Breakaway (Portland Storm, #1)

by Catherine Gayle

• ISBN10: 0989674444
• ISBN13: 9780989674447
• Publish Date: 13 December 2013 (first published 11 December 2013)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Bons Mots, Incorporated
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 268
• Language: English

Reviews

Breakaway is a story about a girl who was gang raped when she was younger and the ice hockey player she asks for help to overcome her recurring panic attacks. Dana was an interesting character -a bit naive but obviously understandable. I liked the way the relationship between Eric and Dana unfolded, although at times I found it annoying that Dana didn't just say what was on her mind. Eric was a great character, very devoted, loyal and understanding. He wasn't pushy and he just wanted to help Dana overcome her fears. Soupy was kind of a jerk for the whole book, I would've liked him to be more accepting of all the good Eric had done. I liked the female characters and the lack of bitchiness - just total understanding and caring. Babs was a great character and I liked Katie's crush on him. I'll be picking up the rest of the series to see what happens next.

[Cocktails and Books]

I read this series backwards, but I finally made it back to Eric and Dana's story. *le sigh*. I loved Eric and what he was willing to do to help Dana. My favorite Portland Storm book!

[Kim Deister]

This had so many elements of the classic romance novel. The girl falls in love with her brother's best friend. The girl has issues and turns to the hot guy friend and they fall in love. Big tough guy has a tender heat. But even with all of these things, this story is so much more than any one of those things. It is deep and intense and emotionally raw.

This book focuses on Dana and Eric, friends since childhood. Eric is the best friend of Dana's older brother Brenden, growing up together playing hockey. Eric has gone pro, and Brenden plays for the affiliate team for that same franchise. Hockey is a central part of all of their lives. Dana, too, played hockey until something happened to her that ended her career and changed her life forever.

Dana is damaged, emotionally raw and insecure and living in an almost constant state of terror. She has spent years in therapy trying to get past what was done to her. But she just can't let it go. So she turns to Eric, her brother's best friend and one of the few men she thinks she can trust enough to help her. The depth of Dana's pain jumped off the page and straight into my heart. Eric is the epitome of a true man in the way he supports, protects, and helps Dana. There are some truly heart wrenching moments in this book, moments that just made me hurt for Dana.

And to top it all off, there was hockey! I love me some hockey and I love that the hockey in this book wasn't just fluff decorating the story, but a real part of the story. Sometimes books with a decided theme (cooking, crafting, etc.) tend to overwhelm the story with that theme. I love that the hockey is just another facet to a fantastic story.

Things to love...

--Eric. He is kind and patient with Dana and their romance is beautiful to watch unfold.
--The hockey. I love the hockey aspect. It was well-researched and added a great premise to a romance story.
--How Dana's trauma was handled. It was handled with reality and respect and I loved that.

My Recommendation: Contemporary romance it is. Light and fluffy it is not. There are real issues explored, real trauma, real emotions and pain.