This book had it all... Very emotional, i laughed, cried, cursed, shook my head in frustration of Amber and LOVED Josh Walker. However, could only rate it 3.5 stars... The story line was good, but it got bogged down with too much detail about other characters and not enough of Josh and Amber.. This book is very heavy on emotions and tried to mix it in with the romance but i didn't feel it worked... Although the author did a good job of the writting, and i would like to read other books from her, i just didn't love this one... I had a lot of issues with Amber, her indecisiveness, immaturity, selfishness etc, but having said that, at times i really loved her... So i would say this read was a real roller coaster ride for me.. With twists and turns mixed in with sadness. When i got off the ride, i was left feeling a little disappointed. Don't read this book if you are looking for steamy sex scenes, with lots of feel good romance.. Don't get me wrong, the romance/chemistry is there, but it is not the main focus of the book. What a refreshing, addictive read this was!! I am so glad I stumbled upon this one. Is this really a debut novel? I'm definitely impressed. The first two chapters had me gripping my Kindle with a lump in my throat, struggling not to get teary-eyed because I was reading while at the gym and well... that wouldn't have been pretty. And this speaks volumes because I RARELY cry when I read a book. I can count on one hand the times I've felt the urge to cry while reading, this one included. I just loved how heartfelt and beautifully set up Ember's story was. I really felt all she felt right along with her.The prose flowed smoothly and the characters kept me guessing. Ember is a strong woman, really stepping up for her family when they need her and I just loved watching her interact with her siblings. The secondary characters were likable and easy to relate to. Josh was a sweetheart, easy to love. Riley, on the other hand, was a little bit of a stereotypically self-involved boyfriend and a little bit odd to understand, but he didn't stick around too long and the author did manage to make him more human and less of a stereotypical villain towards the end. I prefer nuanced characters rather than black/white bad/good guys. Speaking of the end, that second to last chapter nearly had me in tears again. The ending was beautiful and I loved the epilogue.My only complaint (and this is really minor) is that I got a little tired of reading that Josh was so tall, Ember only reached his collarbone. This was repeated throughout the story several times and because I read it in two seatings, I think I noticed it more. There were a few phrases like this here and there that came off stilted, but overall, this book is refreshingly well-written. Well worth it.I can't wait to read Jagger's story!
What do You think about Full Measures (2014)?
I loved this...the angst, the passion, the love story!
—Christy
