Reviewed by Ashley Merrill
I got through this book in just a few hours. I did not put it down once except to answer the phone, which I debated even doing. This story, although fictitious, could happen to anyone, and was definitely an eye opener.
Evelyn is divorced to her ex husband, Thomas, who is a famous super-star. They have a daughter whom they both share custody with. The tabloids said that her ex was cheating on her, so that was the final straw for Evelyn, even though she was deeply and truly in love with Thomas. Evelyn then meets James, a handsome bachelor. They meet in a coffee shop, and before you know it they get deep in conversation and set up a time to meet. Evelyn is looking for a place to live, and James just happens to sell condos, so a date is set and the two of them meet to take a look at them.
What Evelyn doesn’t know is that James is not the man he appears to be. He has secrets, and lots of them. First of all, he is a heavy drinker. He is also not quite right mentally. As their dates progress James explains to Evelyn that he had a wife that died in a terrible accident. Evelyn doesn’t even think to be suspicious of his story. When Evelyn introduces him to her family, they get bad vibes from him and try to warn her. Her daughter even has bad vibes right from him. Evelyn is truly lonely and trying to forget about Thomas so she ignores all of the warning signs and throws herself into the courtship.
In no time at all James has spun his web of lies and deceits and convinces Evelyn they should marry. Against her better judgment she allows him to convince her and they are wed. Now that the knot is tied, James feels that he doesn’t need to put up such an act now. He’s got the girl, his work is done. Evelyn soon finds out that he drinks a lot and is really not a very nice man. The day finally comes when James lays a hand on her and she decides that if she doesn’t get out of this marriage things could go even more sour and become potentially dangerous for her and her daughter. James is prepared to fight her tooth and nail so that she doesn’t escape him.
The action and suspense was never ending in this story. Jamie Cortland did an amazing job at making you hate the bad guys and love the good guys/gals. I was rooting for Evelyn the entire time, and would get so frustrated with her when she didn’t see the obvious, but love is really blinding and sometimes we don’t see something until it is too late.
Jamie Cortland’s style of writing is very smooth and to the point. She does not dawdle on unnecessary details, which in turn cause the excitement to never end. I really like how we get to get a glimpse into James’ head and hear what he is thinking on the inside while we see how he really acts on the outside as he is trying to win Evelyn over. This allows you to really hate this character, which in turn makes you want Evelyn to come out a survivor that much more. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a good story to read. Anyone who likes action will greatly appreciate Jamie Cortland’s book.