Breathe into Me
My Rating: four-half-stars
Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on July 29th 2014
Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Mature Themes, Romance, Adult
ISBN: 1250048516
Pages: 290
Disclosure: I was invited by the publisher to read this title in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. I received no monetary compensation, and all comments are subjective and mine alone.
Content Warning: sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence make this title appropriate for readers 18 and over.
STAND ALONE FULL NOVEL LENGTH. HEA, NO CLIFFHANGERS.
How did my life get so broken? It’s a question Lacey St. James asks herself every day. Stuck raising her little brother in a trailer park while she works a dead end job at a grocery store, she has a stalker exboyfriend, a bad reputation, and no way out.
And then she meets Everett, whose presence changes her entire existence.
Everett is an outsider to her small community, in town for the summer housesitting one of the grand mansions off the Mississippi coast. When he saves her in a bar one night, she’s grateful but wary of his intentions. Lacey doesn’t trust most men in her life, but for reasons Lacey she understand, Everett is completely captivated by her. He’s determined to show her that life can offer more than she’d ever hoped for, if only she believes in herself. As she works with him to free herself, Lacey desperately yearns to trust him, to move on and perhaps start fresh.
But what happens when she finds out that everything he’s told her about himself was a lie?
“Breathe Into Me” had an interesting premise. It was quite different from many of the new adult novels on the market and I’m excited to see authors taking the plunge and veering away from the pack and the formulaic stories that have been pumped out the last year. I thought Fawkes story was well thought-out. I liked her writing style and I found it easy to follow. I was drawn into her world seamlessly, picturing myself next to the characters in the scenes.
The characters in the book were developed well for the most part. I enjoyed watching Everett and Lacey’s relationship grow. And I was excited that in the day of constant cliffhangers we actually got a happily ever after!
Lacey for me wasn’t a character I completely gelled with. I felt bad that she was treated badly by the people in her life, but some of the choices she made were rather idiotic and put her in positions that she knew would turn out poorly (going back to Macon, huh? Yeah, smart.). I also found her wishy-washy concerning her brother. In fact, I became a little irritated at her on this point. She could party and spend time with Everett and others, but we’d go pages without her so much as mentioning her brother whom she was supposed to be so concerned about.
Everett was a great guy. He had his secrets, yes. He lied to Lacey, yes. But he wasn’t some ogre out for world dominance. No, he was a good guy with a past that he’d like to forget. Unfortunately for the book, the big surprise wasn’t so surprising. But, even though I had the huge shocker figured out long before the big reveal, I still enjoyed the book.
Secondary characters. Yes, there were some. No, they didn’t add a whole lot to the story. They could have add a lot more depth. But what part they did play was done well.
The pacing was fairly good. The book kept my attention. I wasn’t balancing my checkbook while reading (yes, I’ve read books that Sloooow). I loved the author’s writing style. The characters, although Lacey and I probably wouldn’t be besties if we were to meet, were written well. But, unfortunately, the ending was rushed and the strings tied up in the last chapter in just a few paragraphs, almost like a grocery list.
Bottom Line: I think “Breathe Into Me” was an original plot. The story had so much potential to be a deep, heart-wrenching story. The subplot between Lacey and her brother could have been developed into something so poignant and sweet. I think Fawkes missed an opportunity in this area. The book definitely had some issues for me, but despite that, I enjoy it and would read Sara Fawkes’ work in the future.
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