Lisa Maggiore

I was gifted this book by the author through Choosy Bookworm in exchange for an honest review. Honestly, it was written well; but to me, it lacked emotion. I couldn't empathize with Jessica at any point in the narrative. I might be able to understand her actions as a teenager, but it was harder to understand how she acted as an adult. I'm trying to write this review without spoilers, but I felt like there was a time where she needed to take responsibility for her own life. It felt like she was keeping the dream of her first love so close that she couldn't let herself fully love anyone else.

I'm not one who tends to find that kind of thing appealing or romantic. I'm so glad that circumstances conspired in a way that she could understand the things that made her who she was as a teenager and as an adult. I really hope she went to counseling in the aftermath, because she clearly had difficulties that I'm not convinced love would have healed as easily as this story would have us to believe.
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Can you imagine growing up so protected that you never go anywhere without mace, or your Dad showing you his Colt 45? Jessica and her brother have always lived like this, and then she is finally set free, or rather allowed to attend the local high school.
She has to be home within ten minutes of school letting out, but she finds ways to have private time with her new boyfriend, Paul. Her father shows her the gun and tells her if anything ever happens, or one of those boys comes around he will say he was breaking into their home and kill them.
When Jess become pregnant, she knows and it is confirmed that her Dad has made his threat the truth. What a mixed up world this poor girl lives, and there are deep secrets here, that go back to her Dad and his sister’s growing up.
Will this family ever be free of all the ghosts that seem to haunt them? Will Jessie ever be able to find real happiness, or will she continue to grieve for what might have been.
This is a story of a family that has so many hurts and so much pain, coming at them from all sides. It becomes a page tuner because you want to know what is or did happen.
I received this book from Pump Up Your Book Virtual Book Tours, and was not required to give a positive review.… (plus d'informations)