ARC REVIEW: Written in the Scars by Adriana Locke

*ARC graciously given in exchanged for an honest review*


Title: Written in the Scars
Author: Adriana Locke
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: October 20, 2016

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Falling in love is easy.

Falling out of love is the hardest thing in the world.

And Elin and Ty Whitt are terrible at it.

The first time the local basketball star smiled at Elin, she was a goner. It was just so damn easy to fall for the dark-haired hometown hero with his charming smile and strong, athletic build.

Thousands of sleepy smiles, aimless drives down country roads, and squeaks of the backdoor after a swing shift later, reality hits. And it hits hard. Falling in love was definitely the easy part. Watching it break apart was impossible.

Through the tears, the second-guesses, the memories of a life built together, the world keeps spinning. With each turn comes clarity and hope—sometimes in the form of a pair of muddy boots by the back door or from the words of a wise friend.

When Ty shows back up with a new found determination to put his family back together, Elin's torn between the fights of the past and the possibility of a new start. This is the man that holds her heart, the man she loves beyond anything else. But this is also the one person in the world that can cause her the most pain.

Life’s not always easy. Love’s not for the faint of heart. But with life comes lessons and Ty and Elin have the scars to prove it. But it's their love written in those scars that will hold them together … or break them apart.

There are books that make you want to dream. 

There are books that rouse hope. 

There are books that make you all giddy and dream of the same kind of love. 

There are books that turn you on. 

And then there’s Written in the Scars by Adriana Locke. 

A book that makes you want to LIVE. 

Loving her is so damn easy. It’s as natural as breathing or the beating of a heart.

Elin Whitt knew enough about fairytales to realize that her current situation wasn’t a happily-ever-after. For one, his prince left her instead of rescuing her. The evil queen seemed to have disguised itself as pain, loneliness and sorrow. There weren’t fire-breathing dragons but something was definitely burning inside her. This is something I relish on every Adriana Locke book. The realness of her heroines; the spunk, the gut, and the imperfections. No pretensions, no dreamy imaginations. Elin wasn’t someone you wish you were, Elin might even be you. And that realness, rawness of her character made the transfer of emotions so easy, as if there wasn’t any boundary between the reader and the character.

"Scars stick around to prove you showed up for life. That you lived. That you fought. That you loved.”

Ty Whitt needed to save his wife, his marriage, and most importantly, himself. He knew the kind of person he was becoming and he needed to rid the love of his life with the impending poison caused by the self-loathing brewing inside of him. Leaving was the option he took. If only she knew it hurt him as much as it hurt her. Ty wasn’t a character built to tempt our fantasies, a form of perfection we can only find in myths. He was a man powered by love, integrity, and valor. He wasn’t just a face of a man but a man who’s faced the worst and came out stronger and more determined. That’s what made Ty’s character so dreamy; his realness, his scars, and his experiences. 

“If you take you away from me, you take everything."

There is no doubt about the romance aspect of this book. The sweet and the sexy scenes have kept me on my toes and filled my heart with the romance it needs. But seriously, Written in the Scars is not just a romance. This book was more than just a love story. It’s a life story about how real love could break and heal people. I cried from the first few pages until the end and up until now, my chest hurts. Not because it was a sad story. It’s because the message of the book hit home. Reading this hurt to the extent where my heart was going to explode and then it simmers down into steady beats reminding me of how life has so many BS but as long as that pulse is beating, you keep living. I am so attached to this book’s characters now. Every word and every page clawed deep and I’m holding on to what it taught me for a very long time. 

This isn’t a book that will bring you up on the clouds. 

It will put your feet on the ground and let you see what reality is. 

This book won’t give you a fantasy world you’ll dream about. 

It will show you that sometimes you can have your fantasies within your reality. 

This book won’t push you to find an admirable, courageous, man/woman. 

It will inspire you to become that courageous, admirable man/woman. 

Lastly, and most importantly, this book will make you want to hug every person you love and thank God for your life. 

This wasn’t a book that you’re likely to forget. 

Written in the Scars is now written in my heart. 

Bravo, Adriana Locke.