Review: Chris' Story
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 6, 2014
Let me start by saying that I love authors who willingly explore what some would call taboo subjects or ones that are not readily explored or accepted in society. Melanie Dawn gives readers an inside look at one mother's struggle with postpartum depression; she also illustrates that love is ageless, and it only takes one person who cares to change someone's life forever.Then There Was You is the follow-up book to So Much It Hurts. In book one, Chris King had to let the love of his life go a second time, and it destroyed him. When book two begins, old wounds are reopened due to one chance encounter, and it sends Chris to the depths again, but just when he thinks all hope is lost, his angelic protector, a woman he hasn't seen for 14 years, reenters his life and opens his heart to the possibility of a second chance at love.Heading in to Then There Was You, I didn't know who Chris King was. I didn't have a chance to read book one before diving into book two, so I went in without the background knowledge of Chris' relationship with Kaitlyn and the devastation he felt. I have to say...I'm glad I didn't know...I almost think it would have been too much for me. Just the small glimpses into the pain he felt in the flashbacks and the discussions of Kaitlyn gutted me. I can't imagine experiencing it first-hand in So Much It Hurts. It doesn't mean that I won't go back and read book 1 - I definitely will - I just feel like it made it a bit easier to get through the emotional beginning without balling my eyes out.I love when the main characters have a back story; it's even better when their past is one where they connected...a place where the bond originated. It makes it easier to understand why, even after fourteen years, the connection is still as strong, even though both characters have been through so much separately. Sometimes flashbacks in romance stories can lose readers...some find it hard to mesh the two time periods together. I didn't experience that at all with Then There Was You. The flashbacks were essential to understand where Chris and Salem started their friendship, and even though it was at a juvenile detention center, and Salem was Chris' counselor, their age difference has always only been 6 years, and yes, it definitely would have been an issue if there were feelings beyond friendship back then, but there wasn't. They both needed each other back then - they supported each other - they were there for each other when both of them felt no one else was, and now, fourteen years later, those feelings do change to love.I loved Salem...I felt her pride at helping those struggling boys at the center; as a teacher myself, I definitely understand the need to help someone who everyone else counts out. I also sympathized with her struggle with motherhood. I remember those first few months when I was sleep deprived and emotional, and maybe if her a**hat of a husband would have gotten off his butt to help, she wouldn't have struggled so much. But postpartum is a real issue, and Melanie Dawn illustrated it beautifully.Chris King doesn't do anything halfway. He loves hard...he plays hard...he fights hard. His life has not been easy, but he battled through the ups and downs and made something of himself, just like Salem always knew he would. He's a great hero because he's real. His struggles are ones a lot of people deal with, and while every choice he made was not the best, he grew up to be a man he could be proud of.Then There Was You is a powerful story about two people's struggles, both separately and as a couple. Both Salem and Chris are dynamic characters who readers are allowed to see at their lowest and highest points in life. What hooked me into the story from the very beginning was how real both the characters and their situations were; their stories were definitely not easy ones, but they were worth the tears that I shed to hear them.Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.4.5 poison apples (The Fairest of All Book Reviews)