Saturday, September 9, 2017

Echoes in the Storm by Max Henry

 

Blurb
“Behind those eyes, a battle rages. One that’s not fought overseas with guns and tanks, but one that wreaks havoc in the homeland with harshly spoken words and misguided beliefs.”

One week is all we were supposed to share. One week as strangers. Yet you became so much more.

You were the echo in my storm.

All the little things you did differently irked me. I thought it meant we couldn’t get along, that there was no chance we’d work out. But when it came time for me to leave, you know what I figured out?

They were the faint call of home, lost on the wind and the roar of thunder. It was you calling me, hoping I’d hear you and find my way out of the dark that I had lost myself in when I shut off to survive.

You were my echo. My call back.

And fuck it all if I didn’t find home in the end. 

My Review
Echoes in the Storm is a heart wrenching Military themed contemporary romance from Max Henry.  Set in New Zealand, Duke is doing his brother a favor & ends up stranded falling into a chance meeting with Cammie who turns out to be "a sweet surprise on what's turning out to be a hell of a day.", a day that is fated to change everything for the both of them.

Told in first person from dual perspectives, with a few flash-backs, this is a fast paced romantic story of two strangers who have experienced some of the worst things this life can deal out - altering them forever. "Grief was an unforgiving bride, sweeping in and taking you for all you had."  They both struggle with deep grief, loss, guilt, & sadness & are set on punishing themselves in order to never forget what they have lost. Bent on the idea "I don't deserve to ever have that kind of love again."  Stuck "...spending more time looking in the rear-view ..." living with ghosts of their pasts. Only to find that what they really need is to find their way to salvation, healing, face fears & a path to move forward. "For those who's past mistakes weigh heavy on their heart. Your failures do not define you, nor should your regrets. For without these, how are we to grow?" This story is deep & heart-warming, but also funny & sweet & romantic & oh so sexy "It's soft, sweet, and so damn sensual."

This is my first Max Henry read & I'm not sure what I was expecting based solely on the blurb, but this book delivered so much more. I love Cammie, her verbal diarrhea & how she is so caring in spite of "...enduring a personal hell of her own...". Duke & his sexy/carnal 'say it like it is' ways; his ability to put it all out there. Through it all, they still have hope. I loved the connection between these characters that seems fast from a timeline perspective, but is written it in such a way that you forget Cammie & Duke are strangers at the start.  The way this story unfolds "People don't come into your life without purpose; they always have a role to play." just couldn't get enough.

"I'm still here," he murmurs. Three little words, and he seals the hole in my heart." 
WOW & I'm done... because WOW.

MUST READ

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

AMAZON US/UK



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