Losing her will test his limits.LOGAN LANCASTER is a strong, confident man who is consumed by one to protect Victoria, the woman he loves, from her abusive stepfather.
But when Victoria’s stepfather threatens to take her away for good, Logan realizes his overprotectiveness is not enough.
With one missed phone call, Logan’s life descends into a twisted, dark world of malice, violence, and abuse and leads to a twelve-year hunt for the girl he swore he would protect.
What Logan discovers will test his resolve and inflame his obsession to bring Victoria back from a nefarious world that refuses to let its latest victim go.
The Finding is A.M. Porto’s debut novel and the first book in her Berrycreek Heights Series. This is a romantic YA thriller A.M. takes us to a dark and twisted world full of emotions. This gripping story is one of true love, obsession, and the desperate search for a missing love. We see abuse, violence and malice we are taken on a journey with unexpected twists into the depths of human immorality. Where things that nightmares are made of reside there is so much evil, pain, suffering, lies, heartbreak, hopelessness and depravity. Logan is determined to find her no matter how long it takes or what the cost. It is also a look at the emotional toll and effects on one’s psyche. The writing draws you in and it is hard to put down because you just want to know what is going to happen. I was on the end of my seat and the tension was palpable. I highly recommend reading this emotional thriller.
This book definitely was interesting. It follows the story of Victoria; and tells about the countless abuse she suffered at the hands of her stepfather. There are detailed descriptions of child abuse in this novel, and honestly I did find myself needing to take a bit of a break here and there from the story because of some of the details of abuse. Her stepfather also goes along and ends up selling her to a cartel, where she does end up getting SA'd by the cartel leader. The SA doesn't go in to detail, for those that might struggle with reading things like that.
The writing style of the author to me seemed to be full of dialog, and a little low on actual action. Don't get me wrong, I love a book full of dialog, but I feel like I personally missed a lot of opportunities to connect with the characters and connect more with the story due to the way we don't get to see a range of emotions that can connect readers with characters. This isn't me saying there are *no* emotions, but honestly there's only about three- love, rage, and determination. The idea and the plot was absolutely fantastic, but I personally feel like the writing style could have been a little more detailed when it comes to the actions of the characters. This isn't a dig to the author; I really did like this book, it's just the writing style wasn't for me, but it could be perfectly fine for you.
As I said, I do love the plot, and I love the basis surrounding the book. I think this author has a phenomenal amount of potential as a writer and as she develops more into her craft, and I look forward to seeing what else she puts out into the world and to watch her grow!
Victoria’s mother died when she was quite young, leaving her behind with an alcoholic step dad. Logan and his mother moved in next door and the pair became fast best friends. When Logan’s mother found out that Vic was basically left alone, she quickly extended an open door invitation into their home. From there Vic and Logan grew up together and eventually fell in love as teenagers.
This is also when her step father started actively hating her and would abuse her. For years, Logan was her protector until one day she was gone. Her step father abducted her.
This throws Logan into darkness where he will spend the next 12 years trying to find his first and only love. He wants no one else, just Victoria and will stop at nothing to find her.
The book alternates between both Logans and Victorias point of views. Throughout the book, you get a glimpse of the resources and funds that Logan uses to try to find Victoria. Meanwhile on Victoria’s side, it’s even darker than you can imagine. Her step dad is a horrible man and cares only about destroying Victoria until there is nothing left. She slowly descends into depression but still maintains hope that one day she will break free or Logan will rescue her.
The author did a good job portraying first loves and how strong the feeling for that person is. No matter how much time has passed, you will always remember your first love. Like I mentioned earlier, Victorias side of the story gets dark so if you are triggered by sexual assault and/or talk of suicide, you might want to steer clear of this book. If not, I recommend this book. It’s heart wrenching but hopeful at the same time.
This is a dark emotional romance about 2 friends who fell in love and despite all the odds are determined to be together. This is the first book in the Berrycreek Heights series and I can't wait to see what else the author has in store for us. This is a dark story that deals with violence, abuse, danger, agendas, love and obsession. Victoria has had a horrible childhood. Her mother passed leaving her with her mother's boyfriend. He is a nasty piece of work and treats Victoria appallingly. When Logan meets her there is an instant connection. Right from the start he feels a need to protect her and make sure no harm comes to her. As they grow together their friendship turns to romance and Logan realises that he will protect Victoria no matter what the cost or what he has to do to insure her safety. When Victoria and her step-dad disappear this causes Logan to spiral down a dark hole as he tries everything to find her and when he eventually does hearing her story almost breaks him. It takes a lot of strength for him to keep control of his emotions and be there for the girl he loves. This is a very emotional dark romance with some subjects that maybe triggering to some people. It is a story that will grip you and I couldn't put it down until i reached the end. I can't wait to see what the author produces next.
The Finding (Berrycreek Heights Series Book 1) by A. M. Porto. This is a great, very emotional young adult read. Its the story of Victoria and Logan who meet at a very young age and fall in love quite young as well. Victoria's mom dies when she is very young and she is left to be raised by her step dad Zach a raging alcoholic who also abuses her. Logan is determined to protect Victoria at all costs but doesn't realize how severe the abuse is. Everyone knows how horrible the situation is but are not sure what to do about it, they are just kids. As they grow older they start to have deeper feelings for one another and as soon as they fall in love Zach and Victoria disappear leaving Logan desperate to find her and down a black road filled with violence and sadness. When he finally finds her and finds out all the things she's been thru it will take everything in Logan to not do the unthinkable. This is a dark, sad, love story that is probably happening to people all around us without us knowing.
The Finding is the first book in the Berrycreek Heights series and debut novel by A.M. Porto. This is a superb YA/NA romantic suspense with dark tones, tragedy, secrets, pain, heartache, danger, agendas, intrigue, emotion, twists, chemistry, violence, obsession, and more. There are some darker subject matters/themes through the story that might be triggering for some readers, so if you have triggers, please be aware of this before diving in… This book grabbed me right from the get-go, and when I was done, I went looking for more from the author, as I hadn’t read anything by them before…. and was even more impressed to discover that this is the authors debut novel. I wasn’t expecting something so engrossing and polished to be a debut novel. If this compelling book is anything to go by, I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more of A.M. Porto’s work in the future. Expect an emotional walloping from this thrilling story. Looking forward to more from the author! Happy Reading…
5 Stars The Finding (Berrycreek Heights Series Book 1) by A. M. Porto
The Finding (Berrycreek Heights Series Book 1) is a YA/ Thriller that is packed with suspense, action, drama,violence, secrets, pain and so much more. This is this authors debut novel and holy cow I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us. I was pulled in from the beginning and found myself on the edge of my seat trying to figure out what was going to happen next. I will warn you there may be some parts that might be a trigger for some but I recommend reading through it if you can. The characters are raw ,creative and developed. Get ready to be taken on quite the emotional journey. I highly recommend reading this book to find out what happens next. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from this Author in the near future.
This premise of this story sounds intriguing but the execution was a struggle for me. I was continually drawn out of the flow by the timeline and how the sides of the story don’t match up with what we previously read. The story is broke my heart a time or two and I really felt for Logan. I liked how focused he was on finding her and how his anguish filled the pages.
Overall it seemed appealing but honestly I lost interest as the time dragged on. Maybe a shorter story and adjustments to the timeline would have helped me enjoy this story.