Even a broken heart has trouble resisting a Stubborn Love.Emmie Hayes loved the beautiful Ashton Stirling deeply; nobody could deny that. She had given him her youth, and all he gave in return was misery and pain. She was ready for a new beginning, but Ashton wasn’t about to let her go so easily, even if it meant destroying both their lives in the process.
Three years later Emmie convinces herself she is ready to leave all of that heartbreak in the past and find a little piece of normal for herself. She heads to New York City to pick up where she left off, determined to finish art school. Emmie is determined to focus on school and not let anything distract her, but life has a way of throwing curveballs.
Paige, Emmie’s new roommate, brings Colin Bennett into her life. His smoldering eyes and lean muscular body are difficult for any girl to ignore. Only thing is, Emmie isn’t any girl. Her past makes her resistant to his charms. Colin isn’t one to give up easily, and just when he thinks he may have found a way to her stubborn heart, her tragic history may have found a way to tear them apart.
PURCHASE:
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Review:
This is a beautiful story about the journey to healing, love, and
forgiveness.
Talk about a chilling opening! I had serious goosebumps. The story opens with a tragic event that leaves Clementine aka Emmie with a shattered heart. She was already broken and then her high school sweetheart went and broke her even more...in the worst way. I was emotionally invested in the story and to Emmie from the very beginning.
"I suppose a person can only be beaten down for so long before they begin to yearn for their spirit to be set free."
I am ALWAYS, always, ALWAYS up for a self discovery read. This book took a different spin on self discovery that I really liked. With a tragic ending to a first love, Emmie's left feeling unworthy, guilty, and pretty much hopeless about love. She decides it's time to take back control of her life and she moves to New York for art school. As she adjusts to life in New York, she tries to move forward, but it becomes apparent that she's going to have to learn to forgive herself before she can do that. There are some things that were/are out of her control...
"I think the curse of us is probably too much for any man."Emmie's not interested in dating. She doesn't really think anyone will be interested in dating her either. Until she meets Colin...and that Stryker guy. I don't want to talk about Stryker. Lets just forget he even exists. Deal? Ok, moving on...
So, there's Colin...;)
"Besides, you didn't come here for love! Focus! Don't look at his eyes, don't look, no, don't do it. Damn it! I looked. How did he do that? It was almost like he smiled with those gray pools of intensity. Oh God, when did I get so cheesy?"
The storyline revolves around Emmie and Colin's evolving relationship. I'll be upfront, it doesn't start out all hearts and flowers for these two. This is a slow building romance, so if your looking for lots of steam, it's not for you. There's a couple of good scenes, but it's mostly about Emmie learning to open back up her stubborn heart.
This is the kind of story you read when you're in the mood for a little depth. It tugged at all my little heartstrings and I LOVED every single tug. There's some witty banter between the characters and Colin is dreeeeammmyy! I always love to see a playboy come to the love side of the field. Don't we all? This is my first book by Wendy Owens and I'll definately be on the lookout for the next book in the series later this year.
My Rating: 4 Stars
EXCERPT
I can’t pinpoint the moment it started to change. I suppose a person can only be beaten down for so long before they begin to yearn for their spirit to be set free. I tried telling Ashton that I needed more. I didn’t want to work in a bank. I wanted to be an artist. I wanted to follow my dreams, and I wanted more than anything for him to treat me like he loved me.
Don’t get me wrong; sometimes he could be a real sweetheart, saying all the perfect things. He was always quick to spend the money I earned on flowers for me. Especially when he wanted something, he could really lay on the charm. The mean streak didn’t come out until he didn’t get his way.
Taking several steps out into the yard, I kicked off my flip-flops, allowing my toes to sink into the lush green grass, curling them tightly and then flexing them outward. A deep breath filled my lungs before I exhaled. This was it: this was what freedom felt like. I’ll admit, I was scared as hell, and I didn’t know what being alone looked like, but I was ready for the experience.
I turned back and looked at the door to the home where I thought my life would always be. I had half expected Ashton to chase me outside, making a scene in front of all the neighbors, begging me not to go. I was surprised he didn’t. I think he knew as much as I did, this time, I wasn’t changing my mind. This time, no amount of screaming or crying would make me stay.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Wendy Owens was raisedom the small town of Oxford, Ohio. After attending Miami University, Wendy went on to a career in the visual arts.
After several years of creating and selling her own artwork, she gave her first love, writing, a try. Since 2011, she has published a young adult paranormal series, The Guardians, which will contain five books total, as well as a novella. Wendy now happily spends her days writing -- her loving dachshund, Piper, curled up at her feet. When she's not writing, she can be found spending time with her tech geek husband and their three amazing kids, exploring the city she loves to call home: Cincinnati, OH.
Stubborn Love is her debut New Adult novel. Only In Dreams, the second book in this series, is set to be released in December 2013. For info on Wendy's novels including her YA series, The Guardians, visit: http://wendyowens.com/
Thank you so much for posting in the blog tour! Your support goes a long way to help out indie authors like myself. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I'll be watching your awesome blog for sure.
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