At Peace by Kristen Ashley

At Peace is book two in The Burg Series and my favorite one in the series so far. Book five (Frankie & Benny) is expected summer 2014 with great expectations! I have read At Peace three times now and since I haven’t reviewed this one yet, I figure it’s a good time for a re-read and review.

Sometimes a book just speaks to you, and for whatever reason you are drawn to it over and over again. At Peace is one of those books for me. Maybe it’s the vulnerability of Vi and her naiveté on the dating/flirting world. See, she’s a widow, once married to a cop whom she met in high school; she has never been with anyone else. Ever. Vi has just moved to a new town trying to escape the madman who is responsible for murdering her husband and who now has a romantic obsession with her.

Things are going pretty good until she meets her neighbor Joe, a security expert, who is rarely home. It’s when Vi is woken in the middle of the night to blaring music and a crazy celebrity trying to get her seduction on next door that she comes face to face with him. The sight of Violet in her nighty, a ratty old men’s robe, and wellies will change Joe forever.

It’s not a simple sweet story. Joe really is an ass and rips Vi apart more than once. Yes, we are dealing with a strong alpha man with a troubled and unhappy past, but it’s watching Vi take hit after hit and still she keeps getting up. Her strength is something that she really doesn’t see in herself but is proven over and over.

Joe is a good man at heart, and when his light bulb moment hits, he may be too late to fix things. Vi has been spending time with a local cop, and he stirs memories and feelings of security and stability - something she has craved and missed.

Then, tragedy hits and her world is altered yet again. The last twenty five percent of this book is amazing! It’s action-packed, heart racing, and I could not turn the pages fast enough. This is also when Frankie and Benny are introduced and I am instantly in love with the idea of their story. Even after so many reads, I am still breathless when Frankie says she has had enough.

The epilogue is perfection and her description of that house makes me want to head straight to the coast.

What else can I say, guys? This one just spoke to me. There have been three books written by Kristen Ashley that have done that to me. The other two were Golden Dynasty and Creed.

5 Stars

T~

Amazon Buy Link --- At Peace (The 'Burg Series)

Violet Winters once had it all but lost it when her husband was murdered by a criminal madman. During a cold winter night Violet has to leave her warm bed to tell her neighbor to turn the music down. And that’s when she meets sinister, scarred, scarily attractive security specialist, Joe Callahan.

She wants to deny it, but Violet can’t beat back the hunger she feels for Joe so she gives in again and again. Feeling it himself, Joe feeds Vi’s hunger, breaking his own rules to keep her in his bed.

Even though Violet had only one man in her life, she’s sure Joe is giving her the signals and Vi decides she’s ready to take a second chance at life and, maybe, love. But Violet doesn’t know the dark secrets in Joe’s past, secrets so soul-wrenching, they’ve drained him dry. With nothing left to give, Joe’s determined to live his life alone and he breaks Violet’s heart.

Crushed by Joe’s betrayal, Violet comes to terms with the fact that, no matter what signals he gave, Joe was not theirs to win. But Violet’s husband’s murderer is obsessed with her and heartbreak again haunts the door of the Winters home. When it does Joe is forced to face the knowledge that he can’t fight Violet’s pull, she’s under his skin and filled him full to bursting.

Joe needs to win her back and put his life on the line to keep Violet safe. But, having had it all once, can Violet endure losing Joe?