Book Review — Waiting For Wyatt by SD Hendrickson

“My heart flipped a little, and I fell deeper for Wyatt Caulfield, the mysterious guy who said he was dangerous and bad.”

• Buy WAITING FOR WYATT (Kindle)
• Buy WAITING FOR WYATT (Paperback)

I absolutely loved this book!! After falling in love with SD Hendrickson’s writing in The Mason List last year, I was incredibly excited to read any book she wrote next and Waiting For Wyatt was everything I’d hoped for. It kept me glued to the page until 4AM because I just did not want to stop reading. The haunting pain of Wyatt’s secret past tugged all my heart strings, while Emma’s quiet strength gave me hope for their future. Their romance was beautifully intense, and although often painful, the strength and endurance of their love for each other can only be described heart-warming. This was exactly the kind of book I love reading — it was incredibly well written, and loaded with feels, intrigue, and a captivating romance. I already know this will be one of my Favorites of 2016. It’s a top recommendation!

Just to clarify though, The Mason List and Waiting For Wyatt are not connected.

Here’s the official blurb… (for the record, Charlie is a dog):

My name is Emma Sawyer. 

I met Charlie and Wyatt on the same sultry, summer day. It was unexpected, leaving a feeling in the pit of my stomach like the time I drove too fast over Beckett Hill. The moment happened out of nowhere, all fast and quick and a little strange. Or maybe that was just Wyatt’s personality. 

It was Charlie that brought us together. Little Charlie with those ridiculous ears. I found the dog, waiting in a pool of his own blood. Waiting for someone. Waiting for me. 

Now Wyatt, he wasn’t waiting for anyone. At least that’s what he said, except I saw something different in the broken guy all alone out in the woods. I knew he needed me before he knew it himself. 

Wyatt with his hidden dimples. Wyatt with his warnings to stay away. He was a hard lump of coal, ready to burn everything around him. The more he burned, the more it pulled me into the pain I saw etched on his troubled face. 

I wanted to help Wyatt. I wanted to save him like he had saved all the Charlies in the world. He told me not to fall for him, but I did anyway. I fell hard and fast and deeply in love with Wyatt Caulfield. 

But that was before I knew his secret. 

Oh my gosh, you guys!! Wyatt completely stole my heart!!! He was this brooding, tortured, mysterious guy, clearly guilt-ridden over a heart-breaking past that he wanted to keep private. But the love and care he showed the dogs he rescued made it clear how sweet and kind-hearted he really was. Oh, and he had dimples!!! Be still my heart! *swoons* I so desperately wanted Emma to save him, and I loved the way she never backed down from her quest to reach out to him. It was wonderfully refreshing to read about a heroine who was so self-assured and determined to never give up on the guy she was falling for.

“You keep trying, over and over again. Have you ever considered that I might be a lost cause?”

My fingers tightened against his hand. “I don’t believe anyone is a lost cause…You can trust me. I hope you realize that by now.”

“I do trust you, Emma.” His breath touched my skin as he talked. “It’s myself that I don’t trust.”

“But I trust you,” I whispered.

“I know,” he whispered back in that gravelly voice. “I see the trust in your eyes. And it scares me.”

Tortured heroes have always been my most favorite to read about. I fall hard for them every single time. Something about their hidden pain tugs all my heart strings and makes me long to see them find the healing they deserve. Wyatt’s pain cut so deep that it made me ache for him. Even before I knew the truth about what had broken him, my chest tightened up in every scene because I cared so deeply.

“You can talk to me, you know,” I whispered, begging him to let me inside his thoughts.

“Maybe I don’t want a girl like you to know those things about me. Some things shouldn’t be talked about.”

Here he was — this gorgeous antisocial, seemingly awkward reclusive guy who, like her, was in his early twenties and yet lived outside of town in the middle of nowhere rescuing scarred, rejected dogs who’d been subjected to the worst of humanity. He made every effort to drive her away, yet with each attempt, it only drew her in closer.

“I’m trying to protect you.”

“From what?”

“Me.” The desperation ached in his voice…
“Falling for me would not make sense.”

“It’s a little too late for that,” I muttered.

His face seemed to crush right before my eyes. “I told you not to.”

This story consumed me with the need to learn Wyatt’s past, with the desire to see him open up to Emma, with my heart desperately waiting for them to fall in love… You know you’re reading a good book when the time just slips away and you’re so lost in the story that what feels like mere minutes turns into hours.

The story is broken down into four main parts: it begins with her story, then shows his, then focuses on them, and the concludes with a gorgeous epilogue section. The pacing and flow of the story was effortless. SD Hendrickson is such a gifted storyteller. Her writing is captivating, evocative, and addictive. I’ll read anything she writes, and this was honestly exactly “my kind” of favorite book. The story was unique, beautiful, and pleasantly different than everything else within it’s genre. And I especially loved the moment when I finally realized the true meaning behind the title of the book.

There’s a painful undertone to the story that comes from Wyatt’s secret, but the angst isn’t too much. The amount is just enough that I felt it was captivating but didn’t make my tummy hurt. There was just the right amount of everything. I felt invested in this story. I cared . My heart was totally in it.

If you’re looking for a beautiful, heart-warming romance with deep feels and strong writing to fall in love with, and most especially if you’re an animal lover too, then you have to try to this book! I loved everything about it. For me, it’s a new top favorite recommendation that’s going on my list of Best Books of 2016.

Wyatt kissed my neck, leaving his lips in place as he whispered against my skin. “I love you. Whether I deserve you or not. I love you. Don’t ever forget that.”

Rating: 4.5+ stars. Standalone contemporary romance.

• Buy WAITING FOR WYATT (Kindle)
• Buy WAITING FOR WYATT (Paperback)