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Wild Hearts #1

Altered Engagement

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Even the best laid plans aren't immune to disaster...

Katie Lou Brennan is young, beautiful and engaged to the man of her dreams. Her wedding is only three weeks away, and she's so nervous and excited that it's nearly more than she can bear--until an accident throws her through the windshield of her fiance's car, leaving her in a coma and fighting for her very life. 

When she awakens, the world she knew is gone. She cannot make her legs obey her, so she can no longer walk, and some parts of her have little or no feeling. She's terrified of what the future will hold in a wheelchair, and then the next bombshell hits, when her fiance tells her that a crippled wife would not fit into his plans for a future political career.

Heartbroken and distrusting, Katie Lou pours everything she has left into walking again, no matter what the doctors say, and her new Physical Therapist, Rob Christopher, is determined to help her do so--and more than a little bit taken by this tiny beauty with the lioness' heart!

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146 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 27, 2015

321 people are currently reading
330 people want to read

About the author

Nancy Adams

56 books42 followers
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
Profile Image for Coco.V.
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November 14, 2018
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Blurb:
Even the best laid plans aren't immune to disaster...


Katie Lou Brennan is young, beautiful and engaged to the man of her dreams. Her wedding is only three weeks away, and she's so nervous and excited that it's nearly more than she can bear--until an accident throws her through the windshield of her fiance's car, leaving her in a coma and fighting for her very life.

When she awakens, the world she knew is gone. She cannot make her legs obey her, so she can no longer walk, and some parts of her have little or no feeling. She's terrified of what the future will hold in a wheelchair, and then the next bombshell hits, when her fiance tells her that a crippled wife would not fit into his plans for a future political career.

Heartbroken and distrusting, Katie Lou pours everything she has left into walking again, no matter what the doctors say, and her new Physical Therapist, Rob Christopher, is determined to help her do so--and more than a little bit taken by this tiny beauty with the lioness' heart!
1,066 reviews9 followers
December 11, 2022
An inconsistently written tale, written mostly at a very low reading proficiency level, about a young woman weeks away from her wedding who is in a MVA (motor vehicle accident), while her boyfriend is driving them to a restaurant after a day fishing and sunning on the lake on his parents' boat. The boyfriend is fairly badly injured, but when the first responders see her lying so far from the accident scene, they believe she is dead. But when the EMTs go to recover her body, they discover she is still barely alive. They stabilize her neck and back and airlift her to a trauma center, where she appears to be in a coma, though it is possible she is "locked in," aware but unable to communicate. They have drilled holes in her skull and inserted tubes to relieve pressure on her brain and spinal cord, something that is usually treated with dexamethasone IV, or other strong steroid medication, used to reduce inflammation in the brain and thus swelling. The use of drilled holes, while not uncommon as a treatment, is generally done if steroids fail and there are no other options, such as removing a section of skull to allow for the brain to swell without compressing. Removing a section of the skull may seem radical compared to drilling a hole, but the drain will also take the cushioning cerebral spinal fluid down for the entire central nervous system - the brain and the spinal cord - hence there is often a choice to take a section of skull out. Burr holes, as they're called, are more often used to drain a hematoma - a tumor-like blood clot - that is exerting pressure against a section of the brain, where steroids are helpful but limited in their use. Also, a burr hole may be used to limit active bleeding in the brain from destroying brain tissue. Most of this is done under CT guidance to pinpoint the specific area needing intervention. Had there been an active brain bleed, even one addressed immediately, she would have still had some brain damage from the amount of time the bleed had likely been ongoing, due to the treatment delay. It would have cost her too much brain tissue loss in the event the 3 layers of the brain's protective covering, the meninges, had torn (the meninges wrap the brain and spinal cord, and are the part infected in meningitis). FYI there are 3 layers 9f meninges: the tough, outer dura mater, the middle, spider-web appearing arachnoid mater that is a cushion and functions closely with the inner or pia mater, or "tender mother," that hugs the contours of the brain and contains the arteries, veins, and lymphatic fluid, that latter which protects from infection. Despite some attempts to call it that, the word doesn't mean "matter," but "mater," Latin for "mother" and named for their overall protective nature, as a mother protects a child. "Dura" is the root of our word "durable." Why Latin? For centuries, most educated people in Europe, and even the Middle East and North Africa, learned Latin from a young age, making the language the universal language of medicine and science. Also, as a PS, the brain itself is further cushioned by CSF, or cerebrospinal fluid. The whole is an intricate web of protection and nourishment, and that there are neurologists and neurosurgeons who see these intricate designs that to me are only possible by intelligent design, and see random molecules evolving over eons into humans and ignore God, surprises me. I would think anyone seeing how the body is constructed (anatomy) and how it all works together (physiology) couldn't help but praise God, just as the Renaissance doctors did with every new thing they learned about it, as every doctor until recently in human history has done as they have seen God's wonders laid before them. At this point, an apology. Old nurses who also have teaching degrees tend to get carried away.
But I was surprised that the protagonist's master mechanic father in the story could give such an exact description of what happened to his daughter, and how her restraints allowed what had happened, and be so precise, a sign of the author's research and well done. Yet, there was not the same intricate or even moderate research about her injuries as a result of the physics of the accident give her height and weight. There is also an inconsistency in her descriptions of the protagonist's self-described sensations internally. Her descriptions are initiallly those of a semi-concious person aware of the movement and pain and traveling from one place to another, then losing consciousness. An EEG can tell if a person is merely unconscious or in a coma, and the book states they were done, as they would be, so the options did not include conscious v. unconscious if the 2 options are, as described, coma or locked in state. What she describes feeling internally is reaching through a light, possibly resolving coma to a familiar voice and touch, and feeling too much pain to respond further, she lapses into what she describes as the painless blackness - back into a deeper coma that allows the body to heal itself. Patients in pain can't easily, if ever, be medicated for it if there is brain injury, especially if there is no certainty of the extent of injury. When our hero does respond verbally, she is better able to withstand the pain. While it is possible she felt the drilling for the burr holes, she'd have done as she had indicated doing before her attempt to respond to a familiar voice - she indicated she had gone into that pain-free darkness again - meaning she had done so before, likely when she felt the drill. It is not uncommon for a coma patient to go back and forth between stages of a coma, and this initial sequence she describes to herself is consistent with that. Later, however, the author has her make the claim that she was "locked in" the entire time and fully aware of everything that had occurred, no retreating into painless blackness, but that she simply couldn't respond. Coma does lock you in...until you come out of it fully, you can't respond to the world around you. It is also not uncommon to recall lighter periods of a coma, physical sensations, and hearing people around you. Hearing is the last sense to go away. This is why families and close friends are encouraged to talk to comatose patients about what is going on in their lives as the patient recovers, who has said hi or sent wishes or messages to the patient, and events important to the patient. They're also encouraged to read books the patient has enjoyed in the past, or books they have indicated wanting to read. Christians especially are encouraged to have the Bible read ro them, as most believers treasure it. The idea is the familiar voice relating news from home and stories they enjoy might continue to lighten the coma until, hopefully, they come out of it. In the case of the protagonist, her mom's, but especially her dad's, voices are enough. The author describes the push and pull of a coma state but then makes her character claim an alertness to her surroundings and inability to respond back throughout the time she was hurt. The 2 are largely inconsistent with one another.
Her early response to her father's voice, and her early discharge are medically highly unlikely. The coma, with that extensive traima.and s treatment delay, would last longer. She would be given initial PT in a hospital and be kept to ensure she didn't lapse back into a coma or a locked in state. It would have taken a minimum of a week to ensure she was sound enough for discharge, and discharge would have to have been to home health care. Then there is how quickly a guest room was made into her room with her things. I have had to rearrange a household for someone sick returning home, and it cannot be done as easily as stated in the book. I had enough other things going on at the time that it was a good thing I didn't have to build a ramp!
I also doubt seriously that, so soon after major head trauma, they'd have given her a regular diet when she has a head injury...there is a much higher risk of vomiting with a head injury, and vomiting is the last thing you want. It increases intracranial pressure, and since reflexes such as the gag refles may be impaired, vomiting is more likely to result in aspiration pneumonia, which is just what it likely sounds like - something goes down the trachea to the lungs instead of the esophagus, or leaks back down the trachea. Rje resultant pneumonia can be rapidly fatal because it isn't just bacteria or a virus, it is stomach acid as well. No intelligent doctor would order such a rapid transition in diet - and any decent neuro nurse would question him if he tried. The first order of business would be a swallowing study, and if the patient was deemed able to swallow safely, then "sips and chips," allowing a patient to suck on ice chips and take small sips of water. If the patient didn't get sick from that nor choke on it, then a clear liquid diet would be next...the dreaded hospital jello and apple juice. After every attempt at oral intake, she'd have had to sit uo ar a 45 degree angle or higher for an hour at least. Once that was successful, they would likely try her on liquids - all types, like pudding, for example. After that would be soft foids, then regular diet. At each stage they would watch her closely. Considering how long she would be there before it would be safe to release her home, both her day of discharge and her final transition to regular food would likely coincide. She would need visits by home PT and OT, as well as a nurse, for at least a week after discharge, likely longer. Exercises requiring her to be flat would be done on her bed, no rolling onto a thin mat from a wheelchair. A bath in a tub would have to be supervised by someone very close who would insist on a conversation behind a shower curtain for safery and privacy. There would be no risking her becoming too weak to stay above water in a tub. The same would be true of a shower, for which she would need a shower chair and room to transfer onto it...if the shower was part of a tub/shower combination, she would need a transfer bench. Those can be rented as well as purchased, so if the perceived need isn't long term, or is uncertain, a rental is a good solution until a decision is made. Accommodation in the kitchen can be made by giving the person a cutting board and sitting them at the table to allow them to help cut up meat and/pr veggies or fruits. A protecctive tea towel can be put across a lap so the person in a chair can carry dishes into the kitchen and load the dishwasher without help. An OT, or occupational therapist, is the one who sees to those things - finding ways to be more independent in a wheelchair, however temporarily that may be, accommodating independence in ADLs or Activities of Daily Living, and exercises that strengthen the upper body, which is a key part of independence - and helps a person, however strong they may have been physically before the accident, gain the specific strengths needed for increased independence. PT and OT would likely be home based for at least 2 weeks prior to discharge to an outpatient facility - and that would have been only to a facility that also had OTs, with a prior assessment of the suitability of the facility for the patient's needs, and a conference with the inpatient and future outpatient staff along with all family members, and friends if napplicable, involved in the patient's care at home when no one professionally trained was around. In addition, massage would have been a regular feature of PT after exercise, to relax strained miscles that may start cramping, to increase circulation to the muscles and thus, oxygen supply to them. This might also be accompanied by a therapy using electrical stimulation to aid massage, and hydrocollator packs for warmth to augment relaxation, circulation, and oxygenation of the muscles used. None of this was even peripherally mentioned as a pathway to restored function. Again, the research I see about the MVA itself was enough for me to be disappointed that more wasn't done on the treatment and recovery phases. I know the inclusion of sisterly conversations and parental interactions, plus the interactions of friends is a necessary component of a novel, but the novel could have been expanded to include these since the book itself is pretty short. When I look at 4 more books after that, and the 3 sample chapters included at the end of this book are 95% recaps of just one book, I can only foresee the recaps of each book taking more and more chapters until it wouldn't surprise me if half of book 5 wasn't recaps of the previous 4 books. Putting a short squib as a preface hitting the highlights of the previous books and advising readers it would be best to read the series in order would leave plenty of room for the necessary details that would offset the tendencies of people to assume recovery was always this painless. If her rapid recovery is the result of a miracle, say so plainly. Otherwise, portray it more realistically. Those disabled by similar trauma will thank you for being honest about what it really takes.
If you have the $15 (for the ebook series) and aren't worried about accuracy, and promise not to hold real trauma patients to this standard, have fun. It's not a terrible series, though you'll endure a lot of recap repetition - always with enough new information sprinkled. through it that you need to read it all. Romantically, the big question is whether or not her impending marriage will survive and, if not, will her then-ex have second thoughts and be able to woo her back? Or will she and her PT hit it off - or is he more for her sister than her?
I do appreciate the author addressing the regret of girls who say they are believers, and yet give up the most precious gift God gave them for their future with a believing man, to some guy under peer pressure. Once you "do it," as a young teen friend once observed, they switch from making fun of your virginity to calling you a slut. And as I told her then, if you're going to be condemned either way, why not be condemned for the option that saves you from STIs, HIV, herpes, drug-resistant STI strains, unplanned pregnancy, and serial partners whom you know only want one thing, and that isn't a soul to soul, spirit to spirit, God blessed marriage, just one loser after another. You can't attract a high values male (nor a high value one) with low values - and a low value - of yourself. That they realize this is great. That they don't mention repenting and confessing is odd in a supposedly Christian romance. That, in fact, Daddy never asked the young man, with whom he apparently got along so well, whether or not he was saved since the young man planned on marrying his daughter, and that she never mentions church attendance in connection with him, tells me she will be miserably unequally yoked, and, if premarital sex was no impediment, divorce won't be, either. In fact, the family mentions rigorous church attendance but not salvation at all. Again, a bit of a surprise. No mention of baptism, either, whether infant or adult. So, since standing in a church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car, I will assume this is not a Christian romance, but a romance about people for whom church and a modicum of faith are a part of, but in no way central to, who they are.
Profile Image for Jackie.
2,554 reviews
July 9, 2017
The story had potential, but the writing style felt very stiff & formal. The whole story felt rushed, considering it all takes place in about 2 weeks, from accident to hospital stay to therapy to ending engagement with the lousy fiancé. Also for being a 308 page (per Amazon) story with a preview of a few chapters from the next book to end in a cliff hanger was totally frustrating. I also felt the story was very repetitive, constantly going over the same stuff, from repeating stuff from one parent to the other, to medical diagnosis', conversations, etc.

The whole medical thing was wrong to me. Katie would have been in intensive care (ICU) until she came out of the coma, they have strict visiting hours in the ICU, not letting anyone spending the night -let alone 3 people. When my daughter had her baby recently, they didn't even let her husband spend the night! I felt that the whole medical thing was rushed. No way after her injuries & emergency care (drilling multiple holes into her skull to relieve pressure) would they release her home 2-3 days after the accident or 1-2 days after waking up from a coma or what ever the story wants to call it. They would want to keep monitoring the brain swelling. I also felt the therapy time frame was wrong. They would not have wanted her to jar her spine for some time, to let the swelling from the accident go down. So they wouldn't have started therapy the day she was released from the hospital. They also would have been using cold therapy to try to help the swelling go down & limiting movement to let the spinal cord/nerves to settle & let the trauma heal a bit before starting therapy in order to prevent further injury to the spine.

I also don't appreciate the political shots taken at Hilary Clinton, & I don't even like Clinton! The authors political opinions should be left out of a story like this, it was uncalled for & offputting. I will NOT be reading the sequel.
Profile Image for Lana.
844 reviews
July 25, 2017
NOPE

This story could have been great!
The plot was so amazing that I picked this book up immediately after reading the blurb. However, a few pages in and I discover that the writing is lacking - the characters act and sound so immature. I skimmed through the rest of the book, and unfortunately, there wasn't even anything in it that couldn't be summarized by the synopsis.

Aside from the fact that the medical diagnosis seems far from likely - that being, her entire family being allowed in the ICU, waking up from a coma after one day, and quickly regaining sensation in her legs 2 weeks post accident - the medical jargon was like someone was reading off a Wikipedia page about what a CAT scan or MRI was, and how different procedures work. The whole thing was repetitive and condescending to readers.

And most disappointing of all, there wasn't any new information on the development between Katie and her PT - which is painfully obvious where this story is headed.
All of that, I assume, was left for the next book in the series, which I'm sure the blurb will ruin for me as well.

I won't be reading the next book - getting through this one was painful enough, thanks.
Profile Image for Cherye Elliott.
3,397 reviews23 followers
June 12, 2019
Loved the book

This quote made by Mom sums up the whole book.
" That's a surefire way to miss out on a blessing. God doesn't close one door without opening another."

Quotes or passages worth mentioning:
1. “He told me that my being a cripple could hurt his political ambitions.” “Well, what can you expect from someone who wants to be in politics? If that's what’s most important to him, then he shouldn't have ever gotten mixed up with a real woman. He should have gotten him one like Hillary Clinton.

2. This should NOT be in this book. Obviously she IS a girl with a strong Christian faith and this comes out of her mouth?
She had always thought her life was planned out, that God or Fate or some Supreme Being had laid out a path that it was destined to follow.

37 reviews
May 16, 2020
So slow

I literally felt like I lived the girls day today life. Every detail was spelled out explicitly. It was extremely slow. Apparently it’s A two book deal but the entire story could’ve been told in four or five chapters. Not a bad idea for story, but it drug so slowly that I could never get involved.
97 reviews
May 30, 2017
Altered Engagement

I wish that in real life people are able to recover like Katie. Even though I like all the characters, Rob should be forthright in telling everyone he likes Katie but I guess it would make the story shorter.
489 reviews3 followers
June 16, 2017
Romance Altered Engagement

I enjoyed this story, I expect there are people who have been in this situation, I would have liked it t go on a bit longer to make sure things worked out for Katie Lou.
48 reviews5 followers
March 3, 2018
Good read if

Want to know more about rehab not much of a storyline seems to be in chapters instead of books . Well written and keeps you reading but it's mainly about how to get more control over your legs once they have been paralyzed
15 reviews
Read
September 28, 2022
FAB 5☆

This book is about Katie and her life, she and her partner get into a horrible accident and she is left paralysed from the waist down and has to re learn to walk again. It shows all of her struggles throughout this process and her determination to pull through
Profile Image for Karen Loomis.
273 reviews12 followers
September 7, 2017
The blurb on the book sounded great! I was very disappointed. Not a romance unless a broken engagement counts!
Profile Image for Talia Nyx.
Author 4 books3 followers
September 12, 2017
This was almost 4 stars, but there was just a little too much god in it for me to give it the full 4.
Profile Image for Nancy.
376 reviews1 follower
May 31, 2018
Short simple and enjoyable.
4,374 reviews28 followers
July 10, 2019
Good

This book is one that shows the courage of one young woman who was injured in a car accident.read this
9 reviews
September 10, 2019
Bored to tears.

The writing is very bland and lifeless... overkill on the God/religious tone. Dialogue is not realistic at all. You dont really care about the characters.
Profile Image for Hayley.
36 reviews
April 12, 2016
This was one of those books that I could barely finish. The story had an interesting plot but that was the only positive I found in this book. The dialogue absolutely killed this book for me. It was written as if all of the characters were in kindergarten and I lost count of how many sentences ended with exclamation points!!! Also the story was kind of all over the place trying to include every single character that gets introduced. I know it's from a third person POV but I don't care about the feelings of the father, Katie Lou, the doctor, the other Doctor, Darren, etc. I'm sorry to say this book was horrible and I don't recommend to anyone.
Profile Image for Debra.
3,466 reviews13 followers
November 14, 2015
I received a copy of the story from the author for an honest review. Katie in an accident that her fiance, Darren, was driving. He fell asleep at the wheel. Hope she remembers in the next book. Anyways, she breaks up with him when he lets her know that he needed to concentrate on his plan for politics and she'd be a hinderence to his campaign. Dr. Rob is her therapist and while her sister would like a chance with him, he has eyes only for Katie. There seems to be more books coming. Nancy Adams has done this in other stories. But I do enjoy how she writes.
Profile Image for Kim Leslie.
146 reviews4 followers
October 31, 2015
Loved reading this book! Nancy Adams has certainly written a story that has to be read. This book had it all...characters you love and characters you love to hate! There is drama and intrigue. I can't wait to see what comes next! ** I received this book in exchange for an honest review.**
Profile Image for Lin.
472 reviews19 followers
May 5, 2016
This really was a fast pace book. And you have to read book 2. Clash of Hearts to find out what happens. It was just a okay read for me. Not a book I would want to read again. And I didn't like the cover of this book at all.
Profile Image for Julie Post.
340 reviews1 follower
November 17, 2015
Not a bad story.

This didn't feel like a romance. It seemed like a drama where all kinds of bad stuff happens and through her strong family ties she Katie through. I feel like I need to read the next book to see if there will be any romance. Not a bad feel good clean book.
Profile Image for Vanessa.
59 reviews8 followers
January 25, 2016
I really liked this book, it wasn't hard for me to get into like the previous books I read from this author. I'm most certainly keen to start the next book and I would love to see where this will go.

I received an ARC of this book from the author for an honest review
Profile Image for Meka Weaver.
661 reviews13 followers
April 13, 2016
This book has a great story. I don't think I am a fan of all the pov's. I felt some of the story was lost. Although this was only part one. Katie was strong and passionate. I will continue to read this series. Very clean read. Recommend to romance readers.
Profile Image for Beverly S.
223 reviews
April 22, 2016
Good book disappointed it is not The full story.

Disappointed that it was not a complete book. I hate cliff hangers that force you to buy the next book. I can see paying for a series of books when each is a complete story on there own.
Profile Image for Betty Wronski.
146 reviews
November 18, 2015
Good

Like it some wasn't that kind of story for me the story line was different but it is readable good
Profile Image for qiana.
599 reviews1 follower
December 12, 2015
One man's lost is another man's gain

Life moves on and it looks like she will be better off without her ex- fiance. Never marry for convenience.
Profile Image for Jean.
812 reviews1 follower
May 1, 2016
Cliffhanger

This was a contemporary book that was not all that exciting and then when I reached the end I found out it was a cliffhanger. Will not continue the series
478 reviews3 followers
June 22, 2016
Awesome

This is a thought provoking story. Things can change so quickly. The characters are true to life and the plot is interesting.
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