Title: Come to Me Quietly (Closer to You, #1) Author: A.L. Jackson
Date Published: January 7, 2014
Publisher: NAL Trade
From Goodreads:
Aleena Moore is content with her life. She has goals and dreams and an easy smile. She also has a secret she holds locked inside.
Jared Holt believes he doesn’t deserve to love or be loved. He destroys everything he touches. Haunted by the mistake that shattered his life, he’s fled from the memory of that pain.
Jared doesn’t know why he’s compelled to return, but finds himself drawn back to the place where it all began. The exact place where it ended. When he runs into his childhood best friend, Aleena’s older brother Christopher, he agrees to share Christopher and Aleena’s apartment while he looks for a place of his own.
Aleena is no longer the little girl Jared remembers from his past and evokes feelings in him he never wanted to feel again. Terrified of destroying her, he fights to keep her away. But her touch is something he can’t resist—the touch that sealed his fate.
Their pasts are intertwined and their futures uncertain. The only truths they know are the secrets they whisper in the night.
My Thoughts:
Come to Me Quietly is told from the point of view of the two main characters, Jared and Aleena (Aly). Normally, I don't care for dual points of view, but this time, it worked well! I think I actually preferred Jared's side of the story to Aly's. I admit I was really frustrated during the first half of the book, because I badly wanted to know why Jared was so miserable and why he would not allow himself to love or to be loved. I wanted to be able to sympathize with him better. Once I learned about his past, my heart really went out to him. He'd been carrying such a heavy burden for a long time, and couldn't bring himself to reach out to anyone, nor did he feel worthy to ask for help.
Aly is a sweet, and at times a naïve young woman. She really understands Jared, and sees through all the walls he puts up time and time again. She's been in love with him for as long as she can remember, and at times, it's almost like an obsession. I wonder how she would've coped had Jared not come back into her life?
I thought that the first half of Come to Me Quietly was a little slow, but it really seemed to pick up during the second half. I liked the flashback scenes, especially as the trio- Jared, Aly, and Christopher got older. They really helped me to understand their dynamic and just how much they all meant to each other.
I am looking forward to the next book of this series! I really really hope we get more scenes with Christopher (or that he will possibly get his own book someday). I grew attached to his character, and would like to hear him tell his story.
Rating: 3.5 Stars
I gave Come to Me Quietly 3 Stars on Goodreads. I agree with you, I thought the childhood memories between the three were really sweet and provided a lot to the story. One of the things I grew tired of was Jared's self-loathing.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh...yes! I think if I had I a little more insight as to what happened in his past, I wouldn't have gotten so irritated, and sympathized more.
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