Take A Deep Breath

by Shar Dimick

Liv Reynolds can't remember when anxiety and panic didn't play havoc on her life. Recently divorced from a man who wouldn't or couldn't understand her, she retreats with her daughter to her grandmother's summer cottage on Lake of the Pines. Liv has fond memories of the summers she spent there with her grandparents. Always a safe haven, she hopes to spend the summer relaxing, healing and finding herself again. In the midst of a panic attack, she finds herself face-to-face with Cameron Preston, the boy with whom she'd spent her childhood summers. In love with him back then, she never found the courage to tell him and they drifted apart...Her heart leaps at the second chance for love. Confusion swamps her as she tries to figure out why Cam keeps pulling away... Can Liv rekindle their old friendship and to turn it into something more? Cam quit his busy big-city medical practice exhausted and disillusioned. He returns to his family's summer home on Lake of the Pines to regroup and determine where and what he wants to do next. When he runs into Liv, the girl he let slip away, he knows where wants to head and with whom. When Cam meets Liv's eight-year-old daughter, he assumes Liv is married. He struggles to keep his feelings for Liv in check while resuming the friendship he desperately misses. His one regret was not kissing Liv all those years ago when he had the chance... He has never stopped loving Liv. Will he let her slip away again? Not if he has his way.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Chick Lit, Ebooks

270 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 23, 2012

About the author

Shar Dimick started writing stories and poems as a grade-schooler. Her passion for writing continues to grow. Whether writing a blog entry, a software manual or a chapter in her next novel, not a day goes by where she isn’t writing something. Cousin to her love for writing, Shar’s also an avid reader of romance novels from contemporary to historical. Drawn to the genre from an early age, it seemed natural that her first novel, Take a Deep Breath, be a contemporary romance.

Shar holds a Master of Arts in English from Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. She lives in Northwest Ohio with her two daughers and their dogs.

Reviews

[Sue Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take a Deep Breath. That's exactly what I did when I finished reading this first love re-visited story. The author takes us by the hand and leads us along the pine-scented path that Liv and Cam follow to find their happy ending at Lake of the Pines.
Through Liv's story, Shar Dimick, puts a face on Anxiety Disorder, humanizing the common, but often not discussed, issue. Cam is the perfect hero, despite his father's expectations, rising to the occasion each time he's needed.
I love a story where family loyalty and love are woven into the mix. Both Cam and Liv are surrounded by family as they work through their complicated emotions, and isn't that the way of real life? Romance does not take place in a vaccuum.
The lakeside setting will take you a place you may not have been for a while, the family cottage. You can practically smell the pine and hear the waves lapping the shore.
Highly recommened.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

my friend recomended this to me. It was very good. The love story was great and the struggle the main character had was one every mother could relate to.

[Sylvia Morice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liv and her daughter Sara plan to spend the summer at Liv's grandmother's cottage on the lake, the same cottage where Liv spent many childhood summers of her own. Only this year, Liv is recovering from a recent divorce and is struggling to deal with a series of panic attacks that threaten to cripple her.
Enter Cam, the childhood friend, the boy that Liv had fallen in love with as a teenager but had been too shy to pronounce her love to him at the time.
Author Shar Dimick reunites these two old friends and once again, sparks fly. Although there were times in the story that I felt like shaking both characters and telling them to 'wise up and pay attention', and I thought that some of the actions were perhaps not realistic, I never-the-less enjoyed the story line and the ending. A wonderful, light romance that is perfect for summer reading at the beach or at the lake.

[DCT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take a deep breath will leave you breathless! This was a wonderful story of love found, lost and found again; it reminds you that it is never too late to rekindle the flames of a past relationship. You can relate to Liv's insecurities of herself and her failed marriage, but I almost wanted to reach through the book and slap her when she walks away from the wonderful Cam. Cam just makes you sigh, ah! He is precious; and I can't forget that cute little precocious Sara and sweet cookie baking Gram! The only thing that I couldn't quite figure out is how Ron, the ex changed his tune so quickly! Seems like there is more this story that we need to know about; speaking of which, I did not want this one to end here; there has to be more and I hope that the author will consider giving us more of this story from the Lake of the Pines.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take A Deep Breath was an AMAZING book. I love when I can read a book and feel the emotions of the characters. Which was the case with this book when it came to the main character, Livvy. When she would have an onset of a panick attack, I could feel my heart start to beat faster. When she felt pain, or when Cameron felt pain (the love interest), I could feel it. It just really brought me in personally and I like that. I will most definitely be keeping an eye out for more books from Shar Dimick!! A new favorite author thanks to Goodreads and Amazon!

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for a peaceful read with nice detailed nature descriptions and not a lot of suspense or drama or anger or danger, this is the book for you. Just a quiet, calm read. I kind of liked it! Nice for a change. There were the typical spelling and punctuation errors that seem to riddle every single book I read nowadays - are there no editors anymore????? Other than that, I enjoyed reading this gentle story.

[Anna Seeger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The interaction between the Liv the recently divorced single mother and Cam was engaging and fun to read. I loved the lake setting and how the story involved people of various ages. I highly recommend this book and look forward to her next one.

[J Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet love story!

[Doreen Timm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read, nice story! Enjoyed this book very much!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good book! can't wait for the next one to come out!

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good easy read that still has the pull to make you want to keep turning the pages even when you should be doing something other than reading!

[Mary Stallard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a nice story, loved the characters (Cam and Livvy) could not put the book down once I started reading it.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and heartwarming story!

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great romance! I have a hard time putting it down!

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read, fast paced, very believable and uplifting

[Felicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure if it was because I read the ebook version or what- but holy grammar mistakes. Some sentences were worded incorrectly or didn't make sense unless you replaced words with your own. Also, it was soooo difficult to tell whose perspective the story was from. It would go from telling you how Sara or Liv felt to being told from their perspective & then switching to other characters with little to no transition. One section was about Cam & his father & a couple other people & then suddenly there was a passage that said "... I said..." I was so confused as to who "I" was.

With that being said though, the story itself was pretty good. You have your romance, you have a teensy bit of suspense, you have topics of anxiety and panic attacks & it all just made for a real and believable story.

[Mindie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Take a Deep Breath

Story was just okay for me. The characters were cute and sweet but the cursing was more than what I like in a book.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read, mainly because there's very little conflict for the first half of the book. Liv has brought her daughter Sara to get grandmother's lake home for vacation after her divorce. She runs into childhood sweetheart, Cam, and the two rekindle some old flames. Liv suffers panic attacks, but these are more window dressing than anything concrete. When the real conflicts finally arise--a long distance relationship and a nasty ex-husband, both are quickly dismissed the first time Cam and Liv make love. Oh the magic of sex will make all our problems disappear and even outsiders will become more cooperative for no reason. This story is like broth for a hospital patient: easy to swallow, but with no meat and not particularly satisfying.

[Rob. C. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although the premises were good (second chance romance/best friends to lovers) unfortunately I didn't enjoy the book. I found it was a little slow, sometimes with too many long unnecessary descriptions and the dialogues felt a little flat and not very real.
I love books with happy endings and I don't necessarily have to have too much drama or angst in a book to like it, but this story was a little too slow at times, a little too descriptive about things that really didn't move the story forward in any way and weren't essential to the plot.

[Ilene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liv and Cameron were summer bffs, silently in love with each other. They couldn't confess their feelings so the summer before college was their last. They went on with their lives. Cam became an MD, Liv a wife/mother and a teacher. After her divorce she goes back to where she spent her summers. Of course she runs into Cam. They both still have feelings for one another though yet again it takes forever to admit to it. This book is a sweet easy summer read with a bit of tragedy but in the end a nice HEA.

[Dorothy Timm · Rating 2 out of 5]

So slow moving! It wasn't really a bad book-it just seemed like a very poor imitation of a Sherryl Woods book (One of my favorite authors. I remember one night he was in a bar, and it took him about 3 pages just to get a beer, and the story really didn't advance much.

[MaryJane Rings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light feel good novel. Interesting story but didn't really solve the underlying problems of the main characters feelings of personal inadequacy and feeling that they were not able to measure up to their adult responsibilities. Good weekend read.

[❤️ Dorsey aka Wrath Lover Reviews ❤️]

Kindle Freebie 9/30/12

[Natascha · Rating 2 out of 5]

A contemporary romance story, which is not my cup of tea anymore. There is really nothing exiting going on in this book. So, no I didn't like the book and will not read it again!

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book, nice story...needed more drama for my liking...very vanilla. Still enjoyed it as I do most words on paper and so not meant as an insult.

[KareB · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one took awhile to get through. I liked the characters and plot. I just felt like there was a lot of unnecessary details.

[KStar · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was just a really cute and so sweet of a story to read. Nice little story about possible second chances with the one that got away. :)

[Kathee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice story. Easy read. Great beach or vacation book!!