Glass Paper Ink Bookblog: Broken Juliet (Starcrossed #2) by Leisa Rayven

Friday 13 March 2015

Broken Juliet (Starcrossed #2) by Leisa Rayven - Review

Released: 28th April 2015.

Blurb:

How do you fix a love that’s been broken beyond repair?

For years, Cassie Taylor tried to forget about Ethan Holt. He was the one great love of her life, and when he failed to return her love, a part of her died forever. Or so she thought. Now she and Ethan are sharing a Broadway stage, and he’s determined to win her back. Claiming to be a changed man, he’s finally able to say all the things she needed to hear years ago, but can she believe him? What makes this time different from all his other broken promises?

Ethan knows he can’t change their tumultuous past, but if he’s going to have any chance of being with the woman he loves, he’ll need to convince Cassie that her future belongs with him.

Don’t miss this stunning conclusion to the unforgettable love story that captivated over two million fans online.

Kristine's Review:

Reviewed: March 2015.

With some books the sense of anticipation is so keen, you're literally clawing at your skin waiting on it, since the second I finished Bad Romeo at 9.30am on New Years Day...yes I clearly remember the time as well...I've been desperate for Broken Juliet, desperate doesn't even come close to describing the level of crazy obsessed I was with getting my hands on this book. The absolute love I had for Bad Romeo was surreal, I tried and failed to cancel New Years Eve plans so that I could stay home and read, when I was dragged mentally kicking and screaming out that night I secretly snuck chapters in while everyone else was celebrating the end of 2014.

To say my expectations were high for Broken Juliet would be an understatement, this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2015. I hoped to be blown away, be lost in Leisa Rayven's words the same way I was with Bad Romeo, I wanted to feel the passion, the fire, the lust, the pain, the betrayal, the sense of worthlessness, of emptiness that Ethan and Cassie felt... you know that saying...be careful what you wish for?? I understand it now... because I felt it...EVERY SINGLE damn feeling, every possible emotional response I could possibly have to this book... I felt it...in spades.

Broken Juliet picks up right where Bad Romeo left off, with Cassie reading Ethan's email, his beautiful, heartfelt, apologetic email, the one where Cassie is finally hearing everything she wishes Ethan would of said years earlier. The passion, the chemistry that existed, that still exists between these two is palpable... it's tangible, as the reader I felt it seeping through the pages, into my skin, shocking me like a live wire, sparks coursing through my body, as Rayven's words awakened my heart and soul. Cassie can't deny the connection that still exists between her and Ethan but she isn't the same girl that was left crying in her college dorm room, she's grown up, she's changed, Ethan changed her, and after walking out and breaking her heart, crushing her soul twice, can Cassie seriously consider giving him a third and final chance? She's already been broken not once but twice, the idea of this failing again... can someone survive that...could she be put back together again if Ethan was to repeat his past?

Broken Juliet was a cathartic read for me, trading between the present and their college years, Rayven slowly peels back the layers, allowing you to relive their past, while they navigate whether they even have a future. I'm generally a reader who can feel any emotion whilst reading, and can then let it go once I've turned the last page, but this book doesn't want to let me go, when my mind wanders, images of Ethan and Cassie flit through my head, quotes that I adored feel as though they are imprinted on my brain...this book clawed it's way in, and has taken up residence in my heart and soul, and I doubt I'll ever truly let it go. If you take one thing from this review, it's to pick up this series, read it, breathe it, talk about it with friends, allow the emotions you feel to wash over you like I did, you won't be sorry.