Buried
Beth Garcia grew up following after her older brother, David, and his best friend, Juan. She always dreamed of a day when she’d be old enough for Juan to look at her as someone other than David’s little sister. But he disappeared at seventeen, after his mother was deported, and Beth thought she’d lost him forever. When she finds him living at the halfway house next door, she knows he’s still the same guy inside. Determined to save him from himself and the RH, Beth sets out to prove that he didn’t commit the crime he was convicted of. But the path to absolution is dark, and even Beth may not be able to discover the real Juan.
Can a man with a damaged soul and a beautiful heart let a woman with fierce loyalty and unwavering love risk it all to save him? Or will his past bury them both this time?
I’m going to find Juan- the real Juan. I’m going to bring him back from the dark, deep place of pain and punishment he’s been living in. I know who he is. I’m going to remind him who he is, and then I’m going to make sure the world knows him too.
In my typical fashion of doing things back asswards, I went into this book without having read the previous 2 in this series. What? Don’t act like you’re surprised. What can I tell you after finishing it? 3 things.
1. The story goes to prove what a fantastic author Selena Laurence is
2. You can easily read this as a standalone
3. I will now be going back and reading the previous 2, not because I was lost in the story, but simply because I’m intrigued by the characters.
Juan Martinez has spent the past 7 years in hell. He’s lost his mother, his home, and life as he once knew it. Seeing no other alternative, he turned to the only option he thought was available to him; joining the Reyes Hispanos, one of the most violent gangs in his town of Texas. His life certainly hasn’t been easy, and he’s long since buried all his youthful dreams. The straight A student with dreams of a wife and a white picket fence has been replaced by the cold faced gangster that’s learned to hide everything he feels. After serving hard time for being convicted of a death in a drive-by shooting, Juan only wants one thing; to hide. To hide from his past, to hide from his present, and definitely to hide from the gang that is already breathing down his neck and wants him back into the fold. But all that changes when at his halfway house his past comes crashing into him in the form of Beth Garcia; his childhood best friend’s younger sister and the woman he’s always loved.
Beth still remembers the boy that Juan used to be, and she refuses to believe in the facade of the dangerous gangster he now presents. She doesn’t believe he’s guilty of the crime he was convicted for. She sees beyond the hard exterior to the broken soul of the man beneath. The man that she used to know, and the man that she is determined to find again.
I can’t give you any one word to describe this book, because it doesn’t fit into any particular box or genre that I can think of. It was emotional, heart wrenching, at times sexy, and poignant.
I loved the strength in both of these characters. With every piece of the puzzle of Juan’s past that gets revealed, you get further and further drawn into the story.
Juan for all his bad boy gangster ways was nothing like that with Beth. This was his childhood crush and the girl he always imagined himself being with. So while their connection is instantaneous when the reconnect these 7 years later, you can understand it given their history. Though their relationship is not an easy one with the chaos that surrounds them from Juan’s past life. There was action and quite a few nail biting moments that will keep you glued to the story from beginning to finish.
I also loved how Selena included Joss from A Lush Betrayal in the end here. It was so flawlessly done and just added to my enjoyment of the story to see the two worlds tied together.
**ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review**
The Hiding from Love series
(Gabe & Alexis)
Selena Laurence is the Barnes and Noble Bestselling author of what she likes to call Edgy Contemporary Romance. Her books have been Amazon Top 10 bestsellers in multiple categories including Multicultural Romance, Hispanic Fiction, Urban Fiction, Military Romance, and Romantic Suspense. Her New Adult romance, Hidden, won the 2014 Reader’s Crown Award for Contemporary Romance of the year.
Selena lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and spends a hell of a lot of time at soccer games, on her laptop, and reading. She requires a Mocha Latte every day to function, keeps a goldendoodle at her feet most of the time, and has more kids than she or Mr. Laurence know what to do with.
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