This is a really great, moving read, but beware the trigger warnings! Gabriel was abducted as a child, and can’t stand to be touched. He comes to Ellie, who’s had a very bad childhood after losing her mother and works in a strip club, for help getting used to having a woman touch him. The two of them wind up helping each other after Ellie is assaulted in a brutal attack, and sparks begin to fly. This was a difficult book to read, but the sweetness of two wounded people falling slowly in love was very beautiful as well.

Trigger Warnings: rape of a child, kidnapping, child abduction, sexual assault, attempted rape, child sexual assault

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader. ( )

FGMAMTC Blog Review  Excerpt, Teaser Pics & Giveaway
Both of the leads were easy for me to love. They have painful pasts, beyond the norm, tragedies in fact. I like the way they overcome. It's an emotional journey that fills the soul and the eyes. Crystal/Ellie is not in a good place in most aspects of her life, but the writing makes her easy to understand. This book illustrates the importance of taking the time with others instead of judging. Gabriel is bone-deep good. He's solid, strong, supportive and sensitive. I couldn't help falling hard for him. Because he's been working through his issues for longer and mostly in a better place, he is patient with her. He gives her love and space as needed. Also, I have to say thank you so much to the author for making girl characters who are genuinely nice to each other. I'm always looking for a story that makes me feel. Most of All You kept a hold on my heart. It's definitely a book I recommend.


***Copy given in exchange for an honest review***

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents

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This was an enjoyable read but it was very different from Archer's Voice, which was the first, and only, book I read by Mia Sheridan. I liked Archer's Voice more than this one but this one was still a good read, in my opinion.

The first chapter had me hooked! The first chapter gives you some background history on our main character, Ellie. After the first chapter, which is sort of a flashback from Ellie's childhood, the reader is in present day. The first half of this book was slow for me. The first half is setting up a lot of the dynamic between our two main characters, Ellie and Gabriel. The "relationship" between Ellie and Gabriel in the first half of the book felt very unrealistic to me and definitely insta-lovey.

But, the last half was much better. I loved the aspect of their story that dealt with healing and growing independently and coming together for a second chance romance. I really liked how she took the time for herself without relying on anyone else. I also liked how Gabriel loved her unconditionally. He let her have space and the time that she needed and loved her through everything. He was always there for her building her up and caring for her, even when people were degrading towards her because of her occupation. I enjoyed the last half of this book far better than the first half.

*Note: This book deals with a lot of heavy topics, such as: death, loss, grief. Trigger warnings: abuse, sexual assault, rape ( )

2.5 stars

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Kidnapped and locked in a basement for six years, Gabriel managed to physically escape but years later as an adult, he is still somewhat mentally in that dark place.
Ellie lost her mother young and with a disinterested father, she slipped through the cracks.
Two lonely souls are about to connect.

Gabriel, a boy who hadn't let himself forget what love felt like, and me, a girl who had made sure I did not remember.

With dueling pov chapters, this New Adult story deals with very dark issues but bathed in a very hopeful light. We are given the facts, Gabriel hates to be touched because of the abuse he suffered from his captivity and Ellie feels no personal value because of her father's neglect (she also experienced child abuse but takes awhile to acknowledge it as such). When Gabriel sees her at the strip club, he instantly feels she doesn't belong there and when Ellie hears he wants to hire her to help him grow accustomed to touch, she doesn't feel good enough for him. With a forced to spend time together occurrence happening, we get a lot of pushing and pulling.

While the facts and backgrounds given to our two leads are deep and dark, the author coated Gabriel with an almost angelic, optimistic light. He feels deeply for Ellie pretty immediately and without a lot of interaction between them, I wasn't quite sure why he fell so fast. Ellie's feelings for Gabriel were a bit more understandable as it was clear that he was the first man to ever show her respect. This had a very New Adult feel, with a wide-eyed young adult love, that my older (possibly too cynical) self couldn't quite follow. Gabriel's issue of not liking to be touched seemed to be gotten over pretty quickly. The work and meat of their relationship seemed to be left out in favor of a more airy fairy insta-love. Although, I did appreciate how, even kind of rushed towards the end, the author showed Ellie needed to do the personal work on herself, instead of being instantly cured by Gabriel's love.

This story was a bit uneven with its heavy topics but fluffy feel. The secondary characters were worked in well but their relationships with the leads didn't always feel fully flushed out. The author obviously wanted the deep emotions giving her characters such pasts would do but didn't give us the heavy lifting; it ending up feeling insubstantial at times.

This was a little slower moving but the often not seen more sensitive hero and heroine who needs to complete herself was appreciated. The steam factor is there at times but the very few sex scenes are safely glossed over with a more rose petals feel. If you're a New Adult fan, this will probably hit a sweet spot for you.

"I'm still not the right girl."
"I still don't agree."






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3.5 Stars
I am not in the norm with this book. Although, that is nothing new for me. Mia is a phenomenal story teller. She creates some of the best flawed, realistic characters and gives them a heart wrenching story that leaves people with full hearts and tears falling from their eyes.

This story is no different than her past books in that aspect. She has created another book that will pull at your heart and possibly bring you to tears. The characters are flawed and realistic. Their story not all unicorns and rainbows.

So why am I not over the moon with this book? This book took me forever to get through. The plot moved way too slow for me. I found myself waiting for something to happen too often. Overall, the book is a great book. The slow delivery of the story really didn't resonate with me. ( )