ARC Review ~ Stay With Me (Wait for You #3) by J. Lynn

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 25th September 2014

Publisher: Harper

Description:
At 21, Calla hasn't done a lot of things. She’s never been kissed, never seen the ocean, never gone to an amusement park. But growing up, she witnessed some things no child ever should. She still carries the physical and emotional scars of living with a strung-out mother, Mona—secrets she keeps from everyone, including her close circle of college friends.

But the safe cocoon Calla has carefully built is shattered when she discovers her mom has stolen her college money and run up a huge credit card debt in her name. Now, Calla has to go back to the small town she thought shed left behind and clean up her mom’s mess again. Of course, when she arrives at her mother’s bar, Mona is nowhere to be found. Instead, six feet of hotness named Jackson James is pouring drinks and keeping the place humming.

Sexy and intense, Jax is in Calla’s business from they moment they meet, giving her a job and helping her search for Mona. And the way he looks at her makes it clear he wants to get horizontal . . . and maybe something more. Before Calla can let him get close, though, she’s got to deal with the pain of the past—and some very bad guys out to mess her up if she doesn't give them her mom.

My Opinion

I've been waiting for this book for what seems like ages since I ended up getting arcs of both Wait For You and Be With Me. It's a serious drawback to getting a review copies--an even longer wait between books--but I managed to get an advanced copy of Stay With Me too, so it wasn't too bad. I squealed when I read the email with this in. I love J. Lynn's writing and Stay With Me was no exception.

I will admit that the start didn't exactly make me fall in love with the book as much of the others. It had me worried, but soon it picked up and I couldn't stop reading. This book has heartbreak, tragedy, great relationships, and humour all mixed into one; and when I thought it couldn't get any better it still managed to. I was invested in Calla's story the whole way through, and like all of the other books I've read by this author, I found all of the character easy to connect with and relate to.

Personally, Cam (Wait For You) is hard to beat so I'm always going to compare the rest of the guys to him. However, Jax was slightly different to what has come before in the series because he had a more dangerous side. As an ex-Marine, he had this strong and powerful quality to him, but he was so caring ... it was hot. I couldn't help but love him for how protective he is of Calla and how he accepts her instantly. He also has some great lines that made me swoon at times and the laugh others. I loved his mixture of humour and seriousness.

Similarly, I thought Calla's character was balanced well. I assumed I would be irritated by her constant insecurities over her looks, but it never happened. She was sweet and innocent, and an all round likeable character who I wanted the best for. She'd been dealt a crappy hand in life and I wanted her life to turn around.

Overall, this book was brilliant--as usual. It was a captivating read that had characters that were likeable and easy to relates to. As well as that, it had a darker story line with elements of danger and risk that surrounded a really great romance.

5