Undertow

Dragonfly #2

by Leigh Talbert Moore

A small-town, new adult romance.Falling in love will pull you under...-Bill Kyser has a plan to take the sandy farms of his hometown and turn them into a world-class tourist destination--and become a billionaire in the process.-Alexandra "Lexy" LaSalle has a plan to change her life by becoming a world-famous artist.-Meg Weaver has a plan to hold onto Bill no matter what she has to do.Three friends, three dreams.One fatal decision will change all their lives forever.In Dragonfly, Bill Kyser gave Anna the three journals that held the story behind the powerful developer's seclusion and the damaged lives of his family members.Anna hopes to find a way for Julian to know the truth, but as she digs deeper into the tragic events of the past, she realizes silence could be the only option.Now she's in an alliance with the man she formerly feared.And if Julian finds out what she knows, she could lose for good the boy she's starting to love.(A full-length New Adult contemporary romance, family saga.)"(I was) so emotionally invested, devastated, in love with, and wrapped up in Undertow. Gosh, how I loved it." -Goodreads

Genres: Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Young Adult, Fiction, Ebooks, Contemporary Romance

337 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 14, 2013

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Reviews

[Kristin (KC) · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 Stars*

Sweet with a side of scandalous!!

Undertow is an edgy and dynamic sequel to 'Dragonfly'—and it was an amazing read! The characters were lovely, but they were also flawed. That sort of realness and honesty breathes life into them and is truly refreshing to come across as a reader. This is such a great story, with a unique execution. There are certain 'controversial' and deeply tragic scenarios that arise, but they are handled tactfully and offer the story a genuine feel. I fell hard into the lives of these broken characters...

This installation takes us on an emotional journey into the pasts of Meg, Alex, and Bill, as it slowly reveals the secrets and betrayal of an intense romance buried deep within the past. It is told through the alternating, candid journal entries of all three characters. The transitions are flawless and move with a fluid energy. This story picks up right where Dragonfly leaves off, so prepare yourself to finally meet all those skeletons left hanging in the closet as Anna uncovers the dust-covered mysteries in these journals.

I'll admit to being initially worried when I realized this story would largely consist of journal entries, but as it progressed, I became so engrossed in the emotional back stories of these lovable characters...and I found myself growing anxious for answers.

The truth is always the right thing...

What I love most about Leigh's writing is the fearlessness it exudes. She courageously hands us an entire cast of damaged characters, who will eventually earn our adoration. She also doesn't tip toe around controversial issues; they are faced head-on, but with a delicate execution. Her characters are always REAL, and relatable, and she never fails to pull me right into the heart of her story. Although Undertow offers us insight and closure to certain issues, it also sets the stage for a new set of emotional circumstances—and I cannot wait to follow Anna and Julian on the rest of their journey!

Book Stats:
▪ Genre/Category: Romance/ New Adult
▪ Steam Caliber: Moderate
▪ Romance: Intense. Complex but passionate.
▪ Characters: Well fleshed-out. Damaged but lovable.
▪ Plot: A past romance filled with secrets and betrayal told through emotional journal entries.
▪ Writing: Heartfelt. Fluid. Engaging.
▪ POV: 1st Person: Alternating perspectives.
▪ Cliffhanger: Mild. Story left open for more.
▪ Next Installment: Follow up.

*Arc kindly provided by author in exchange for an honest review*

[Leigh Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's possible Undertow is my favorite book I've ever written.

This installment takes Anna & Julian to the start of their serious relationship; however, the main focus is on WHY everyone is where they are.

The secrets Anna discovers along with her new "alliance" set the stage for some crazy drama to come~

Check out the NEW Pinterest Series Board that features real location shots, shots of "Julian's" art, teasers and more!
Here: http://bit.ly/1kP9RCe

[Sarah Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to author Leigh Talbert Moore.)
This is book 2 in the ‘Dragonfly’ series, and kicks off where book 1 left off.
Anna has received the journals that Julian and Jack’s parents kept at the time when both Julian and Jack were conceived, and she’s going to read them to discover what exactly was going on at the time.
What was going on in Meg’s head? Why did Lexi sleep with her best friends boyfriend? And how was the affair discovered?


This was a slow and steady second instalment that built up the whole background to the story, and left me desperate to find out what will happen next for Anna and Julian!

Most of the story was told as journal entries; first from Meg (Jack’s mom), then Lexy (Julian’s mom), and then Bill (Jack and Julian’s father). This was quite an interesting way to give us insight into the back story of these three characters, and also allowed Anna to work out what had happened too.
I thought that the journal entries could possibly have been cut down a bit, maybe by just having us read the entries that Anna thought significant. The pace through these was quite slow, and after reading all 3 it was a bit like reading the same thing three times over, even thought this was necessary to see things from all three points of view. There were also quite a few entries about what was happening in their lives at the time that we maybe didn’t need to know to enjoy the story.
Even though this was quite a slow story through the journal entries, I did enjoy it though, and it allowed tension to be built slowly.

There was some sex in this book (in the journal entries), which I guess was inevitable considering that both Meg and Lexy got pregnant by Bill. Nothing erotic, but this probably classifies as NA rather than YA. I also wondered how weird it might be for Anna reading about her boyfriend’s Mom and Dad having sex. Not sure I’d want to read intimate secrets about people’s sex lives who I knew personally, but it didn’t seem to bother Anna.

Most of this book was taken up with the journal entries, there was actually very little going on with Anna and the boys in this instalment, to the point where this was almost like a prequel. I did miss Julian and Anna together in this one, but it was actually really good to get such an insight into how this whole mess started in the first place.
I think the person I felt most sorry for was Meg, but then again a lot of her problems were her own doing so she was hardly innocent in all this.

I was really glad that Anna and Julian do seem to be together in this book though! Yay! That was exactly what I was hoping for as they make such a sweet couple. I hate to think what will happen to them when it’s discovered that Anna knows all this stuff about his parents though, and now knows who his father is!
I can’t believe the place Bill has now put her in, and I’m also dying to know what was written in the letter that Anna found in his journal and didn’t read! Once again the stakes are raised, and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series to find out what will happen to Anna and Julian and the gang next!
Overall; a teasing glimpse into the backstory of Julian and Jack’s parents that will once again leave you wanting more.
7.5 out of 10.

[Tee loves Kyle Jacobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished Undertow and my God I am so emotional! I just can't even think straight right now. I love this series so much and October can't come fast enough to see what happens to everyone. This review is going to be a little different because I feel like I have to say something about each character that played a huge role in this book. As we all know well those of you who have read Dragonfly know that the ending was an incredible ending leaving us with Anna having three journals in her possession given to her by Bill Kyser himself. We get to see a glimpse into Bill, Meg, and Lexy's life. I have to say that this book had me in tears because it had so many emotional things in it and the fearsome three as I like to call Meg, Lexy, and Bill go through some stuff that broke them and now Bill Kyser is ready to let go of the pain and move on to want he has wanted for sometime.

When we first meet Bill Kyser he is drunk and rude and callous to Anna. He scares the crap out of her and Jack is upset that he is acting out when he has company. No one knows the pain that Bill carries and the guilt that he carries with him in regards to raising his children. He loves them all and wants to protect them. Bill has carried his secret long enough and when you find out what it is you are going to be amazed. I actually fell in love with Bill Kyser in this book because what he went through and what he sacrificed to give his family the life they wanted.

Meg... Meg... Meg.... I am so disappointed with you and disgusted by your selfish acts! I HATE HATE HATE HATE women who hold a man by doing what you did. Nothing good comes from lies and secrets and in the end Meg I guess you found that out didn't you. Was it a mistake what happened or did you do that on purpose? Your behavior from the minute you saw Bill Kyser has been nothing but selfishness. Plain and simple you are a selfish B^%$#! I can't believe how you treated your friend and how you treated your husband. Just spoiled rotten and look what that got you in the end. The one fear you had you pushed your husband into because of your insecurities and lies and selfishness!

Lexy AKA Alex.... My heart broke for her. Julian's mother is a special lady that I respect and loved! She was what a real friend should be and yes she made a mistake but she regretted it and she paid for that mistake everyday and she will for the rest of her life. She loved Meg and would do anything for Meg but when Lexy needed Meg she was not there for her. It amazed me how selfless Lexy was and how she wanted to what was right and she punished herself as well as her family to see to it that she kept the peace even after the death of her best friend she kept her promises. I am dying to see what happens in the third book because so much has happened and so much is about to happen.

I want to say this as Anna was reading the journals she realized how much she loves Julian and I can't wait for book three to see if they get their HEA. In book three someone will come back into Anna's life and shake it up can her love for Julian survive? Will Julian still love Anna once the truth is out in the open? What will happen to Bill and Lexy? I have to give a huge KUDOS to Leigh because she knows how to write a story like no one's business!

[Lauren at Live Read and Breathe Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Source: eARC for Honest Review from Author and Inkslinger PR

This suspense is killing me with the why's and hows and all the secrets.



In this book, through the three journals we finally get to find out what happened in the past with Meg, Alex and Bill.



With Meg we find out how superficial and shallow she is yet still has a big heart but is a bit naive to the reality of life and expectations.

With Alex in Dragonfly, I thought she was a bit of a bitch but with her journal and the others you realize that Alex is really a sweet heart and means well just made some bad choices and instead of dealing with the reality she has but up brick walls to keep everyone away.

With Bill, he is a single minded driven person with a plan but life gives him some bumps on the way. I loved seeing both Bill's POV after reading Mrg's and Alex's. My heart went out to him but because of the past he too has made walls from getting hurt which, unfortunately this has also hurt his family. However, Bill still has drive and he wants what he wants and is patient to wait until he gets it.



I don't envy Anna with this knowledge. She is already torn between two boys but with this truth she follows her heart and chooses Julian. At this point I will admit I am totally Team Julian and have been since Dragonfly.



The truth is going to come out and unfortunately Anna is going to get caught in that crossfire but I hope there is enough forgiveness that all can find happiness. I am not sure what is in store for Anna but we do know jack will be back and I am left biting my nails waiting for what is going to happen next. My fingers are crossed for Anna and Julian as well as Bill and Alex.

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[Magan Vernon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The saga continues...

Three journals could hold the clue to all of the questions that Anna has.

Or they could just raise more.

You know how some books lately have done this whole re-telling of the same story and you feel like "Didn't I just read this in the last book?" I can tell you that Moore does not do that in the slightest.

We start out with Meg's journal and learn what was behind the deceased mother of Jack and Lucy. Moore does an excellent job of showing Meg's character growth and had me literally gasping at the end.

Then we move on to Lexy. We do see the same events from Meg's journal, but it's not a rehashing. You get to see what happened while she was in Georgia and why she came back.

Finally, we have Bill. We get to see what was behind the harsh father of Jack and Lucy and understand why he acts the way he does toward Anna.

All three journals have a little bit of sex appeal, a little bit of intrigue, and a whole lot of page-turning quality. By the time the story ended, I was craving so much more!

I cannot wait for the next installment!

**Reviewer is a beta reader for the author

[Veronica of V's Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

***If you have read DRAGONFLY, there are no spoilers in this review.

What can a person confide in wholeheartedly, without censure? A private journal.

Through it a reader sees the author’s bold hopes, petty machinations, and outright manipulations in stark relief.

I’ve just completed reading an advance copy of UNDERTOW, book two in the Dragonfly Series by Leigh T. Moore, and it wasn’t what I expected.

I’ve rambled before about expectations and how it’s nice to upset them. Mix things up. Make bold moves.

Well, UNDERTOW is a very bold move.

It moved the Dragonfly Series right out of YA and squarely into women’s fiction.

How could that be? you ask—firmly reminding me that the protagonist, Anna, is a high school senior.

99% of the time a high school age main character = YA, right?

Sure. I’d lay money on the table with those odds, but UNDERTOW isn’t actually about Anna—it’s about big plans, bigger lies and life-changing secrets.

This tale is really an intimate look at a troubled marriage written from three points of view, and the speakers are old journals. The voyeur in me was intrigued, but as you can guess, it was raw.

Yes, Anna is the reader, but she is a prop in the scheme.

We pick up the story with Anna being on her own after Christmas reading the three journals given her by Bill Kyser, Jack and Lucy’s father, at the end of DRAGONFLY. She begins with Meg’s journal—all shiny and bright with hope over her impending wedding to Bill—a marriage she secured by an ‘oops’ pregnancy (PSA: Don’t try this at home!) She assures Bill she’ll be able to manage housekeeping while he overloads on college coursework to get his foothold in business. See, Bill wants to develop the Alabama gulf coast. It’s his big dream, and Meg wants a comfortable life—with Bill. Now.

Yes. It is a setup for doom, kids.

Meg’s journal is anguish. Missing her husband as he works long, long hours, doubles up on classes to finish school in 2.5 years instead of 4. She tries to be happy, and fails—particularly wanting to have more babies to fill her days when their first boy goes off to school. Along the way she confides in Lexi/Alex LaSalle—her BFF. (For those who need to catch up, Lexi/Alex is also mother to Julian, Anna’s good friend who wants more.) Completely against Bill’s express wishes Meg tries for a second OOPS! And she succeeds, in both getting pregnant and completely alienating Bill. Especially problematic with twins, Jack and Lucy, on the way.

Bright, shiny Meg knows she’s wrong, but she is as selfish as any. Eventually Bill thaws, but things are never the way they were—yet Meg is finally realizing all of her dreams. Big house, beautiful family, and suddenly Lexi/Alex is pregnant—no Daddy to be found. Still she’s excited to have her friend join the Mommy club. Her journal ends with the revelation that Julian is not entirely fatherless—really.

Lexi/Alex’s journal is a study in naïveté. She embarks on her college studies in art and is promptly picked up by the resident scumbag painting instructor as his freshman plaything. Broken from that experience she moves to Atlanta to work in commercial art, but is worn by the long work days and inspiration-crushing competition. So, when Bill Kyser asks her to become the creative consultant for his real estate development company, she agrees to return home. She jumps into the job with both feet, working tirelessly with Bill on the interior and exterior concepts of the projects.

Surely nothing can go wrong spending countless hours with your best friend’s husband.

Right.

In truth it isn’t sordid, only sad. Sad that relationships change and people grow past their first love. Sad that decisions made in the half-aware high school world can affect so many loved ones later.

Bill Kyser’s journal is regret, plain and simple. Regret that his girlfriend is pregnant. Regret that he’s getting married following high school graduation. Regret that he has no time to be a father. Regret that he can’t realize his dream fast enough to be the husband and father he always wanted to be. And, eventually it is regret that he can no longer connect with the wife he never knew. He tries—and is blindsided by Meg’s ‘accidental’ pregnancy. Again.

To Bill this deceit is unforgivable. And, along the way he’s realized that he has serious feelings for Lexi/Alex. The kind he’d set all his big plans aside for, in fact. One quick tryst, and he’s ready to separate—not that Lexi/Alex will let him abandon Meg. She’d run first, to his great regret.

The climax comes three times in this story. Through all three points-of-view we experience Meg’s discovery of Bill and Lexi/Alex’s betrayal. It is cutting and acute and ends with a rash and final act that guarantees no happiness for the survivors.

Maybe.

Because time has passed. Nearly twenty years.

And Anna is now recruited to help bridge the chasm between Bill and Lexi/Alex. But what can she do? And, how will she keep these dark secrets inside when Julian is ready to move out of The Friend Zone?

UNDERTOW reveals much about life.

The danger of an undertow is how it can swiftly and silently take you under and steal your life away. One misstep and BAM!! your life is forever changed/altered/over, as you knew it.

Reading the close first-person accounts in UNDERTOW is not simply slowing for a peek at a wreck on the highway. It is understanding that a wreck is going to happen. It is watching the cars line up and begin their travels, hearing the songs playing on their radios, checking the texts the drivers won’t ignore, and then seeing each and every driver’s careful maneuvers collapse into a fiery catastrophe.

So, not really a beach read. And, not really YA, IMHO. There are some sexual references/situations, naturally, but (to me) its themes are out of the realm of what most teens would gravitate toward.

For the record--This advice is for MALES AND FEMALES alike: Do not get pregnant to ‘trap’ a partner or ‘save’ a marriage. Ever. This is the exact WORST thing to do—it complicates a relationship in a thousand different ways that you cannot predict and that may not be overcome. Having a baby is a life-altering event for, if no one else, the mother. Do so with eyes wide open. (This is my final PSA for the week.)

Is UNDERTOW at good story? Yes. In fact: YES! says it better. If it wasn't written so close-to-the-bone we'd never feel it so deeply. Truly, there are so many people in this world who start out exactly like Bill and Meg and end up a broken couple. Probably someone you know, or did know back in high school...maybe even you?

For me, UNDERTOW is a lesson in “How not to structure a relationship.” Because, as Bill Kyser puts it to Anna, “The truth is always the right thing.”

I’ve given up more details about this story than usual—mainly because it is so unexpected.

What I didn’t expect in the reading? That I’d be eagerly awaiting the next installment—WATERCOLORS later this year—wherein Anna and Julian attempt a relationship. Guess that one will be more YA.

Other series books that had a raw, gut-wrenching, second novel? Diana Gabaldon’s DRAGONFLY IN AMBER from the OUTLANDER series—which is also told in flashback. And Suzanne Collins’ CATCHING FIRE is another prime example.

So, yeah. UNDERTOW is intense. It steals your breath away. It will be available July 18th and I'd set it on your TBR if you're into TBR's that is...

Perhaps WATERCOLORS will be as gentle as the name sounds…but, honestly, I wouldn’t expect it. Looks like Ms. Moore's going to tear my heart out again.

It's okay, I can take it. :)

[Anncleire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Launch: Review + Giveaway + Little Teaser on my blog July 18th:
http://pleaseanotherbook.tumblr.com/p...



“I went over to sit beside him. He put his arm around my shoulder and kissed my forehead. My body trembled with need, and I was fighting tears. But the last thing I wanted was to start crying like a baby in front of him

“Undertow” è il secondo volume della serie creata da Leigh T. Moore e segue direttamente “Dragonfly”. Uscito ufficialmente il 15 luglio sono oggi a presentarvelo ufficialmente grazie a InkSlinger PR che come al solito è molto vicino a noi blogger e ci consente di leggere in esclusiva nuove emozionanti uscite. Sono sincera, ero rimasta incerta dopo la lettura del primo volume, ma mi sono dovuta ricredere la Moore ha superato le mie aspettative creando un secondo volume con il botto.


Bill Kyser ha un piano per prendere tutte le fattorie sulla spiaggia della sua città natale e trasformarle in una destinazione per turisti provenienti da tutto il mondo e diventare milionario nel mentre.
Alexandra “Lexy” LaSalle ha un piano per cambiare la sua vita e diventare un’artista famosa in tutto il mondo.
Meg Weaver ha un piano per tenersi stretto Bill non importa cosa deve fare.
Tre amici, tre sogni.
Una decisione fatale che cambierà per sempre le loro vite.
In Dragonfly, Bill Kyser ha dato ad Anna tre diari che contendono la storia che si nasconde dietro la reclusione del potente uomo d’affari e le vite distrutte dei membri della sua famiglia.
Anna spera di trovare un modo per Julian di conoscere la verità, ma più scava in profondità nei tragici eventi del passato, più si rende conto che il silenzio può essere la sua unica opzione.
Ora è all’interno di un’alleanza con l’uomo di cui era spaventata. E se Julian scopre quello che sa, potrebbe perdere il ragazzo che sta iniziando ad amare.


La storia che la Moore ha creato si svolge su più piani paralleli ed a volte è un po’ difficile starle dietro. Perché c’è il presente con Anna, che cerca di lottare ancora con i suoi sentimenti per Jack e la sua crescente attrazione verso Julian, e c’è il passato con i tre diari e una stessa storia vista da più punti di vista. La difficoltà della Moore, come lei stessa ha ammesso, è stata quella di creare un libro basato sul resoconto scritto di tre persone senza annoiare e creando una storia che fosse allettante. È per questo che mentre Bill, Meg e Lexy raccontano lo fanno per impressioni e usando i dialoghi come se non fosse un diario, come se il lettore stesse vivendo quegli stessi episodi mentre si stanno volgendo. E questa sicuramente è stata una scelta vincente, che avvicina il lettore alla storia e la rende molto più interessante. Un altro colpo di genio della Moore è stato quello di non usare esattamente gli stessi dialoghi nei tre diari. Si raccontano le stesse vicende, si sostanzialmente sappiamo già quello che andrà ad accadere, ma ogni volta ci viene fornito un particolare diverso, in ogni scritto, ci viene mostrata un’altra realtà, un altro pezzo del puzzle. Alla fine, come Anna, siamo increduli e non sappiamo cosa pensare.
Meg ci viene descritta come una sposa e una mamma, il suo unico obiettivo è quello di sposare il suo sweetheart del liceo e diventare ricca e famosa come sua madre, mentre il marito conquista il mondo. Quello che non aveva considerato è che per conquistare il mondo Bill non può rimanere a casa con lei. Incapace di accettare la sua solitudine, senza un reale obiettivo e assolutamente privata di quel buonsenso che ci vorrebbe per vivere sereni pensa esclusivamente a mettere a riparo la sua situazione nel nido familiare, passando sopra ai sentimenti degli altri. Con una vena egoista e un animo semplice e volatile Meg è quella che ci rimette di più. Naturalmente il grado delle colpe è ugualmente distribuito ma non si può certo dimenticare il grado delle sue.
Lexy, o Alex come si farà chiamare in un secondo momento ha sempre pensato più alla sua arte che agli uomini e dopo essere rimasta pesantemente scottata al college non crede di poter amare di nuovo. La migliore amica di Meg, quasi una sorella, le è al fianco in tutti i momenti difficili. Inizialmente totalmente avversa nei confronti di Bill, quando inizia a parlarci seriamente di accorge di quanto sia speciale e accetta di disegnare su carta tutte le idee che gli frullano nel cervello. I suoi disegni e i suoi progetti saranno fondamentali per sviluppare ulteriormente il sogno del resort di lusso di Bill e potrà unire il suo amore per l’arte alla sua voglia di aiutare il marito dell’amica.
Bill è un ragazzo ambizioso e intelligente che deve lottare con le unghie e con i denti per emergere in un mondo, quello degli investimenti, popolato di squali. Messo alle strette cerca sempre di fare la cosa giusta, responsabile e super sexy sembrerebbe il marito ideale. Quello che non sopporta sono le bugie e la manipolazione. Il suo sogno cozza a volte con la realtà di una vita familiare che cerca di imbrigliarlo e deve assolutamente cercare di andare lontano.
Tutti e tre hanno aspettative diverse che alla fine si riducono ad una sola, quella di essere felici.
Lo sfondo è ancora quello dell’Alabama in cui presente e passato si uniscono in una mega villa sulla spiaggia, dove effettivamente si consumano le vicende più salienti. Tutto il paesino in cui i protagonisti vivono sarà mostrato mentre Bill cerca di trasformarlo e portarlo nel nuovo millennio al massimo della sua forma.

Il particolare da non dimenticare? Un biglietto scritto a mano…

La Moore ha centrato l’obiettivo creando una storia piena di mistero e colpi di scena, dove una ragazza si ritrova improvvisamente nel pieno della scena, anche se incapace di gestire tutte le informazioni che le vengono date. A me non resta che aspettare “Watercolor” ultimo volume della serie in uscita ad ottobre 2013. Non vedo l’ora!
Buona lettura guys!


Ringrazio immensamente Leigh T. Moore e InkSlinger PR e Kelly Simmons per avermi concesso la splendida opportunità di leggere questo libro in anteprima e partecipare al Book Launch. Grazie.

[Roxanne Kade · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been waiting in anticipation for this amazing book, and it was everything I imagined it would be and so much more!

My heart shattered into a million tiny pieces, rebuilt itself and then melted over and over again with each flip of the page.

I loved Moore's unique approach to this story. She allowed me to live it through the eyes of each major player - to feel their fears, happiness, joy and pain. Being privy to their most personal thoughts felt like a violation of their privacy, but I was fascinated and just couldn't pull myself away. I had to know more about the events that shaped the future of the characters I fell in love with in Dragonfly.

Meg was a little annoying at first, but as the years past, as she matured, I liked her more and more. She was strong and passionate, very much her husband's equal. She knew what she wanted and made sure she got it, even if some of her actions were questionable. I had to admire her determination.

I liked Lexy from the first time I met her in Dragonfly, and I was so intrigued by her story, so I couldn't wait to find out more from her. She was a great friend, most of the time. I really wish her life had been more fulfilling. Even though she'd become successful and overcome quite a few heartbreaking obstacles, it seemed like there was always something missing. Although I can't condone what she did, seeing it from her POV gave me a better understanding of why and how it happened. A little part of me even wished things had turned out more in her favor; that she could have walked away with her Prince Charming and lived happily ever after.


The biggest surprise for me was Bill Kyser. The cold, distant man from Dragonfly was actually human! And I could not help falling for him. His journal revealed so much about his character. His emotions were so raw and showed a vulnerable side he didn't show very often. It made it difficult for me to dislike him for his betrayal of Meg. In many ways I could actually understand why he strayed.

I was happy to see Anna and Julian together. I really hope the tragic events of Undertow don't ruin their relationship in any way. I have so much love for these characters and I'm so emotionally invested in their story that I can only hope and pray that their love will stand the test of time, no matter what is thrown their way.

This series just keeps getting better and better. I cannot wait for Watercolor. I just know it is going to be amazing!

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leigh Moore has just proven to me that she is an incredibly versatile author. This was not at all what I was expecting, but I am not in the least disappointed. Undertow follows three different points of view: Meg, Lexy and Bill, through journal entries. Three entirely contrasting personalities and Leigh showcased the best of her talent in giving them each distinct voices.

When there are multiple POVs for one timeline there is often not enough new material to make the reader want to read it more than once, but with Undertow, the characters are rarely in the same place so it makes for a more complete picture to the overall story. And even when reading the same scene, the different personalities of the characters pulled the reader’s view in a new direction. I saw each of them in a different light.

It made me heartsick to read each new journal entry because I knew the outcome of the story, but also because I was able to relate with each of them equally. While reading Meg’s story, I hated Bill for not being around more. But when reading Bill’s story, I could sympathize with all of his reasons for staying away. Never have I felt so conflicted about a book’s characters before! GAH!

If I had to have a complaint, it’s that I didn’t get enough of Anna’s story. I miss her! I miss Julian! WAAAHH!! I know I won’t have to wait too long until Watercolor (book #3) comes out, but it can’t come soon enough! Hurry up with that editing, Leigh!! ;)

A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

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[Asheley T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not long ago, I fell in love with a little book called Dragonfly by Leigh T. Moore. I loved the Gulf Coast setting, the romance, and the summertime feel of the story. I mean, you guys, I really loved that story, and I've been so anxious to read the next book in the series because I was so invested in things and I wondered where things would go when I finished the book.

This excerpt is taken from my review on Into the Hall of Books. Read more here: http://www.intothehallofbooks.com/201...

Oh. My. Goodness. I never expected the roller coaster of emotion that would come with the next book, Undertow. I knew that I'd have basically the same setting and characters, and I'd hoped for some answers to some questions that I had, but OH MY GOODNESS. Where I read Dragonfly pretty quickly, wanting to devour it, I couldn't help but read Undertow slowly, because MY HEART. I would read parts of it and have to just shut my eyes and breathe for a few minutes because OH MY HEART.

I just love books like that.

So now, after reading two books in this series, I'm back at the same place again: I need the next book because I need to know what will happen next.

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A little recap: In Dragonfly, Anna Sanders became friends with the Kyser twins - Jack and Lucy - after they came to public school for the first time ever. Their father Bill is well-known and extremely wealthy, but largely keeps to himself. Anna became close friends with Lucy and had a romantic relationship with Jack that ended before the end of the book, before he went off to college, like his father had always planned for him. Anna was heartbroken, but she knew this break-up was for the best - besides, there was also Julian and the two of them were about to start their senior year together.

Julian and Anna had been great, great friends before Jack and Lucy had come into the picture, and they were still great friends. Julian clearly had feelings for Anna before, and Anna was finally realizing this. With Jack gone, Anna finally was able to understand what Julian meant to her - more than just friends - but she asked Julian to give her some time to make sure she wasn't him as a rebound from Jack, to make sure that she started their relationship in a healthy way. Julian understood and respected this request.

ALSO there is that situation that happened at the end of Dragonfly that put Anna in an incredibly awkward position, the situation that ended up with Anna in possession of three journals belonging to Bill Kyser...

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Okay, well, I didn't realize that I would end up so emotionally invested, devastated, in love with, and wrapped up in Undertow. I just wasn't expecting all of this but I gosh how I loved it. See, in Dragonfly, we meet and fall in love with a group of characters, we invest in them, we want to know more about them. We need to find out more about their story...but before that can happen, in Undertow, we have to take a pause - FLAT-OUT PAUSE - to find out the backstory of the generation before them. We have to find out how things came to be the way they are. Why is Bill Kyser to shut off from everyone? What happened to the twins' mother, Meg? Why is Julian's mother Alex so shut off from everyone? All of this history obviously has affected the Kyser family and the LaSalle family so much, but why?

And why does Bill Kyser feel like Anna Sanders needs to know this?

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In my review for Dragonfly, I said that it read like a contemporary with a little bit of a mystery, and doggone it, I was right. There was some mystery to it, and it is all revealed in this second book. What is interesting is the way that that is accomplished.

Anna Sanders has three journals in her possession, given to her by Bill Kyser for reasons that are best told at the end of Dragonfly. One journal belongs to Meg, the twins' mother. One journal belongs to him. One journal belongs to Alex, Julian's mother. These journals chronicle basically the same time in history and give three perspectives on the events that occurred during this time. One by one, Anna reads these journals - obviously as she reads them, we get to read them. And my heart felt a ton of emotions over and over, with each of the three journals.

After reading Undertow, so much is made clear - the actions of Meg, Bill, and Alex - why so many things are the way they are. I almost want to go back and re-read Dragonfly now, but more than that, I'm anxious to get the final book and find out what will happen now that Anna has all of this information.

See, now that Anna knows all of the secrets that have been buried in these journals for years, she is kind of bound to keep them. Meaning: she knows things that none of her friends know - things about each of their parents - and what an awkward and uncomfortable predicament to be in, especially when you have one very close friend with a tie to the journals, one budding romantic relationship with a tie to the journals, and one romantic relationship that has just ended with a tie to the journals. Anna is a person of great integrity, so what will she do? And how will this affect her friendships/relationships with Julian, Lucy, and Jack? And Mr. Kyser? Because he is the one that has placed her in this uncomfortable position! Anna always felt somewhat intimidated by him and somewhat afraid of him before, but will those feelings change now? I'm very interested in how Anna's senior year will play out.

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I loved the way Leigh T. Moore chose to tell this portion of the story. Choosing to reveal all of this information through three journals and through the voices of each character is a very personalized and interesting way to do it, and I thought it was so effective. I found my heart aching in one direction that I otherwise might not, and I found my heart unable to identify with one character where I normally would probably find a connection. I feel like these emotions that I felt were much deeper and more intense because I was reading in each character's own voice. Each journal is so personal and individualized to its owner and I loved getting wrapped up inside their heads, inside their private thoughts.

Meg, Alex, and Bill are all so developed through these journal entries even though they aren't even written in the present - they're vibrant, they're full, and they make mistakes. Their flaws are what I think I loved the most about them, because these big mistakes (along with their successes and joys) are what they seemed to write most about in their journal entries. They made them seem so real. It was very easy to get so caught up in the journal entries and forget that they were from the past.

My favorite kinds of stories are ones that tell of doomed or forbidden romances and broken boys or characters. This book takes these things that I love so much and just throws them all in there and makes them so much - I say so much because we've already gotten to know and love the product of these broken people in these journals - Lucy, Jack, Julian - even though these characters aren't close and don't really know each other, reading about the connection their parents have is absolutely heartbreaking and devastating at times, and at other times it is happy. Every possible emotion, right in these pages.

Knowing everything that I know now about Meg, Bill, and Alex - I have no idea how I'll feel about all of these characters in the next book, but I have all ideas it'll be intense. I was absolutely riveted and engrossed in the lives of the characters in Undertow.

I absolutely recommend the Dragonfly Series for fans of YA contemporary with elements of mystery, for fans of a fantastic setting, for fans of summertime reading, and for great characterization. I loved the unique way this author chose to tell the story in the second installment, Undertow, and I'm feeling super grabby-handed about the next part of the story. I need to know what will happen next to all of these people now that Anna has all of these details.

[Carvanz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Undertow pulled me right back into the world of the Dragonfly series and didn’t let go. This one hit so much deeper. Raw emotions, tangled relationships, and the kind of family secrets that twist everything you thought you knew. I loved getting more of Jack and Anna’s story, especially seeing how their choices ripple through everyone around them. This author does an incredible job weaving love, loss, and redemption into a story that feels real and messy in the best way. Emotional, addictive, and beautifully written.


Single POV
Safe some involvement with others - not explicit
Triggers infidelity/marital betrayal, alcohol use and abuse, emotional manipulation and gaslighting, death/grief/loss, family dysfunction; no graphic violence or sexual assault; romantic content is mild and closed-door
Steam 4 /5; hot and steamy but not explicit

[Ilaria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really, really loved this book.
'Dragonfly' had left me a bit puzzled, I admit, but 'Undertow' won me over.
The story is divided into three diaries. Three points of view. A brilliant idea, which I loved and still love it. Maybe I'm one who loves the stories told through the secret diaries and did not know!
The book tells, through the diaries, the life of Bill and Meg Kyser and Lexy / Alex LaSalle, while Anna, our protagonist, is reading them. Between a diary and the other, there is a break where Anna expresses her opinions and the story continues. It's just when you get to the end of the book that now you are so passionate about the story, you want to continue. With the history divided into diaries, it is as if we were to read the diaries and create us an opinion on the three characters. For this reason, I consider a brilliant idea that I love.
Book well written, readable and exciting. No event is too small. Each of the three protagonists recounts an event from their point of view and not missed anything.
There you an idea about who love and who hate.
Now I look forward to 'Watercolors' because I'm curious how the story will go on!



Cosa posso dire? HO AMATO QUESTO LIBRO!!! Non ho altro da dire. Infatti scrivere una recensione che faccia giustizia a cosa penso di questo libro sarà difficile.

Chi sono Bill, Meg e Alex? Conosciamo i loro figli, Jack e Julian. Jack è figlio di Meg e Bill, mentre Julian è il figlio di Alex. Dragonfly ci ha lasciato scoprire un segreto che coinvolge tutti e ora, in ‘Undertow’, arriviamo a capire cosa è successo attraverso i diari dei tre protagonisti.

Il primo è il diario di Meg Kyser. L’unica cosa che ho provato quando leggevo la sua parte è che la ritenevo viziata e rompi scatole. Figlia di un dottore, i suoi genitori l’hanno avuta tardi perchè aspettavano che il padre si sistemasse al lavoro, quindi è cresciuta tra i grandi e, ogni volta che voleva qualcosa, le veniva concessa. Peccato che crescendo, non è cambiata. Lei voleva Bill sin da piccola e ha fatto di tutto per averlo e tenerselo, senza pensare alle conseguenze delle sue azioni e mettendo sempre davanti se stessa. Per questo non mi è piaciuto come personaggio. Dall’altro lato, però, vedo ancora una bambina che non vuole crescere. Tutte quelle azioni per attirare l’attenzione di Bill e Alex, sono perchè si sente sola e ha paura di stare da sola. Penso che poteva far qualcosa per riempire la sua solitudine ma, essendo cresciuta con genitori che assecondavano un pò i suoi capricci, è chiaro che non ne era capace. Per pochi istanti mi faceva pena, per altri avrei voluto svegliarla e dirle di smetterla e trovarsi qualcosa da fare. Diciamo che Meg rimane ferma, non cresce e critica gli altri che fanno i piani per il futuro e i loro sogni. Cara Meg, meglio avere sogni sempre da realizzare, che realizzarli e non farne mai di nuovi.

Il secondo diario è quello di Alex. La chiamo così perchè preferisco, come direbbe Bill, la rende più adulta. Con Alex ho trovato maggior connessione. L’ho adorata sin dall’inizio. E’ più naturale, genuina, artistica. Si, naturale la definirei. Alex, orfana di genitori (diciamo così), va a vivere con Miss Stella, un amore di donna. Alex è un artista e, finito il liceo, va a studiare arte a Savannah. Peccato incontri un idiota e finisca poi per andare a lavorare ad Atlanta. Ho poco da dire su Alex perchè non ho nulla di negativo sul suo comportamento, forse si, ma vi svelerei il segreto e non sarebbe giusto. Alex cresce dal liceo. Fa le sue scelte, giuste o sbagliate che siano, ma va avanti con la sua vita.

Una cosa l’avrei da dire ad Alex. Liberati. Vivi. Lasciati andare. Si il passato c’è e sempre ci sarà, ma non per questo devi continuare a soffrire. Non sarà giusto quello che è successo, ma indietro non si può tornare. Pensa al futuro ma, se per te quello che stai facendo è giusto, continua così. La cosa importante è che sia tu a prendere decisioni e non ti dovrai mai pentire di quelle.

Ecco fatto questo discorso ad Alex (sono pazza, lo so), passiamo all’ultimo diario. Il diario di Bill Kyser.

Bill Kyser ha sempre pensato di cambiare la cittadina e pian piano, sudando e faticando, ce l’ha fatta. Ostacoli ne ha avuti molti, specialmente ad opera di Meg, ma il suo lavoro l’ha portato a termine. Definiamolo un padre un pò assente sia per il lavoro sia per i suoi problemi con Meg. Per molti versi avrebbe fatto meglio a parlare con lei più di una volta, a provare a risolvere i loro problemi, ma no. Mi metto nei suoi panni per un secondo. No parlare con lei non sarebbe stato facile perchè ascoltava metà dei suoi discorsi, quindi perchè parlare? BILL DOVEVI PARLARLE!! Non dovevi arrivare a quel punto! Ok, vi siete sposati giovanissimi, avete avuto un bambino prestissimo, però parlare non avrebbe fatto male, sempre se Meg ascoltava. Oh quella donna mi fa andare ancora adesso fuori dai gangheri! Torniamo a Bill. E’ Bill che da’ ad Anna i diari perchè vuole che capisca la situazione e l’aiuti. Lei lo farà? Non so, ma ‘Watercolors’, il terzo libro della serie, ci dirà qualcosa di più.

Storia che ho amato sempre più e vorrei già avere tra le mani ‘Watercolors’ per sapere come continua.

L’idea dei tre diari è stata geniale! L’ho adorata e l’adorerò sempre. Tre punti di vista per ogni avvenimento. E’ come se fossimo noi a leggere il diario! E’ geniale! Veloce da leggere, appassionante e pieno di carattere.

Quindi leggete l’intera serie e non ve ne pentirete!


A complete Italian review will be posted on my site.

(READ IN PROGRESS: www.airals88.wordpress.com)

[Ann L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rate this book a 3.5 rounded up to 4. Pretty good but it was a bit repetitive as it was based on three journals, same story. It filled in all the blanks on the parent's stories of their love lives though, as that is the back story that led to the story of Anna and Julian and Jack.

[Gabbie (Rampant Readers) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite Quote(s): Of course, my quote is about Julian and Anna!
“I was sure we could face whatever happened and make it through. My mind was on the future. Us together.”

Favorite Character: Julian
First Line:
“Day after Christmas, and it was eighty degrees out.”

My Musings: I really enjoyed Leigh’s first novel in this series, so when I got the blog tour invite for Undertow, I just had to apply. Luckily, the book gods were with me and allowed me to be a part of this tour!

Undertow delves deeper into what exactly happened between Bill Kyser, Meg Kyser, and Alex LaSalle. We really learn more about what went down and the reasons why things turned out the way that they did. It gave us a new perspective to look at in regard to what happened in the present day times.

Anna was the narrator for a bit of the novel. I really liked the way that this book was formatted. It had three major sections, each a telling of what happened from each of Meg’s, Bill’s, and Alex’s points of view. There were holes that were filled by another accounts, resulting in a full story. In between each of these sections, we had Anna, and we saw her reactions to what she learned. And of course we got to see her inner debates about getting together with Julian.

There wasn’t as much Julian as I would have liked in this novel. It was more focused on the past. But there was some! And I lived for those moments. But I talked to Leigh and she said there will be much more of Anna and Julian in the next novel! Squee!
Now for the three journals:

Meg

“Billy knew as well as I did that we were perfect for each other. I’m the only girl pretty enough to be the wife of a future leader like him, and I’d be damned if I let him get distracted by college and drift away from me. I was not going to lose my prince charming or my mansion on Hammond Island!”

I didn’t enjoy Meg’s character at all. And of course, her account was first so it made me nervous! But Meg was a shallow and ditsy character. I felt like all of her emotions were fake, and she was really manipulative, and I wasn’t a fan. She was also really whiny. She whined about everything, and it was quite the turn off. I just couldn’t connect with her character at all, no matter how hard I tried. I hate to say it, but I’m glad that she isn’t in the present day world that Anna lives in.

Lexy

“‘Oh, Miss Stella,’ I whispered, ‘I still need you here, I need you to help me. I’m so lost and alone.’”

Lexy’s character was slightly better in my opinion. I thought I’d dislike her because of the decisions that she made, but it was not so. I’m reading about the affair that Lexy had with Bill, I could sort of come to understand why it is that they did what they did. But that doesn’t make it acceptable. I knew that she didn’t want to hurt her best friend though, because it was obvious that she loved her. But there were some major issues going on in that marriage. I felt like it was doomed from the start. Regardless, Lexy was a strong character. She was a determined and strong willed character. She was great to read, and it was a nice change from Meg’s narration.
Bill
“I fought those voices back by telling myself nothing comes without hard work and that this was the hard work that was going to pay off big. Why shouldn’t I be successful? Who else had worked as hard or spent as much time preparing? I had to keep my eyes on the goal and not get distracted.”

I also had some preservations about Bill going into this novel. However, we do get to see why he acts the way he does. The thing about Bill’s story is that I don’t feel as if it was as thorough as the other two. It seemed to only scratch the surface of what would have been going on in Bill’s life at the time. Regardless, we got to see a younger version of Bill Kyser. I can actually sympathize with Bill. He was manipulated multiple times by his wife and he stressed himself so much about his goals. That’s what I loved about his character: his hard work. Bill was a working machine, and it allowed me to relate more to his character than to Meg’s and Lexy’s. Although some may see him as a superficial man who just wanted the prestige and power, I see him as a young man with a goal he was determined to reach. I can’t wait to see more of his present self now that I’ve gotten a glimpse of the younger Bill.

The only thing that I disliked in this novel was the info dumping at the beginning. Although most books that are part of a series have a recap at the beginning, this one felt like a little too much. I covered all of the need to know basics, but it just felt a little too listy. But other than that, it was great!

Undertow was an eye opener into Anna’s world. We really learned a lot more about the mysterious past of Meg, Lexy, and Bill. It was refreshing to read about some new characters, and I cannot wait to see what Leigh cooks up in the next one!

[Sheri (Tangled Up In Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted on my blog: Tangled Up In Books

I received a copy of this book for a blog tour in exchange for an honest review. For the majority of Undertow, we follow along as Anna takes advantage of her parents being away for the weekend, to start reading the journals that Bill Kyser gave her at the end of Dragonfly. The journals allow us to dive into the parental love triangle from the past. Honestly I was a bit worried before starting this. I was really excited to get back to Julian and Anna, well mostly Julian. You know one track mind and all. But did I really want to be that involved with all the baggage from the past? Turns out I did. I was truly fascinated with their stories. It was very emotional and tough to read each one of their journals and interpretations of how the fateful events took place.

I wavered in my liking of Meg, from not only her journal but reading each one of their journals. You get to see so many sides of each of them, yet Meg inspired quite a bit of sympathy from me. Well, for obvious reasons. When first introduced to her through her journal, she seemed to represent everything that annoys me. She's like one of those southern belle/socialite/debutante types you know? A bit self absorbed. She has her life all planned out. The perfect wedding to the perfect guy, four perfect children, ruling the town so to speak. But the more I read the more my heart started to break for her. Anyone can see she really lived in this fantasy bubble, completely blind to the reality of her situation. Sort of made me tear up a bit too. She was so young and naive in so many ways and yet also devious and manipulative. She had her plans and she wouldn't let anything or anyone stop her from achieving them, least of all her husband. She was far from innocent and the lengths she would go to were so beyond selfish and, like I said, manipulative. But still my heart hurt for her.

The same couldn't be said for Alex. Absolutely could not stand her. I know for the most part it was because of what she did to her best friend, whom she considered a sister. Sorry you don't betray people you care about that way. She was the only person I never felt anything except total dislike for. Probably not fair because she wasn't the only person involved. But she completely disappointed me and was the target of all my built up frustration in the situation. Had we been in Salem in the late 1600s I'd have been shouting for someone to burn her at the stake! And the deeper it got into her journal it never lessened. It just got worse.

I think of all people, believe it or not, I felt the most for Bill. He was pretty much screwed from the very beginning. He had his life all planned out before he even graduated high school. It was impressive actually, you don't see that a lot. And he was driven and focused. It's so different from how I felt about him in Dragonfly. There I found him to be cold and mean and distant and just a complete and total prick. I know I'm good at sugar coating things right? Ha! But truly, this book has completely flipped my view on him and I can understand why he is how he comes off. It's still no excuse for his actions. But I get it. He wanted his life to go a certain way and he faced all of that being taken away from him through another's lies and deception. Once again nobody was innocent but in the end Bill really got a bad deal.

Overall delving into the complicated, swirling emotions and lives of Meg, Alex and Bill was far more interesting than I thought it was going to be. It pulled me in and had me hanging on each and every word just dying to know find out how the story plays out to each one of them. I didn't get to see as much of the present time as I would have liked, but in the end...I'm okay with that and what I read. Very excited to move on to Watercolor in October. That's just so far...

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book so much more than Dragonfly. I think the writing was much better, as were the characters. There was a lot more development and the dialogue, both written and spoken, was much improved. This book had more purpose. Also, there was no Jack. Since he annoyed me so much in the previous book, I'm in full support of his absence in this book.

As I said in my review, the mysterious history of Jack's dad and Julian's mom was one of my favorite parts Dragonfly. The majority of this book dealt with Anna uncovering that history, so I was thrilled. I loved reading their story through the journals of Bill Kyser, Meg Weaver (Kyser) and Alexandra "Lexy" LaSalle.

Lexy was my favorite character. She was a strong woman with terrible taste in men. She was career-focused. And then she found herself falling for the wrong man, a man for whom she never would have imagined herself falling. Her best friend's husband. I felt real sympathy for her as the events unfolded in her journal - from the creepy professor who took advantage of her to the affair with Bill and the untimely death of Meg. I could feel the longing, the regret, the pain.

I didn't like Bill very much in the first book. Of course, I'm not supposed to like him. He's the man with the plan for his son, the plan that's standing in the way of his relationship with Anna. He came off as a despicable ass. But, through his journal, I learned that wasn't the case. He was actually a decent guy. Well, except for the minor issue of having an affair with his wife's best friend. But, in his defense, his wife had been deceiving him from the beginning. He was following his feelings. It wasn't right, but there was real emotion between them. I felt sorry for him. I felt sorry for Lexy. I wanted them together.

Meg annoyed me from the beginning. She was high-maintenance and deceitful. She wanted Bill and she didn't care what lengths she had to go to to get and keep him. I couldn't really feel any sympathy for her. She brought it all on herself. Of course, I'm not completely heartless, so her death was sad. I felt terrible for the kids and the guilt that Bill and Lexy were harboring because of her death.

I liked Anna so much better in this book. I found her more mature and focused (on something other than Jack). Jack's absence left her far less pathetic in this story. I wish Julian had been featured more prominently in this book though. I adore him. I would have enjoyed learning more about Anna and his growing relationship.

After finishing this book, I'm really looking forward to the third book in this series, Watercolor. I already know that there will likely be a whole lot of drama when Julian inevitably finds out that Anna knew who his father is and has been withholding that information from him. Also, Jack is back for the next book, so I'm sure Anna will be a total crazy person over him again. But still, I can't wait to see if Bill and Lexy reunite. I want to see the progression of Anna and Julian's relationship before the inevitable fallout over the identity of his father. I'm pretty well wrapped up in this story now. Good thing the next book comes out soon. Well, October. That's close enough.

I received this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This review and more can be found on my blog.

[Miranda Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

After being pleasantly surprised by the first book in this series, Dragonfly , I was excited to read Undertow, hoping that it would be just as good. And I actually ended up liking this one even better than the first! It was a lot different than Dragonfly, and I really appreciated how unique and quite risky it was. At the end of the first book, Anna receives three journals that are all about the same event, told from three different perspectives. In Undertow, she reads these journals and learns the true story behind the death of Jack's and Lucy's mom. So about 95% of this book is told in epistolary style through the journals, and we only get a tiny bit of Anna's story, at the beginning and end of the novel.

I thought that it was such an interesting twist. This book was almost like a companion novel, in that it didn't have the same main characters as the first book in the series, but it's also really not a companion novel, because you need all of the information from the first book to understand the nuances behind everything that's happening in Undertow.

I really enjoyed reading the three different journals. I was totally sucked into the story and could not get enough of it. This book was a pretty decent size, but I flew through it. The reason this book was so impressive was because of how great a job Moore does with this difficult style of writing. I loved how engrossed I was able to become in the story, even though these people weren't the main characters I had grown used to and loved. I also think that sometimes it's hard for an author to separate the voices when writing in multiple perspectives, but each journal had a totally different style and tone that really showed the individuality of the characters. I also thought that I might get bored, reading about the same event three times in a row, but Moore was able to spice it up. Each journal gave the reader new information that they previously didn't have, so each time was a totally different and interesting experience.

I wish that we'd gotten more of Anna and Julian's story, as that's what I would expect from a sequel, but I also really appreciated how unique this approach was. I did think that it was slightly unrealistic, though. I mean...how many adults do you know who keep journals? And these three adults all just happen to keep practically meticulous records of this specific time in their lives? It's just a little weird. But I really liked being able to experience all three sides of the story, so I was happy to suspend my belief for a little bit.

Ultimately, I would totally recommend this series and I really want to see what happens in the third book. The first two books completely surprised me, especially because I'm not somebody who typically enjoys reading contemporary young adult novels, and I'm very impressed by the caliber of Moore's writing.

**ARC kindly provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.**

[Jenn · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

*Just a warning, there may be some Dragonfly spoilers in this review.*

So Dragonfly was a sweet surprise for me. I really didn’t expect to like it as much as I did and it was a welcome surprise. Because of that feeling, I went into Undertow with slightly high expectations and unfortunately, I was a tad disappointed.

Dragonfly had Anna confused by her feelings for the mysterious Jack Kyser and falling for her longtime friend Julian. The story ended with Anna finding out a huge secret that linked both of her crushes. I was super excited to sit down and find out what happens next. Does Anna tell Jack? Does she tell Julian? Does she tell anyone?

Well…we still don’t know.

Undertow was more like a filler story – one giant back story. At the end of Dragonfly, Bill Kyser gives Anna three journals with the hopes that after reading them, she would keep their secret. So from there, we journey into the land of lost journals.

Journal #1: Meg Weaver.
Journal #2: Alexandra LaSalle
Journal #3: Bill Kyser

Each journal follows the exact same timeline and the exact same events with some variance due to different lives. Let’s start with Meg’s. I almost couldn’t read hers. While I felt bad for her knowing what her fate was, I really could not stand her as a person. She was extremely vain and only cared what people thought of her. She was prestige and money, and manipulated everyone around her to get what she wanted, including her husband – which, I’m sorry, is wrong. Alex’s journal to me was the most realistic and most relatable. And Bill’s was just…weird? It seemed extremely out of character that he would have a journal. This was a man who busted his butt to graduate college early and then started up his business right after. When would he have found time to write in a journal?

Then there was the journal writing itself. They were written just like a book, not journal entries. This style took me completely out of the story and I couldn’t relate properly to them because my head kept shouting, “This is not how people write journals!” At the end of the book, the author has a note stating that she took liberties and wrote the journals as actual stories instead of journal entries. Maybe if that had been stated at the beginning of the book I may feel a little differently, I honestly don’t know.

While this book wasn’t amazing to me, I am still very intrigued on how it’s going to wrap up and am still excited to read the final one. And a series I would recommend for some quick beach reading.

I received an e-copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This review can also be seen here on my blog.

[Mlpmom (Book Reviewer) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to start reading this after finishing Dragonfly. I knew this wasn't going to be Anna's story so much as it would be about Lexy, Meg and Billy and the secrets the three of them had, from each other, from themselves, all of it and I couldn't wait to get started on it. I wanted any opportunity I could to find out what made Jack and Lucy the way they were. I love Julian but I have to admit, a part of me loves Jack and all his brokenness as well. What can I say? I am a hopeless romantic.

I love how Moore handled the different points of view of each characters, by journal entries written, where it really all started, right after they each graduated high school and started their lives, separate and together.

I thought I would love Meg, I really did, after all she is the one who was wrong, the one who so desperately loved her husband and children and while I did feel for her, I just couldn't love her. She was so very naïve and shallow and even superficial, I couldn't help it, the girl just didn't appeal to me and part of me thinks in a small way, what happened to her, was a product of her own doing. The lies, the deceit, it wasn't okay.

It is funny to see how each character perceives one another and then to actually get inside that character's head and see how they really are. Sometimes, it wasn't pretty, on either accounts, what others thought and what and who they really were.

I found myself sympathizing with Bill and Lexy (Alex) more than anyone else in the story and I honestly wasn't expecting that. It just goes to show how there are so many sides to a story and you never really get the whole picture until you know and feel what everyone involved felt and knew.

This was so well done and such a great addition to the story as a whole. It makes me even more excited for Anna and Julian's story to continue and grow in the next book. I know Anna has some pretty big and pretty hard secrets that involve Julian that she has to keep form him and I don't know how that will all play out, but I really think they can work through it all. I am so rooting for this couple to be epic. I fell in love with Julian from the very beginning of book one and even though I like Jack, I just don't think he is the one that Anna should be with when all is said and done, of course, Moore has a ton of time to change my mind about that!

[StacyHgg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Undertow by Leigh T. Moore
Series: Dragonfly Book 2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: Young Adult, New Adult, Adult
Release Date: July 18th 2013
Print Length: 337 pages
Format: Nook
Source: Purchased
Review Date: July 19th 2013
Cover Rating: 5 Stars
Steam Rating: Hot
Overall Rating: 5 Stars!

Review:
Let me start by saying what this book was not. It is not a standalone, does not resolve much, and is not for people who think in black and white. It is for people who know that we, as people, have faults, and live in the “gray area” most of the time. Love is not something we have control over, it has control over us.

So why did I give it 5 stars? For many reasons. It NEVER let me go from the second I picked it up. I was completely taken over by this story, and the characters—I felt everything viscerally. And although I already knew how it ended (from the first book), it didn't stop me from being on the edge of my seat the entire time.

I thought it would be interesting, with the journal entries, but I didn’t realize that I would find the parents story more interesting than their children’s. So if you liked Dragonfly, you will LOVE Undertow. It is the intense, tragic, and heartbreaking love triangle story of Jack and Juilian’s parents told via their diaries. Anna was given them at the end of Dragonfly.

Another great thing about this book is that it fits into no category. Although Dragonfly was more of a Young Adult book, with the characters in high school; Undertow was all over the place, Young Adult thru New Adult to Mature Adult. It had steam that Dragonfly lacked—and therefore cannot qualify as YA.

Overall, I highly recommend reading Undertow—and this series. It is sort of like a soap opera (although I’m not of fan of them) with so many different story lines, but better. I will definitely continue to read installments of this series. The next one Watercolor comes out in October 2013.
~StacyHgg
Books Unhinged Book Blog

[Roses Book Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have not read Dragonfly, you will need to go back and read it. This book is not a standalone. In order to fully understand the story you need to read Dragonfly first.

Love changes everything. Anna has grown a lot closer to Julian. She doesn't want to get too close to him just yet because she just recently ended things with Jack and doesn't want to use him as a way to get over him since she really does have feelings for him. Anna is also trying to deal with the decision to not tell him the biggest secret of his life, and knows if he finds out he'll never speak to her again. But she promised his mother that she would never tell him.

Bill Kyler has given her three journals: his, Alex's, and Meg's. She reads them all when her parents are gone for the weekend. She learns that it was Meg's idea to have the journals and in them they all write their deepest and darkest thoughts. Meg's shows how unhappy and lonely she was in her marriage to Bill. But then again as you read it you'll discover that she did things that Bill didn't want and even though she said she would be okay with his workload in the end she wasn't and it ate away at her. In the final two you'll discover what led to their affair and ultimately Meg's death. This was the sad part for me because Meg never really understood that they really didn't set out to hurt her.

This book wasn't what I expected. I understand you need it in order to get to the rest of the story that will be coming in Watercolors, but I was expecting to see more of Anna and Julian in it. The journals are well written and all follow the same journey just in different perspectives and told in the view on how their lives were in the span of more than five years. I look forward to Watercolors, this just wasn't exactly what I expected, 4 stars.

***ARC provided by author in exchange for a honest review***

[Melissa Carpenter · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's SO much going on in this book.

First, it blurs the lines of YA/NA/Romance in a really fascinating way. The protagonist, Anna, is in high school. She's still getting over a past relationship and moving into the "more than friends" category with Julian, one of her best friends. The problem is that she knows a secret about Julian's family history that she shouldn't know, and she's wrestling with the decision to tell him or not.

The way that Julian's family history is told is interesting, too. We read three journals, one from Meg, one from Lexy, and one from Bill. The first journal was really interesting, the second was pretty interesting, and the third was tedious at times... not because there was anything wrong with it, really, but because it involved a third perspective on events/conversations I'd already read through twice, and so I found myself scanning quickly through until I found something new. In between the journals, though, we see more with Anna and Julian, and it's neat how our view of them shifts as Anna goes through the journals.

There are only a few reasons I didn't give this five stars instead of four. One, as I already mentioned, the third journal could have been much shorter, which would have made it even more effective; as is, there was way too much overlap. Two, I wish there had been more Anna and more Julian. Three, I wish I'd known before reading this that it was the second book in the series, and that the ending would lead straight into another book. I like to be able to wrap things up and read to completion, so while this was an interesting book full of complex characters, it didn't leave me completely satisfied.

[Tiffany Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know that feeling that you know you should not be reading something but you just can’t stop? It is almost like when you see an accident on the road and instead of focusing forward you look over and almost cause your own accident. That’s how I felt while reading Undertow by Leigh T. Moore. It is the sequel to Dragonfly which was released earlier this summer and it gives an insight into the backstory of Meg, Alex (Lexy), and Billy.

“Dear Journal, My best friend is sleeping with my husband.”

OMG, with a line like that in a journal entry how could I tear myself away from reading Undertow? Dragonfly ended with Billy giving young Anna the journals from Meg, Alex, and himself so she could try to have some understanding into their relationships and why things are in their current state and those journals make up most of the substance of Undertow. It is truly an intimate look into the lives of these three people from when they were young adults and how the dynamics of their friendships shifted, changed, and then formed their adult lives.

Leigh T. Moore does something short of amazing by basically writing a book inside of a book. What I mean is that when reading Dragonfly we think the story is about Anna but somehow in Undertow, Anna is still the main character but we are totally consumed by Meg, Alex, and Billy’s backstory. And, now armed with all of this information, we all must wait until the next installment in this series to see what action Anna decides to take.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of Undertow in exchange for an honest review.

[✿kawehi.reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

GET CAUGHT IN AN UNDERTOW AND WIN!!
http://kawehisbookblog.blogspot.com/2...

.....
Wow. Just Wow.

"Undertow" picks up where "Dragonfly" leaves off and there's no unnecessary recaps. The story starts head on and man is it a rush!!

While the pacing was slow, I felt like I was tossed and turned as there was a lot going on in the plot and the characters. "Undertow" is more of an emotional read and will take you on a roller coaster by the intensity of it all.

You learn a lot of secrets (e.g. the truth behind Jack and Julian's births, etc.) and back stories behind the different characters' reasons and motives for what they did/do. It felt like more of a predecessor of the series where the story unveils how the past actions transgressed into the present.

As a precaution though, there was a little sex in the book and majority of the story is enveloped in journal entries. There isn't much interaction between Anna and Jack/Julian for those of you who are more so interested in the love aspect of the story.

Over all, VERY interesting read filled with twists and turns. Now I wantwantwant "Watercolor"!!! Can't wait till September! lol ;)

*Review copy provided by the author for an honest review.*

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anna finds herself in a precarious situation……tell Julian the truth about his father or keep the secret that could cause a ripple effect for so many people. Before Anna could reveal the truth Billy Kyser hands her three journal, and asks her to read them before making her decision.

With the three journals in hand, Anna delves into the ‘journey’ of the three people whose decisions will change the lives of those around them.

Bill Kyser wants to ‘conquer the world’, turning his coastal town into a tourist destination full of high rise resorts. With the future on the horizon - he will let nothing sway him from his plan.

Meg Weaver is beautiful and has her life already planned out…..marrying Bill and having a family are her top priorities in life. Despite coming from a wealthy family - she dreams of the ‘perfect life, the perfect family’. Nothing will stand in her way.

Lexy LaSalle became best friends with Meg in kindergarten. She is the opposite of Meg….artistic, free spirited, and desires nothing more than to let her art guide her life.

Sometimes the ‘best laid plans’ don’t work out the way we plan. These three friends will find that no amount of planning will prepare them for the future. One decision can alter the paths we plan for ourselves. That one decision will change the lives of so many.

[Kelly Mccurdy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is more of a background on what happened between Bill, Meg, and Lexi. Anne is back and she is reading the journals that Bill gave her to read. As much as she wants to tell Julian the secret that she knows, she knows that she needs to read these journals to see why Lexi doesn't want to say anything. This book is great! It has love, hate, drunken nights in Mexico, boats, and buildings. But most importantly it has love. The journals that she reads are full of love and devotion.

I am glad that I read this book. Now I know some more information. I didn't like that it was such a short read. It left me wanting more NOW!!! I will have to wait till the third book comes out!! Leigh did an amazing job at making it seem like Anne was reading word for word what was going on, like she was right there with them. You need to get this book!!!

[Becca ~BS BOOK REVIEWERS~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Undertow by Leigh T. Moore
4 Stars
And the mystery is solved leaving more questions...

I have been impatiently waiting for this release date. I don’t think that I have been hooked this hard on a series in quite a while. Leigh has a way of sweeping her readers up and leaving them wanting more with every book that she writes. She has gone above and beyond with this particular series.
Undertow is the second book in the Dragonfly series and if you have not read the first book you might not keep up in this one, but if you have OMG what a ride. I would suggest you read Dragonfly first and get sucked into this series; it is well worth the read.
Being from Alabama and a southern gal to the core, I appreciate the southern setting in South Alabama.

To see this review in full go to www.bsreviewers.blogspot.com

[Rita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't think I wanted to go through the journals. But it was worth it. I am all Team Julian. He needs to know who is father is and the others need to know as well. I hate that Lexy just puts her life on hold. She is just a lonely old woman. She has only dated one man in her life. Then she made a huge mistake. And she is still making the wrong decisions. Meg started out her marriage lying. She had to be insecure about Billy in the first place to trap him the way she did. I agree with Bill, she never grew up. Her life is made up of fairytales. I wasn't really fond of her character. I didn't like her outcome. This was by far better than the first one. I am looking forward to Watercolors. I am hoping it has more emphasis on the kids in this one. Good Series so far.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG I have to say The Dragonfly series by Leigh Talbert Moore has become one of my favorite series. In Undertow the book continues where Dragonfly left off with Anna doing her own personal research after she lands an internship with the newspaper. I hated to put the book down I have been drawn into this series and book two was amazing. To read the Journals of Meg,Lexi and Bill to learn about their past. I really was drawn into the journals. Felt like reading a friends journal. Leigh I have to say very well written and keep my interest. Can't wait to read book 3 Watercolor. LOVE LOVE LOVE Undertow. Hope Watercolor is just as good if not better which will be hard cause I liked Undertow better than Dragonfly,even though Dragonfly was GREAT.