Review: 4 1/2 Stars!!!! I love Distractions!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 24, 2013
DistractionsBY JL BROOKSSYNOPSIS:<"We are all pawns in some one else's game."No one knows this better than Violet Phillips. When her beloved mentor goes missing, she suspects murder, which sends her spiraling out of control and away from the stable life she has built for herself. Soon, her past will begin seeping out with a vengeance."I will teach you how this game is played."Self-destruction threatens to consume Violet when a handsome neighbor that has been watching her from afar intervenes on her behalf. Shepard Leone may be six years younger, but it does not stop him from seducing her ears as well as her heart."Fascinating how much life can change in twenty-four hours."When Violet is forced to go down a dark road into a past where she must confront the demons that nearly destroyed her, will she be unable to deviate? Struggling with the loss of her missing friend, Shepard will find a way in and reawaken desires that she thought were forever lost. But Violet never forgets that if you are not careful, distractions will be your undoing.MY REVIEW:4 1/2 Stars****"If someone has the ability to make you glow in the darkness, they must be remarkable. That does not mean there is something wrong with you. It means there is something right. Only you would believe the worst.Whoa. Okay. I'm still kind of processing my thoughts on what I've just read. What can I say that will do it justice without giving anything away? I really loved this book. It captured my attention and did not let go until the last word.This is a story about Violet Phillips and her crazy, exciting, depressing, up and down life. As a child, she lived with her family in the Colorado mountains following a gypsy way of life. She learned to belly dance and be carefree. When her sister, Vivienne leaves Violet at 14 years old she gets out of control with drugs and alcohol. Thankfully she avoids the devastation that usually comes with that lifestyle and gets clean.Fast forward and Violet is 26 years old and a teachers assistant to her beloved mentor Doc. When Doc disappears, Violet is once again sole crushed. She learns that her neighbor, Shepard (swoon and drool) has been watching her through her window for a while. She finds solace in Shepard's arms and they begin an exciting and loving relationship.The events that take place over the next six years are heartbreaking. Violet faces many distractions and finds she doesn't know who she can trust. She spirals into a deep depression. She just wants to be happy and she is finding that elusive. What will become of her? Where will her life take her next? Does she even want to continue living?Just when you think you have it all figured out, another twist punches you in the face. JL Brooks is a fantastic writer and has an amazing ability to draw the reader in and not let go. I look forward to reading more from her.*Note* - The only thing that bugged me a tiny bit was the amount of dialogue spoken without contractions. I'm a fast talker so maybe that was why? Ha*I was provided an ARC for a fair review*