Reviewer: Samantha
Jennifer Collin is on tour now with CLP Blog Tours and Open My Eyes
Summary:
Everything happens for a reason, they say. And sometimes the reason is you’re stupid and make bad decisions. Sleeping with her sister’s best friend is one of the dumbest things soon-to-be divorcee Emily Evans has ever done. But she’s determined to put it behind her and move on. She’s walked away from her cheating husband, managed to make a new friend, and found herself a real job and somewhere to live so she doesn’t have to couch-surf any more. Everything should be falling into place but for one problem – there are some mistakes from which you can’t move on.
Meanwhile, Ben Cameron is getting on with his life. After all, it’s the only thing to do once your heart has been stomped on by the woman of your dreams. Expanding his business and getting cosy with the girl next door are proving welcome distractions. He’s even happy to babysit his nephew, as long as he can to hand him back when he’s done! And thankfully, Emily Evans, the woman with the heavy boots, is avoiding him like the plague.
But Emily can’t avoid him forever, and when she drops a bombshell that turns Ben’s world upside-down, suddenly, getting on with his life takes on a whole new meaning.
Review:
While I haven’t read the first book in the series, I was still able to jump right in and highly enjoy Open My Eyes. There were times that I could definitely tell I was missing something from the previous book, but it wasn’t enough to hinder my reading experience. Emily is a sweet character that I was rooting for, even though there was a few times the moseying about got to me. The relationship between her and Ben had me grinding my teeth a few times, but all romances can be cut and dry, or else we wouldn’t have such fun books to read, right? The ending was very tense and quite dramatic actually, and I’ll be looking for the third to see how everything comes to a head!
4 stars
Author Bio:
Jennifer Collin writes quirky, and sometimes gritty, love stories about ordinary people dealing with what life throws at them. She lives in Brisbane, Australia, with her husband, two noisy children and a cantankerous cat. She used to party, but now her idea of a good time is an uninterrupted sleep. These days, her characters do her partying for her, and she doesn’t necessarily let them sleep.
Connect with Jennifer!
Website – http://www.jennifercollin.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/JenniferCollinAuthorPage?ref=hl
Twitter – https://twitter.com/CollinJennifer
Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/jycolli/
Goodreads –https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7105090.Jennifer_Collin
Buy the Book!
Amazon US link – http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JJNWIV8
Amazon UK link – http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00JJNWIV8?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Samantha! I’m so pleased you liked it and that Emily drew you in.
She was such a rewarding and challenging character to work with. To borrow from JK Rowling, the poor thing has hit rock bottom and it’s the foundation upon which she eventually rebuilds her life.
Although it’s not overt, Open My Eyes explores mental well-being / mental health. After losing her husband, Emily is suffering from a form of depression. It’s not the crippling kind, but rather the kind many of us experience at some point in our lives – when we find ourselves in a funk that we just can’t get out of.
One of the key themes of Open My Eyes is the importance of friendship in getting us through that funk. What I am really proud of in this book is that, despite the fact readers sometimes want to shake some sense into Emily, like her friends, they also want to stick by her. It was a particularly challenging balance to strike! In the end, the readers and Emily’s friends are rewarded for being there with her – although perhaps that’s giving too much away 😉
Thanks again for the lovely review!
Jennifer 🙂
Author
Thank you so much Jennifer – I’m excited to read more from you 🙂