Book Nerds Across America

Goodreads Description:

Emma’s struggle with an abusive home life came to a heart pounding conclusion in the final chapters of Reason to Breathe. Now everyone in Weslyn knows Emma’s secret, but Carol can’t hurt Emma anymore. Some are still haunted by the horror of that night, and some must face the repercussions of their choices. Fans of Rebecca Donovan’s debut novel will discover there’s still much to learn about Emma’s life.

MARY'S REVIEW:


If you thought I cried in Reason to Breathe, I cried even harder in this book.

This book picks up 6 months later from the last one.  Emma is now living with Sara and her family after everything that happened in Book 1.  On top of that, the whole town knows what happened.  Emma is now having really bad nightmares and still having issues trusting people.

Well, her mother tries to have a relationship with her and Emma makes the decision to move in with her.  That does not work out so well.  Emma's mom really is not a good mother, she is a drunk.  BUT, we have a new character (whom I did not like) Jonathon.  He is Emma's mother's (much younger) boyfriend.  Emma and Jonathan become friends, just friends.  However, there is something about Jonathan's past that does not settle well with me and I do not really trust him.  Evan and Sara try to be there for Emma but she is still not trusting them fully (which makes me a bit upset).

Of course, there is a HUGE cliff-hanger and I cried through every part of it.  Now, I have to wait until Book 3 comes out.

Good Reads description: 


"No one tried to get involved with me, and I kept to myself. This was the place where everything was supposed to be safe and easy. How could Evan Mathews unravel my constant universe in just one day?"

He knows there’s something more to the girl sitting in the back of the class the moment he sees her. She’s beautiful, intelligent, and athletic – but she slips quietly through the crowded halls, trying not to exist. Determined to get to know the elusive girl, Evan soon discovers…

Emma Thomas is hiding a terrible secret.

Reason to Breathe is an electrifying page turner from start to finish, a unique tale of life-changing love, unspeakable cruelty, and one girl’s fragile grasp of hope.

MARY'S REVIEW:

You all know that I am the crier of the Book Nerds and this book made me cry A LOT!  I read this book in one day because I could not stop reading it, even through the tears.

Emma is the main character who lives with her aunt and uncle because her father is dead and her mother is "unfit" to take care of her.  Her aunt and uncle are so phony! They do not love nor care about Emma.  The only person that Emma has in her life is her best friend, Sara, whom I just loved.  That is until Evan shows up....OMG!!! *hot guy alert*  He really comes in and tries so hard to help her and care for her, but he knows that she is hiding something.

Now I do not want to spoil this book but I will warn you there is abuse in it and it can be a bit disturbing (depending on what your definition of "disturbing" is).  Emma tries to be so strong and the pain that she goes through is unfathomable.  I can not imagine anyone going through her pain.

I was so glad that she had Evan and Sara.  However, this book has the BEST cliff-hanger that I have read in a very long time.

This is a must read ....... with a box of tissues!