Blurb:

Growing up, Mallory Dodge learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime. Now, after years of homeschooling, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at a public high school. But she never imagined she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet soon it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory must make a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants and the truths that need to be heard.

Mallory and Rider have been through hell and back growing up. The abuse and neglect they endure as children was horrible. Rider was always protecting Mallory from The Monster. Eventually they are able to escape that horrible situation. Four years go by and they are reunited. Man, I loved when they reconnected and Rider called her Mouse. There was no denying their connection. Only problem is Rider has a girlfriend Paige. During this book we see Mallory and Rider both struggle with their past. Even though they aren’t in that horrible place anymore the lingering effects are still there. Mallory suffers from bad anxiety and Rider doesn’t feel like he’s good enough or that he matters. It was so sad seeing how little they felt about themselves. No children should have to be brought up in that kind of environment. Seeing Mallory and Rider struggle to find themselves and finally achieving some peace made me happy. They still have a long way to go but it was nice to see them in a better place. My main issue with the book was the way it ended. When Mallory and Rider finally made progress the book was pretty much over. 474 pages and I don’t have closure. I feel like certain areas dragged on and when we got to the good stuff the book was over. I was left somewhat incomplete after reading. I’m hoping we will get a novella or something to wrap up the loose ends. Even though I wasn’t completely satisfied with the way it ended, it was an enjoyable read!

4 Book Corner Stars

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About the Author:

# 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout lives in West Virginia.

When she’s not hard at work writing, she spends her time, reading, working out, watching zombie movies, and pretending to write. She shares her home with her husband, his K-9 partner named Diesel and her hyper Jack Russell Loki. Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent her time writing short stories. Therefore explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes Young Adult Contemporary, Urban Fantasy/Paranormal and Romance. She writes New Adult and Adult romance under the pen name J.Lynn

She is the author of the Covenant Series (Spencer Hill Press) the Lux Series (Entangled Teen) and the upcoming YA Don’t Look Back (2014) and untitled YA (Fall 2014) from Disney/Hyperion. She is also published with Harlequin Teen and HarperCollins.

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