Ten Tiny Breaths : A Novel

I love the book! great story line. It only took a few days to read because I could not put it down!! I have also read the next 2. They were both great reads too. I love how each book is on a different character and they are all somehow connected. Cant wait for number 4 to come out!!!! So excited! I hope there is more to come!show more

** Caution - Review contains plot line spoilers. ** One night. One bad decision. Angry, bitter and lost, Kacey Cleary lives and breathes for only one reason. Her younger sister, Livie. Holding on to the pieces of the life that shattered on that one horrible night when she lost her parents, best friend and boyfriend in a car crash, she grabs Livie and moves them to Miami to start a new life. A too-friendly uncle was the last straw, and Kacey is determined to keep Livie safe. Haunted by memories of being trapped in her car, listening to her mother's last breaths, holding on to the hand of her dead boyfriend, and the sight of her best friend's crushed body, she refuses to get close to anyone. Never does she want to suffer another loss like that. It's safer to be distant. But then Trent, Storm and Mia barge in to her safe, emotionless life, and turn her whole world upside down. Kicking and screaming, Kacey's walls slowly start to crumble. She forges a friendship with Storm, falls for adorable little Mia, and begins to fall in love with Trent. Making good money bartending at the adult club Storm works in, she is finally feeling hope for the future. Until one huge revelation shatters her life all over again. One night. Two survivors. Both are drowning. One shattered by grief. The other desperate for forgiveness. Will love be enough to heal them? I can't remember the last time where every character in a story tugged at my heart strings the way each one in Ten Tiny Breaths did. Or the last time that I carried my Kindle everywhere, so that every time I had a single minute, I could get back into this book, if only to read just one more paragraph. This story hit me on a deeper emotional level than I anticipated. Writing this review, and thinking back on this story still chokes me up. Though it addresses a very serious and important issue that has dire consequences, it also touches on how powerful the gift of forgiveness can be. Though I would consider this to fall in the New Adult genre and maybe more appealing to a younger audience, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this story to anyone and everyone. ** Review copy generously provided by publisher through Netgalley for the purposes of an honest review. **show more

I loved Kacey, she is tough, guarded and she knows how to kick ass, literally. What's more she is hardcore protective over her sister Liviee, and that relationship was so tender, but had some funny banter, but always support and understanding for each other. The lengths that Kacey goes through to protect and provide for Liviee really showed me a lot. Kacey didn't want to let anyone in, but their neighbor Storm and her five year old daughter Mia still managed to worm their way into her heart, and the way their friendship played out was well written. I adore when an author manages to write female friendship that is authentic and isn't an afterthought. It was a central plot and I really appreciated that. They had a back and forth banter as well as some deep moments of sharing and understanding between adults, that I appreciated. And how dare I, I haven't even mentioned Trent yet. He is a mystery wrapped in an enigma, but I love the tender glimpses we get from him, when he interacts with Mia, or when he steps in as protector or comforter to Mia, Storm, Liviee or especially Kacey. There was some seriously hot romantic tension, but there is also a deeper level, and a respect that he has for her, and a genuine concern for the things she went through and wanting her to heal and get help. But then he would just out and disappear for a while, and I really wanted to know what his secrets are and what he's hiding/running from. That added some major suspense to the story because Kacey we find out sooner and in pieces what her demons are and the effects on her daily life, but Trent we really only know because of the secrecy, and of course because the synopsis told us. And then oh my god, at about 80% K.A. threw me for a loop. I mean, I totally was not expecting that. I had to turn off my kindle and come write this sentence to process. Wow. Yeah. Did not see that coming, and have no idea how this is going to go, and what I want to happen, or what should happen. Dang. I loved the ending, it was so perfect, and I can't wait for more from this world. Bottom Line: Emotional but steamy romance with a strong and feisty main character.show more

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley.) 20-year-old Kacey and her 15-year-old siser Livie have suddenly had to move to Miami, after their uncle who they lived with got into Livie's bed one night. Moving into a not-very-attractive, but reasonably priced apartment, Kacey and Livie begin building a new life for themselves, with the help of their neighbour - Storm, and her 5-year-old daughter Mia. Kacey and Livie have not had it easy, their parents were killed in a car accident 4 years ago which Kacey miraculously survived. Kacey has never come to terms with what happened though, and although she takes a lot of her aggression out on kick-boxing, she still has issues, and hates it when people touch her hands. Things seem to be looking up for Kacey though, when the new neighbour in 1D turns out of be the gorgeous Trent, who seems to want nothing more than to make her happy. Will Kacey ever get over what happened to her though? Can she really build a life for herself and Livie working for minimum wage? And is Trent Kacey's happily ever after? This was an interesting story, but light on the romance, and I saw the twist coming. Kacey is a bit messed up over what she's been through, and it seems that conventional therapy, and kick-boxing aren't really helping her work through things. As much as she's trying to be strong for Livie, and to build a new life for them, something is holding her back. Kacey does seem to be trying, she's even stopped her destructive behaviours, but I think it's obvious to everyone but her that she's not functioning normally. Trent comes across as a sweet guy, but he also displays some almost stalker-ish qualities, turning up at Kacey's work, and staring at her for ages. It was nice that he made Kacey feel something, but his behaviour was also a little strange. There was some romantic tension built up between Kacey and Trent, and although they seemed to like each other to start with, there was no insta-love, or immediate relationship between them. I have to say that as this is a 'new adult' book I was expecting there to be a little more in the way of 'love' scenes though. In my opinion this book was very light on those sort of scenes, with one very-anticipated encounter being over with in three lines. Not very satisfying. The storyline was an interesting one, with both the Trent-Kacey storyline, and the Kacey's past storyline. There was a twist in the tale towards the end, but I did totally see it coming. Trent asks Kacey a question at one point, and I immediately knew where the storyline was going to go from there. The ending was okay, and things seemed to tie up nicely, but it almost felt a bit too neat. Like the issues that were dealt with in the book didn't quite lead to the sort of happy ending we got. Maybe I'm just being picky, but after everything that happened, the ending wasn't quite what I envisioned, even though aspects of it were good, it just felt a little unrealistic. Overall; an okay storyline, but I expected more in the way of love scenes, and I guessed the twist before it happened. 6.75 out of 10.show more