Book Review: Without You by Reylynn Purdue

Without You

By: Reylynn Purdue

Published: January 29, 2017

Source:
eARC from the publisher for an honest review

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GR's Summary:

Roxanne Daniels was supposed to be spending her summer getting ready to head off to Julliard. That was the plan. But that was before-- Before she found her mother’s lifeless body-- Before she walked in on her boyfriend in bed with someone else. Before she knew what heart shattering pain felt like. Now all she wants is for the pain to go away. But it never does. Until him. A complete stranger who could end up being much more. But letting go and moving on is easier said than done.

My Thoughts:

Without You was an emotional read full of angst, heartbreak, and drama.  It was about how painful living can be at times, as well as how rewarding.  It was about loss, love, friendship, and trying to get through the motions of living, when you just want to give up.

Roxy's life is in turmoil.  Her mother died unexpectedly of a brain aneurism, and the day after her funeral, Roxy caught her boyfriend of four years in bed with one of her best friends.  She is in so much pain, that she can't physically get out of bed.  In order to drown out her feelings, she begins taking her mother's old prescription drugs.  Her father is a workaholic who is absent most of the time.  Her brother Ryan and his best friend Brent are trying to help Roxy, but are dealing with their own pain as well.  Her best friend, Tonya, tries her best to be there for Roxy, but no one seems to be able to make her feel better.  

Then, one day, Roxy meets Jordan.  He's good looking, sexy, charming, and sweet.  When Roxy is with him, the pain isn't as bad.  She warns Jordan that she is broken and does not want a relationship.  They can have a fun summer fling, but that is all.  However, as both of their feeling grow for one another, things get complicated, Jordan's patience is tested, and Roxy's trust issue's come to the surface...

Without You was a very addicting read.  I found myself crying throughout the book, because Roxy's heart-wrenching pain and suffering were palpable throughout the book.  At times, her actions seemed a bit immature for an eighteen year old, but she was under duress throughout the story.  I loved Jordan.  He was such a great character, who had a painful past, but had learned from his mistakes, and was very supportive of Roxy.  I loved how loyal and close Roxy and her best friend Tonya were, and enjoyed reading about their friendship.  I liked Roxy's older brother, Ryan, and his best friend, Brent.  They were way too overprotective and smothering, but they really cared about Roxy.  

I thought the story was really long and would have benefitted from being shortened.  There was a lot of back and forth between Roxy and Jordan which drove me crazy at times, but also kept me riveted to the story.  They had a passionate roller coaster type relationship.  Without You ended in a crazy cliffhanger, and has me dying to get my hands on the sequel.

My Rating:

I give, Without You, by Reylynn Purdue 4 Emotional, Heart-Wrenching, Tearful, Passionate Love Filled Stars!

Book Teasers:

Excerpt:

Full disclosure—my ex-boyfriend, who wrecked my world, is about to walk by. I’m begging you to please pretend to know me.” 

I knew how pathetic I sounded, but I would kick myself for that later. 

He slightly tilted his head to the right and gave me a confused smile. 

Then, he just stood there and gaped at me. 

I was now seriously doubting the whole honesty-is-always-the-best-policy idea. 

It sure as hell wasn’t helping me. 

“Roxy?” Kevin called out from a few feet away. 

My insides twisted into knots at the sound of Kevin’s voice.

Please just kill me now. I didn’t know what I was thinking. Oh, right, I wasn’t. 

 I stepped forward, wrapped my arms around the sexy stranger’s neck, and pressed my lips to his. 

Yeah, so this is way more than I asked from him. 

Please don’t push me away. 

I was trying to will this guy not to call me out. 

Surprise and relief flooded my body as I felt his arms wrap around my waist, and he returned the kiss. 

His tongue grazed my lips. 

I parted them, allowing him access. 

Wow… People shouldn’t just grab strangers off the street and kiss them, but damn, this guy could kiss.

About Reylynn Purdue:

Born and raised in California, Reylynn Purdue lives with her loving husband and three beautiful kids. A lover of books, she reads like crazy. She has also always enjoyed writing, but one day, she decided to take it to the next level. She started writing her debut novel in 2013. To say she had no clue what she was doing is an understatement. As of today, she still has no clue what she is doing when it comes to publishing a book, but she is learning as she goes. She loves her story and hopes you will as well. She also finds talking about herself in third person to be very strange, and she kind of hates it.

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