Literary Misfit: Blog Tour & Review: Storms over Secrets by J.A. DeRouen

Friday, September 18, 2015

Blog Tour & Review: Storms over Secrets by J.A. DeRouen

Title: Storms Over Secrets (Over #3)

Author: J.A. DeRouen

Genre: New Adult

Release Date: September 14, 2015

Synopsis

Promises are lies dressed up for the party. Secrets poison the fairest of fairy tales. Lies stain the purest of loves.

I’ve paid the ultimate price for my choices. The tendrils of those sins bind me to my past. The remnants of my love hold me captive. Then he walks into my life, and makes me believe in second chances. He awakens feelings in me I know I shouldn’t have. I yearn for a future without guilt. With him, I dream of a love untainted. Regret is a far-reaching emotion. It barrels through time like a blazing comet, and its path isn’t always straight. No matter what I feel, I cannot bring myself to regret the time I’ve spent with Cain. But it doesn’t mean I can have him. My name is Celia Lemaire and this is my story of broken promises. Storms Over Secrets is the third book in The Over Series, a group of interconnected standalone novels.

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Excerpt:

The Past –Six Years Ago

MY FEET POUND the pavement at a punishing pace, and my calves scream as I push myself forward, not going nearly fast enough. My ragged breath whistles into the night as I force air into my restricted lungs. Loose gravel and rocks bruise the bottoms of my feet, but none of that matters.

Please, God, this can’t be the end. I need more time to fix this … more time to fix him.

I pound my fists on the front door, twisting the doorknob and pushing on the splintered wood with all my might.

“Lucas! God, please! Lucas!” My screams pierce through the stillness of the night, and the neighborhood awakens like falling dominos, with porch lights illuminating one after the other.

It feels as though light-years pass before the light above my head flicks to life. Mrs. Cindy opens the door with sleepy eyes and disheveled hair. “My God, Celia, what on Earth?”

There’s no time for words as I shove her aside and race up the staircase. Sobbing. Stumbling. Clawing to get to him.

A boulder settles in my gut, the gnawing dread pulls me under, making it almost impossible to breathe. His text is etched in my brain, tattooed on my already broken heart, because I know what I’ll find when I finally reach him.

No matter where I am, I’ll always love you. I promise you always.

His vow is the only coherent thought I have as I fling open the bathroom door and fall to my knees, sliding on the pool of blood that welcomes me.

“Noooooooooooooooooo!”

The 3rd book in the Over Series was as engrossing and emotional a read as the previous two books. But I think even more, it was more touching, there was a heavy emotional connection with Celia and Cain after knowing bits about them from the previous books.

Celia has been hurt and suffering with self imposed guilt and pain for a long time. So she's alive, but she's not living life. It's almost like she can't come out of it. She needs someone to yank her out of it, but she also has to be willing to let that happen, something she struggles with. Moving on by accepting the past for what it was is just what she needs, but can she do that. Can she face the past and let go of the hurt and guilt?

Cain is a sweetheart, he's strong and loyal, and he truly cares about Celia. He knows what she needs and wants to be the man she needs him to be, but he also really doesn't want to screw it up.

Celia's story touched me in ways I could never relate to words, I really felt as if I could see the holes in her heart and soul and feel the pain and shed the tears for her and through her. J.A. DeRouen has topped herself on the emotional journey that exists in this story, its not enough to say your heart will be tangled up in these characters; more than that, you will be deeply affected.

About The Author

J.A. Derouen lives in South Louisiana with her husband, son (aptly nicknamed “The Professor”), and her furry friend, Scout. She has earned bachelor’s degrees in psychology and nursing. When she’s not writing or inhaling romance novels by the stack, she works as a women’s health nurse. She’s been an avid reader and daydreamer since childhood, and she’s never stopped turning the page to get to the next happily ever after.

The Over Series