Wild Card (North Ridge, #1)

by Karina Halle

[stacey_is_sassy]

A love worth fighting for...

I’ve never been a big fan of separation angst storylines. You know the ones? Where there’s a big bust up and they spend months or even years apart. For the first time though, I stopped and contemplated it a bit more. Previously, I would tut, tut the hero and heroine, and tell them to stop fighting love. Love is to be embraced not run away from. Why would you want to? If it’s real love you wouldn’t leave what makes you happy. But, what if real love is the reason you push them away? What if pushing them away saves the one you love? What if letting them leave is the one way you know will let them be free?

Wild Card was a story with lots of twists and turns. There are times where you must buckle down and take the pain of what both Rachel and Shane faced. I found myself consumed with a need to look beneath the surface to find out the truth.

Rachel has survived something that no child should ever have to face. No child should ever have to doubt their parent's love and support. Her father was a despicable character who abused his position of power. Rachel’s mother was just weak and should never have put herself before her child. When the one person she trusted turned his back on her, Rachel's life fell apart. Will she ever be able to forgive him? Will the truth set her free?

Shane grew up without a mother and feeling like it was his fault that his mother died. In a way, it was his family’s fault that he felt that way. No child should feel guilty about an adult’s wrong decision. Shane’s brother, Fox, should have been counselled and dealt with for blaming Shane for his mother’s death. These feelings of guilt and shame shaped Shane in his life and he always felt like he didn’t deserve love. When he found it, he wanted to keep it. Unfortunately, his love for Rachel is what pushes them apart.

Six years of heartbreak, hate and humiliation need to be forgotten for Rachel to find her happiness. As Shane knows he caused it, he knows it’s a lot to ask for her forgiveness. He also knows that he will spend the rest of his life making her know and feel his everlasting love. A life without Rachel would be an empty life for Shane. A life without Shane would just be a settling/mediocre/missing half your heart, kind of life for Rachel.

Geez, I cried reading this one. I’m an emotional reader and find it hard to not get sucked into the heartbreaking, angsty, life-altering/risking bits. I also smiled, smirked, squirmed and sighed, just the way I like my romance reads. There were times where I was frustrated and a little cranky, but deep down I understood where all the pain was coming from and why it needed to be dealt with. The highs and lows made the story’s happy ending so much better and left me with a big grin on my face.

Karina Halle does a great job of helping me to see a love that’s worth fighting for. Rachel and Shane's love was worth the six years apart because it never really died. I recognised the love that Karina describes. A real love is worth waking up for and puts a smile on your face. It fills and feeds your soul and makes you want to fill and feed their soul back. I believed in their love and I knew it was worth fighting for.

I highly recommend this love story and I can’t wait to come back for more…especially if we get to see Maverick fall for a book lover and Fox get his head out of his arse and see what’s in front of him.