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Held
A New Adult Romance
"Did you ever fall in love with someone so completely that you forgot who you were? Like you can't breathe without them. Like you're two halves of a whole, and that nothing makes sense unless you're together?"
Jaime Alvarez always thought of himself as an ordinary working-class guy, so he was thrilled when he landed a job as a security guard at the Laurel Canyon home of Hollywood action star John Gillespie.
What he didn’t expect was the added responsibility of John Gillespie’s daughter, Amber.
High up in the Hills, guarded, secure and deeply damaged, Amber hides herself away from the public and the paparazzi. When Jaime first meets her she is crippled with anxiety and panic attacks so severe she can barely stand the touch of the sun on her skin.
As her friendship with Jaime turns into something deeper, Amber is forced to face her past, and the poisoned love-affair that destroyed her and turned her into a recluse. Worse, she must face a secret that may also destroy her – and Jaime’s – future.
Some bonds are harder to break than others.
"Did you ever fall in love with someone so completely that you forgot who you were? Like you can't breathe without them. Like you're two halves of a whole, and that nothing makes sense unless you're together?"
Jaime Alvarez always thought of himself as an ordinary working-class guy, so he was thrilled when he landed a job as a security guard at the Laurel Canyon home of Hollywood action star John Gillespie.
What he didn’t expect was the added responsibility of John Gillespie’s daughter, Amber.
High up in the Hills, guarded, secure and deeply damaged, Amber hides herself away from the public and the paparazzi. When Jaime first meets her she is crippled with anxiety and panic attacks so severe she can barely stand the touch of the sun on her skin.
As her friendship with Jaime turns into something deeper, Amber is forced to face her past, and the poisoned love-affair that destroyed her and turned her into a recluse. Worse, she must face a secret that may also destroy her – and Jaime’s – future.
Some bonds are harder to break than others.
181 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 8, 2013
25 people are currently reading
596 people want to read
About the author
Jessica Pine
8 books25 followersJessica Pine is an adult romance author. When she is not writing she is thinking about writing, editing things she has written or worrying that she is not writing enough.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
January 27, 2014
Holy hell this book was confusing I had no idea what was happening throughout most of it, then when I finally caught on to the story I was rolling my eyes. Amber was in a controlling relationship that turned bad to worse to crazy out there that led to her not even being able to leave the house without a panic attack. Jimmy /Jaime whatever is a bodyguard, security guard thing who's job is to watch out for her and eventually somehow helps her recover. It is a very confusing story and if you stick with it, you do eventually learn the whole story but it is a slow moving process.
January 29, 2014
Loved it.
One of those reads where I knew nothing about the book and had no expectations…which were promptly blown out of the water!
It's a fascinating NA tale I couldn't put down.
Amber is a movie-star's daughter in an abusive relationship.
Jaime is the security guard who works on their property.
The constant twists and turns in this book kept me riveted.
And the author's voice is sparky.
One of those reads where I knew nothing about the book and had no expectations…which were promptly blown out of the water!
It's a fascinating NA tale I couldn't put down.
Amber is a movie-star's daughter in an abusive relationship.
Jaime is the security guard who works on their property.
The constant twists and turns in this book kept me riveted.
And the author's voice is sparky.
June 22, 2015
Great story. A lot of emotions all at once, but not confusing as a reader.
I appreciate the HEA. It was a progression instead of and ending. Smooth and heartfelt.
"I've forgotten how to do anything else but think and feel. They are such simple things you don't pay them any mind, until you can no longer do them without pain. "
I appreciate the HEA. It was a progression instead of and ending. Smooth and heartfelt.
"I've forgotten how to do anything else but think and feel. They are such simple things you don't pay them any mind, until you can no longer do them without pain. "
Want to read
January 15, 2014Amazon Freebie
1/15/14
http://www.amazon.com/Held-A-New-Adul...
1/15/14
http://www.amazon.com/Held-A-New-Adul...
May 22, 2018
Unique
This book was really unique!!! I enjoyed it!!! I loved Amber and Jamie’s story!! It had so many twists and turns!
This book was really unique!!! I enjoyed it!!! I loved Amber and Jamie’s story!! It had so many twists and turns!
July 9, 2024
DNF 50% Lead female came off as a poor me rich girl. It was also really confusing. The story would change rapidly, and I'd no longer know what I was reading about.
January 19, 2014
This is not a book for readers who want the standard formula of girl meets boy --> boy sweeps girl off her feet --> they fall madly into love/sex --> happy ending. I mean, some of those elements are there, but they are in no way standard or formulaic. This is a book about trauma, and bad decisions, and some of the reasons people make bad decisions, and how to deal with the fallout of those bad decisions. Also a little bit of how *not* to deal with bad decisions.
The book opens with one of the main characters feeling completely housebound and terrified to go outside. However, the action soon escalates: there is not only budding romance, there is action, intrigue, drama, violence, betrayal, a car chase, a kidnapping, even an appearance by Chekhov's Gun! Thankfully, only several of those things take place between the love interests. In fact, this entire book is an examination of what happens when someone mistakes "obsessive possession, lust, and control" with "love", and it turns those romance-narrative stereotypes on their heads. The author writes that "if you love 'Fifty Shades' [style romances], you will hate this book'", and she's not wrong.
Whatever it means about my reading habits, I liked this book a fair amount and would definitely read it again. As for criticism? One does get the sense that certain elements are skimmed over and others condensed due to pure lack of space, but it hardly detracts from the narrative arc or the point of the story. The minor errors others have mentioned are not syntactical and are easily forgiven. Some of the information put forth in the book might be familiar to certain demographics, yet is very accessible for everyone else. There are very smart callbacks to other works that may be subtler to some than to others, none of which ever felt heavyhanded and all of which made me smile. A savvy reader can probably foresee certain events in the narrative before they unfold, but other things come as a complete surprise; by the end of the story, one becomes invested enough in the characters to want to see how their story follows through, and that is what keeps someone reading. I would be interested in reading another story about these characters set about five years in their future, to see how they have grown, but I'm glad the ending was left a little ambiguous instead of wrapping it up with a pat little bow -- that definitely felt true to life and to their situation.
In short? Many romance readers say they wished more literary heroes (and real-life men) behaved like Edward and Christian, but I wish more behaved like Jaime. And I'd much rather know a young woman who admired Amber's growth and resilience than one who sought to emulate Ana or Bella.
The book opens with one of the main characters feeling completely housebound and terrified to go outside. However, the action soon escalates: there is not only budding romance, there is action, intrigue, drama, violence, betrayal, a car chase, a kidnapping, even an appearance by Chekhov's Gun! Thankfully, only several of those things take place between the love interests. In fact, this entire book is an examination of what happens when someone mistakes "obsessive possession, lust, and control" with "love", and it turns those romance-narrative stereotypes on their heads. The author writes that "if you love 'Fifty Shades' [style romances], you will hate this book'", and she's not wrong.
Whatever it means about my reading habits, I liked this book a fair amount and would definitely read it again. As for criticism? One does get the sense that certain elements are skimmed over and others condensed due to pure lack of space, but it hardly detracts from the narrative arc or the point of the story. The minor errors others have mentioned are not syntactical and are easily forgiven. Some of the information put forth in the book might be familiar to certain demographics, yet is very accessible for everyone else. There are very smart callbacks to other works that may be subtler to some than to others, none of which ever felt heavyhanded and all of which made me smile. A savvy reader can probably foresee certain events in the narrative before they unfold, but other things come as a complete surprise; by the end of the story, one becomes invested enough in the characters to want to see how their story follows through, and that is what keeps someone reading. I would be interested in reading another story about these characters set about five years in their future, to see how they have grown, but I'm glad the ending was left a little ambiguous instead of wrapping it up with a pat little bow -- that definitely felt true to life and to their situation.
In short? Many romance readers say they wished more literary heroes (and real-life men) behaved like Edward and Christian, but I wish more behaved like Jaime. And I'd much rather know a young woman who admired Amber's growth and resilience than one who sought to emulate Ana or Bella.
January 31, 2014
**Received by Author in exchange of honest review****
I absolutely loved this book, but be warned this is not your usual sweet love story, Amber has ben hurt, badly, an unfortunate occurrence of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and falling for the wrong guy who would eventually suck the will and life out of you, leaving you defenceless and incapable of making your own decisions, co-dependant to the point of sick obsession, in theory just the basis of an abused relationship; so the story begins with Amber in the present time living as a recluse in her own house, afraid to even walk out of her bedroom, plagued by constant hurtful memories and suffering from anxiety attacks, being the daughter of one of Hollywood A lister actors make things even worse as the knowledge that behind the gates awaits a stream of paparazzi's ready to snap that big picture for their next story. Enter Jaime, or "Jimmy" he is an Argentinian guy who comes from a hard working catholic family and thinks he's the luckiest guy alive for landing a great job in the heart of Hollywood prestigious neighbourhoods working for a big star as one of his security guards.
As soon as Jaime meets Amber he knows things are not right, he's been asked to protect the annexe where she is, but has no idea why this beautiful girl looks so heartbroken. He knows the information is so easily accessible, just one click and he could have all the answers but he doesn't want to be like everyone else, he wants to make her smile and perhaps one day get close enough for her to open up, however things take a fast turn and suddenly lines are being crossed, old habits are hard to kick and patterns are repeated, if things are meant to work out our leads have to come to difficult decisions in order to start afresh and with a clear and honest heart.
So throughout the book, we get to hear from both Amber's and Jaime's POV's, which I absolutely loved it allows us to really get an understanding of the root of the problem, the severity of Amber's issues and the courage it takes to put into practice that if you really love someone, you must set it free.
A heartfelt and powerful story of survival and true love.
I absolutely loved this book, but be warned this is not your usual sweet love story, Amber has ben hurt, badly, an unfortunate occurrence of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and falling for the wrong guy who would eventually suck the will and life out of you, leaving you defenceless and incapable of making your own decisions, co-dependant to the point of sick obsession, in theory just the basis of an abused relationship; so the story begins with Amber in the present time living as a recluse in her own house, afraid to even walk out of her bedroom, plagued by constant hurtful memories and suffering from anxiety attacks, being the daughter of one of Hollywood A lister actors make things even worse as the knowledge that behind the gates awaits a stream of paparazzi's ready to snap that big picture for their next story. Enter Jaime, or "Jimmy" he is an Argentinian guy who comes from a hard working catholic family and thinks he's the luckiest guy alive for landing a great job in the heart of Hollywood prestigious neighbourhoods working for a big star as one of his security guards.
As soon as Jaime meets Amber he knows things are not right, he's been asked to protect the annexe where she is, but has no idea why this beautiful girl looks so heartbroken. He knows the information is so easily accessible, just one click and he could have all the answers but he doesn't want to be like everyone else, he wants to make her smile and perhaps one day get close enough for her to open up, however things take a fast turn and suddenly lines are being crossed, old habits are hard to kick and patterns are repeated, if things are meant to work out our leads have to come to difficult decisions in order to start afresh and with a clear and honest heart.
So throughout the book, we get to hear from both Amber's and Jaime's POV's, which I absolutely loved it allows us to really get an understanding of the root of the problem, the severity of Amber's issues and the courage it takes to put into practice that if you really love someone, you must set it free.
A heartfelt and powerful story of survival and true love.
August 18, 2014
I wanted to like this book, the synopsis, the cover, the title, I was drawn to it. It seemed promising and I was hopeful. To say I was disappointed was an understatement, this book was a struggle to read. I want to say this book was not edited and if it was no one was checking for grammar errors and mis-spellings because there were a ton of them. I am not one easily distracted by these things because all books have them but the fact that I found myself numerous times re-reading a sentence to try to figure out the wording or figure out what word was missing was annoying.
Then there is the story itself, which I honestly didn’t care for and if you know me, I rarely rate a book poorly but I have to give this book 2 stars. The story went from 0 to 100 in the turn of a page. There was way, way, way too much emphasis on race, rich-white girl, skinny-white girl, tan dark skin, curvy hips and firm boobs. I get it the author was going for interracial but I like to paint a picture of the characters in my head not have it painted for me. The main character, Amber, she knows nothing about Jimmy but she randomly tries to seduce and to quote the book, “f*ck him”. I understand Amber is supposed to be crazy, and have issues but she was painted as a broken slut in my mind.
There is also the use of weird vocabulary words, thank goodness the Kindle comes with a dictionary because I was clicking on words to find their meaning at least 5-10 times. In addition, Jimmy is Hispanic or something of that nature, and you hear alot of Spanish and references to the culture which I didn’t really care for. The novel focused a lot on extra side track stories and references and not a lot on the main characters but overall, I didn’t like this book at all.
Then there is the story itself, which I honestly didn’t care for and if you know me, I rarely rate a book poorly but I have to give this book 2 stars. The story went from 0 to 100 in the turn of a page. There was way, way, way too much emphasis on race, rich-white girl, skinny-white girl, tan dark skin, curvy hips and firm boobs. I get it the author was going for interracial but I like to paint a picture of the characters in my head not have it painted for me. The main character, Amber, she knows nothing about Jimmy but she randomly tries to seduce and to quote the book, “f*ck him”. I understand Amber is supposed to be crazy, and have issues but she was painted as a broken slut in my mind.
There is also the use of weird vocabulary words, thank goodness the Kindle comes with a dictionary because I was clicking on words to find their meaning at least 5-10 times. In addition, Jimmy is Hispanic or something of that nature, and you hear alot of Spanish and references to the culture which I didn’t really care for. The novel focused a lot on extra side track stories and references and not a lot on the main characters but overall, I didn’t like this book at all.
July 29, 2014
I'm not even sure why I happened to pick up this book. There are just so many things here that I usually dislike:
-Spoiled and jaded little rich girl
-Definite (and obvious) comparisons to Romeo & Juliet
-Insta-love and insta-lust
-Big build-up of a not-so-surprising secret
The keyword, however, is usually.
For me, this story had a bit of a bumpy start. We are thrown into what feels like mid-story, and the blunt, jaded tone of Amber’s “voice” is more than a little abrasive. This added to my overall feeling that I wasn’t going to like the book, but I quickly found myself sucked into the story regardless.
Written entirely in the first person, the book is separated into clearly labeled chapters where Amber and Jaime individually carry the narrative. The story of Amber's past, as well as the reasons for her current psychosis, are told periodically—if a bit abruptly--in flashback chapters. Additionally, because the H/h have vastly different ideas of what is going on, there is often a bit of an overlap, where we are treated to some of the same scenes when the narrative shifts. Oddly enough, the overlap actually added to the story instead of detracting from it.
I don’t want to go into much detail, because this one is difficult to explain without getting into spoilers. But, I will say it deals with severe obsession in a very sexually explicit way, as well as issues of self-esteem, depression, and abuse. Dark and twisty though it is, to me this entire story is ultimately about love. Love between friends, lovers, parent and child…how badly it can go wrong, how much it may hurt, and the wounds it can heal.
-Spoiled and jaded little rich girl
-Definite (and obvious) comparisons to Romeo & Juliet
-Insta-love and insta-lust
-Big build-up of a not-so-surprising secret
The keyword, however, is usually.
For me, this story had a bit of a bumpy start. We are thrown into what feels like mid-story, and the blunt, jaded tone of Amber’s “voice” is more than a little abrasive. This added to my overall feeling that I wasn’t going to like the book, but I quickly found myself sucked into the story regardless.
Written entirely in the first person, the book is separated into clearly labeled chapters where Amber and Jaime individually carry the narrative. The story of Amber's past, as well as the reasons for her current psychosis, are told periodically—if a bit abruptly--in flashback chapters. Additionally, because the H/h have vastly different ideas of what is going on, there is often a bit of an overlap, where we are treated to some of the same scenes when the narrative shifts. Oddly enough, the overlap actually added to the story instead of detracting from it.
I don’t want to go into much detail, because this one is difficult to explain without getting into spoilers. But, I will say it deals with severe obsession in a very sexually explicit way, as well as issues of self-esteem, depression, and abuse. Dark and twisty though it is, to me this entire story is ultimately about love. Love between friends, lovers, parent and child…how badly it can go wrong, how much it may hurt, and the wounds it can heal.
August 25, 2014
Hmmm. I'm not sure what to say about this book. It was good but something was seriously lacking from it. The two lead characters didn't seem to have any connection with each other and if the female lead called herself "a whiny child" once more I think I would have honestly screamed. I counted that phrase from her a total of 23 times. Talk about repetitions, I was fed up of reading it, then the male lead starts to say it and that's when I really started to get sick. She's a selfish little brat and he's daft enough to go along with it, yes she had been through a rough couple of years, which is honestly the only thing that made me keep reading as I was intrigued as to what had actually happened. You do find out eventually, I would say probably 75% through the book, but by the time you've read that much of a book you don't want to stop reading. Now this is where I may be classed as blunt but I'm just being honest. The ending was a total anticlimax!! After reading and finally getting to the end it could have been a hell of a lot better than how it ended. Let's just say I was glad it was free when I got it. 2 stars.
January 29, 2014
I really wanted to give this 4 stars The story was unique and the author s style was different to what I usually read however I enjoyed it so much so that I finished it. It did start off a bit slow up until 20% I actually stopped to read another book and didn't think it was interesting enough. well I am glad I continued . Amber is the daughter of a Hollywood star she suffers from panic attacks and hasn't been out in public in months .Her story starts off a year or so ahead - after meeting and falling for gorgeous Justin their relationship turns abusive in a sexual way and she becomes dependant on him. The story is told from present to past so you get to know why Amber is the way she is . She then meets Jaime who her dad hires as security, he is sweet and cute and they both form a relationship. Not your typical romance I feel it could have been a lot darker cos I actually felt for Justin instead of hating him. Definitely worth a read :-)
October 10, 2014
Well written with just a few editing errors. It was difficult to engage with the book because initially, the storyline is disjointed and confusing. After you get past the first few chapters, the story begins to gel and take shape and you become invested in both the lead characters.
The story is an untraditional version of an abusive relationship and the process of recovery. The difference between healthy and unhealthy, selfish versus selfless are beautifully illustrated through the characters and their journeys. It was suspenseful, sad, romantic and uplifting. I would have been happy for this book to have continued the story, but cannot fault the author's choice of ending it with the potential of them finding a happy ending.
The story is an untraditional version of an abusive relationship and the process of recovery. The difference between healthy and unhealthy, selfish versus selfless are beautifully illustrated through the characters and their journeys. It was suspenseful, sad, romantic and uplifting. I would have been happy for this book to have continued the story, but cannot fault the author's choice of ending it with the potential of them finding a happy ending.
April 20, 2016
This was a difficult book to read. Essentially it's about a mentally unstable young woman from a wealthy background who needs to come to terms with a dangerous relationship and its consequences, as told in disjointed flashbacks. She develops an unusual relationship with a young man who is assigned as security for her and he recognizes what she needs to help her.
What was really interesting about this book was that it took some of the same lines I've read in romance novels that feature a traditional alpha male -- possessive, controlling (for example, "you're mine!") and instead has them coming from her controlling mentally unstable ex boyfriend. I really liked reading the other side of that kind of relationship.
What was really interesting about this book was that it took some of the same lines I've read in romance novels that feature a traditional alpha male -- possessive, controlling (for example, "you're mine!") and instead has them coming from her controlling mentally unstable ex boyfriend. I really liked reading the other side of that kind of relationship.
July 26, 2014
The story went back and forth a lot and it made things kind of confusing and uneven. Amber is the daughter of a famous actor, and she's basically a prisoner to her panic attacks. She had a horribly abusive relationship and is still trying to figure out her life.
Jamie is hired as part of Amber's security team, which seemed really weird considering they were the same age. He's attracted to her and feels sorry for her, and they begin a relationship which seems solely based on sex. I really didn't believe the love stuff between them, it just wasn't convincing enough for me.
Reading the backstory about Amber and Justin (the abuser) made for a far more interesting story. I wished there had been a little bit more of Amber's BFF in the book, she was awesome!
Jamie is hired as part of Amber's security team, which seemed really weird considering they were the same age. He's attracted to her and feels sorry for her, and they begin a relationship which seems solely based on sex. I really didn't believe the love stuff between them, it just wasn't convincing enough for me.
Reading the backstory about Amber and Justin (the abuser) made for a far more interesting story. I wished there had been a little bit more of Amber's BFF in the book, she was awesome!
December 4, 2014
The Darkest Secret is the story of a famous movie star’s young daughter, Amber. Amber who has had a terrible abusive relationship with her psycho-ex Jamie has secluded herself in her room to cope up with her fears. When she meets Jamie (one of her father’s staff), she is drawn to him. Jamie meanwhile has no clue of the dark secrets in Amber’s life. And so as Amber and Jamie grow close, Amber has to learn to completely let go of her past, face her fears and be honest with Jamie. What I especially liked was that despite both Amber and Jamie being immensely attracted towards each, both of them wisely decide to take a break in their relationship for the sake of Amber’s mental stability and health. Re-told form Amber and Jamie’s alternating standpoint, The Darkest Secret was a riveting read.
February 19, 2014
This book is ok. There are some grammar and spelling mistakes. For instance, someone trying to prize the main character off something. The timelines that are currently being read is also confusing. is it her past view? Her present view? Is she remembering? Or telling someone?
The main character is ok, I get the sense of the "fun-loving" recklessness and insecurity the author is trying to portray, however, it just seems to fall short of expectations.
The plot is good, this could have been a great story if the characters developed more.
Also, this cover art is very confusing - I cannot tie it to anything happening in the story? She is never held, and never tied up?
The main character is ok, I get the sense of the "fun-loving" recklessness and insecurity the author is trying to portray, however, it just seems to fall short of expectations.
The plot is good, this could have been a great story if the characters developed more.
Also, this cover art is very confusing - I cannot tie it to anything happening in the story? She is never held, and never tied up?
January 18, 2014
This was a pretty different read for me. I've been really into the typical romance books lately and this really isn't one of those books. This book is messy, frustrating, heartbreaking and in the end pretty empowering. As I read through this one I couldn't help but feel for Amber, I mean that was her first experience in love? She went through so much and yet she was still able to eventually make the best of it. She really is a strong heroine. As for Jamie well I've gotta give him props too, he made his own set of mistakes but in the end he did what was right. This is a really great read and at free it shouldn't be passed up. This is by far one of the best free books I've read.
April 3, 2014
This is another of the freebies I got from amazon. But it is no longer free.
This story is told in a different way. Amber is the daughter of a famous movie actor. She lives at her father's house but she does not go out. Jaime gets a job working on the estate from his uncle. He meets Amber but does not know her story. Slowly she tells him what happened. Jaime and Amber are falling for each other but it is not a good thing.
Amber meets Justin at a club. But everything that can go wrong does. He is a bad guy and is doing bad things to her. Everyone around he can see it but she does not.
This is a captivating story. It made me cry. You have to read this one!
This story is told in a different way. Amber is the daughter of a famous movie actor. She lives at her father's house but she does not go out. Jaime gets a job working on the estate from his uncle. He meets Amber but does not know her story. Slowly she tells him what happened. Jaime and Amber are falling for each other but it is not a good thing.
Amber meets Justin at a club. But everything that can go wrong does. He is a bad guy and is doing bad things to her. Everyone around he can see it but she does not.
This is a captivating story. It made me cry. You have to read this one!
August 20, 2014
Not your typical story
The book was good, 3.5 rating for sure. There is a blurb at the end of the book about self editing and using this company to help you out. I hope that Pine didn't pay them too much to edit her book. A very simple re-read of the book would have brought out all of the errors that this self publishing company obviously didn't find. This could have been a four star read easily.
The beginning is hard to start but once you get accustomed to the writing style the book really picks up. The author is realistic and doesn't create a happy ever after to appease the audience. Bravo for going outside of the box Jessica Pine!!
The book was good, 3.5 rating for sure. There is a blurb at the end of the book about self editing and using this company to help you out. I hope that Pine didn't pay them too much to edit her book. A very simple re-read of the book would have brought out all of the errors that this self publishing company obviously didn't find. This could have been a four star read easily.
The beginning is hard to start but once you get accustomed to the writing style the book really picks up. The author is realistic and doesn't create a happy ever after to appease the audience. Bravo for going outside of the box Jessica Pine!!
January 26, 2014
This was definitely not a jovial read. Amber's journey is dark and twisted but the love that she finds with Jaime is interesting to say the least. It was however a very realistic story and one that sounds like the past of many abused young women. Do not go into this book expecting something sweet or light. It's a dose of hard reality and opens up the idea of what some people are capable of and the issues that can appear to survivors after the fact. All in all a read that keeps you turning pages.
February 22, 2014
This one. I can't really say much because I didn't finish it. I got to about a third of the way and gave up. The plot sounds amazing but the way it's written is completely confusing. I had no idea what was going on and I still don't. The overall idea and potential is great, but the writing organization needs a bit of work, as well as some of the writing to make it more appealing to the readers minds. Disappointed because there was a lot of potential. Perhaps I'll try to finish this one at a later time.
February 7, 2014
I got this book for free a few weeks ago and it was a good pick up. The story was good and intense but was often quite confusing. It was a little all over the place which meant sometimes you had to reread parts to figure out what had happened. The character's weren't all that lovable or memorable but the way that Amber grew from start to finish was good. Not sure if I would pick up more books by this author but this book was good enough and was a great fill in book.
February 27, 2014
I can't really understand the bad reviews for this book, except to think that maybe some people don't want any bitter in their sweet? Held reminds me positively of Jodi Picoult, delving into a really tough issue and letting us feel all of the emotions of a bad situation. But there's redemption on the other side, and the characters are all good enough to pull you through the dark spots. Highly recommended.
July 29, 2014
I really loved the story . however there were a lot of punctuation and spelling errors. Jamie could of been developed more but other than that it was really good. it's about overcoming an abusive relationship and learning to heal from emotional scars. There's a darkness but also a light that Jamie brings. It wasn't called Held but The darkest secret. found it odd I couldn't find it under that title.
September 4, 2014
I LOVED this book! Author Jessica Pine clearly out her blood, sweat, and years into this one!! The writing style was great, smooth transitions, well developed characters that did on their own yet exquisitely complimented one another! This was a terrific concept and an even greater execution! Something very different from all other NA/contemporary books out there right now. A definite treasure!!!
August 9, 2016
I love a flawed character and the premise of an agoraphobic love story intrigued me immediately. I just wish there had been a bit more of about her agoraphobia - which seemed to lessen early on in the book.
Other than that, this was a interesting story about the aftermath of a toxic relationship and it's effect on a girl who had been psychologically manipulated by her first love.
Other than that, this was a interesting story about the aftermath of a toxic relationship and it's effect on a girl who had been psychologically manipulated by her first love.
September 22, 2014
After reading the description of the book, I was excited to read it. The first couple of chapters were okay, but after that I found myself confused, bored and skipping much of the book. I just wanted to know what happened to make her this way. In a sense I still don't understand it and was a little disappointed.
May 19, 2014
This was an Amazon freebie for me from January 2014. I really enjoyed the story. Amber is damaged. The backstory of what happened to her slowly unfolds through the book. I liked that they didn't kiss and then have everything all better. Felt realistic.
January 21, 2014
Wow this book is intense. Amber had a worse ex boyfriend ever. He was controlling. When we meet Amber she is having a bad day. Jamie is a security guard watching out for Amber. Her ex deserved what he got.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews