Review: Gritty and tender and ugly and all things bright and beautiful!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 9, 2013
Wow! This was quite the book. Jamie Lea was the heroine of the story who had been raised by SIX (yes, you read that correctly) brothers after the death of their parents. I have my hands full with one! ;) Unfortunately, her brothers controlled every bit of her life and then some. They treated her with no respect, no protection, no love and limited kindness if any. As with so many in abusive situations, she knew no different, she allowed it, she was brainwashed in to believing she owed them a huge debt of gratitude. At times I was so angry with her brothers and their actions/inaction that I wanted to scream. Yes, some of it was disturbing to read.When Jason entered the picture and tries to help Jamie Lea see that she is worth so much more than she honestly believes, I wanted to cheer. Jamie needed someone on her side, someone who could look out for her best interests and stand up for her and Jason wanted to be that person. As much pain and difficulty Jamie had in her life from her brothers, she knew becoming more than friends with Jason would inflict her brothers on him and she did not want that. It was up to Jason to fight for her and not with his fists - with his heart.Ms. Sable had me so up, down and all over the place emotionally. My policy is that anytime an author is able to truly make me feel, they have written a powerful and impressive book. Right There By You was far from a Sunshine and Roses Fairy Tale. It was gritty and tender and ugly and all things bright and beautiful. It was a story so worth my reading.The pacing was spot on, the characters were well defined and the emotion was palpable. To anyone considering reading Right There With You, I have two caveats:What I got from the blurb about the contents of this book and what I read were not the same. I knew something was up from the blurb but had no idea the abuse that takes place in the book. I point this out because if this is a Hot Button for you then I would avoid this book.Also, as the author was raised in the UK and now lives in Sweden, be prepared for some terms you may need to look up in a British English Dictionary to get the proper context if you speak another version of English.To everyone else, get comfortable, bring your kleenex and prepare for a literary wonder.**Absolutely 5 STARS!!****4 Flames**~ Note ~ I received this book in exchange for my professional, honest and unbiased review. All opinions are my own and no further compensation was received.