Within these walls, he became my solace, my sanctuary and my strength.
I am not strong. I am just a survivor of circumstance.
Isn’t that what we all do? Survive?
Each of us has our own set of circumstances to muddle through. Mine are just more…complicated.
Born with a severe heart defect, I’ve seen the inside of a hospital room more than my own bedroom.
I was drowning, a prisoner to the illness that owned me, until he appeared. He thinks he’s blocked out the world with his tattoos and hard exterior, but I see the real Jude, the one he so desperately wants to forget.
But is he the answer to my prayers or will he break my already damaged heart forever?
My name is Lailah Buchanan, and this is our story of hope, redemption and sacrificing it all for the one you love.
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Hooked. Hooked. Hooked. From the first page, to the last,
I was hooked. I couldn’t help but feel the pain, join the journey, feel the
hope, watch the love blossom and watch that fragile heart break apart.
The first thing I thought when I started reading this
book was – OMG, is someone going to die? This book may have remind me a bit of
two of my all-time favorite: A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks and The
Fault in our Stars by John Green – both of which didn’t really end like a
fairytale would. I was just crossing my fingers that this time no one is going
to die.
Can it be possible? Can J.L. Berg give me a happy ending?
Lailah knew how fragile can life be. She had lived so
long, cocooned carefully in a tight bubble so that her weak heart wouldn’t
fail. She had spent half her life in the hospital, and learned to live with
whatever she has. She has never been to the ocean, never stepped foot in
another place, she never went to school, never experienced prom, never had her
first kiss, and never fell in love. All she had were her hope-filled Someday
List.
But it is all going to chance the moment Jude, a nurse
assistant, is about to be transferred in the cardiology unit.
He is a quiet guy who loves his solitude. He didn’t mingle
with other employees, he likes to be alone, and no one knew who he really is.
But three years ago, he was a wealthy man, who just graduated from college and
has a beautiful fiancée. One wrong ‘selfish’ decision – he has lost the most
important thing in the world. Ever since, he didn’t leave the hospital. He continued
to roam around, sit in the corner where he said his last goodbye to the person
who had meant everything to him. He was lost. He was broken. And he thought nothing
could repair the break in his soul. Until he came across a cardiac patient, Lailah.
I thought there was nothing more to it than mere
attraction, or perhaps, pity – I was in for a big surprise. Because their
lives? It is more connected than what I imagined it would be. And as they spend
more and more time together, Jude learns that he wanted this girl to be happy.
That he wanted to cross off some things from his list one by one. It didn’t
take long before he fell. And when he did, he fell hard.
Just when I thought they’d live happily, ever after – a heartbreaking
news was given to them. Jude knows there was a way for all of this to go away,
for her to have the one thing that she needed to live freely and cross off
every single thing on her list. He needed to go and break her heart for her to
have a new one.
You will not just love the main characters, but the
secondary characters will make their ways into your hearts. Margaret, the HR
person who saw through Jude and yet never pushed him to do what he wasn’t ready
to do. Molly and Marcus who loved Lailah, they have given their lives,
sacrificed most of their happiness for them to care for her in their own means.
And there’s the nurse, someone I can relate too, because hey – I’m a nurse! She
makes Lailah’s stay bearable by her positive attitude.
This book is filled with a lot of heartwarming and
heartbreaking story, I couldn’t chose which was my favorite, or which one do I hate
most. But one thing is for sure, it will be too hard for you to put this one
down. I was easily engaged in reading, following Jude’s journey towards letting
go, and forgiveness and Lailah’s story about living her life, despite all the
circumstances.
Sometimes, even in our bleakest and darkest days, a
flicker of hope would come shining through.
•Complimentary Copy was given in exchange for an honest review.•
J.L. Berg
is the USA Today bestselling author of the Ready Series. She is a California
native living in the beautiful state of historic Virginia. Married to her high
school sweetheart, they have two beautiful girls that drive them batty on a
daily basis. When she's not writing, you will find her with her nose stuck in a
romance novel, in a yoga studio or devouring anything chocolate. J.L. Berg is
represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency, LLC.
Connect with J.L.
Berg: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Newsletter
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