by Beth Rinyu
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Published: July 9th, 2015
They say you never forget your first love. No matter how many more come along or how much time goes by, there will always be that one person who will be forever embedded deep inside your heart and soul. For me, that was Jaxson Callahan.
We were complete opposites. I was a senator’s daughter. My parents were always too busy keeping up appearances on the political scene to show me love, so instead they bought my affection.
He was the son of a woman who allowed men to use and abuse her as well as him, just for her next fix.
We became each other’s solace during that summer we met, creating a lifetime of memories in three short months. I provided him with a sense of hope that there was more than just the harsh reality of the life he had grown accustomed to, and he showed me a genuine love that I had been yearning for my entire life. We vowed to be together forever. I loved him and he loved me…. and nothing would keep us apart.
Nothing except the secrets that were hiding in that small seaside town.
We became each other’s solace during that summer we met, creating a lifetime of memories in three short months. I provided him with a sense of hope that there was more than just the harsh reality of the life he had grown accustomed to, and he showed me a genuine love that I had been yearning for my entire life. We vowed to be together forever. I loved him and he loved me…. and nothing would keep us apart.
Nothing except the secrets that were hiding in that small seaside town.
Secrets that altered our destiny. We were never given any warning as we watched our future shake, crumble and disappear altogether, leaving us with nothing but memories of a bittersweet past.
Life can be beautiful.
Life can be kind.
Life can be kind.
And, life can be heartless…..because nothing about our situation was fair.
My Rating 4 1/2 Coffee Cups!!
So, it really is no secret that I love Beth Rinyu. Awesome person, amazing author, all around good people. But after reading this book, I determined that she also has a little bit of a cruel streak. This book is wonderful with twists and turns you don't expect and an ending you most definitely don't see coming. But you follow the characters along on these twists and turns and there were instances (which I can't tell you about) that will make you heartbroken and will in turn make you cry. Not necessarily quiet sobs or a tear that will softly roll down your cheek, oh no Beth will make you cry loud, heaving, ugly cries. And I think she may take a little bit of pleasure in it. The fact that when I told her how amazing it was when I finished and one of her first questions to me were "did you cry?" kind of backs up my theory. I in actuality did not cry, but that was only due to the fact that I was at work while reading most of it and I'm pretty sure the guys that I work with would have thought I was either crazy or hormonal if they were to see me. But that's not to say it wasn't extremely hard stopping myself.
So onto the story itself. Samantha is the over-privileged, under-appreciated senator's daughter. She has always had her life handed to her and was able to get anything she wanted. Anything material that is. The only thing she's ever yearned for has been her parent's love, particularly her father's. So, in the summer before she heads off to college she decides to spend time with one of the only family members that has treated her as more than a trophy child, her grandmother. Her grandmother has lived in the same home both her and her father's entire lives, in a small coastal town in North Carolina (where I live, yay!) and now that she's suffering from dementia Samantha wants to be there for her. On her first day there she runs into the moody, mysterious, beautiful Jaxson and it's not one of those immediate, mutual, need-to-have-one-another-now meetings either. He's angry and taking it out on her and she chalks up the connection she's feeling to insta-lust. But as much as she tries to dismiss it, because he is kind of an ass to her, she can't shake the feeling and she begins to not want to. She wants to get to know his mysteries and dig deeper, beyond what the town and even her housekeeper thinks of him.
Jaxson is damaged. Without knowing any of his past you can see that almost immediately. And as you get deeper into his past you see just how broken he really is. His mother is the town whore and his father is abusive and evil. It's hard for him to separate himself from that. It's hard for him to understand and accept the love that's all around him. Love from his surrogate father and boss Pete and his girlfriend Bonnie and love from Samantha. And when the secrets of his past are uncovered to both Samantha and himself the effects are heartbreaking.
Although, in most cases a three month love affair of teenagers may feel corny and a bit like instalove, that is not the case with this story. There is true love, a true connection and a lot of demons.
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