A Sacrifice, An Indulgence

It's our BLOG-iversary and we are celebrating all week here at Guilty Indulgence. COMMENT any day (or every day) for a chance to WIN our BAG o' SWAG!

As women, particularly those of us who are mothers, we make daily sacrifices. Often times, I don't even realize I'm making one because it's so intrinsic in raising my boys. And when I reflect, I don't regret a single sacrifice. But I wonder if this lack of resentment for my sacrifices is because I equally know how to indulge myself when necessary. Reading is my indulgence... slipping into another world is decadent... and I couldn't be the mother I am (which I'm pretty sure is totally awesome!) without that time away. I may not have time to take a weekly trip to the spa but I certainly can make time to read a romance novel or two (or five - that's my weekly quota). So for those mothers out there who do a whole lot of sacrificing without taking time for whatever your indulgence might be, I recommend you take the time for yourself. And if you're reading this, maybe your indulgence is romance novels too. So read my review of Sacrifice by Samantha Sommersby - it is a great indulgence.

Sacrifice is book one in the Forbidden series. At its core, the book is a paranormal romance with a quirky cast of characters where the secondary characters really make the book. Uniquely written in the hero’s POV, readers will find themselves most easily connecting with Wesley while being left wondering a bit about Katherine. The story moves along at a good pace once it gets started – just hold on through the very beginning and you’ll figure it all out – as Sommersby adds depth by weaving multiple strands of the story together.

Wesley Atherton is a wealthy psychiatrist living in London. He’s never believed in love at first sight despite being raised by parents that swore by it. He does, however, firmly believe in determining what it is he wants and working hard to get it. So it is the case when he first meets Katherine. Despite her engagement to another man, he knows enough about reading people to know she doesn’t love the man. Wes does everything he can to convince her that she should share her life with him instead. Wes’s character is quite appealing – he’s witty, intelligent, charming, self-deprecating (in a funny way) and driven, confident. And his commitment to Katherine is beautiful.

It’s after they survive a deadly train wreck that the paranormal world closes in on them. One of Wesley’s patients, a psychic, warns them the Reaper doesn't like to be cheated out of his quarry and is now seeking a soul. A series of dangerously strange events convince Wes that he and Katherine are living on borrowed time. He uses the wit and brawn of those around him – his inner circle of friends and a great cast of secondary characters – to battle against death itself in an effort to protect the woman he loves. Using richly illustrative scenes, the final battle is intense and serves as the climax to this solid book.

Though the paranormal world is important to the story, there remains a true sense of reality to Wes and Katherine’s love story. The struggles the couple have in their developing relationship keep the story grounded in reality while the fantastical paranormal storyline will keep readers riveted, never certain where the story is going from one page to the next. Both Katherine's ex-fiance and Wes’s ex-girlfriend attempt to intrude on the budding relationship but seem only to strengthen their commitment to one another. 

Sacrifice is a fantastical love story worth reading - a true indulgence and worthy of our 5 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries rating. Yum.