Chloe hasn't had the best life. With a mother who is gone more often than not, she has had to raise herself. After graduating high school, she leaves to start a new life away at West Virginia University with her best friends Amber and Logan, determined to leave her demons in the past.
On her first day, she meets a stranger who takes her breath away at first sight. Until she met Drake, no one had ever sparked her interest. Now this tattooed and pierced bad boy is all she can think about, no matter how hard she fights it.
Falling for Drake was never part of her plans, but when it happens, things seem to do anything but fall into place.
Dealing with a tragic past, Drake has never cared about anyone else but himself and his band. But when Chloe takes the empty seat next to him in class, things start to change. Instantly drawn to her, he begins to wonder if one girl can take a cold hearted womanizer and change every part of him?
Long hidden feelings are revealed and friendships tested to the brink.
REVIEW
So, I was torn by this book. When I started reading Torn, I caught myself rolling my eyes at the disjointed and awkward dialog. Then the simplistic writing and editorial mistakes almost made me stop reading. Almost. But I didn't give up because the beginning of the book had potential. It grabbed me, especially the premise of Chloe's background. Still, by the end, I never felt we had enough of the back story to fully understand Chloe.
The author took on a major issue - child abuse and neglect. When you embark on a writing project with such profound issues, I believe the author has the obligation to flesh it out fully. That didn't happen though perhaps that's to come in the next book in the series.
Now, this isn't just a love story. It's a love triangle. And it's between two sincere men and one immature young lady. I could understand why she might engage with the men the way she did but I still couldn't shrug off the fact that she cheated. Her integrity was so questionable, I just couldn't find something to like about her.
The secondary characters, particularly Logan and Drake, were unique and realistic for their age. I didn’t like being jerked around throughout the story -back and forth between the two men in the love triangle- and there was never one that the author made stand out over the other. With limited back stories, it was hard to get to know them. Their personalities were somewhat inconsistent with varied reactions that didn't mesh with the character we first met.
Despite all my griping, I'd say if you read my review and still think you want to give it a try, go for it. The themes are in line with other New Adult books so if you enjoy that genre, you'll enjoy this book. It just wasn't for me. And since I noticed the author now sold the books to a publisher (these were self-pubbed), I suspect they'll clean up the manuscript for a crisper read.
RATING: 3 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries
This book was provided through NetGalley. Many thanks.
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