Brooklyn Skye

I hate to say that a book “surprises” me, because that makes it seem like I went in thinking this book would be shit. I try to start a book with no prior grievances. No spoilers. Reading no reviews. A fresh slate for me to make up my own mind.

So I guess when I say it surprised me, I mean that I didn’t expect to completely be swept up in their world. To research (and goddammit, did I do some googling), this disorder. The first book in a while to give me the wondering eye to the next show more page or a few paragraphs. I didn’t want it to end, but I HAD to know how it all ended. I was greedy for Fragile Line.

I loved it. Originality is something few and far between, and I sincerely appreciated it. The writing is fine and honest. The characters are interesting as hell.

Ellie’s past broke my heart. Gwen broke my heart, although she pissed me off a few times. Shane is a sweetheart. Griffin is hottie.

Yes, it is filled with high school drama. Yes, these kids should’ve just talked to their parents instead of dealing with this on their own.

But all that is background to the very interesting, very compelling story.

I really can’t say much about Fragile Line without giving too much away. It’s a neck breaker. A jaw dropping discovery in one girls life (or is it 2 girls?).

It’s worth the read. show less

I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review for SMI Bookclub.

A guy who is in love with his girlfriend and couldn’t stand to be away from her for five excruciatingly long months. A guy who is afraid to lose the one person in his life that brings out the better person in him.” My hand slides down her wrist and grips her fingers. “A guy who loves you more than anything in the world.”

Ask and you shall receive, Without You is a love letter from Brooklyn Skye to her show more fans. After the wave of emotions that we went through with Torrin and Quinn in Stripped, we too felt stripped bare. Stripped to the core, where there was nothing left to do but heal. With this novella, not only did the healing begin and end, but we came out hopeful for the future and what life would bring these two. I don’t know if there will be more story for Torrin and Quinn, and I almost hope there isn’t. Through ALL the trials and tribulations, truths uncovered, souls bared, love given and received, I know they are on the path to the rest of their lives. That being said, I could possibly see a story for her friend Jessica. The way she left abruptly in Stripped left the door open for MANY possibilities. Alright, I am getting off course here. Back to the main event!

“Turning off my emotions is easier."

“It’s also scarier.” I push her back. “Not that I didn’t like the old you, but this” – I dry her face with my thumb and hold it up to show her the wetness –“is why I fell in love with you. When you feel, it’s intense and penetrating and oceans more than any normal person.”

We don’t waste any time diving back into their lives. We pick up two months where we left off, then a chapter later jump back a month. Torrin had put in an application to intern for a world famous photographer, months before Quinn came in the picture, on a whim. As luck would have it, he is chosen, but it would mean leaving Quinn for five months to work in Puerto Rico. Not wanting to be away from her and scared that she will shut down results in him not wanting to tell her about the amazing opportunity he has received.

There’s this place in me where your fingertips still rest, kisses still linger, and your whispers softly echo. It’s the place where a part of you will forever be a part of me. ~ Gretchen Kemp

This story is entirely in Torrin’s POV, and I feel like it has more impact than Stripped for that reason! Yes, we fell in love with Quinn and she broke our heart with the emotions she poured out, but, I don’t know. There is something about a man pouring out his heart and soul through inner dialogue that makes me melt. Maybe it‘s the fact that I am a woman and I know how our minds work, but it was so refreshing to hear what went through his mind. How he went through his decision making process, thinking of her first every step of the way, always keeping his love for Quinn front and center. That love played out in all his decisions, and I fell in love with him a little more because of it.

Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, falling in love with you was beyond my control….

If this was the end of Torrin and Quinn’s story, I was left extremely sated, hopeful, and full of love and wonder. However, if Brooklyn wants to give us more, who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth! I’ll read anything she blesses us with. show less

I wanted to read Fragile Line because I was intrigued by Ellie and if her blackouts were something mental or if there was something else going on. I usually enjoy books about mental illnesses as well as memory loss.

I felt for Ellie, and even though I knew that she was somewhat of an unreliable narrator, she seemed so normal during the day. We find out that she is adopted and has no memories of her childhood but things start coming back to her after her blackouts, where she loses chunks of show more time and walks off in the woods, argues with her parents and ends up with a tattoo. Her life is starting to fall apart though, because she's gotten up to leave or disappeared on him time after time, and its hard to believe that a person does these things and then can't remember, it seems like an awfully convenient excuse.

I wondered if she had split personality or some form of bipolar, because she does things while blacked out that she wouldn't do while awake. Talking to guys she doesn't recognize, go to eat, and her wild side goes to get the tattoo. It was a surprise when I found out the cause, but I think that it makes total sense.

While I can understand to an extent why Ellie kept the blackouts and time missing a secret for so long, but I was getting a little pushy for a bit before she finally opened up about it and truly began to want answers and seek and accept help. I can't even imagine what I would think about myself if I had time missing and things happen to me that I couldn't remember and especially as a teen I very well could have kept it to myself for as long as she did because I would almost fear the answers more than the solution.

It was neat how the author changed things up at about 75% and we got a different view point as well as some more answers about her past that Ellie can't remember. We get the other side of the story and the emotions that are attached there and even though I knew what was best, it was still hard to see the pain and uncertainty of the future.

It was a pretty quick read and well paced. The world building was completely contemporary but at first I kept thinking that there might be a supernatural element even though thats not in the description or tagged on goodreads. The ending was okay for me, but I think that it could have been a bit better, or things could have been a little more resolved with Ellie and accepting her diagnosis and what exactly that looks like day to day. We get the glimpse of hope that its starting, but really not a clue what daily life will be like and how she will handle.


Bottom Line: Fast read with an unreliable narrator that had me wondering what was going on. show less

This book, I read it mostly while on the way to work and nearly missed my stop on the train a few times because I was so engrossed in the book. Even though I really enjoyed this books, and I did believe me, its hard to write a review for it without completely giving away the punch line because it doesn't tell you in the summary. And that's one thing I have to say I fecking love the most about this book, being surprised in books doesn't happen that often to me any more and when it does I show more relish it.

First thing you should know is Ellie has blackouts, for whatever reason there is moments of her days that she cant remember and it seems to be happening more and more. The only person she's talked to about them is her boyfriend and he thinks she needs medical help. When the time frame of the blacks jump from a few minuets or hours to days, and instead of only missing out on a bit of conversation Ellie has somehow managed to make her boyfriend want to break up with her, she knows its time to finally get some help and figure it out. Where does she start when the only person she's told thinks she's making the whole thing up in order to get off the hook for the thing's she's done. Therapy of course.

At first, like any normal teenager, Ellie doesn't want to go and fights against her parents for making her. But soon she realises that even though she doesn't like feeling exposed or opening up or even remembering, it's helping her to come to terms with what happened to her before she was adopted and who she is.

As well as having the ability to surprise me, Brooklyn Skye actually offered up some pretty decent characters. Ellie, though annoying at times was a really well written character and was strong in her own way. Shane was a really sweet guy, a little bit of a push over if you ask me but still he was loyal and caring and he really went out of his way to help Ellie even when they weren't together. Gwen was probably my favourite character even though we got to see very little of her. She was strong, blunt and she didn't take shit from anyone. And although that might not be everyone's cup of tea, she was who she was because she had to be to survive, deep down she's just ask scared as the rest of us. And the we have Griffin, the bad boy who is still sensitive and in need of love. I loved him, probably more than Shane. But that's because I am a sucker for the bad boys haha.

I loved this book, I really didn't expect to and I fell in love with the cover in all honesty, but I found myself being very disappointed that it was a stand alone book and not a series. I wanted more pages haha.
Still, the fact that Brooklyn Skye manages to squeeze such a good story into so little pages is one of my favourite things about it

Brooklyn Skye if your reading this, please please please write a sequel. I'd love to know what happens next :) show less