Release Blitz & Giveaway: The Edge of Always; J. A. Redmerski
The Edge of Always (book 2)Add to Goodreads Buy Amazon/B&N
He was taking the long road. She was taking the road to nowhere. It just so happened that they led to the same place…
When everything falls apart, love remains . . .
THE EDGE OF ALWAYS
Camryn Bennett has never been happier. Five months after meeting on a Greyhound bus, she and her soul mate Andrew Parrish are engaged—and a wedding isn’t the only special event in their future. Nervous but excited, Camryn can’t wait to begin the rest of her life with Andrew – a man she knows in her heart will love her always. They have so much to look forward to—until tragedy blindsides them.
Andrew doesn’t understand how this could happen to them. He’s trying to move on, and thought Camryn was doing the same. But when Andrew discovers Camryn is secretly harboring a mountain of pain and attempting to numb it in damaging ways, there is nothing he won’t do to bring her back to life. Determined to prove that their love can survive anything, Andrew decides to take Camryn on a new journey filled with hope and passion. If only he can convince her to come along for the ride…
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Twenty-year-old Camryn Bennett had always been one to think out-of-the-box, who knew she wanted something more in life than following the same repetitive patterns and growing old with the same repetitive life story. And she thought that her life was going in the right direction until everything fell apart.
Determined not to dwell on the negative and push forward, Camryn is set to move in with her best friend and plans to start a new job. But after an unexpected night at the hottest club in downtown North Carolina, she makes the ultimate decision to leave the only life she’s ever known, far behind.
With a purse, a cell phone and a small bag with a few necessities, Camryn, with absolutely no direction or purpose boards a Greyhound bus alone and sets out to find herself. What she finds is a guy named Andrew Parrish, someone not so very different from her and who harbors his own dark secrets. But Camryn swore never to let down her walls again. And she vowed never to fall in love.
But with Andrew, Camryn finds herself doing a lot of things she never thought she’d do. He shows her what it’s really like to live out-of-the-box and to give in to her deepest, darkest desires. On their sporadic road-trip he becomes the center of her exciting and daring new life, pulling love and lust and emotion out of her in ways she never imagined possible. But will Andrew’s dark secret push them inseparably together, or tear them completely apart?
The Edge of Always Excerpt:
I turn to Andrew again, waiting for him to spit it out. A cold breeze rushes through my knitted sweater, and I hide my hands inside the sleeves.
“You have five minutes to throw all of your stuff in your bag,” he says, and my heart is beating erratically before he finishes the sentence. He taps his wrist where there is no watch. “Not a second more.”
“Andrew—”
“This isn’t up for debate,” he says. “Go get your stuff.”
I just look at him, face blank.
My theory was right, but I didn’t want it to be. I don’t want to go on the road…I mean, I do…but it’s not right. It’s just not right.
“You have four minutes now.”
“But we can’t just leave like this,” I argue. “It would be rude.” I point at Asher. “And Asher just got here. Don’t you want to visit with—”
“I can visit my big brother anytime,” Asher counters. “Right now, I think you better do what he says or you might end up on the road wearing the same panties for a week.”
A few more seconds pass and I still haven’t moved. I’m in a state of mild shock, I guess.
“Three minutes, babe,” Andrew says and is looking at me with a serious face. “I’m not kidding. Get up there, throw our shit in our bags, and get in the damn car.”
Oh hell, he’s back to his old self again…
When I start to argue again, Andrew’s eyes get all feral-looking, and he says, “Hurry up. Time’s running out!” and he points to the house.
Finally, letting down my guard and going with the moment as much as I can allow myself, I glare at him and say, “Fine.” I’m only agreeing to it because I know he’s trying make things better. But I feel guilty as hell.
Disregarding his playful five-minute demand, I turn on my heels and walk very slowly back toward the house, purposely taking my time, partly my way of silently arguing the situation.
I push open the bedroom door, set my bag on the bed, and start stuffing everything inside of it. Then I go into the bathroom and grab our toothbrushes and various bathroom necessities. I yank our phone chargers from the wall and then my phone from the nightstand and chuck it all into my purse. I make my way around the room, hoping that I’m not missing anything.
Looks like Andrew already packed his stuff at some point and I never noticed.
Then I just stand here, scanning every inch of the place around me but not really seeing any of it. I don’t want to do this, but maybe it’s the right thing.
I hear the horn honk three times, and it snaps me out of my thoughts. Grabbing my bag, I swing it over my shoulder and grab my purse from the bed.
This book begins shortly after The Edge of Never leaves off. Camryn and Andrew are now navigating the road of life. They are trying to maneuver around roadblocks, potholes, and detours. They are following their own directions, getting lost along the way at times, and finding their way again. There are situations that cause tension, heartbreak, confusion, and sadness. But they are together and trying to manage to figure out their destination as a couple.Even though these two are young, they have seen their shared of pain, heartbreak, loss, and fear. They still have challenges to face and are still dealing with some issues from the past. It is not always a smooth easy road for them.
But all along, I loved Andrew. He is funny, positive, sweet, protective, and loving. He seriously can make me laugh out loud with the things that come out of his mouth and some of the things he does. He adores Camryn, flaws and all and makes no secret of it. He lives with his own fear, but tries to shelter her when he can.
And I still liked Camryn too. She has a little more trouble coping than Andrew sometimes, but is also there for him to support him and kick him in the ass when needed.
They still have love, lust, a deep connection, and chemistry. But they do not want to fall into the pitfalls of complacency or a rut. They are still adventurous types and trying to figure out what maturing and growing really means for them. We get to see their complete story this time. We go into the future and finish out this journey with them.
It's a story about following your own heart, living life to the fullest, and making your own way. Andrew and Camryn were not a typical, average people. They were extraordinary and liked to live more on the edge and their story reflected that.
I like JA Redemerski's writing style. It flows well in alternating points of view. I was engaged immediately, but then I started to feel like the the pacing was a little slow at times. Not sure if it was just the book length or that some of the book was a little too reminiscent of the first one. But then it picked back up and there was enough new to keep me interested. It had emotions, tension, despair, love, and hope. The Edge of Never was one of my fave reads of 2012 and one of the few to get a 6 star rating from me. It had me shocked and bawling like a baby. It would almost be impossible for this one to live up to it. But I still enjoyed visiting with these characters again, especially Andrew who just makes me laugh. I liked seeing her friends Natalie and Blake and his brothers Aiden and Asher too. I think Asher might make a good spin off book.
Thanks to JA Redmerski Hachette/Grand Central Publishing/Forever, and netgalley for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.
I'm not sure where to start with this review. I do know I'm sad to be writing it. The Edge of Never was a six star read for me, and I am a bit disappointed right now. I went into Always wicked excited to be getting more Andrew and Cam, and came out on the other end thinking another one bites the dust. I am really on the fence; one side of me liked it while the other side not so much.
Was the writing still good? Yes, it was. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the writing, as with her other books J.A. wrote her butt off. Are the characters still the same fun loving couple I fell in love with the first time around? Um, yes and no. Would I recommend it to others, I seriously don't know. I wouldn't ever discourage any reader from reading it, but not sure if I would go out of my way to recommend it. I know a lot of other readers loved it, and I am just my own person with my own tastes and opinions. It’s one of those reads where what doesn’t work for me, may very well work for you. Also, I wouldn’t say that it was a bad book as with another book I read this week it just wasn’t one I connected with. Am I sorry I read it? Absolutely not. If I knew then what I know now, would I have still read it? Yes.
There are a few reasons I am sitting on the fence. One of them being I am head over heels infatuated with Andrew and this book is no exception. I hate the thought of rating him with anything less than a six star read again, as I absolutely adored him…seriously he rocked. I can remember a certain scene with him that had me bursting out loud with laughter in my ER room (while my hubby looked on as though I was a nut job). Andrew is downright hilarious. Every scene with him was either entertaining or inspirational; on every page his character is intriguing as well as engaging. This man was giving, supportive, protective, and so unbelievably unselfish, even in the light of his own pain. I think I loved him even more this time around than I did the first time. I’m also going to put it out there and say Andrew is the sole reason I am rating this book with 3.5 stars.
Why did I not enjoy the book as much as the first one? Well for pretty much the same reason some of the other reviewers didn't. I really struggled with the pace and length of this book. So much so, I found myself skimming a lot. It is excessively long and could have easily been cut down. Another major issue I had was the lack empathy/sympathy, development, and depth shown to Andrew when it came to his pain and his emotions regarding his loss. It felt as though the book centered around Camryn and her losses. It was all about pulling her from her depression and her funk, Andrew was never really given the chance to grieve or act out. It was as though he wasn't allowed to feel on a deeper emotional level because once again he had to pick up Camryn. Also, I know that these scenes and some of the others were meant to be angsty, but I just wasn't feeling them or connecting to them on the same level. If I am to be honest, they just felt out of character and left me a bit confused.
Therefore, you see my dilemma. As I explained earlier, I am sad to write a review like this, especially since the first book in the series sits on my six star shelf and is one of my 12 faves of 2012.
Thank you, Forever (GRAND CENTRAL PUBLISHING) and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of The Edge of Always in exchange for my honest opinion.
J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of THE EDGE OF NEVER lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.
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