“Just Breathe” by Rachel Brookes – Review

Just Breathe is the debut novel from Aussie Rachel Brookes. She’s come out of the gate swinging, bringing us Tate Conners – the bad boy you want to root for! She’s also given us a naughty Aussie of our very own to love, Savannah Rae (Sav for short). The things that came out of Savannah’s mouth cracked me up and made me want to ring up Rachel to hear her say them in her accent.

Tate Conners will leave you wanting more. He’s the classic L.A. bad boy. Hot, tortured, funny. Did I mention hot? He’s troubled, of course – what bad boy isn’t? But Savannah gives him a reason to want to be a better guy. Let me just say – shower scene people. There is a shower scene that will make you feel like you need to find your own hottie to get soapy with.

Savannah isn’t your typical heroine. She isn’t all sweet, virginal and unknowing. Nope, Savannah is a naughty, naughty girl. She has a sordid past and goes to L.A. to try to get a fresh start. When she sees Tate for the first time, her fresh start goes straight out the window.

And then we have Mr. Davenport. Ahhh, Mr. D and Sav have a weird uncle/niece/friend kind of relationship. Mr. D is a bit of a hot head when it comes to Sav (he’s seen her crazy antics in Australia) and travels with her to L.A. to try to keep her in line. But, no one can control what Sav does. She’s her own girl. And that’s what I love about her. I liked Mr. D – he has a bit of mystery to him. I picture him as an older hot guy who needs to find himself in a torrid love affair. I think he deserves his own spin-off.

Savannah and Tate find themselves on a rocky road. They both have issues (who doesn’t, right?!) and when their relationship takes on an unexpected turn, it sends them both into uncharted territory. This is a great debut from Rachel. I know she’s working hard on book 2 (yes, there is a cliffy but it’s a good one!). I can’t wait to see where this takes Savannah and Tate – and I hope we get to see more of the mysterious Mr. D!

~excerpt ~

I stiffened as soon as I felt someone stand way too close behind me. I knew that I was the only one waiting for the lift, so why the hell did they feel the need to stand this close? I could feel the person’s breath on the back of my neck and I could feel the heat of the person’s body against me. Mix a lack of sleep, a lack of substantial food for eighteen hours and an inconsiderate person stealing my personal space, and you’ve got one very angry Australian ready to pounce.

I was ready to explode at the creep who had decided my personal space was not important, but I lost all ability to speak when I swung around. My perfect prey was within inches of me, his deep blue eyes watching me and drawing me in. My body ignited and I was sure that he could feel the lust that was oozing off my body. A smirk lingered on the lips I wanted to nibble, and the way his body was so close to mine stunned me into submission.

I stepped into the awaiting lift and knew by the way my body came alive that he was close behind me, sans the giggling girl. My back pressed hard against the cold metal wall opposite him. We didn’t say a word too each other but we didn’t have to. Leaning against the wall with his masculine arms folded over his chest, his eyes burned holes in mine and I was lost in the intensity of his gaze. A soft sigh escaped my lips as his eyes ran up and down my body again, and the moment he bit his bottom lip, I nearly lost all control right there in the lift. I felt my body scorch under his gaze, and I couldn’t deny the reaction I had to him. He was quite possibly the most attractive man I had ever had the pleasure of staring at, and I wanted him in every sense of the word.

“This is my stop,” I whispered as the lift halted to a jerky stop. The door slowly opened, but it didn’t eradicate the electricity that was firing between us. My breath escaped me as soon as he took a slow step toward me, breaking the space I had put between us. I felt the heat between us soar. His hand swung behind me and he pounded the stop button to cease the door closing. His eyes were searching every inch of my face and I sighed again as his eyes hovered over my mouth. His lips curved at the sound of my sigh, he was clearly enjoying the trauma he was putting my body through. The thought of ripping his clothes off like a wild animal and taking him in the lift almost overcame me.

His intense eyes didn’t leave me as he leaned down toward me. I watched his lips closely as they made their way toward me in all of their pink and pouty glory, that bottom lip…god, I’d love to bite it. I took a deep breath as I felt his breath on my ear. “I’ll be seeing you,” he murmured in a voice that was deep, gravelly and intoxicating. The feeling of promise lingering in his words excited every inch of my now highly responsive body.

I stepped out of the lift with shaky legs, almost forgetting to wheel my suitcase behind me. I didn’t hesitate; I turned to bask in his glory one last time. He rested against the back wall of the lift with a confidence that made me nervous. Guys never made me nervous, so this was a strange feeling to have butterflies circling my stomach. I bit my lip and focused my eyes on his as he gave me his best panty-dropping smile and I threw one back at him. The tension between us was increasing by the second. The apartment could be on fire and I wouldn’t have noticed, I’d still be standing here, having a smirk-off with him. The glass doors shut in front and broke the tension around me. My conversation with Mr. Davenport started replaying in my head. How was I going to resist what I had left in the lift?

Jen loves to read. She can’t stop herself. It’s become an obsession. She is in love with her husband, kids, iced coffee and books. Jen lives in beautiful Colorado but is originally from the West Coast.

jen@imperfectwomen.com

GIVEAWAY

And now, for the best part, Author Rachel Brookes has generously given us TWO eBooks of Just Breathe to giveaway! All you have to do is follow her on one of the social media sites listed below and then leave a comment telling us where you followed!

Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Blog

You can purchase your own copy of Just Breathe here:

Barnes and Noble
iTunes
Amazon
Amazon UK

*winner chooses an eBook vendor out of the listed purchase sites

This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. We hereby release Facebook of any liability. Winner(s) will be contacted by email 48 hours after the giveaway ends. They have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected. Must be over 18 to enter. Ends on 08/08/13 at 11:59 pm Eastern time. Imperfect Women did not receive compensation for this contest. They are also not responsible for prize shipment of the books. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, & other social networks are in no way associated with this giveaway and are not responsible for anything involving this giveaway. Void where prohibited.