Review: Great Ending to a Great Series!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 3, 2014
Kylie Ryans is one lucky girl. Her biggest dream has come true. She is Nashville’s darling at the height of her game. She should be so happy… she should be on top of the world… she should be right? Here’s the thing, Kylie is still suffering from the abandonment of every man she has ever loved. Her father is gone and Trace walked away without looking back so she throws herself 110% into her music. She writes an album full of heartbreaking love’em and then get left by ‘em songs and spends all her time in the studio hiding. Try as she may she can’t seem to recover from the tornado that was Trace Corbin that ripped through her life. He left her in the dust because he didn’t think she was strong enough to handle or understand his problems at least not like Gretchen could. She has built walls so high that no one can reach her. Not her friends, not a man who would love nothing more than to help her get over Trace once and for all. Can she let someone else in? Someone who could help her forget?Trace Corbin is one lucky guy. He is out of rehab and getting back to his family, fans and his music. He has a new lease on life and a chance to get his career back on track. He should be excited… he should be on top of the world… he should be right?Here’s the thing, Trace is recovering. Not cured… recovering. He has to fight to stay sober. He has to avoid triggers that make him want to lose himself in the numbness the bourbon offers. He fights with his demons and his guilt over the past daily. Soooooo … lets just send him on tour with the one person who really pushes his buttons and while were at it lets include the cocky tatted up musician she is currently dating for good measure. Geez… how will he survive this without drinking or beating the slimy boyfriend within an inch of his life? (Side Note: I have to say that I think the author handles the serious subject of addiction and how it affects not just you but all the people in your life very well. It is hard to love an addict. It is hard to believe they have changed and it is hard to love them through their recovery. Caisey Quinn conveys this without glossing over it or taking the story to an emotionally dark place. It is truly brilliant storytelling and the mark of a great writer.)Girl in Love was a fabulous ending to the journey we have taken with Kylie and Trace. I think the series paints a very believable picture of what life on the road is like for big stars. How the media, jealous peers, your own self doubt and secrets can skew your perception and hurl your life so out of control you don’t even recognize yourself when you look in the mirror. Kylie grows up so much in this book. She is not the girl from GwG anymore. She lost a little of her fire along the way and it is awesome watching her find it again. Trace grows too. He seems to put everyone else’s happiness and well being ahead of his own. Can they move past all the hurt they have caused each other, all the lies they have told and other have told to find their way back to each other? God I hope so.Oh and did I mention the sexual tension in this book. Good heavens I thought I was going to have to dowse myself with ice water a few times. That Trace Corbin is one sexy man. *Sigh* Now I am going to go cry into a bowl of rocky road to console myself that the series is over.