together, that was fraught with tension, but it didn’t feel as satisfying as I hoped. That being said, I think Peyton possibly wrote it this way because that is reality. Despite them being back together they have a lot to still unpack and they continue to do so.

Unloved is still my absolute favorite of the series. Would I recommend this one? Yes, if you’ve become a fan of the series like me and as someone who fell for Bennett’s character. Just be prepared for it to be very heavy.

Peyton definitely left a lot of breadcrumbs for the next book so I’m looking forward to getting Toren and Lily’s (and Holden?) story next.

*I received an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

More Books by Peyton:

• Unloved by Peyton Corinne

Related Book Lists:

• Best College Romance Books
• Best Romance Books Featuring Mental Illness
• Best Hockey Romance Books
• Most Anticipated New Romance Books of 2026
• Romance Books With Virgin Male Heroes

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