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What could two troubled souls from different walks of life have in common? Maybe everything. LJ Delisle can\u2019t stand the idea that Andra might be lonely\u2014or eating frozen TV dinners. He bakes his way into her kitchen with a lemon velvet cake, and offers her cooking lessons that set them on the road to romance. But even their love can\u2019t escape the shadow of what they’ve been through. Despite their growing friendship and his gentle rapport with the horses, LJ is still an outsider facing small-town suspicions.<\/p>\n Before they can work through their issues, LJ is called home by a family emergency. In the centuries-old, raggedly rebuilt streets of New Orleans, he must confront memories of Hurricane Katrina and familiar discrimination. And Andra must decide if she\u2019s brave enough to leave the shelter of the ranch for an uncertain future with LJ.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add to Goodreads<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n 3.5 stars!<\/b><\/p>\n This is my first book by this author, an emotional and dramatic love story between two people from very different lives, but both struggling to move on from trauma in their pasts. With strong themes of trauma recovery and social inequality, this book is more than just a romance, and is a really well-written character-driven story that kept me engaged from start to finish.<\/p>\n Andra Lawler lives and works on her family\u2019s horse ranch in Montana. Still deeply traumatised by a terrifying assault that occurred five years previously while she was in college, she lives an isolated life where she mostly avoids the company of others \u2013 in particular, the presence of men outside of her family.<\/p>\n LJ Delisle is a 28 year old Creole cowboy from New Orleans. He\u2019s a man running from his past, and from the small-minded prejudices that he lives with as a 6\u20195\u201d built, black man, but he\u2019s looking to make a life for himself doing a job that he\u2019s passionate about, and Montana and the Lawler ranch is the best place to do it.<\/p>\n Andra and LJ don\u2019t get off to the best of starts, but from the moment she sees him with her horses, she recognises him as a gentle soul, and she knows that he is the right man for the job. She advocates for him to stay, and he becomes a part of her everyday life, living and working alongside Andra and her family. It doesn\u2019t take long for him to recognise that all is not well with his new employer, and he goes out of her way to befriend her, facing her issues head on and working to bring her out of her shell, and it\u2019s the beginning of a beautiful friendship.<\/p>\n Despite their differences, and the issues that they are dealing with, there\u2019s something very special about these two together. They both feel the connection, and LJ is such a sweetheart, with a cheeky wit and a sharp intelligence, it\u2019s impossible for Andra not to fall for him, and I fell right along with her! He is gentle, kind and caring, and infinitely patient, and the progression of things between them is beautifully written.<\/p>\n His knuckles skimmed down the back of her arm so lightly that the rough yarn of her sweater woke up her entire body, her skin rippling with goose bumps. \u201cNow that might be flirting.\u201d But all that they feel for each other isn\u2019t enough to erase the pain of their pasts, and they have a lot to work through. It\u2019s sad and it\u2019s painful, and my heart ached for them, but wow, they handle it well! Patiently, openly and honestly talking about all that they are feeling and taking things slowly. But just when it seems like they are getting somewhere, a family emergency calls LJ home, switching the action to his New Orleans neighbourhood, still devastated by Hurricane Katrina, where he is forced to confront all that he has been trying to move on from.<\/p>\n I really like the way that this book is very much focussed on the characters\u2019 individual journeys, with the romance effortlessly blended into that. We have three stories which seamlessly intertwine as Andra and LJ share their pasts, leaning on each other as they deal with it and all the while falling harder and harder for each other despite it all.<\/p>\n \u201cI know it ain\u2019t right, but I can\u2019t stand the idea of letting you go so you can look for somebody better.\u201d There is a strong focus on social themes such as racism, culture and class, and it\u2019s really beautifully handled. I\u2019m sure every country deals with its own versions of this, but I found it particularly horrifying reading about LJ\u2019s experience, especially as he recounted the events that occurred during, and especially since, Hurricane Katrina. Hearing about it from his perspective and watching him still deal with the fallout and try to make the best life he can for himself against almost impossible odds is heartbreaking.<\/p>\n \u201cLook.\u201d He held their hands up in front of her face, her fingers starkly pale against his. \u201cJust <\/i>look, for once. They\u2019re never going to look the same. And when white people claim they\u2019re color-blind, they don\u2019t notice the difference, it\u2019s a lie. My history is not your history; my culture is not your culture. I don\u2019t want them to be. I\u2019m proud of who I am and where I come from. All I want is to not be the last one rescued in a flood but the first one to wind up in handcuffs.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n It\u2019s a really well written story with lots of heart and a beautifully sweet romance. I really enjoyed this one!<\/p>\n 3.5 stars.<\/p>\n An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Copyright @ Michelle Hazen 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Andra opened her front door, and the frown froze on her face as LJ\u2019s shoulders filled the doorframe.<\/p>\n He was holding . . . a cake?<\/p>\n \u201cUm, hi,\u201d she managed.<\/p>\n Oh crap, she\u2019d promised to talk to him about the horses.<\/p>\n \u201cLook, I\u2019m sorry. I know I said I\u2019d come talk to you a couple days ago, but then Socks kicked one of the grooms, and Mary Kay lost a shoe, and I completely forgot.\u201d She hadn\u2019t forgotten, so much as she was . . . working up to it. Giving him a few days of seeing her around the ranch when she was in control of herself, before she got close enough she\u2019d have to see his opinion of her in his eyes.<\/p>\n He shrugged, careful not to tip the tall cake off its platter. \u201cI think we got off on the wrong foot the day we met, and our do-over didn\u2019t really stick.\u201d<\/p>\n Oh God. Apparently, he wasn\u2019t tiptoeing around anything today.<\/p>\n LJ grinned\u2014a playful, twinkly-eyed one that made him look like he was just having more fun than everyone else. \u201cBesides, nobody\u2019s afraid of a guy with a cake.\u201d<\/p>\n A smile tugged at the edges of her mouth. \u201cI\u2019ve never heard that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo? It\u2019s completely true. Not to mention, bringing a cake is the best excuse to eat some. I mean, it\u2019s yours. You don\u2019t have to share. Of course, if you don\u2019t, you may want to pass a tissue or two my way, is all I\u2019m saying.\u201d He widened his eyes mournfully.<\/p>\n She glanced at the cake, the white icing whipped into gorgeous swirls. \u201cDid Stacia make that? She used to be terrible at baking.\u201d She gripped the edge of the door a little tighter. Maybe her friend had been practicing. It wasn\u2019t like she knew what Stacia was up to these days.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a little offended. A man doesn\u2019t bring a borrowed cake for an apology.\u201d He lifted the platter and gave it a waggle. \u201cWe\u2019ve got lemon velvet with French buttercream here. You oughta get it out of the heat soon, though. The sun melted the frosting some on the way over. It\u2019s a hike to get up over here, you know it?\u201d<\/p>\n Oops, he was feeling around for an invitation. Duh, and she was still standing in her door like some kind of freak. \u201cUm, come in.\u201d The least she could do was feed him some cake and try to act like a normal person. She stepped aside and racked her brain for small talk that didn\u2019t involve anything on four hooves. \u201cYou know, I can\u2019t quite place your accent. You said you were from Louisiana, but I\u2019ve met lots of people from there at rodeos, and they didn\u2019t sound quite like you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, you can tell I\u2019m from the South because I interrupted your workout with dessert.\u201d He tipped his head toward the yoga mat she\u2019d left by the couch. She smiled, and his grin brightened a couple more watts. \u201cSeriously, though, I think I\u2019ve got a little bayou country from my days on my uncle\u2019s horse ranch, cut with the rhythm of the Lower Ninth, maybe some southern drawl creeping in from the Mississippi border. And New Orleans has a sound all its own, always has.\u201d Between one word and the next, his words straightened to all square corners instead of luscious curves. \u201cThen again, if my mother is listening, I sound strictly like the Yankee university she helped pay for.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYour mom doesn\u2019t like your accent?\u201d Andra frowned. \u201cDoesn\u2019t she have one?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMama thought I wouldn\u2019t get a decent job unless I talked like a white banker from Wisconsin.\u201d He shrugged.<\/p>\n Her eyes widened. \u201cThat\u2019s not fair. Why should you have to fake an accent to get a job?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the way the world works. People have ideas about what intelligence should sound like, and I don\u2019t expect I\u2019m going to change all of them on my own.\u201d He winked. \u201cI tutored English composition for work study all through college, so I can play the game. I have to admit, though, sometimes it\u2019s nice to sound like home.\u201d<\/p>\n Andra laughed, a little self-consciously. \u201cI don\u2019t think I even realized we had an accent up north until you imitated it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, it\u2019s an accent all right, sweetheart. And you\u2019ve got it thick as anything.\u201d<\/p>\n Heat crept into her skin at the endearment, though she didn\u2019t get the feeling he was really flirting with her. She glanced away, the afterimage of him seared on her lids. His deep-brown eyes were a couple of shades darker than his skin, and they always seemed to be laughing. He was handsome, with high cheekbones and sensual lips. The kind of man she would have looked twice at, once.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Michelle Hazen is a nomad with a writing problem. Years ago, she and her husband swapped office jobs for seasonal gigs and moved out on the road. As a result, she wrote most of her\u00a0books with solar power in odd places, including a bus in Thailand, a golf cart in a sandstorm, and a beach in Honduras. Currently, she\u2019s addicted to The Walking Dead, hiking, and Tillamook cheese.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Find out what a big city musician and a lonely cowgirl have in common in Michelle Hazen\u2019s UNBREAK ME from Berkley Publishing. Andra Lawler must decide if she\u2019s brave enough to leave the shelter […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44799,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":3.5,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"Product","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,9,29],"tags":[59,1032,48,76],"class_list":["post-45517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-romance","category-steamy","tag-arc","tag-michelle-hazen","tag-review","tag-standalone"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Unbreak-Me.jpg?fit=200%2C299&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-bQ9","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45517","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=45517"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45517\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/44799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=45517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=45517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=45517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nAndra Lawler lives isolated at her family\u2019s horse ranch, imprisoned by the memories of an assault in college. When she needs help training her foals, she hires a Haitian-Creole cowboy from New Orleans with a laugh as big as the Montana sky.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Unbreak-Me-Teaser.png?resize=458%2C458&ssl=1\")
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\nReview<\/b><\/h4>\n
\n\u201cMight be?\u201d she asked breathlessly.
\nHis breath stirred her hair, as if he\u2019d bent a little closer. \u201cDepends on if you want it to be.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n\u201cI don\u2019t know what I need,\u201d she said, her voice breaking. \u201cBut if it\u2019s not you, I don\u2019t want it.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nExcerpt from Unbreak Me<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\nAbout Michelle Hazen<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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