Welcome to my stop in the RUNNING FROM forever by Ashley Wilcox Blog Tour, hosted by Hardcover Therapy :D!
Title: Running From Forever
Author: Ashley Wilcox
Series: The Forever Series #5 (spin-off of Waiting on Forever with no prior books needed to be read before it)
Publication Date: September 22, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Source: e-arc was provided by author for the blog tour, in exchange for my honest thoughts and review
Synopsis:
Recent college graduate, Kayla Reynolds was ready to leave the university, sorority life behind. Leaving her boyfriend of over three years, she packed her bags and moved four hours south to the big city…New York City. Bright lights, streets that never sleep, and a business lifestyle that she yearned to have were all at her fingertips.
Kayla Reynolds was chasing her dream.
Determined and eager to make it in the corporate world, Kayla changed everything- her image, lifestyle, and outlook on life, putting her career first and her personal life second. That was until her first day, the first time she got a glimpse of Miles Blackwell. Corporate CEO and part owner of ETV, and not to mention, incredibly handsome, Miles Blackwell took Kayla by surprise, stealing her heart as he did.
But nothing had ever come that easy for Kayla. Life had always seemed to have a personal vendetta against her, stepping in when everything seemed too good to be true, reminding herself of whom she really was. It wasn’t until she met Merrick Drake that she realized when to stop; when running was no longer an option. For the first time in her life she had someone she could relate to; someone who wouldn’t judge- who saw the person she was inside. She and Merrick connected…on more levels than one.
When life was too much to handle, they ran.
But there was only one person that could make Kayla stop for good. Only one man that made her want to stay.
Would Kayla finally stop running or would it all be too much to handle?
Kayla Reynolds was chasing her dream.
Determined and eager to make it in the corporate world, Kayla changed everything- her image, lifestyle, and outlook on life, putting her career first and her personal life second. That was until her first day, the first time she got a glimpse of Miles Blackwell. Corporate CEO and part owner of ETV, and not to mention, incredibly handsome, Miles Blackwell took Kayla by surprise, stealing her heart as he did.
But nothing had ever come that easy for Kayla. Life had always seemed to have a personal vendetta against her, stepping in when everything seemed too good to be true, reminding herself of whom she really was. It wasn’t until she met Merrick Drake that she realized when to stop; when running was no longer an option. For the first time in her life she had someone she could relate to; someone who wouldn’t judge- who saw the person she was inside. She and Merrick connected…on more levels than one.
When life was too much to handle, they ran.
But there was only one person that could make Kayla stop for good. Only one man that made her want to stay.
Would Kayla finally stop running or would it all be too much to handle?
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My Thoughts:
It was time to live the life I always dreamt of living.
Let me start off by saying that I didn't know Running From Forever was a spin-off of a series by Ashley Wilcox. So you don't need to worry about reading the series, before reading Running From Forever because it's a spin-off. When I was reading Running From Forever by Ashley Wilcox, I got a "The Devil Wears Prada" kind of vibe- working for an evil boss that makes your job super complicated, and have to prove to her that you are worthy of the job.
Running From Forever by Ashley Wilcox starts off with a goodbye/break-up letter, Kayla (main character) leaves Trevor (ex-boyfriend). I don't think this is the best way to break-up with someone you've been dating for three years, and I did feel like Kayla was being selfish. But from the very beginning of the story I felt a connection with Kayla's character, and I understood why she decided to run from her old life. Who wouldn't want to progress in life in something they love? Kayla is a runner and has always been a runner her entire life. When she goes to New York and lands a job that will help her get to her dream job, she feels that she made the right decision to run. When she starts to encounter a few problems with her personal life in New York she decides to run away from the situation, and not face her problems. Kayla's character does develop along the way. She becomes a professional women, is finally free to be her true self, has learned to accept the good things that are coming into her life, and she has finally stopped running from true happiness.
I was weak. Exposed. Caught. There was no denying the way he made me feel. His allure was one I couldn’t turn a cheek to.
I don't know how I felt about Miles Blackwells. He's hot, successful, SUPER confident, professional, sleek, and he's Kayla's bosses brother. I did like Miles, especially all his sweet, thoughtful, and romantic gestures and actions when it came to loving Kayla and proving his love to her. But I just wasn't all head-over-heels for Miles Blackwells. Don't hate me, but I just didn't feel the click go between us. Before I forget, we also get to read from Miles POV in Running from Forever :D! I did enjoy reading from his POV, because we get a little more background information from his character. I also felt how deeply he cared and loved Kayla. Reading from his POV was one of my favorite parts in Running From Forever. Why? Because even though I didn't feel the click between us, Miles made me swoon all over him.
In the short amount of time that we’d known each other, I fell in love. And yes, as Miles seemingly agreed, it was terrifyingly crazy, but it happened. We both fell fast. It was out of our control.
Miles and Kayla first meet in an elevator where they both work. Their attraction towards each other is obvious from the first moment they meet, but the second time they meet in the elevator, Miles makes it obvious to Kayla that he is interested in her. Their relationship does develop very quickly, but not as quickly as other relationships I've read about (Blackstone Affair Series). But I didn't have a problem with this, because it's just two hot and professional people having an attraction towards each other and giving it a shot. Their relationship is sort of hot, but it's more of both of them understanding each other, respecting each other, and caring for each other on a whole different level. The only problem is that Miles is not being completely honest with Kayla and when she finds out what he's hiding from her all hell breaks lose.
The immediate level of comfort she added to my life was something I’d never found with anyone.
In total there are three POV in Running from Forever- Kayla's POV, Miles POV, and Merrick's POV. Merrick the owner of a bar, does motocross racing (second job), has tattoos, and is freaking hot. When I started reading from Merrick's POV, I didn't understand why Ashley Wilcox included his POV in Running From Forever, because he is not present in much of the story. But by reading from Merrick's POV you get to understand Kayla's character a little more, and how Merrick's connection to her character is important. I did enjoy reading from his POV, especially at the end! OMG!!!! I can't freaking wait to read Merrick's story, because I loved his character.
“I’m done running,” she repeated softly. “You’re my forever. I’m done running from happiness.”
Running From Forever by Ashley Wilcox was a breath of fresh air, because it's different from other books I've read. I've never read a book with three different POV's, especially two being male character's POV, and enjoyed it so much. By reading these three different POV, I felt a connection to all three characters, and I felt that each POV revealed a different side of Kayla. Now, I can't wait to read Merrick's story!
Final Verdict: 4 Stars
Excerpt:
She let out an exasperated breath. “No. No, I gotta figure this out.” She turned to face me, legs crossed, intertwined. “I don’t know what to do, Merrick.”
I felt it in my chest. She was lost, pleading for help. I didn’t know if I was the best person to help her. I’d lived just as fucked up a life myself. From the age I could run, I did, staying at friend’s houses almost every day of the week, stopping home quick after school just to make sure my mom hadn’t overdosed and was dead on the floor. I did this almost my whole life…up until I ran here.
“I can’t really help you, babe, if I don’t know what happened,” I told her as sympathetically as I could, looking into her sad eyes. Even if I wasn’t the most qualified person to give advice, I wanted to help, but I also needed to know what happened first.
Kayla rubbed her face with her hands, keeping them over her eyes for a minute longer. She was thinking; questioning if she was ready to spill. I didn’t want to force her to do it, so I sat there quietly. I wish I could just sweep her up and run far, far away; take her away from all the bad in her life permanently, but that would mean I had to run again, and I was done running. I couldn’t do it anymore.
“I loved him.” Her voice was a whisper. She removed her hands from her face but only to look down to her crisscrossed feet. She couldn’t look at me while she told me, and I was okay with that. “I let my guard down when I knew I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help it.”
I felt it in my chest. She was lost, pleading for help. I didn’t know if I was the best person to help her. I’d lived just as fucked up a life myself. From the age I could run, I did, staying at friend’s houses almost every day of the week, stopping home quick after school just to make sure my mom hadn’t overdosed and was dead on the floor. I did this almost my whole life…up until I ran here.
“I can’t really help you, babe, if I don’t know what happened,” I told her as sympathetically as I could, looking into her sad eyes. Even if I wasn’t the most qualified person to give advice, I wanted to help, but I also needed to know what happened first.
Kayla rubbed her face with her hands, keeping them over her eyes for a minute longer. She was thinking; questioning if she was ready to spill. I didn’t want to force her to do it, so I sat there quietly. I wish I could just sweep her up and run far, far away; take her away from all the bad in her life permanently, but that would mean I had to run again, and I was done running. I couldn’t do it anymore.
“I loved him.” Her voice was a whisper. She removed her hands from her face but only to look down to her crisscrossed feet. She couldn’t look at me while she told me, and I was okay with that. “I let my guard down when I knew I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help it.”
About the Author:
Some may consider me a jack of all trades, but I consider myself well rounded.
I’ve waitressed, styled hair, answered phones and, most recently, worked full time as mom to my two beautiful little boys.
Then there was this book… Everyone and their brother started talking about this book series titled Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James. I didn’t really pay attention to the craze at first, since I wasn’t a big reader- okay, I didn’t read at all. But curiosity got the best of me, so I downloaded it to my kindle.
I was immediately hooked. I read the whole series in three days. Yes, three books in three days.
I kept finding all these great books that I HAD to read (just ask my credit card!).
Then I started hearing voices. Voices that turned into stories; stories that were begging to get out of my head.
I started writing them down on scraps of paper. Then I transferred them to my computer. Before I knew it, Planning on Forever was born.
The voices in my head are still talking, so I’m still writing.
I’ve waitressed, styled hair, answered phones and, most recently, worked full time as mom to my two beautiful little boys.
Then there was this book… Everyone and their brother started talking about this book series titled Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James. I didn’t really pay attention to the craze at first, since I wasn’t a big reader- okay, I didn’t read at all. But curiosity got the best of me, so I downloaded it to my kindle.
I was immediately hooked. I read the whole series in three days. Yes, three books in three days.
I kept finding all these great books that I HAD to read (just ask my credit card!).
Then I started hearing voices. Voices that turned into stories; stories that were begging to get out of my head.
I started writing them down on scraps of paper. Then I transferred them to my computer. Before I knew it, Planning on Forever was born.
The voices in my head are still talking, so I’m still writing.
Find Ashley Wilcox:
Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads
Giveaway!!!
(1) Kindle Paperwhite & (2) Signed Copies of Running From Forever
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