Title: Push Author: Claire Wallis
Series: Push #1
Published by Harlequin HQN
Release Date May 1, 2014
Genres: Mystery Romance, New Adult Romance
More Info: Goodreads
Purchase From: Amazon US
I feel like I am wrapped in a cyclone. Everything is whirling around me, drawing the air out of my lungs and filling me with the best kind of turmoil. Every time his tongue slides against mine, a prickle in my gut tells me how right we are together. How much I need David. How much I need us.
I hope the cyclone never stops.
Emma Searfoss has spent a lifetime trying to escape her abusive stepfather. It's why she moved far away from home. It's why she's kept no ties with her remaining family. And it's why she's got a major rage problem. When her neighbor shows up to fix the kitchen in her new apartment, his enigmatic charm calms the fire in her. David is cool and collected, and he makes Emma feel safe for the first time ever. But David has his own chilling past—his six previous girlfriends have all disappeared without a trace. Emma's walking a dangerous line, but David's pull is intoxicating. And impossible to resist…
This is a new adult romance with mature content for readers 17 and up.
My Review
Breathless. This book has left me writhing on the floor, a puddle of mush, and completely breathless. I didn’t know much going into this book, and for that I’m grateful. I was able to experience it as it should be; from blind eyes. I urge you to do the same. The prose that this debut author, while sounding well-seasoned, is able to weave effortlessly will knock you on your rear. There was nary a typo, never a dull moment; in fact, I attempted to read slower because I simply didn’t want it to end. From page one you are drawn into the characters, breathing their air, living in their world, and feeling as if you had known them your whole life. From start to finish, this book was simply flawless.
Wallis gives us an independent female protagonist who isn’t afraid to go after what she wants. She gives us an anti-hero that you yearn to fight to the death for. You can’t understand the pull you have towards them; you just know it is 100% tangible and utterly unexplainable. These aren’t cookie cutter people; they have flaws, they have fears, and they have secrets. While these characteristics, for some, could get old really quick, such is not the case here. If anything, they only endear you to the characters all the more. You furiously flip the pages, eager to see what will happen next. And while this book isn’t necessarily action packed, it’s what goes on in those quiet moments that really sticks out and permeates your core.
The timeline of this book was that of which I hadn’t seen done before. We bounce from Emma’s past, to the past of minor, yet influential characters, and then back to the present. And before you think this is confusing, have no fear. In context it will all make perfect sense. That in itself is a sign of a truly gifted writer. That she can take you down multiple avenues, throwing bits and pieces of the puzzle at you, and in the end, though you undoubtedly will have questions, you’re sure you’ve figured it all out. This book was one heck of a roller coaster ride, but the best books are ones that make your heart race. Give me books that make me feel. Give me books that fill me with angst. Give me books that make my chest pound. I’m a greedy reader, and I demand honesty in the pages, and this author and story delivers tenfold. When I make the statement literary masterpiece, I don’t say it lightly. I don’t say it often. But it needs to be said here.
About Claire Wallis
Enamored with the process of creating messy characters filled with imperfections and wicked inclinations, Claire believes that you don’t actually have to like a character to fall in love with them – a good story, after all, is best served with a hearty side of evil (just ask Disney). Claire’s first New Adult novel, Push, was released by MIRA Books on May 1st 2014. The story speaks to her appreciation of enigmatic male characters, perfectly capable of charming themselves straight into your unwilling heart. She enjoys writing about characters that are, at any given moment, both loathed and loved. You know, the ones that refuse to be forgotten.
Claire Wallis has penned hundreds of magazine and newspaper articles over the last ten years, with science playing the lead role in almost all of them. Though non-fiction writing will forever be her first love, fiction has unexpectedly swooped in, hooked her by the soul, and become her true love. As a result of this coup d’état, Claire’s writing career has made a complete U-turn, and instead of rocks, plants, insects, and microbes, she is now putting human characters in the lead.
Claire’s previous jobs include working at a limestone quarry, hawking vegetables at a farmer’s market, clerking at the dollar store, and convincing new mothers that they need to renew their subscription to that parenting magazine in order for their child to survive. She lives in Pennsylvania with her amazingly awesome husband and son.
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