Never Let You Go
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4.4 • 68 Ratings
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
The second novel in this darkly sexy contemporary series from bestselling author Monica Murphy wraps up an emotionally powerful two-part tale of forbidden love.
The truth hurts, they say—and my pain cuts deep. While I was falling for Ethan, he was deceiving me the entire time. He held a huge secret, protected by his lies. When I discovered what he was hiding, the truth shook my world, threatening to ruin us forever. Ruin me. But I soon realized that what we share can’t be destroyed.
The connection between us is too strong. It always has been. I can’t deny him any longer. And I can’t deny my truth: I’m in love with Ethan.
I don’t want to let him go.
While we’re trying our best to make this relationship work, other forces are fighting against us. My family, who wants to keep me safe. The media obsessed with my tragic past. The public that feeds off of it. Even Ethan’s father—the man who nearly destroyed me all those years ago. He’s doing his best to finish the job.
Despite my love for Ethan, the doubts creep in, clouding my mind. Is he worth the pain? Will our love survive, or will we have no choice but to end it—end us—once and for all?
Praise for Never Let You Go
“As a reader, this relationship shouldn’t work even though it has to work. It’s only because of Ms. Murphy’s skill in delicately addressing survival from sexual assault and abuse that we find the capacity to heal through touch and love.”—Heroes and Heartbreakers
“Much like the first book, this story was an emotional roller-coaster ride that never really let up. But that’s what made the story so fantastic and engaging.”—Emilie’s Book World
“A story that will grip you, pull you in, and keep you immersed til the end . . . an emotional and sweet story that will stay with me for years to come.”—Read-Love-Blog
“A dramatic and beautiful and frightening story.”—Fictional Candy
“Murphy nailed it with this one for sure. . . . Katherine and Ethan. Katie and Will. They are such a dynamic couple. Everything they have been through makes their bond tight.”—Mommy’s a Book Whore
Praise for Monica Murphy’s Never Tear Us Apart
“All the best parts of romance and betrayal . . . I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.”—New York Times bestselling author Jay Crownover
“A powerful story that left me raw yet hopeful.”—USA Today bestselling author K. A. Tucker
“A powerful story of friendship, trauma, coping and betrayal. The characters jump off the page into real life and will have readers gasping and feeling every emotion that they go through. Another amazing book to add to Murphy’s already stellar library!”—RT Book Reviews (4 1/2 stars)
“Murphy has written a compelling and emotional love story of two severely broken people, each of whom can be healed only by the other.”—Booklist
“Murphy imbues these characters with genuineness and plausibility. . . . [Readers] will look forward to the promised sequel.”—Publishers Weekly
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fans of Never Tear Us Apart will be pleased that this sequel fulfills the promise of Murphy's decidedly unconventional contemporary love story, set in an unspecified part of the U.S. Years before the story opens, serial killer Aaron Monroe imprisoned young Katie Watts. Aaron's son, Will, saved Katie from his father and then disappeared. As an adult, Will renamed himself Ethan Williams and manipulated Katie, now called Katherine, into falling in love with him. It's been a few months since Katherine discovered her new lover's true identity and kicked him out of her life, appalled by his deceit. Along comes ratings-hungry TV reporter Lisa Swanson, who had once gained fame by exploiting Katherine. Now she's skating on the edge of journalistic ethics by attempting to arrange a meeting between Katherine and Aaron, who's currently on death row. Inevitably, Katherine and Ethan/Will are drawn back into each other's lives. Tension mounts as the charismatic but broken lovers struggle to heal each other while dodging media attention. The superior characterization and compelling plot are enough to outweigh the awkward prose and clunky structure.
Customer Reviews
Happiness Can Extinguish Sadness
This story was a wonderful ending to a stunning duet. Not only does this story tie up many, I mean MANY, loose ends, it also portrays an idea of everything being ok. Of course, if you are familiar with Never Tear Us Apart, then you know that that story deals with many a demon and uncertainty. But it also ends with quite the cliffy.....
I can definitely say that I LOVED Never Let You Go more than Never Tear Us Apart. With Never Tear Us Apart, there were quite a few things that lacked for me. Mainly the emotions and the disconnect I had with Katie. And then I was given Never Let You Goand feel like this book was written by a totally different author. I felt "connected" to Katie, to an extent. I could almost relate to how she felt. She waged a war constantly within herself. It was almost bone crushing seeing her deal with the weight of the world on her shoulders. She was basically a new person. I really enjoyed seeing that new light shine a path to something else, rather than seeing yesterdays shadows.
The feel is a tad bit lighter in this book. Just a tad though. There was always that feeling of pinpricks on my neck, because I had no clue what to expect. This kept me on my toes, almost like I was the vulnerable one, this time around. The air was a little bit more freeing, but the h/h were still constantly on edge. And who can blame these two? So much happens. SO darn MUCH!
As the first 72% of this story unfolds, I found myself eating the pages up. I was seriously loving everything that took place between the h/h, and secretly wishing that everything could be wrapped up neatly with a big fluffy red bow at the end of the story. The interactions weren't always jilted, they were loose and all guards were down. I feel almost like it gave me the ok to end at the 72%, because I was fine with where things were going.
And then there came that last 18% which was just ehhhh for me. When I said this book felt like it was written by a different author, I was not kidding. And then I got to that last 18%, and knew it was the same author. Things were a bit more far stretched than I had desired and wished for. As much as there needs to be that twist or sudden OMG factor, I hated it. Ok, maybe not hated it, per se, but really didn't like it. Again, I wanted that fluffy red bow to make things tidy and neat. I honestly needed it. It was almost like a security blanket to what was about to come.
Overall, this was a great way to wrap up this duet. The writing was stronger in this story than in book one, and the characters were a bit more complex this time around. I loved that there was more fluff but I still loved the suspense that was constantly lurking. I say give this duet a definite try, but go into it open-minded.
Never Let You Go
Omg- I know that this is fiction but I’m halfway through and beyond frustrated. Where is the therapist from the first book? It’s like she never existed. And what about lawyers? I understand the set up to leave the main characters hanging out to dry on their own but there is literally not a single voice common sense here, whereas at least the therapist was that in the first book. Very frustrating, to the point that I am stopping reading and will consider picking up again as a possibility at some future point.
Captivating!
This is the conclusion to Never Tear Us Apart. They must be read in order. And what a fantastically beautiful conclusion it is. Monica Murphy pulls out all the stops in this second chance romance. You will go through quite a roller coaster ride with your emotions as well as some twists and turns you do not see coming your way. You will find yourself on the edge of your seat, not sure you want to know what is next as well as laughing and crying. This story grabs you by the throat and doesn't let you go until the end and you will love every last minute of it. Katie and Will/Evan are so meant for each other. Their souls are bound together from all the trauma they have suffered together. But their beautiful passion and love help them heal their wounds and they become stronger together. This is a powerful, passionate story that you won't want to miss. They will be forever with me. Highly recommended!
Received a complimentary copy in exchange for a honest review.