The story you thought you know…
When Kyle Calloway died, he took a part of Nell with him. She wasn’t the only one left to pick up the pieces, however; Kyle’s death left a gaping hole in the hearts and lives of his parents and his older brother Colton, and ultimately broke the will of the girl he loved.
The story you never imagined…
Becca de Rosa is Nell’s best friend. When Kyle died, Nell was so devastated that no one could reach her, not even her best friend Becca. As she tries to help Nell through her grief, Becca’s own life is thrust into turmoil, and everything she knows is changed.
Jason Dorsey asked Nell out the week after her sixteenth birthday, but that date never happened. Instead, he ended up going out with Nell’s best friend, Becca. He had no way of knowing, then, how that one date would send him on a life-long journey with Becca. He had no way of knowing the tragedies and triumphs he would experience, or that in Becca, he might find the love of a lifetime.
The heartache you’ll never forget…
The best way I can describe Falling Into Us is that this is a parallel story that takes place at the exact same time as Falling Into You but instead of focusing on Nell, Colton and Kyle, this book focuses on Becca and Jason who were supporting/best friend characters in the first book. Because this story runs parallel, there are moments where the lives of the two sets of characters entwine but the majority of it focuses on Becca and Jason.
Although this can technically be read as a standalone, I could certainly recommend reading Falling Into You first because the events of that book strongly influence the lives of these characters.
The story starts off two years before Kyle’s death (this is not a spoiler as it is in the blurb of the first book). In this time period, we see the beginning of Becca and Jason’s relationship.. and really, they didn’t get off to the smoothest start. But both of them were open and honest and soon were able to lay their feelings out in the open and explore the feelings they undeniably had for each other.
Unfortunately, neither of them have ideal home lives. Jason lived with an abusive father who pushed him to excel to the point of physically beating him on a regular basis. And Becca lived under the constant pressure from her father to succeed, even at the cost of her personal happiness, social life and freedom. The first part of their journey was them falling in love and trying to make things work while under her dad’s controlling thumb and his dad’s iron fist. At only 16, they had so many firsts to experience and we got to see them go through all the desires and uncertainties of first love. Over the course of the following four years, we saw them deal with Kyle’s death and experience the other side of what was going on and how his death had affected more than just Nell but all those who had loved him. And we also saw Becca experience her own tragedy that threatened to pull her under. But she and Jason had built their relationship such that they could lean on each other and were able to come to terms with it and get through it together.
“I love you,” he whispered. “I love you so much, and I’ll be here with you every single moment.”
I read this book in one sitting and while this book didn’t pack the emotional punch of the first in the series, it had it’s own rhythm to it and I really liked it and enjoyed seeing these characters who I’d come to love find their happiness.
It was so sweet to see Jason and Becca fall in love so young and be able to stay together despite their difficult situations. But my most favorite part of all was the last few chapters and epilogue in which we got to see both Nell and Colt as well as Becca and Jason happy, together and building their lives. They’d made it through the pain, found healing in each other and were ready to start their happily ever afters.
4 stars
EXCLUSIVE BONUS SCENE
A Wedding
Jason
March 20th
Bonus Material copyright © 2013 Jasinda Wilder
I stood on the dais, dressed in a tux, breath bated and my stomach flopping. Both sides of the aisle were packed. On the bride’s side, the pews were filled with a generous helping of Becca’s cousins, aunts and uncles, grandparents. There were several women wearing the headwrap things. Becca had told me what they were called, but I couldn’t remember. Something with an ‘H’ I think. I thought they were kind of cool looking, actually, but I didn’t entirely understand the reason behind them. There was one lady on Becca’s side, sitting near the back, who was wearing not only the head-wrap/turban/scarf thing, but a veil across her face as well. It made her seem mysterious, to me. She was Becca’s great aunt, I’d been told.
On my side there wasn’t so much family as friends and teammates. I’d completely cut ties with both my parents a long time ago, so they weren’t here. It was just as well. I might have invited my mom, but she wouldn’t have come without my dad, and that wasn’t an option. My side had the Hawthornes, the Calloways, Coach Hoke from U of M, as well as most of the team, and Coach Payton and the guys from the Saints. There was a lot of love, and that was what counted.
I was waiting for the moment. The flower girl had come down the aisle, Becca’s cousin Maria’s little daughter Julia. I listened to the music play, something classical. Bach or Beethoven or something. Who was I kidding? I didn’t know classical music for shit. It was violins and horns and stuff, and very mellow, if a bit dull. Finally the bridesmaids were all lined up: Kate, Maria, and a friend of Becca’s from U of M, a slender, quiet redhead named Alissa. Next came the groomsmen: Malcolm, Drew, and Jarred. I hadn’t actually played a regular season game with the the Saints yet, but I’d been to several practices and scrimmages, enough to get to know the guys and to know that the upcoming season was going to be great. Malcolm had played college ball too, for Florida State, but he was graduating—with a degree in microbiology of all things—and had no desire to play after college. I’d kept in touch with him over the years via email and Facebook, and he’d readily agreed to be in my wedding.
Colt, my best man, stood beside me, and he shot me a grin. I grinned back, and then the music changed. That was when my heart stopped. The Wedding March played over the speakers, that instantly-recognizable sequence of notes that had everyone standing up in the pews. My eyes latched onto the doors at the back of the chapel, which swung open to reveal my love, my bride, my Becca. God, she was so, so beautiful.
She stood in the doorway, a cluster of white roses in her hands. Her eyes were locked on me, darkest black and wet with unshed tears. My throat clenched closed, burning, and I could only stare at her. The music fell away, the audience of loved ones vanished. I only had eyes for Becca. Her bangs were pinned away from her face, the rest left loose to cascade around her shoulders in a waterfall of raven-black ringlets. I could only stare. The dress was purest white and strapless, clinging to her breasts like a second skin, belling out over her eight months-pregnant belly and skirling around her feet. A lacy, gauzy strip of white was pinned to her hair and hanging down behind her, creating a glow of white around her face. She was…an angel.
I couldn’t breathe for how beautiful she was.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE BONUS SCENE
The full scene was just too long to post here 😉
READING ORDER & PURCHASE LINKS
Nicky Wells says
I love the idea of a parallel story for some of the supporting characters. I haven’t read either book yet but I’ll be adding them to my TBR. Great review, thank you.
Dee says
These look great! I have been looking for some more summer reads so I will order these. Thanks for the review!
Sherrie says
So this comment only has to do with the bonus chapter….the wedding. Where is Nell? No mention of her anywhere. Just a bit odd, that is all. Loved both of these books!
Bec says
Yes, I too thought it was strange Nell not being in the wedding party