✰ Bianca ✰ Janeane ✰ 
KIM KARR - BLURRED
• release date: 5 August 2014
• a CONNECTIONS Series Novella - #3.5
We suggest you read the 4 previous books in the series before reading BLURRED - you could start with Blurred, lots of things are explained - but why would you want to miss those amazing books? ☺
• a CONNECTIONS Series Novella - #3.5
We suggest you read the 4 previous books in the series before reading BLURRED - you could start with Blurred, lots of things are explained - but why would you want to miss those amazing books? ☺
★★★★★
5 Stars
5 Stars
A Connection Series Novella featuring Ben Covington
The story before the love story….
When he lost the only woman he’d ever loved, it seemed there was nothing left to live for.
Even as a boy, all Ben Covington ever wanted was to spend forever with Dahlia London, the beautiful girl next door...then one life-altering decision tore them apart and he was forced to leave her.
Now, despite having returned to win her back, he’s still alone. She’s with someone else—someone she’s never going to leave.
Resigned to a future without his former girlfriend, Ben numbs his broken heart in a haze of liquor and women. But then the only woman who ever even turned his head while he was with his girl reappears unexpectedly. And he’s never forgotten their one incredible night together. But will Ben’s destructive behavior destroy his future with her before it even begins?
The story before the love story….
When he lost the only woman he’d ever loved, it seemed there was nothing left to live for.
Even as a boy, all Ben Covington ever wanted was to spend forever with Dahlia London, the beautiful girl next door...then one life-altering decision tore them apart and he was forced to leave her.
Now, despite having returned to win her back, he’s still alone. She’s with someone else—someone she’s never going to leave.
Resigned to a future without his former girlfriend, Ben numbs his broken heart in a haze of liquor and women. But then the only woman who ever even turned his head while he was with his girl reappears unexpectedly. And he’s never forgotten their one incredible night together. But will Ben’s destructive behavior destroy his future with her before it even begins?
The novella starts around the time Ben's mom died.
Remember? We read about that in the previous books. Now at her funeral he sees his ex-girlfriend Dahlia again - she's there with her new guy River.
Ben always thought he would spend the rest of his life with Dahlia. But then he had to 'die' to save her from being killed too. Now that he's back and Dahlia's in love with another guy, Ben doesn't really know what to do. Getting drunk and have sex with random girls is not really how he wants to spend his days.
That's why he leaves California and goes to Australia for a while. To fall back in love with surfing.
He gave up his surfing career for Dahlia back when they were still in high school.
And the water is where he's always been the happiest.
 |
| Bondi Beach |
In Australia he kind of finds the old Ben again - not the cocky idiot Ben, but the surfing, halfway happy guy - who finally finds his love for words and writing again.
Back in LA for the upcoming trial against the mexican drug people (the research for an article about that got him into the whole mess in the first place!) he needs to find a job and he needs to get his life back on track.
Without Dahlia.
What the fuck have I done with my life - I'm twenty-seven, staying in a shit bag motel with no money and nothing to look forward to.
Then there's Bell - or S'Belle - as he was calling her back in college.
They had a little intense one-night-thing after flirting for weeks - back when he was still with Dahlia.
He felt horribly guilty about that back then - but he just couldn't resist this amazingly beautiful redhead.
But Bell is not the same flirty girl she was in college.
Plus - she's also the sister of the guy his ex Dahlia is in love with now: River Wilde.
Very complicated - BUT - when he meets her again on a reporter-job - he remembers why he never really forgot her...
But with their past, her family connections to his past life, the trial and everything, starting something with her might not be the best way to start a new life.
Plus she doesn't seem to want anything to do with him.
WHAT WiLL HAPPEN TO BEN???
WiLL THERE BE A CLiFFHANGER???
WiLL THERE BE A CLiFFHANGER???
NOPE . . .
I'm not telling you ☺
I don't want to spoil too much . . .
Well - ok - we all know that Ben's story will be continued in the next book
FRAYED - coming in september - so there might not yet be a HEA!
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I REALLY LOVED THiS NOVELLA!
I know that many people will not be really excited to read Ben's story - they all blame him for Dahlia's & Belle's unhappiness...
But Kim really made it work. I started crying during the first pages!!!
Everything is so sad and moving and poor Ben - he knows he made some wrong choices and did the wrong things here and there - but even though it cost him the love of his life - he would still do the same thing again if he had to. At least now Dahlia is alive and happy.
Only Ben's not happy - NOT YET!! I really hope he'll get his HEA with Bell in the next book!
He really deserves it - even though many people don't think so!
It's kind of like the Nan-thing in Abbi Glines Rosemary Beach Series. The most hated character gets their own book and their own HEA ☺ I like that!
BLURRED covers many months - basically all the time from the beginning of the Connections Series.
We see and hear about many of our beloved characters - like Dahlia of course and Aerie and her digging into Damon Wolfe's business ...
We hear lots of scenes from Ben's POV and what it was like for him.
And yes - we still don't love him for cheating on Dahlia - but pfff - he probably always felt he wasn't the right guy for her - that River was Dahlia's perfect match - even without knowing him back then ☺ So everything should be perfect now - well not yet, of course - but as soon as he'll get his HEA with Bell in the next book - which will probably not all that easy - but we'll get there ☺
IT REALLY WAS THE PERFECT MOVING & SEXY & INFORMATIVE 'PREQUEL' NOVELLA TO BEN & BELLE'S STORY!
and now PLEASE HURRY - I need to read the next book ASAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ARC received for an honest review
After reading the previous books in the Connected series, I was not too sure if I was that keen on reading Ben Covington’s story – not so much because of what he did when he went away, as a difficult as it was, I could understand it, but more so because of the way he acted when he returned, and tried to ruin Dahlia’s happiness – again.
But I was wrong. So, so wrong.
Ben's story was heartbreaking from the get go. He has done things in the past that have hurt not just Dahlia but his family and friends also, and he is beating himself up about them pretty badly. He is struggling to forgive himself, especially for how much he hurt Dahlia, and my heart broke for him over and over again.
"I had thought I would not only be her first, but also her lat. And now hearing she's going to be marry another guy has torn my heart apart."
I loved that, as hard as it was to read, that we got more of what happened that night with Ben and S'Belle. The attraction between them in that one night makes you kind of think that yeah, maybe Ben and Dahlia weren't meant to be together afterall. I mean, she had to have something to tempt him to cheat right? I know that is no excuse, but look where it eventually got Dahlia.
I felt so much for Bell. As much as she was drawn to Ben, she kept away because of Dahlia and River's relationship. She was conflicted with her loyalties to herself and to her family.
I also loved the fact that Ben and Dahlia are finally starting to put their relationship back together. So hard to forgive what has happened, but harder to lose your best friend over it. I hope we get more of them repairing what looked to be so destroyed.
We did not get much of present day Bell in this novella, but boy what we did get was pretty explosive. Even though more than once through this series I have felt that neither Ben nor Bell really deserved their HEA after the way they treated people, I am curious to see how this all plays out. Am still not convinced either of them can get past their own selfishness to make a real go of a relationship?
So Ms Karr, I am impatiently waiting for Frayed to see how this all plays out.
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BLURRED - PLAYLIST
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