Blog Tour and Giveaway: Broken Dreams: Kelly Elliott
Broken Dreams
Broken #2
Courtney Will always dreamed of finding her Prince
Charming and living happily ever after, like in the fairy tales she read as a
child. Her dreams were shattered one fateful night when her prince turned out
to be her worst nightmare. Burying herself in her job as an editor, Courtney
tried to forget her past, and she lost hope of ever finding true love.
Reed Moore’s past filled his world with guilt and
anger, and then a mistake in college deepened these feelings. Fearing he will one
day repeat his father’s mistakes with the woman he loves, Reed has vowed to
never give his heart to anyone.
Reed and Courtney have each spent years building
walls to guard their hearts, so when their feelings for one another explode
into something unexpected, they argue and throw hurtful words at each other in
hopes of avoiding the truth.
Will Reed end up being the Prince Charming
Courtney has dreamed of her entire life? Is Courtney the woman who will help
Reed move past the guilt and anger, so he can embrace love?
Can their broken
dreams become their happily ever after?
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Why does my Prince Charming keep turning out to be nothing but a monster?
Just then, Reed came flying out the back door. “Motherfucking
son of a bitch. I’m going to kill him!” he yelled as he made his way to the
ranch truck.
I jumped up and wiped the tears away. “Whit, did Layton tell
Reed?” I asked as I saw Reed picking up the pace when he started jogging to the
ranch truck. I took off after him.
“Um…”
“Whit!”
“Okay, well, he called Reed and told him to go fire Mitch,”
Whitley said in a panicked voice.
“What? Oh my God! Okay…well, listen, sweetheart, everything
will be fine here! Enjoy your honeymoon.”
“Wait! What? You can’t just end a call like that, Courtney.”
After running and catching up, I stood in front of the ranch
truck. “Yeah, I can. I’ve got to go. Reed seems really pissed.”
I hung up the phone and ran around to the passenger side of
the truck. I jumped in, and Reed hit the gas, throwing me back into the seat.
“Jesus, Reed. Where in the hell are you going?” I asked as I
desperately tried to get the seat belt on.
I glanced at Reed while he was mumbling something about
killing Mitch for hurting me.
“Uh…Reed, can you put on your seat belt?” I asked.
He snapped his head over to me. “What?” He shook his head and
pushed down on the gas.
I sat back and closed my eyes. Shit, shit, shit! I shouldn’t have said anything. How stupid of me to
think that Layton wouldn’t tell Reed.
Layton had been looking for an excuse to get rid of Mitch
ever since he found out that Mitch had been in contact with Layton’s father all
those years and never told him.
By the time we pulled up to Mitch’s place, my heart was
beating a mile a minute. There was a Nissan parked next to Mitch’s truck.
That must be her car.
“Fucking son of a bitch,” Reed said.
I grabbed his arm. “Reed, please don’t do this.”
He turned to look at me, and his eyes were filled with
tears. I sucked in a breath of air and let go of his arm.
“He hurt you, Courtney. I really wish you had told me last
night. Now, stay in the truck, Court.”
He jumped out and took off. Before he made it onto the porch,
Mitch came out.
“Oh shit,” I whispered.
Mitch smiled at Reed and then looked at me in the truck. “You
get what you wished for last night?” Mitch asked.
Wait, what in the hell
does he mean by that?
“You motherfucker,” Reed said as he walked up to Mitch and
punched the hell out of him.
I screamed and jumped out of the truck. By the time I made
it to the porch, Reed was on top of Mitch, beating the shit out of him. Karen
came running out, yelling for Reed to stop. She came to a halt when she saw me.
She put her hand up to her mouth and then looked back at Reed on top of Mitch.
I couldn’t move. A part of me wanted Reed to beat the hell out of Mitch, and
the other part wanted him to stop.
Why does my Prince Charming keep turning out to be nothing but a monster?
We met Courtney (Whitley's friend) and Reed (Layton's friend) in Broken. In my previous review I called it an "Anti-relationship". They had an immediate reaction to each other and it was often not a positive one. They fought, fussed, resisted, denied, and hurt each other. They were both so stubborn and their communication was completely ineffective and often times painful. Courtney had up big walls and had huge trust issues. She dreamed of perfect book boyfriends, but her past had shown her that those types of men do not really exist. She pushed Reed away knowing he could get to her and cause intense reactions in her. And in trying for another option, she not only pushed him away further but also found herself hurt again. Reed also had issues from his past that caused him to shut down, be insecure, and avoid real feelings.
They were a complete mess. Their dreams were subdued by demons of their past. They were afraid of getting close and hurt. The past, their fears, and other people kept them apart and from admitting their true feelings for a long time.
But when Layton and Whitley went on their honeymoon, they forced their friends to deal with each other finally. So they had no choice but to face their feelings, fears, insecurities and try to figure out what they really wanted and needed.
I have been rooting for these two all along. I loved their fiery interactions as well as their sweet ones. I loved seeing them grow and change individually and together. Once they opened up, it was a whole new world of discovery for them. Reed could be so endearing and swoon worthy. He really tried hard to be who she needed. And Court was strong willed and sassy, but sweet under her armor. Once they let go, they had hot chemistry and passion. And once they got under each other's layers they were understanding, supportive, and surprisingly functional.
"Reed, our dreams are no longer broken, not when we have this kind of love together."
"No more dark roads and broken dreams, angel. Only sunlit roads and dreams coming true from this point on."
Their relationships and the love they share with their best friends was really special. They stand together when needed, swap secrets, and push each other when necessary. I enjoyed seeing Layton and Whitley's happy story continue. I admit that at times I was thinking that this was a much happier book than Broken. Reed and Court could be so sweet and loving that is almost seemed like too much happiness and not enough drama. But then I realized that Reed and Courtney had so many misunderstandings and bad times in Broken, that they deserved to have some happiness and easy times. But of course, there was also some drama, twists, and past issues causing tension and adding to their fears and insecurities. And there were new challenges and changes for both of the couples to face. But all in all, this was a sweet, funny, engaging read with likable characters, strong ties, and deep connections.
Kelly Elliott creates these characters and communities that suck you in and make you feel like you know them. You feel their sadness, pain, and joy. You become invested in their outcomes. I loved the sneak peek into the next book Broken Promises and I cannot wait for their story and more in the future with these characters.
Thanks to Kelly Elliott for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
“My only dream was to find you, the love of my life, the one girl I’d lay my life down for and do anything to make her happy. I don’t want my dream to be broken because of something I did in my past or for the stupid way I behaved.”
Courtney and Reed played large roles in Broken, as the best friends of Whitley and Layton, and their chemistry was nothing new in this book. But they had a lot of pain inflicted on each other when Broken Dreams opens. When Layton and Whit go on their honeymoon, they leave Courtney and Reed in their house to house-sit, but don’t tell them the other will be there too.
Reed seemed like such a fun loving, even-keeled person in Broken that when we started learning about his relationship hold-ups, I was a little surprised. I loved how quickly he comes to the rescue of his friends and Courtney, even when Courtney is dating Mitch.
Courtney also surprised me when we learn of her past. With as happy and assertive as she always acted in Broken, I was shocked when we find out where her “broken” came from. Knowing her ghosts were going to have to come out at some point, I was able to easily predict how that part of the story was going to play out, but still ached every time she felt the effects of the events from so long ago.
Layton and Whitley return from their honeymoon to play additional roles in Reed and Courtney’s relationship and to take their places as best friends back. Seeing them after the wedding, maintaining their relationship added some humorous moments to the storyline and is one of the things I love about Kelly’s series.
There were several moments throughout where I was afraid of what was coming next. This was not your typical “wedding/proposal at the end of the book” kind of story. So when things started moving faster than I expected I was scared of what was going to jump out at Reed and Courtney when all I wanted was for them to get to their happily ever after.
This is the first of Kelly’s books in a long time that didn’t make me cry. It was full of emotional moments, both happy and sad, but never brought me to that point where the ups and downs overwhelmed me. It was a sweet story of forgiveness, moving beyond the past, and love. It kept me up late at night, and I was itching early the next day to finish. Watching the four friends continue to face and embrace life was a fun escape, and Broken Promises should make for a great continuation.
Thanks to Kelly Elliott for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
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Kim and Rachel's 5 star reviews
Layton Morris and his brother Mike grew up not knowing what it would be like to live in a normal home. With no running water or electricity in their home, no parents around to protect them, they quickly learned how to survive and depend only on each other.
When a tragic accident takes Mike away from Layton, and the only other person that he ever let into his heart walked away from him, leaving his heart shattered, Layton focuses all of his time and energy into the ranch he and his brother dreamed of. He makes a vow to himself to never let love in again. The last thing Layton needed or wanted was more heartache.
Whitley Reynolds grew up in a privileged home in upstate New York. When she landed the star football player in high school no one was surprised, not even Whitley. She dreamed of a life with Roger living in New York City and happily followed him there.
The first time Roger hit her for arguing with him about a dinner party, she forgave him. The more it happened, the further Whitley withdrew from her friends and family. One fateful day things go to far. Whitley makes a promise to herself and finds the courage to do the one thing she thought she’d never be able to do.
Fleeing with her best friend Courtney, Whitley was determined to put her past behind her and start a new life in the small town of Llano, Texas, where no one would ever find out about her past.
Will they both ever learn to trust and love again, or will their pasts come back to haunt them, keeping them both alone and…
Broken.
Really I'm just a
wife to a wonderful Texas cowboy who has a nack for making me laugh almost
daily and supports my crazy ideas and dreams for some unknown reason...he
claims it's because he loves me.....so I'll just go with that one!
I'm also a mom to an amazing daughter who constantly is asking me to make her
something to eat while she has her fingers moving like mad on her cell phone sending
out what I'm sure is another very important text message!
Oh...and I like to sit down and write in my spare time!
I live in the Texas hill country and one of my favorite things to do is go for
hikes around our property with my second favorite man, Gus....my chocolate lab
and my sweet girl Rose, our golden retriever. When I'm not outside helping the
hubby haul brush or move rocks or whatever fun chore he has in store for me
that day, you will find me inside reading, writing or watching HGTV and soaking
in a nice hot bubble bath.....yeah that last one I just made up but it sure
does sound nice!!!
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