Book Review: Forgive Me (Lost Souls #1) by Eliza Freed

Forgive Me

Lost Souls #1

By: Eliza Freed

Published:
July 1, 2014

Publisher:
Forever Romance

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Book Summary:

The thing he loves most in the world will kill him. It's only a matter of time . . .  

College student Charlotte O'Brien is lost and she can't find her way home. Devastated by her parents' tragic deaths, she aches for any kind of connection . . . and finds it in a man who is all wrong for her. Jason Leer is a rough-hewn steer wrestler from Oklahoma-and the hottest thing Charlotte has ever laid eyes on. Yet he has his own dark secrets . . . 

Burying herself in Jason, Charlotte soon discovers that life doesn't have to be so painful. When they're together their passion eclipses everything-and Charlotte can finally begin to see a way out of the darkness of her past. Fighting for a future with Jason won't be easy, but for the first time since her parents' deaths, this lost soul might have finally found a place that feels like home. 

Lost Souls Series:
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My Thoughts:

I was drawn to this trilogy by the beautiful book covers.  I have never read a book by Eliza Freed before, but after having finished, Forgive Me, I'm really glad to have discovered an amazing author, and series that has completely grabbed my attention.

Charlotte Annie O'Brien was in a long-term relationship with a really nice guy, who her mother approved of, but didn't make her stomach flutter of her pulse race.  She ends up getting reacquainted with Jason Leer, one of her childhood friends that she lost touch with after she attended high school.  He gives her butterflies and makes her feel excitement at times, and drives her crazy at other times.  Her mother warns her that she doesn't want her daughter to be with a steer wrestling cowboy.  Then Annie, is blindsided when her parents are killed in a horrible car accident, and the only person that can make the pain less intense is, Jason Leer.

Jason has been leading a numb existence, and can relate to Charlotte all to well.  After his mother died, he's just trying to exist in his life.  Charlotte makes everything better for him as well.  However, Charlotte and Jason's lives are pulling them in two completely different directions.  Jason does not like the city and wants Charlotte to move with him to Oklahoma, where he can continue competing in the rodeo circuit.  Charlotte is torn.  She enjoys city life, has a close network of friends, and opportunities to work in her chosen field of Statistics in New York, when she graduates from Rutledge.  Pretty soon Charlotte and Jason are fighting all the time.  Is love enough for their relationship to work?

Forgive Me had angst, friendship, passion, romance, and a lot of ups and downs.  There were a few plot twists in the story, and it ended on one very crazy cliffhanger.  I'm glad I can jump right in to book two and see what happens between Charlotte and Jason.  I have to be honest in saying that this story made me contemplate the fact that love might not always be enough when two people are so very different from one another.  Charlotte and Jason has such a strong love and passion for one another, but it looks like if they want things to work, one person is going to have to give up everything else that they want in their life.

I loved all of the secondary characters. Charlotte has a ton of good friends!  However, Charlotte's best friend, Noble, fascinates me.  He's a sweetheart and genuinely cares about her.  The fact that Jason thinks Noble is in love with her has me curious to learn if he really is, and if this is going to come out in the next book, Redeem Me. 

My Rating:

I give, Forgive Me, by Eliza Freed, 4 Angsty, Passionate, Rocky Relationship, Sexy Alpha Cowboy Filled Stars!!!  I can't wait to see what happens next!

My Favorite Quote:

" 'I love you, Annie, because when most girls would fall apart, you get pissed off.  You don't understand the concept of surrender.'  I float up, not realizing I'm arching my back at his touch.  'And you can't be tamed.'  He pulls me back to him 'And yet I've never met someone with a greater ability to see the good in people.  You are the perfect mix of courage and mercy.'  (eARC, Loc. 2465)  

~Jason  

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About Eliza Freed:

Eliza Freed graduated from Rutgers University and returned to her hometown in rural South Jersey. Her mother encouraged her to take some time and find herself. After three months of searching, she began to bounce checks and her neighbors began to talk; her mother told her to find a job. 

She settled into Corporate America, learning systems and practices and the bureaucracy that slows them. Eliza quickly discovered her creativity and gift for story telling as a corporate trainer and spent years perfecting her presentation skills and studying diversity. It's during this time she became an avid observer of the characters we meet and the heartaches we endure. Her years of study have taught her laughter is the key to survival, even when it's completely inappropriate. 

She currently lives in New Jersey with her family and a misbehaving beagle named Odin. An avid swimmer, if Eliza is not with her family and friends, she'd rather be underwater. While she enjoys many genres, she has always been a sucker for a love story...the more screwed up the better.

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