Review & Author Interview- Deception by Evie Rose

Title- Deception
Author- Evie Rose
Genre- Contemporary Romance
Release Date- 2nd of January 2014
GOODREADS

Review copy provided by author.

Blurb- After years of abuse, Roxi is an expert at deceiving the people around her. Everyone believes she has a picture perfect family, with a loving husband and a sweet little boy. They think she resides in a beautiful house and has a luxurious lifestyle, although, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Underneath the facade is a tormented soul, poised on the brink of giving up hope of ever finding a better tomorrow.

Luke’s past haunts him every single day. Not a second goes by without deep sorrow plaguing him. He will never forget what he’s done, he doesn’t want to. No one is more deserving of guilt eating away at them than he is… or so he believes. He spends his time, forever trying to make up for the one mistake that ruined the lives of his loved ones, as well as his own.

From the first time they meet, cracks begin to form in the mask Roxi wears and Luke sees right through them. The only question is, will he realize he’s worthy of love and step in to save her before it’s too late, or continue to think he’s undeserving of true happiness?

5 Sassy Books!

Review- This book was so emotionally painful for me to read. There are so many similarities with my past life that it's scarey.

Roxi is a stay at home Mum. That's all she has ever been. Marrying her high-school love and having a child not long after. She thought she was lucky to have her happily ever after so quickly. A perfect family. That is until her husbands true colours start to show and he's not what she thought he was. He was cruel, controlling, manipulative and disgusting.

Luke's story is a story of redemption so touching and emotional. A struggle to find self-worth underneath all of the demons that eat at him every day.

Reading this story was, at some points, so overwhelming for me because of the connection I have had with a life like that. It felt real and had so much raw emotion in it. Real life issues dug up and exposed, telling the story that so many people live every single day without anyone knowing.

Evie Rose has delivered a highly emotional read full of pain, heartache and loss but also strength, resilience, hope, triumph, lust and love. And most importantly determination. Determination for a better life. A truly touching story that everyone will love.

 Do yourself a favour and go and get your copy through these following links:

AMAZON 

B&N 

Author Interview 

What influenced you to write this particular story?
I'm aware that there are a lot of people out there who go through domestic abuse and suffer in silence. I wanted to write something to let them know they are not alone. To reach through the pages and show them never to be embarrassed by their situations. It's more common than people think, it's just that no one talks about it.

Thats true. The way you have written the story makes it seem quite realistic. Is it something you have witnessed first hand?

Unfortunately yes. In my experiences, the victim has been manipulated by the abuser into feeling ashamed or into thinking the situation isn't as bad as what it is. 

I really wanted to connect with people who may be going through this and show them there others out there who will understand and to never be afraid to speak up or seek help.

You definitely put your characters through some pretty tough and emotional scenes. Were they hard for you to write?
They were very difficult to write and completely drained me at times, however, I wanted to make them as realistic as possible. If I'm able to connect with even one person suffering through domestic abuse and give them the courage to speak up, this whole experience would have been worth it. 

It's great to see that you have written a book that also offers awareness to a serious problem within society. What's next for you? 
Next is Jake's book. I can't wait to share his story with everyone. 

Will we see a little of Roxi and Luke in his story also?
Everyone will definitely be seeing a lot more of Luke and Roxi in the next book. Betrayal (Jake's book) picks up not long after where Deception finishes, and because we see more of Luke and Roxi is why book 1 had no epilogue. You will see more of their story :)

Thanks so much for answering my questions! I hope you have all the success with Deception.
It was my pleasure answering your questions. Thanks so much for your interest!

For more information on Evie Rose check out these links:

GOODREADS

FACEBOOK

Happy Reading!

 

Review- Saving Grace by Fiona McCallum

Title- Saving Grace
Author- Fiona McCallum
Genre- Australian Fiction
Release Date- 1st of April 2013
Publisher- Harlequin MIRA

Review copy provided by publisher

Blurb- When Emily Oliphant married John Stratten, she thought it was the beginning of an exciting new adventure, imagining herself standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the most eligible farmer in the district, mucking in to build a thriving agricultural business. Three years later, however, Emily sees her marriage for what it is — a loveless tie to a callous man, her advice heeded only when it pertains to her husband’s dinner.

The last straw comes when John threatens to harm her new puppy, and Emily is forced to brave her husband’s wrath, and her mother’s glaring disapproval, and move out. With the encouragement of her new friend Barbara, Emily moves into an abandoned property, taking on the mammoth task of making the unloved house into a home. As she begins to work on the property, she discovers a new side of her father, meets some new friends and finds an inner strength she never knew she had.

Emily’s fragile confidence is soon tested, though, when the owners of the property make her a tempting offer. Will she risk everything and invest in the ramshackle house that has finally given her a sense of purpose? Or will Emily listen to the views of the community, and the voice of her mother, and go back to her sensible, but meaningless, life with John?

 3 Sassy Books!

Review- I must admit, I have mixed feelings about Saving Grace. Let's start with the good. I don't often read many books that are set in my homeland of Australia so I really enjoyed the familiarity of the language and described landscapes. It was easier for me to create images in my head of buildings and locations because I am so familiar with it. The familiarity of a small country town setting where everyone knows everyone also relateable. I also found it easy to relate to the characters because they are country Australian's which I have grown up around, not to mention reading something with Australian lingo in it. If it weren't for this connection, I think I would have given it a lesser rating.

Onto the storyline itself. It was fairly flat-line. It just seemed like one continuous and somewhat repetitive story. There weren't really any highs or lows or anything overly exciting. There was no intensity within the story, good or bad. It is described that Emily finds an "inner strength she never knew she had", I never discovered that. I found her depressing and quite annoying at times with zero self esteem. Rather frustrating.

All together I found the story lighthearted but not heart felt. This is the type of book you would read if you didn't feel like investing yourself entirely in a book. 

To find out more about Fiona and her other projects you can check out her WEBSITE.

You can purchase your copy from any good book stockist or online at AMAZON and 

THE BOOK DEPOSITORY 

Happy Reading!