Sunday 19 January 2014

Review ~~ A Reason to Breathe by CP Smith


Love at first sight was never so dangerous.

Jack Gunnison has a problem, well, two actually, one is 5'5" and the other...a Killer.

Jennifer Stewart needs a change after losing her husband and sending her daughter off to college.

Moving to the high country of Colorado to restart her life and, follow her dreams, Jenn gets more than she bargained for when she attracts the eye of a killer.

Together, Jack and Jenn must figure out his identity, before he strikes again.
Mature readers only due to erotic content and language.

 ARC Received for an honest review

When Ms Smith asked if I would review her debut novel, A Reason to Breathe, I jumped at the chance.  Through our facebook groups, I have been along for the ride as she has been writing Jack and Jenn's story, and have been anxiously awaiting the finishing product.

Jess married her highschool sweetheart and had a daughter at 19, and now in her 30's she is widowed.  Her daughter is off to college, so now is the perfect opportunity to live the life she has always wanted.  So she ups and moves to the Colorado mountains to start over, to "live with the bears".

She is also the shiny new toy that all the men in town are interested in.  ALL the men!

Life as a small town newspaper reporter is not fast paced.  Bake sales, BBQ's, fluff pieces.  
Jack Gunnison.  Hot.  Town sheriff. Alpha with a capital ALPHA.  Phew, I am still fanning myself about Jack, I can't get enough of the man.  Sexy as sin, every woman in town wants a piece of him.  He has a reputation as a bit of a man whore, but it is not that he doesn't want commitment, he has just never found the woman he wants it with.
When Jack met Jenn (hey, that could be a movie title lol).... BOOM!  Fireworks ensue.  They infuriate each other, at the same time as they intrigue each other.

But they have bigger things to worry about.  There is a serial killer in town, knocking off women at an alarming rate.  This is the case of a career for Jack (not that that is what he worries about), and it could be the story of a life time for Jenn's journalistic career.

I loved the banter between Jack and Jenn.  She is fighting the attraction, he isn't going to let her run.  He knows she is the one, now he just has to convince her!

Share? Im not sure Im ready for any type of relationship, Jack.

Babe, You may not be ready, but thats not going to stop me from changing your mind.


And pursue her he does.  He is relentless in his chase for her, and she is just as relentless in her refusal to be bossed around by him, or anyone else for that matter.

There are a lot of people in town who are not at all happy with Jack's interest in Jenn.  Jealous exes, his work colleagues.  The serial killer, who seems to have taken a real interest in Jenn. But through it all, Jack and Jenn forge a new relationship... and it H.O.T!!!!!

Their banter is sexy, funny, you can feel their frustration with each other.  Their relationship is all push and pull, they push each other to the extreme, but the pull is magnetic.  No matter what they think they want, they can't do it without each other.
I loved the cast of characters in A Reason to Breathe.  Jenn's 20 year old daughter Bailey is great! She is smart, funny, all for her mum getting her freak on with the Sheriff lol.  Her relationship with her mother is the kind of relationship we all strive to have with our mothers/daughters.

Love the old fellas at the diner, Ben and Gerry (couldn't help but think of icecream every time their names were mentioned together - Cherry Garcia anyone??).  Ben is the father / grandfather we all want in our lives.  All I could think was "please don't let Ben be the killer".  But was he? Nope, for that you are going to have to read for yourself.

Even though at the core of the story there is a serial killer, this book has so many laugh out loud moments  and I spent so much of the time with a big grin on my face as we get into the lives of these characters.

This is Ms Smith's debut novel, however if I would never have believed this if I did not know it.  A Reason to Breathe is a well written, well rounded story.  There is great character development, the story ebbs and flows naturally, it is well paced. It went from lighthearted to dark and dangerous without any hiccups.

You can feel the Kristen Ashley influence in Ms Smith's writing - this is no surprise as she has never kept hidden how much Ms Ashley is her inspiration

The only thing wrong with A Reason To Breathe?  It ended!



ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CP Smith is a married mother of 5, avid reader and now a writer!  Jack has been floating around her head for the past 15 years, but not he is out there for all the world to know and love!