"I wonder what she'd see in my future. If it would be the same thing I see. I wonder if it would scare her, too." 
 So this happens to be the second book in the series, and I haven't had the chance to read the first one yet. I don't usually like to jump ahead in a series, but I was assured it could stand alone, so I gave it a shot. I have to admit, if this book were by any other author, I might have passed it by. There are too many contemporary romances to possibly have a chance to read them all. BUT this book isn't by any other author. It's by Leigh Talbert Moore! <3 
 What do you do when you lose your anchor? You drift. Ashley is paddling hard, trying to stay on course, when all she really needs to do is... let go. This book is not a sweet love story. If anything, it's a bitter love story, but mostly it is about grief, and how we deal with it. Grief is such an individual experience, but Leigh managed to nail it exactly. It felt natural to the character, and so, natural to me. 
 When I was in university, I met a girl: lets call her Lisa. She was this boisterous bolt of energy, busy and loud. She was also a devout Christian, determined to become a missionary. One day, over coffee at the local Applebee's, Lisa decided to pray for me. Well... not for ME, per se, but for my eye. Yup, my EYE! I was having issues with it, and so she prayed for it. Loudly. First off, I was kind of flattered that she deemed me prayer worthy, but I was also a little embarrassed. People were staring! You're probably wondering what the point to this little tangent is. Here it is -----> Reading books with religious characters has always kind of made me feel like I did that day in the restaurant; a little embarrassed. That being said, this story, through all of the grief and bitter-love, was bordering on Inspirational. AND I DIDN'T MIND A BIT! Leigh has a way of introducing philosophical and religious debate without making me uncomfortable in the least. Maybe because it's wrapped in a New Adult genre, mixed in with some serious heat! 
 This brings me to my one complaint about the book. While I understood Ashley's motivations, I found it a little unbelievable how quickly she gets physical with both Jordan and Colt. She seems almost over-eager to throw away the big V, especially considering she has very little experience with guys. 
 Summed up in one word? Compelling! I stayed up WAY past my bedtime with this one! Even though I knew that everything had to work out in the end, I loved that Ashley had to work hard for her happily ever after. Now, I definitely have to read The Truth About Faking! 
 A copy of this book was provided by Netgalley. 
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