Review: Kudos to Ms. Owens for her honesty and desire to bring the reality of millions of women to light!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 8, 2013
Review:What if you had the chance to do it all over again? Right the wrong, change the mistake, have a do-over? How would that feel? Like Heaven? InIf Only, Bree Sexton gets the chance to find out. Newly divorced from Bryan, she runs into Scott, her childhood sweetheart and former fiancé. After a short set of hellos and how are you's, they go their separate ways, only to have Bree slip and fall on a patch of ice. When she comes to, ... Oh I love a good surprise, don't you? Well, Bree's surprise was of epic proportions...The Good: I love going into a book, not knowing and curious about how the author is going to pull off the seemingly impossible. This was just such a book. I was immediately pulled into the relationship between Scott (I always want to call him Scotty...and he probably would have let me;) and Bree. The absolute love and adoration was infectious and they were an incredibly loveable pair. I could have enjoyed a sappy little romance just between the two of them without the secondary story of Bryan, had a very Happy Ending and been just fine with that. Instead, what Ms. Owens did was much more complex and realistic and I have to give her Kudos for her honesty and desire to bring the reality of millions of women to light in this book. Abuse is a complex and insidious thing so based on the circumstances Bree felt that she herself was in (of having a second chance at happiness with Scott), it is no wonder that she would intermittently gravitate to thoughts of dark times with Bryan. The plot was intricate and well paced and the characters - from Bree and Scott to Bryan, Heather, and Monica - were all very well described and exhibited, allowing me as the reader to have strong feelings about them all. The emotions portrayed were vivid and heart-rending at times but over all, a well done book.The Bad: The hardest part sometimes is the not knowing and that was the case here and really my primary disappointment. I kept waiting for the other shoe to fall. Not knowing if this was reality, time-travel, or if Bree was in la-la land while in a coma actually made it hard for me to concentrate on the storyline. I know that Ms. Owens presented the circumstances for dramatic effect but unfortunately, for me, it was quite distracting. Add to that some unexplained anomalies such as her Mother's appearance in the storyline and the whole thing - along with the parts of the story like how sick and twisted Bryan was - made for, instead of a sweet and happy story through and through, a somewhat unsettling story that actually made me feel anxious and even sad (although where Bryan was concerned, rightfully so!). Of course, that could have just been me and my response based on where I am in my life.The Snuggly: Mind. Blowing. Romantic. Sex. Yup, that is what I enjoyed thoroughly via Bree and her descriptions. Her relationship with Scott was the stuff of Fairy Tales and the intimacy was what you find in, well, Romance novels. And I chose to buy into it hook, line, and sinker. Was it erotic in the descriptions? Oh yes. What it sizzling and steamy? Definitely oh yes! Did I enjoy it? TOTALLY OH YES! Did I need a towel and a fan? Well now, just what do you think? ;) lolThe Rest: As this is a romance, we have every right to expect a happily ever after and Ms. Owens doesn't disappoint. Now, typically, I don't do well with unexplained or open endings, but in this case, I think I would make an exception. It worked well in this story and I did not feel like we were left hanging so much as a willing suspension of disbelief. The "truth" of what happened - well, it's left up to us as readers to draw our own conclusions and I for one, am okay with that. Now, would I read it again? No, probably not. It made me too sad at times and as I mentioned earlier, I really did not like the sensation of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Would I recommend it to others to read? Sure. It was a good book and the over 18 Romantic who can appreciate a little mystery with their story, should probably enjoy every tasty morsel.*Note: I received this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. All opinions are 100% my own.