Review: Jenn @ Bookworm Betties
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 11, 2014
*****5-Angst & Drama, thy name is Marlene-Stars*****I swore up and down this side of the Mississippi that when I saw Luke again, I'd give him a piece of my mind. But as he glanced over at me, I felt the air leave my body. His absence from my life didn't change the fact that he was my Kryptonite.Well....Hello Ms. Nicole Simone and welcome to my favorites list. See, books like this are why I love second chance romances so much. Full of angst, drama, heartbreak, tears, uncertainty and the sexiness of a rocker, the only thing missing was chocolate but HEY-we had that too!! plus the added bonus of the sweetest little princess ever. It all made for a book I couldn't walk away from for even a minute til I got to the end.I gave birth to Nil as a scared twenty-year-old, but as soon as the nurse placed her in my arms, a woman emerged from within me. One month before I was to give birth, her father got a life changing opportunity to go on tour, and ran off to pursue his dreams of becoming a rock star. My heart shattered into a million pieces when he left, and I had no idea how I would manage single motherhood.Marlene was in love once -head over heels, all consuming love- til the day he shattered her heart completely by disappearing into the night, leaving her eight months pregnant and alone. Four years later, the single mother, who had to give up her dreams while he chased his, has hardened her heart towards men and Luke especially. While her rock star ex has hit it big and living the life he always wanted, she's working two jobs and driving herself into the ground to take care of their daughter Nil by herself. She's finally dating again, but playing it safe by choosing a guy she feels no sparks with-she's choosing dependability over love to protect herself from ever having to suffer like she did when Luke left ever again. What she isn't prepared for is Luke's sudden reappearance in her life."You can't just come in here and pretend everything is the same. Where were you when Nil got an allergic reaction and almost died? Or when she discovered music for the first time? You were f****** groupies in the back of your tour bus while I was here in the same town you left me in, taking care of our daughter. What happened to me is that I grew up, Luke. I suggest you do the same."Luke is back in town and he wants to pick things right back up with Marlene and be a father to Nil. Marlene doesn't know what to do, she has Nil to think about this time. When Luke leaves again, like she knows he will, in won't just be her heart he breaks into a million pieces. But at the same time, she doesn't want to deny her daughter the chance to get to know her father."She will warm up to you. But you couldn't expect it to happen in an hour. In her eyes, you're a stranger.""Thanks for reminding me of that, Marlene," he bit out.While his anger was directed at me, the person he was truly mad at was himself."You made your bed Luke, now you have to sleep in it."Luke wants his family back and will not take no for an answer, but when Marlene is presented with an opportunity to move to Paris like she has always dreamed of, he realizes he only has a matter of days to convince her to look past four years of anger, resentment and heartache, to give him a second chance to be the man she's always needed."Marlene, letting you go was my biggest regret, and now that I finally have you back, I don't want to make the same mistake twice......I f***** up, I know that, but I want to change. Be the father and man you needed me to be all those years ago."I have to admit, I had no real love for Luke in the beginning. Besides the fact that he pulled the a**hat move of the century when he left the way he did, but when he returns he seems to expect to be able to pick right back up like the last four years never happened and doesn't understand why Marlene can't just fall in line. He does win me over though, his regret and pain over his actions was very plain to see as was his determination to make things right. But it was how very much he loves Marlene & Nil and how scared he was of losing them again that really got to me. I do wish we could have had a POV jump from Marlene to Luke once in a while just to see what was going through his head. Also, the actions of Marlene's best friend Camille didn't sit well with me. The end did seem a bit rushed and abrupt to me, it just left me with some questions and concerns. At the end of the day, I loved this book which honestly was more about family and forgiveness than the rock star life. Cannot wait to see a whole lot more from this author."I don't always say the right thing but the past four years I have lived my life for you so I could come home and stop being an observer. M, I don't make sense without you."