Riley Mackenzie

4.5 Beautifully Awake Stars

Finally I reached out and bruised the hair from those familiar eyes, the mirror reflection of my own. You were awake. Your eyes were open. But the light was gone. There was nothing but darkness. Three years of complete emptiness.

It was time to close your eyes.

Truth....Beautifully Awake is a must read by all.

These two authors did an amazing job of bringing us one hell of a debut novel. I for one can not wait for book #2 in this series.You Will love Chase and his Blue!!! I LOVED this story. The characters where real, I felt like I was right there alongside the character's throughout the whole story.

Lili Porter is sleep running. It is her safe place. After suffering a terrible past, she moves through her days in the motions but that is all. I Loved Lili she was fun, playful , caring, and selfless. After choosing to start fresh she moves to another state and gets a job in a new hospital as a Case Manager. This is where she meets Chase Chief of Neurosurgery as Philadelphia Hospital.

Dr. Chase Colton, sexy, compassionate, dominate, bossy. He has his own mystery past burdened with guilt and demons.
After a couple rough situations Lili and Chase find themselves not being able to stay away from each other. The more time they spend together the closer they become.

Chase slowly starts to break down Lili's walls and you truly feel sad for her and all she has been through. Chase shows her what true love and intimacy is all about and she starts to feel a safe haven within Chase. When the Mystery of Chase's own life comes to light I was shocked. I was heartbroken.

The Epilogue HOLY HELL !!!! The author's killed me with that I was like WTH!!! What are you doing to me?


Can they together find their light? Can they both help to mend each other and move forward?

Definitely a must read for everyone. I would recommend this book to everyone !!!!!!

I didn't want to run away from any more of my life. I just wanted to feel. If that meant not always feeling happy, not always feeling comfortable, if it meant suffering through times of sadness and headache, then I was in. I wanted all in. If love was my only constant, then nothing else mattered.
… (mais)

Lili is a social worker who left her small town to take a job as a case manager in Pediatric Surgery at Philadelphia Hospital. Due to budget issues, resources had to be reallocated and case managers started to rotate on different surgery services. At the beginning of the story, Lili had just started a new rotation in Neurosurgery. Her first encounter with the sexy, chiseled Dr. Chase Colton, Chief of Neurosurgery, left her awestruck. Their mutual attraction was instant and magnetic. She was then invited into the OR for surgeries in which the patient was woken up mid-procedure. Very quickly, Lili and Chase’s relationship moved from professional to personal as they were unable to ignore their intense connection. Over time, they had to help one another come to terms with their traumatic pasts in order to move on and find true happiness together.

When I first read Beautifully Awake’s description, I knew it would appeal to me since I’m such a big fan of medical dramas on TV. As promised, there was a glimpse into the daily workings of a hospital and its staff. We got to know Guy--the 3rd year resident with a bit of a crush on Lili, Sam--the intern, Jackson--the physician assistant, Leanne--the nurse, and Kate from the recovery room. And we also got to see what happens in the on-call room, if you know what I’m saying. ;) I’m not sure how realistic all of these medical details and scenarios were, but it was fun to read anyway.

I had mixed feelings about Chase as a love interest. He was attractive, mysterious, and an unselfish lover. He treated Lili well, wining and dining her in New York City and spoiling her with designer shopping sprees. But at the same time he was extremely possessive, which was a big turn off for me, and some of his lines were too cheesy for my taste.

Lili and Chase’s chemistry was off the charts. This story was more explicit than the romances I usually read, so be prepared for some seriously steamy scenes. But it wasn’t all lust and passion--Lili and Chase connected on a much deeper level, too. Once they finally opened up about their pasts, they helped each other start to trust again and let go of guilt.

Some of my favorite secondary characters were the best friends. Sierra, Lili’s pregnant BFF, wasn’t afraid to tell her the truth and was always there to support her and listen to her problems. Sierra also provided a lot of comic relief with her pregnancy stories. Asher was also a great friend to Chase, and toward the end of the story, Lili found herself wondering why Asher was still single. I was thinking the same thing while reading. It turns out that the next book in the series will tell Asher’s story!

I recommend Beautifully Awake to anyone looking for a sexy and entertaining read about two broken people who help one another heal their emotional wounds.… (mais)