"I dare
you."
Those words would change adrenaline junkie, Alice Harrison's life forever. She's a party girl that doesn't believe in love until she meets a man that only writes about it.
Seth James escaped his overbearing father and moved into one of the James family's vacant condos, hoping to create the music he loves in peace. But the fragile calm he's envisioned shatters when a tiny woman with a world full of energy bounces out of the elevator and nearly takes him out.
With the patience of a saint, Seth seeks the dark that keeps Alice from enjoying life. He challenges her to exorcise the demons in her past in order to discover the true meaning of love. But when the walls fall down, the hidden deceptions will bare the ugly truth about a woman drowning in sorrow and a man who may not know how to be her hero.
Those words would change adrenaline junkie, Alice Harrison's life forever. She's a party girl that doesn't believe in love until she meets a man that only writes about it.
Seth James escaped his overbearing father and moved into one of the James family's vacant condos, hoping to create the music he loves in peace. But the fragile calm he's envisioned shatters when a tiny woman with a world full of energy bounces out of the elevator and nearly takes him out.
With the patience of a saint, Seth seeks the dark that keeps Alice from enjoying life. He challenges her to exorcise the demons in her past in order to discover the true meaning of love. But when the walls fall down, the hidden deceptions will bare the ugly truth about a woman drowning in sorrow and a man who may not know how to be her hero.
*Drowning is a New Adult Contemporary Romance suited for 18+ due to some violence, language, and sexual content*
It's a meeting between two
artistic souls when Alice Harrison literally runs into Seth James.
Although there is great mutual attraction, neither one wants any
distractions. Ahhh, but this is romance, right? Pretty soon there's
no doubt that friendship turns into something more! I found both
Seth and Alice to be both beautifully damaged characters. They each
have their own flaws...Alice more so than Seth. He is an aspiring
musician. Creating music is his life, and he's trying to do good for
his band. There's a reason why Alice keeps things hidden deep
inside. She guards such painful truth and needs someone to believe.
“I'll be your
anchor when the fear creeps in. I'll hold your hand and promise to
listen. And when you dare to take on life, I'll be here to watch you
survive. Cause I'm drowning in you.”
If I could describe this
story in a few words, I would say that Drowning is
exhilarating, dark and totally unexpected. Don't get me wrong, I
liked this story, in fact, I found it completely engrossing. I
enjoyed the alternating POV very much. I just wasn't expecting it to
go down such a twisted path. The main antagonist in this story is
pure EVIL!!! I have no words to describe this sick monster. There
were scenes that made me cringe and squirm and left me in a state of
high anxiety.
Although I felt things wrapped up too quickly, Drowning
ends on a good note and leaves you feeling like a brand new journey
is about to begin. I hope there will be more. I'm curious to see
where Ms. Firasek takes this series.
*A
complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review. *
Excerpt
In the hall, arms
laden with musical equipment, four large and totally hot guys fill
the space—Seth James leading the pack. He stops, drops the cymbal
dangling from an index finger, and stares. His too bright gaze
travels down my scantily, and very sweaty, clad body and back up.
When our eyes meet, he grins. “Come to help?”
“No.” I have no
idea what makes me do it, but I snatch his cymbal off the floor and
carry it into his apartment. I’m asking for trouble, but can’t
seem to stop myself. They follow me inside, jaws still slack. Okay,
so I’m cute, but not worthy of jaws dropping. I plop it down on his
couch and rush back to the door. Taking on Seth doesn’t scare me,
but a crew of hotties is a little much.
His strong fingers
wrap around my shoulder before I make it through the walkway. It’s
not controlling or holding me back. His hand is simply resting on me.
“Hey, thanks. I’m sorry if we…uh…interrupted your day.”
His words sound
sincere and slightly slurred, and I can’t find it in my heart to be
bitchy to the first guy in a long time that has only shown me
kindness. I sigh and pivot to face him. “It’s not me I’m
worried about. My sister is asleep.”
He glances at his
watch and frowns.
“She’s
recovering from an accident. So, if you don’t mind, keep it down in
the halls.”
He leans forward.
“Will do and I’m sorry.”
When he enters my
personal space, my heart speeds up. His eyes stare into mine. I feel
this incredible connection, like he knows my pain. Like he can see my
guilt.
The distance between
us seems to be shrinking, and I’m not sure if it’s me shuffling
closer or him.
He snags the zipper
on my jacket and runs it up and down. “Is she going to be okay?”
I pluck at a button
on his shirt and glance up. “Eventually.”
His friends form a
half-moon circle around him and gape at me. I flick a glance at each
of them. They all have a very different style of dress, which only
raises more questions about the man in front of me. “Am I the first
girl they’ve ever seen?”
Blondie, with the
coal lined eyes, on the left snickers. “In Seth’s apartment?
Hell, yes.”
Seth elbows him, but
grins.
The tall guy in a
kind of hot-nerd ensemble leans over and shakes my hand. “Deacon.
Would you like a beer?”
I eye the leering
men again. “It looks like you started without me, and I’m not
into gang-bangs.” I disengage the overlong hand play with the nerd
and back away from the group. “G., I’ll catch you later.”
“Hey, wait. I’ll
walk you back over.”
The hotties chuckle,
high-five, and rib Seth as we walk toward the hall. He shuts the door
to their gazes and catches my hand before I can cross back to my
apartment. “Hey, are you going to tell me your name?”
“Nah, this is more
fun.”
“Why?”
“I think you’re
used to having your way.”
He smiles. “Maybe.”
He leans against his door and crosses his arms. His smile slips into
a smug grin I’d seen on so many rich boys in this city. He thinks
he has me. “I’d like to have my way with you.”
He’s quite the
talker when he’s sauced. Good to know. It’s nice to see his
thoughts. “That’s the beer talking.” I step close, arch up on
tip-toe, and tap a finger to his slightly parted lips. “A few hours
ago, you didn’t have much to say. I’m okay with keeping this
awkward tension between us. It’s all we’ll ever have.”
He scowls at that
and twists the knob back to his apartment. “Whatever.”
Mission
accomplished. I’d succeeded in pissing him off. If he stayed mad at
me, then we could squash this weird attraction that we obviously both
feel.
I grin. “Bye, G.”
His brows dip low,
and I shove the door behind me, sagging against it. My breath
swooshes out from between my clenched teeth. Damn, he is going to be
trouble. I feel it all the way to my pinky toe.
A soft knock against
my back drives home the point. I twirl and open the door before he
disturbs Molly—or maybe because I’m not ready to share him with
her yet. “What?”
He tucks a hand into
the waistband of my shorts and hauls me into the hall, pulling my
door shut behind me. “Where did you get that?” His gaze lingers
on the small bump decorating my forehead.
I reach up and touch
the sore knot. “Oh, I fell.”
“How?” He raises
his free hand and traces the swelling.
I don’t even feel
the careful prodding. No, my concentration is solely focused on the
fingers tucked inside my shorts and only inches away from becoming
way too familiar with me. “Um…I was doing yoga when you guys came
down the hall.”
“And?” He tugs
me closer. His thumb rakes a small path below my belly button.
Oh my. “Uh…I
fell out of…of…my pose and banged my head on the floor.”
His eyes darken and
those beautiful lips part. I want to snake my tongue across the
bottom one to find out if it is as soft as it looks.
He winces and lowers
his eyes to mine. “So this is my fault?”
I grab onto his
wandering hand and pull it free of my shorts. If I didn’t, I’d be
asking him for a wall orgasm in less than two minutes and random
teasing and fleeing was a no go for me now. “No. It was an
accident. Lighten up, G.”
“I don’t want to
cause you pain.”
Wow, that feels like
a loaded proclamation. “Okay. Well, keep the noise down, and we
should be good.”
He drops the hand
that had been rubbing away my bruise. Funny, I’d totally forgotten
it. “I don’t want to cause you pain. It’s a personal thing.”
A deep shudder races over him, and for some reason, I don’t think
he is with me anymore.
“You didn’t. I’m
fine.” I lift a hand and cup the side of his face, bringing his
gaze to mine. It is the gentlest moment I’ve ever had with a man,
and we’ve just met. “I’m not sure what this is, but I think I
should go inside.”
He glances down the
corridor, takes a deep breath, and nods. “Yes, you should.”
“Go play with your
friends. Be men or whatever that means, and I’ll go back to my
yoga.” I was going to need it after this.
He groans and drops
his head back, his hint of an Adam’s Apple bobbing down the column
of his neck, begging for my tongue to taste him there. “Did you
have to bring that back to mind?”
I grin. “What? Me
all hot and sweaty in contorted positions? Do you like that?”
He groans, and one
side of his mouth slants up. “I have things to do and don’t need
no-named neighbors distracting me.”
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About the Author
Rachel Firasek
spends her days daydreaming of stories and her nights putting the
ideas to ink. She has spent a dull life following the rules, meeting
deadlines, and toeing the line, but in her made up worlds, she can
let the wild side loose. Her wonderful husband and three children
support her love of the written word and only ask for the occasional
American Idol or Swamp People quality hour.
She has a philosophy about love. It must devastate or it isn’t truly worth loving. She hopes that you all find your devastating love and cling to it with all your heart!
She has a philosophy about love. It must devastate or it isn’t truly worth loving. She hopes that you all find your devastating love and cling to it with all your heart!
Grace, thank you for having me today and for posting the review. :) I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel! It was my pleasure to read your book. Thanks for the opportunity, and congratulations its release!
ReplyDelete