What do you think?
Rate this book
No Turning Back
Kaia Hart seems to have it all: a career as a successful architect, two perfect children, and a handsome husband, Patrick, but she’s haunted by an accident in her past. On a business call, one day, she’s surprised to find Asher, her once-love, has moved to town and will be working with her. In “No Turning Back,” Kaia faces nightmares from her past and big decisions about her future, as the two worlds seem to collide. Will Kaia give up everything for Asher, or will she find comfort in the arms of Patrick?
181 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 31, 2015
1 person is currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
Lauren Greene
13 books31 followersI grew up in Alabama. I said I'd never come back to Alabama. Here I am, in Alabama. I've been writing since I could hold a pen, and now I've decided to share it with the world.
1/31/15, my book, "No Turning Back" will be available on Amazon.
You can check out my blog and Wattpad for news about my writing.
1/31/15, my book, "No Turning Back" will be available on Amazon.
You can check out my blog and Wattpad for news about my writing.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 31, 2015
This book has left me thinking about it long after I finished reading it. My thoughts on the story are all over the place. If the main character, Kaia, were my neighbor or co-worker, I can't imagine I'd like her. She's a train wreck, taking on human casualties at every turn - her lovers, her husband, her kids... She consistently made decisions that I wouldn't have made, for reasons I can't understand, after an astonishing lack of thought to the consequences of her actions. I found myself relating MUCH more to her friend, Shelia, and - like Shelia - I wanted to shake some sense into the woman! That being said, it was a fascinating journey, leaving me constantly wondering about what "makes Kaia tick". I like the use of the "flashback-type" chapters, which shed some light on the situation. I would have liked them to go back even further, maybe explaining more about Kaia's relationship with her own mother, which may have helped us to better understand Kaia's struggles to find and hold onto happiness. It goes without saying that there are unexpected twists and turns in the story (since she rarely made decisions I would have thought to make). It ends, I think, in the best possible way, given the circumstances. I won't say more on that, for fear of giving the ending away. Thank you, Lauren, for sharing this tale, and I commend you on the great writing. While I wanted to scream out in frustration over the direction of the story at times, I always felt I was RIGHT there, with vivid imagery and very realistic dialogue.
January 31, 2015
My first book, "No Turning Back," is about a character, Kaia, who most women will relate to. A marriage that seems to run its course, a successful career, and a haunted past. She struggles to figure out what she wants in "No Turning Back," by making mistakes and trying to fix them. A book any woman can relate to, and worth the read.
February 10, 2015
'No Turning Back' is a debut novel by Lauren Greene. It is a well-presented story, narrated in the first person by the protagonist Kaia and told in a series of flashbacks that are juxtaposed with the present.
Kaia Hart is an architect, who is slogging it through with a demanding career, with an unsatisfying marriage, and with the responsibilities that come with having two young children. The everyday ordinary events of her life - her interactions with her children, her husband, her coworkers and friends - are realistically portrayed. So also her internal conflict about choosing between the two men in her life, her husband Patrick and her lover Asher.
Life can be complicated and messy, and people don't always know what they want and why they do the things they do, or they offer such poor reasoning for their actions that it makes little or no sense to a bystander. And sometimes, unfortunately, this confused meandering can have a negative impact on them as well as on the people in their vicinity.
Kaia is one such troubled character, her self-destructive behavior most probably stemming from an unhappy and unstable childhood; there is mention of a violent father and a too-busy mother with whom she now has no contact.
On the surface though, she seems to be an intelligent and ambitious woman, and this is perhaps why it is difficult to sympathize with her. You generally want intelligent people to, well, behave intelligently, and it is disappointing when they don't. Kaia knowingly takes some wrong turns, regrets them, and is not particularly likable in how she deals with the resulting messes. I wanted to shake her on several occasions in sheer exasperation and snap, "Stop shilly-shallying, woman. Do you have any sense? What are you even doing with your life? Get a handle on it!"
Then again, it's a mistake to judge when you don't really know what exactly is going on in someone's head, and a bigger mistake to try to fit them into your own blueprint.
It was an interesting read. I look forward to the next book by this author.
Kaia Hart is an architect, who is slogging it through with a demanding career, with an unsatisfying marriage, and with the responsibilities that come with having two young children. The everyday ordinary events of her life - her interactions with her children, her husband, her coworkers and friends - are realistically portrayed. So also her internal conflict about choosing between the two men in her life, her husband Patrick and her lover Asher.
Life can be complicated and messy, and people don't always know what they want and why they do the things they do, or they offer such poor reasoning for their actions that it makes little or no sense to a bystander. And sometimes, unfortunately, this confused meandering can have a negative impact on them as well as on the people in their vicinity.
Kaia is one such troubled character, her self-destructive behavior most probably stemming from an unhappy and unstable childhood; there is mention of a violent father and a too-busy mother with whom she now has no contact.
On the surface though, she seems to be an intelligent and ambitious woman, and this is perhaps why it is difficult to sympathize with her. You generally want intelligent people to, well, behave intelligently, and it is disappointing when they don't. Kaia knowingly takes some wrong turns, regrets them, and is not particularly likable in how she deals with the resulting messes. I wanted to shake her on several occasions in sheer exasperation and snap, "Stop shilly-shallying, woman. Do you have any sense? What are you even doing with your life? Get a handle on it!"
Then again, it's a mistake to judge when you don't really know what exactly is going on in someone's head, and a bigger mistake to try to fit them into your own blueprint.
It was an interesting read. I look forward to the next book by this author.
January 30, 2015
I love the way the Author Lauren Greene drags the reader into the book immediately with drama and a great opening paragraph. From that moment the excitement and intrigue never slows down.
I really enjoyed the way the Author mastered the technique of moving from the present to the past and back again. Almost chapter, by chapter. I've seen lot's of Authors attempt this technique with little success. Not this time!! She nailed it. It didn't become boring or confusing but enhanced the story by demonstrating why the main character Kaia was feeling what she was feeling by placing the reader right there and surrounding them with the emotion and circumstances that have led her to where she is and to the decision she must make. Highly recommend this book. It is an absolute page turner and its out tomorrow HOORAY!
I really enjoyed the way the Author mastered the technique of moving from the present to the past and back again. Almost chapter, by chapter. I've seen lot's of Authors attempt this technique with little success. Not this time!! She nailed it. It didn't become boring or confusing but enhanced the story by demonstrating why the main character Kaia was feeling what she was feeling by placing the reader right there and surrounding them with the emotion and circumstances that have led her to where she is and to the decision she must make. Highly recommend this book. It is an absolute page turner and its out tomorrow HOORAY!
February 11, 2015
For this book to be a first by this author it was well written. I liked the journey I watched the FMC go through considering she never had a chance to really do those things when she was younger. It was a second chance for her and I loved that.
January 31, 2015
****I was given an arc in return for an honest review****
This was an emotional book to read. Hard choices to see someone (even a fictional someone) make, but it was written so beautifully. So that took away some of the pain. I still cried at the end.
This was an emotional book to read. Hard choices to see someone (even a fictional someone) make, but it was written so beautifully. So that took away some of the pain. I still cried at the end.
January 31, 2015
Not a bad book. I liked it and got through it really quickly. Will read more by this author for sure
March 30, 2015
This is a thought provoking read, dealing with a delicate and touchy subject.
Kaia Hart is unhappily married with two adorable children. An old flame unexpectedly re-enters her life, causing much confusion and temptation. Will she make the right decision when she is put to the test? You be the judge.
Every time you read a book, you form your opinions of the characters and the story based on your own life experiences and point of view. If you've had any experience with marital breakdown I think you might be more sympathetic towards the main character, Kaia.
At times, it's hard to read about the choices she makes because she doesn't always think through the consequences. Or, she does, but goes ahead anyway. Her life is a mess.
I felt sympathy towards Patrick and Asher because, although they have some responsibility in the upheaval that happens, they really are dragged along by Kaia's internal crisis. This book is packed with emotional turmoil.
The flicks back and forth in time are managed well without slowing the pace, but a couple of times I did have to read the first sentence or two before I figured out where and when the characters were.
I think the author has done a fantastic job or conveying the convoluted emotions and weaving in the history behind the present dilemma.
Well done, Lauren Greene.
Four Flares
*Free copy generously provided in exchange for an honest review*
Cheers
Kaia Hart is unhappily married with two adorable children. An old flame unexpectedly re-enters her life, causing much confusion and temptation. Will she make the right decision when she is put to the test? You be the judge.
Every time you read a book, you form your opinions of the characters and the story based on your own life experiences and point of view. If you've had any experience with marital breakdown I think you might be more sympathetic towards the main character, Kaia.
At times, it's hard to read about the choices she makes because she doesn't always think through the consequences. Or, she does, but goes ahead anyway. Her life is a mess.
I felt sympathy towards Patrick and Asher because, although they have some responsibility in the upheaval that happens, they really are dragged along by Kaia's internal crisis. This book is packed with emotional turmoil.
The flicks back and forth in time are managed well without slowing the pace, but a couple of times I did have to read the first sentence or two before I figured out where and when the characters were.
I think the author has done a fantastic job or conveying the convoluted emotions and weaving in the history behind the present dilemma.
Well done, Lauren Greene.
Four Flares
*Free copy generously provided in exchange for an honest review*
Cheers
January 19, 2016
For a first novel, No Turning Back delivered more than I expected. What can be more decadent than a complicated affair? Do you do your duty or follow your heart? I was hooked from the beginning, wanting to find out what the characters will do next... and feeling frustration as Kaia made one mistake after another! When a book takes you through a roller coaster of emotions, then the author has succeeded. The dialogue was realistic and fascinating. Story line is clear. It's a romantic, emotional book that every woman would enjoy. I may not agree with everything Kaia did, but that's the fun of it! She makes the mistakes, I read about the outcome. Highly recommended.
January 31, 2015
Lauren Greene takes us into the life of Kaia Hart, a young mother with two children who has married for the wrong reasons. Then Asher Kendrick walks back into her life and with him she relives all she could have had but is he the one she really wants? The ending is unexpected, will Kaia choose one of the three men who are part of her life or will she choose a life alone, to find herself, her own way? To acquaint the reader with the characters Lauren Greene skilfully moves between the past and present using everyday life scenarios to which readers can relate easily, I found this book very readable indeed.
February 23, 2015
I found this a very enjoyable story! The main character finds herself torn between her husband, a man she married out of a sense of obligation after a terrible tragedy, and the man she has loved for many years, the one she felt was her one true love. The story takes the reader on her journey of her struggle to decide which direction she will take. Who does she choose? You must read to the very end to find out!
February 11, 2015
I enjoyed No Turning Back by Lauren Greene. The book is very well written and the characters are very believable. When Kaia Hart is faced with a person from her past she can let it change her life for better or worse and she has to choose what she will do. The story is told from Kaia's perspective and she is a very real and honest narrator.
This is definitely an adult book and deals with marriage, divorce, sex and other adult themes. Pick it up accordingly!
This is definitely an adult book and deals with marriage, divorce, sex and other adult themes. Pick it up accordingly!
March 1, 2015
This is bad. The exciting kind of bad. An old flame reignited and the blow-torch put on a worn out marriage. This is a complete mess for our heroine. She has a life – a family! Why does wrong have to feel so right? Is it right? After an impactful opening scene we are drawn quickly into the drama. The story is cleverly conveyed through past and present time parallels. We are treated to what is happening with Kaia at the same time as we are learning why. This mix is intriguing. Where the story takes us is beyond the issue of the marriage and the old flame, towards a bleak kind of truth and reality – to a road that must be walked… This is an ordinary yet strikingly powerful tale about the choices we make and the doors we close by making them – about never being able to have that other choice again…. A smart and thought provoking read.
March 6, 2015
No Turning Back by Lauren Greene was one of those books that had me hooked within the first few pages. Kaia Hart is a woman in an unhappy marriage. When an old flame who she still carries a torch for enters her life, she is torn between her rocky marriage and her old boyfriend. Kaia is forced to make a decision that will change her life. Should she do her duty or be with the man she loves? No Turning Back has good dialogue, wonderful flow, and believable characters. I will place this in one of the few romance books I liked. The ending caught me off guard.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews