Picking up the Pieces by Jessica Prince ~ Blog Tour and Giveaway

TITTLE: Picking up the Pieces (Picking up the Pieces #1)


AUTHOR: Jessica Prince

GENRE: Contemporary Romance, Women's fiction

RELEASE DATE: July 2 , 2013


GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17789234-picking-up-the-pieces?ac=1

BLURB

After having her heart broken by the only man she’s ever loved everything seemed to go downhill for Emerson Grace. It has taken eight years but Emmy is finally starting to pick up the pieces of her damaged life. But the man who destroyed it has returned bringing with him the pain of the past. Can she let go of the pain Luke caused and accept him back into her life or will the memories be too much for her to overcome?

Running from Emmy was the only way Lucas Allen knew he could protect her from the demons he carried with him. After spending one perfect night together Luke takes off, certain that he can’t possibly give Emmy everything she deserves. Now he’s made the decision to return to Cloverleaf and make things right. But is he prepared to truly face all of the damaged he has caused?

Will Luke and Emmy finally get their chance at love or will the secrets of the past stop them before they even get to begin?


EXCERPT


"I cam back because I had to. I've regretted leaving you for eight years, and I had to see if there was any chance you could forgive me."

I wanted to melt back into him when he said that. But for my own self preservation I couldn't.

"I can't promise you anything Luke. I don't know if you and I can ever get to where we were before."

He ran his finger lightly down my cheek. "I've got to try Emmy. Losing you was the worst thing that's ever happened to me. I've at least for to try to earn your forgiveness."


Review

5 Stars!!!!


An amazing story to read! This is going in my Top Reads for 2013.


Lucas (Luke) & Emerson(Emmy) have grown up together since he moved 3 houses away from hers when he was 6 years old. Luke is 2 years older than Emmy. Throughout growing up, these two have always been there for each other and the very best of friends. Lucas’s home life was a difficult one with his father’s constant beatings & his mother becoming an alcoholic. So these two spent a lot of time together & he was always welcomed to her home by her parents. Lucas was there for Emmy, picking her up, when her parents were killed in a car accident.


The story opens with a flashback to the past…..Summer 2005

Emmy has graduated high school & is getting ready to go off to college & Luke tells her that he’s decided to join the Marines. He’s feeling that there’s nothing keeping him there in the small town of Cloverleaf, TX anymore.



“Baby girl, please don’t cry.” Luke whispered into my hair, pulling me tighter to him



Oh my goodness…..I melted every time I read him calling her Baby girl. Emmy is taking this news hard and I was a little confused as to her selfishness. She was going to be 4 hours away at college & Luke did not have much to keep him home anymore. But I did envy the relationship they had. And while I did give it some more thought, I summed it up to Emmy sort of feeling like having to deal with the loss of her right arm after always being able to see or talk to Luke anytime..


“I just didn’t think I’d be this sad,” I said, giving a weak smile, trying to make light of my tear-streaked face as I looked into those green eyes. He just stared back at me, not saying a word as he ghosted his fingers across my cheek and down my neck. He’d touched me a million times in the span of our friendship, but for some reason, this seemed different. There was an intimacy in this touch that I’d never felt from him before; it caused my heart to stall before starting again at a faster pace. ~ Emmy


Oh boy, I’m starting to feel what Emmy is feeling right now. And the way this author wrote these words down & put this story together…..just made me feel it all the more. I’m not going to give you anymore at this point, from this scene, because it’s important. I want you to go grab this book and possibly feel what I felt throughout the entire book.


The story is told from Emerson & Lucas’s POV, which I loved. This style of writing I find really let’s me into the character’s heads. I enjoy knowing what they are thinking at different points in the book. And after getting through the summer of 2005, we get to the present……Spring 2013.


Emmy is now the owner of her grandmother’s diner, Virgie May’s. Emmy’s grandmother raised her after her parents died when she was 13 years old. Eight years have gone by, some major events have occurred since that summer of 2005. Luke & Emmy have had no contact, at all, with each other during that time. Emmy is a survivor and a very strong young woman with the help of her best friend, Savannah & the others in this small town. Well, I say she’s strong until the day Luke arrives back in town as the new deputy. There are misunderstandings, heartache, loss & emotion that Luke & Emmy will have to work through to get back what they once had.


I could sense him walking closer before his hand went under my chin & lifted my face, so we were eye-to-eye. “What about you, Emmy? Have you come around? “ As I looked into those green eyes, I knew he was asking something much more serious than I was comfortable with. I couldn’t allow myself to go there with him.


“I can try and give you my friendship, Luke, but that’s all I’ve got. And even that’s a stretch for me.” ~ Emmy


I love Savannah/Savvy - Emmy’s best friend since childhood. These two girls just click!


She reached over & wiped away the few stray tears that had escaped. “I don’t know what to say. I wish I had the answers, but I don’t. All I know is if you keep going like this, you’re going to end up exactly where you were before. You have a choice to make, Emmy. You can either be friends with Luke & find a way to handle seeing him with other women, or you can cut the strings. Just accept that a friendship with him isn’t possible & cut your losses.” ~ Savannah


Savannah is an amazing best friend. I love her to death. She’s not afraid to say what she thinks or feels & had me “smirking” quite a lot & sometimes laughing with what spills out of her mouth. She holds nothing back.


“What do you want me to say, Emmy? You tell me you had sex that was so fantastic you passed out not just once, but twice & that he went all alpha & told you that you were his & you expect me not to have this reaction? Sorry, not possible. That was totally f***ing hot! And you know it causes me physical pain to say that, because I hate his ass.” ~ Savannah


Luke tries very hard to break down the wall that Emmy has built around her heart. He has his work cut out for him & he’s determined to help her understand why he did what he did. But it’s not going to be easy.


The truth was, I wasn’t good enough for her. No man ever would be, but she was mine, and I was going to spend the rest of my life making her happy. I just had a feeling that outrunning sniper fire was easier than what I had to do next. Going to Savannah for help was like walking into a lion’s den wearing a meat suit, but I had to do what I had to do. Emmy was worth it. ~ Luke


“I never thought I was good enough for that girl. She had this light inside of her, and I was this damaged kid that clung on to her like a f***in’ life line. She was the one good thing I had in my pathetic life, and when my dad left, I was so f***in’ glad. Not because I wouldn’t have to put up with his shit anymore, but because, maybe with him gone, I’d be good enough for her.” ~ Luke


“Luke. Not Lucas. You only call me Lucas when you’re pissed at me.”


I scanned the faces of each one of them. I knew it was pointless to try and crack Savannah, Brett or Jeremy. Lizzy & Stacie were too busy laughing. Gavin was staring down at the menu like it was the most interesting thing on the planet. That left one person---the weakest link in my group of friends. “If you ever want to eat here again, Trevor, you’ll tell me what’s going on.” ~ Emmy


“Oh come on!” he said as he slammed the menu down on the table. “That’s not fair, you know I can’t resist the food here. You went for the jugular on the first move!”
 I fell in love with all of the characters in this book. I’m hoping that there will be stories written about some of the sub-characters since I just want more to read about them. Picking Up the Pieces was a book that grabbed me from the beginning & I didn’t want to put down. I know that there is going to be a book about Emmy’s best friend, Savannah & her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Jeremy. But I want one about Trevor, Luke’s Marine buddy, who came into the story about halfway through the book. The storyline, characters, setting, dialogue & just how Jessica Prince put all of this together so well is why I gave it a 5 star rating.


*Review by Jessie


Buy Links




B&N:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/picking-up-the-pieces-jessica-prince/1115893692?ean=2940044626829

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I'm a wife, mother, wino, coffee addict and avid a lover of all types of books, but romances are my main favs. My husband likes to say reading is my obsession but I just say it's my passion... there's a difference.

I've been writing since I was a little kid and I finally decided to take the leap and actually publish when Picking up the Pieces came to me. Now that I've been bitten by the writing bug I just can't seem to stop.


Author Links:


https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJessicaPrince


http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7044544.Jessica_Prince


https://twitter.com/JessPrince2013



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