CARMIE'S REVIEW - She did it again – Sigal is not a one-hit wonder!The ending of Layers left me ravenous for Inner Core. As I turned the first page, I wondered if it was possible for Sigal to create an absolutely stunning story like she did with Layers. She nailed it!To be 100% honest with you all, I have read and re-read Layers and Inner Core three or four times already; they are both just as good the third time as the first. I found myself going back to my favorite part of the book, intending to just read a few pages and found myself turning page after page until there are no more pages to turn.Inner Core picks up where Layers ended. Hales is reeling from her breakup with Daniel and waiting to hear if her brother is okay after their unit was involved in a suicide-bombing incident. Hales is an emotional wreck and needs to get her perspective back. “I settle on the bench and think about how the airport is the best place to defuse some of the frustration, anxiety and pain I’ve been abiding for far too long now. It’s a place that has always proved successful in seeding hope in me, like a parallel universe which brings people together, which helps cease longing. And with the thoughts of longing, the thought of Daniel involuntarily drifts into my mind, accompanied by the unbelievable ache I’ve been carrying inside my heart since we went our separate ways two weeks ago.”Daniel is feeling the same angst as Hayley over their parting. He is looking for a way to make amends with her and sees his opportunity in the situation with her brother. Daniels utilizes his military contacts and finds out that Steven is okay. He flies to Chicago and delivers the news to Hayley and her family in person. Daniel is able to convince Hayley to give them another chance and they fly back home together. Hayley is ecstatic to be back together with Daniel and wants to take things slow even if he is her “one in seven billion.” Daniel is sure about Hayley being the one – so sure he wants Hayley to move in with him before they are even off the plane. Hayley’s perspective: “We can’t go from hell to heaven in a split second and pretend nothing happened. It doesn’t work that way.”Daniel’s perspective: “Nothing really changed, Hales. I want exactly what I wanted before. “You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep, because reality is finally better than your dreams.” Hayley and Daniel begin this dance to get what they each want. Fate does conspire against Hales and she moves in with Daniel because one of her besties, Ian got evicted and needs a place to stay. The story of the events leading to Ian’s eviction is pretty funny; so Daniel does get what he wants in that respect, but he isn’t going to be happy until Hayley is his forever.Fate does throw a wrench or two into Daniel’s plans. Daniel keeps mentioning that he has something to tell Hayley but for some reason the timing is always off. The “something” slips out during an argument and knocks them backwards. Daniel and Hayley recover and get back on track before fate throws its next wrench at them. You have to wonder what trials and tribulations they will have to face to keep a love as great as theirs.Inner Core is a story not just about two people in love; it’s about how our friends and family give us strength and help us find strength from within when we don’t think we can carry on. I want to leave you with a few words from Ian. “You know Hales we go from childhood to maturity being preached at about how family is the most important thing in life. But I say screw that, it depends on which family. For me it’s sure not the family I was born into….it’s us. You, me and Tasha….Sometimes you guys are just too much, so much that I end up almost strangling you, and then there are times when you just rock my world, and I can’t even begin to say how much I love you. And no matter what, I know I can rely on you guys and that you’ll love me, no questions asked, any [insert swear word here] time.”5.75 stars!!! As Daniel and Hayley's saga continues you get more drama, added with some sweet get-aways, and unexpected moments, and you have a nice finale to this love affair. Both Daniel and Hayley have a bit of aftermath to resolve from when they were broken up, but the make up part is always nice. The love scenes are not extremely emotionally compelling, or as detailed as I would like, but I guess you could say that they were good enough. You still have a very strong best friend trio who are always there for Hayley, in the good and bad times. Daniel seems to work a lot in this one, and the time apart was kind of a bummer, but Daniel seemed to make it up to Hayley in some way, or other. In this book, you get to meet Daniel's mother Iris who was so sweet. There is also some jealous moments on Daniel's part that he had to work through. Drama ensues when one of Hayley's past hook-ups comes to stir up trouble (which I thought was refreshing since novels always seem to explore the crazy past hook-ups of the guy's coming to haunt the couple). Hayley is still a commit-a-phobe, but there are some events that occur that have her moving forward in her HEA with Daniel. I thought the epilogue was lackluster, as it was too sketchy, moving here and there. I couldn't say that the epilogue was amazing, only good and sweet. But, I think that's a good descriptor for this romance in general, it was "good," nothing remarkable or amazing, just good. Hey, sometimes, that's good enough. Narrators: Nelson Hobbs continued to perform for only the epilogue as it's in Daniel's POV. I do love his voice, so it was enjoyable. Aletha George continued to do well in her narration. 3.5 to 4 STARS (can't decide)
What do You think about Inner Core (2014)?
didnt go much on the ending but otherwise loved it!
—Peiting
