MOVEMBER REVIEW: Worth Saving by WS Greer
"When we first met, we were both lost. It was written in our eyes when we first saw each other. My past haunted me, your present haunted you. I could see that you were aching, yet trying to bury the pain deep down so that no one would know, but it was there. I saw it. I saw you. I thought you needed me to swoop in and save the day; to be your hero, your knight in shining armor that would ride in and rescue you from the torment. And something inside drove me to a place I'd never been before. A place where it didn't matter how stacked the odds were, because nothing would stand between us. Nothing would stand in the way of me being the savior you needed me to be, and I'd go to hell and back to protect you. I thought you needed me, but I was wrong. It's me who needs you. I need your heart next to mine in order to get over what I've been through, and to push through the obstacles that are in our way now. It won't be easy. It'll be the hardest thing either of us has ever had to endure, but as long as we make it through together, it'll all be worth it, because you're worth every bit of the struggle. It's because of you that I can stare death in the face and not feel the slightest hint of fear. You make it all okay. You're worth it. You’re worth saving. -Captain Austin Sloan, USAF-"
I went into this book with no expectations, I didn't read any reviews on it and had never heard of the author before which was great because it meant that this book came as a great surprise. Layla has had a hard life and really has no luck, until she meets Austin. She has no faith in men, she's closed off and tries not to show emotion, but Austin is different and he is the main reason I loved this book.
The humour is great but it's also mixed in with real issues; domestic violence, trust, PTSD, and the sex industry. It gives this book a gritty side which I found interesting to read about. Austin is dealing with PTSD and he tries to cover up the severity of it. I liked hearing about his side of things, he used to be a player but that all changed and Layla pops up at the perfect time for him. You think it's Layla who is worse off but actually Austin needs her more.
I feel like there are two sides to this book, one is the humour and goofiness of Austin, I loved his chats with Layla, so much of it is stuff I'd say myself and it all felt so real. Austin's date idea's are great, it was unique, not something I'd read before. The romance between them is genuine and sweet, even though I would say it followed the traditional romance novel formula, I still found my heart racing at some points. The other side is the grittiness, the violence Layla has to endure, the nightmares Austin suffers, alone they suffer pain but together they heal and it's beautiful. I really found myself caught up in the emotions too.
Another thing that won me over in this book was the reference to my favourite TV series EVER....Friends. Way to my heart! :-)
I would thoroughly recommend this book, it's real and heartwarming, it genuinely made me smile, even after the sadness they've been through. There wasn't full on sex in it, just the hint without all the details which was fine, it worked for the story, but I will definitely be checking out more of the authors books!
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