The danger in pretending is it becoming real...
Sebastian Stone, Sunder front man and guitarist with a rap sheet about ten miles long, escaped to Savannah, Georgia, to get away from the trouble he’d caused.
Not find more of it.
The moment he saw Shea Bentley, he saw beneath all her sweet and innocence to something that went deeper.
Darker.
Their relationship was built on secrets; their love built on lies.
Sebastian never imagined how deep her secrets went.
When the past and present collide, Sebastian and Shea find themselves fighting for a future neither believed they deserved. Their passion is consuming and their need unending.
Now, holding the truth in his hands, Sebastian is faced with sacrificing everything he’s come to love to protect Shea and his family.
Two pasts intertwined.
Two lives bound.
Will their demons drown them or will Shea and Sebastian finally learn to breathe?
Add it to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/DTBGoodreads
Buy Links:
A Stone in the Sea - Book 1 - 99c
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1Kdi2Cv
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1NubuX8
iBooks: http://apple.co/1IeerI6
Kobo: http://bit.ly/ASITSKobo
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/ASITSNookBook
Excerpt:
My voice was tight. “Made you a promise I’d protect you, Shea. Live for you. And that’s exactly what I’m gonna do. You and Kallie? You’re my life. My everything. And I will do anything…give up anything…to make sure you two are together. I won’t let him win.”
She brushed the back of her hand over the wetness on her cheeks. “He will do anything to break us apart…to separate us. He knows we’re weaker alone. All his words about taking us down at the same time?”
Her head shook with bitterness and hate, something so foreign on my girl’s face, but I saw it there—the atrocities he’d committed—the things she still kept inside.
The scars she wore on her heart while I wore mine on my skin.
“It’s a tactic. A ploy. He thinks he can fill us with threats. Convince our subconscious into believing together we’re easy targets. But, no.” Her eyes drew together as she refuted the idea, as she spilled her own belief. “He’s a coward. A coward. Someone who allows others to carry out his crimes and then lords it over them as if he is the one exerting control.”
That brave chin quivered. “I gave him my submission for so long, and I refuse to ever be that girl again. I was her, Sebastian. I was weak.”
Strength filled the profession. “But I’m not weak anymore. And I’m even stronger with you by my side.”
Raw.
Bold.
Courageous.
“Promise me you won’t let him provoke you, Sebastian. He knows exactly how to ruin people. He finds their weaknesses. He knows Kallie is mine. And he knows the two of us are yours.”
I swallowed hard. “I promise, baby.”
I promise.
Our Review:
Reviewed by Donna ~ 4.5 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***
“Maybe we’re no good for each other, after all.”
Wow, AL Jackson does it once again. This was a fantastic conclusion to Sebastian and Shea’s story full of heartfelt emotion, intense character connection and a great deal of angst, everything I love in a book. But this book is not all about the emotion as we have a great plot running throughout which keeps you on the edge of your seat. After A Stone in the Sea we were left wondering ...just how intertwined were their back stories? Who could they trust? Who did what? All these questions are answered and there are some surprises too. The person you would least expect finally steps up to the plate...finally.
“The danger in pretending is it becoming real.”
I have to say Sebastian was totally and utterly perfect, we always knew he had a heart of gold, putting everyone first before himself, often making huge sacrifices to make sure that everyone else was safe or happy and nothing changes throughout this book. Yes he is a little hot headed but he tries his damnedest to keep it in check, but when you muck around with those he loves, it is actions that speak the loudest. Baz really wears his heart on his sleeve in this book and you really connect with him on a much deeper level, you really get to understand him and where he is coming from and this only endears him all the more. I adored him.
“When you get pushed up against a wall, you push right the fuck back, fists and fury and uncontained aggression.”
This is a book about understanding and forgiveness, coming clean, honesty, working together and overcoming the crap that life always like to throw at you. How being a cohesive unit is much better than trying to tackle life alone and how love can make the biggest difference of all.
“We’ve had a whole lot of bad in our lives.”
I loved the way that Sebastian and Shea battled through their problems, how together, as a team they were deadly, stronger and definitely smarter. How they had each other’s backs and would do anything to reach their end goal, which was to right the wrongs and just be happy. As ever, people try to rail road their plans, try to destroy them and living through this all with the intense gaze of the paparazzi makes this so much more difficult for both of them. Yes they make mistakes, but this is a learning curve for both of them, but once they realise how formidable they are together there is no stopping them.
“You’ve fought for everyone your entire life, and now you’re going to step down – bow out – when you finally have something worth fighting for? Fight for her.”
I really don’t want to say anymore because I don’t want to spoil it and this is one of those stories that is best read as the author intended...blind. Take yourself on this journey with this adorable couple, be whisked away by AL Jackson’s beautiful storytelling, be captivated by her lyrical prose and run the gamut of emotions as AL Jackson takes you on one hell of a ride. Life was never meant to be easy and while this is more sombre than A Stone in the Sea, the emotion and angst pulls you through, but there is always light at the end of the tunnel and this is where this book really shines. If any couple deserve happiness it is these two, but just what will it take to get them there?
“Find love and bring it here.”
Fantastic duet and I cannot recommend it highly enough, happy reading.
About the Author:
A.L. Jackson is the New York Times bestselling author of contemporary and new adult romance.She first found a love for writing during her days as a young mother and college student. She filled the journals she carried with short stories and poems used as an emotional outlet for the difficulties and joys she found in day-to-day life.
Years later, she shared a short story she’d been working on with her two closest friends and, with their encouragement, this story became her first full length novel. A.L. now spends her days writing in Southern Arizona where she lives with her husband and three children.
Connect with A.L. Jackson online:www.aljacksonauthor.com
To stay up to date with important news on A.L. Jackson, including new releases, sales, and exclusive specials and excerpts, text “jackson” to 96000 to subscribe!
Newsletter: http://bit.ly/ALJacksonNewsletter
Website: www.aljacksonauthor.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/aljacksonauthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/aljacksonauthor
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/aljacksonauthor
Instagram: @aljacksonauthor
Tsu: https://www.tsu.co/ALJacksonAuthor
Giveaway:
Thank you so much for having me on!
ReplyDelete