ARC Review: From The Ruins by Janine Infante Bosco

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Standalone - Satan's Knights #1
Release - September 26, 2017
Genre - MC Romance
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 4 out of 5
Length - 231 pages

"Pipe"
In every man’s life there comes a day of reckoning. It’s the day darkness is exposed and sinners are punished for their trespasses.
A day when loyalty is destroyed and a man is left in ruins.
When he walks away from his club and loses his religion.
Whoever said from the ruins they will rise again never walked a mile in my shoes or the pair of red ones I was left holding.

"Layla"
He’s bitter, cold and angry.
He’s seen his share of heartache.
Lived through tragedy and despair.
He’s my neighbor.
The man I know should stay away from.
The man who will destroy what’s left of me if I get too close.
He’s Lee Jameson, and I’m Layla Milano.
This is our story.
The story of two people left in ruins forced to rise again.

Find your copy of From The Ruins here:
Goodreads | Amazon

MY REVIEW

If you’ve read any books from Janine Infante Bosco, then you may already have met Pipe. He’s the SGT at Arms and Jack’s right hand. He’s the one who calms the demons in Jack’s head. If you haven’t read one of her books, then you’re in for one hell of an incredible introduction.

Pipe is lost. Everything that meant something to him now has no meaning. After a tragedy strikes the club, Pipe’s life is in ruins. He’s lost his wife and he’s lost his way. Removing his patch, he hasn’t gone nomad. Nope, he’s off to rediscover who the heck he is now and try to move through the grief that has now consumed him. The last thing he needs is a nosey neighbor and her kids to boot. So he thinks.

It’s from the ruins they will rise.

Layla is recently divorced and is trying to make a new life for herself and her three children. Life’s hard but she tries to make the best of a tough situation. After moving for the third time within a year, she’s determined to make this time stick and provide some stability for her family. But there’s a brooding, dark, and rude man next door who causes a bit of a hiccup to her peaceful plans. However, she sees him. Like really sees him. She can see his pain and hopes to discover its source and provide some solace. Layla was truly a beautiful person. No less beautiful than Pipe.

In order to rise up, you have to fall. It’s a fast and furious descent that renders you speechless and leaves you staring up at the heavens wondering how you’ll ever climb this hurdle.

One of the things I love most about this author’s writing is how she creates and develops her characters. They’re beautifully flawed and insanely easy to relate to. Take Layla for instance. Any woman who finds herself with the job of raising her children almost entirely by herself can see themselves in Layla. I know for sure that I did. Being a single mom isn’t glamorous and it isn’t easy. Not only do you have to take steps to ensure that your children don’t suffer from the loss of what used to be, but as a woman your insecurities are your worst enemies. How do you move on? And when someone does come along, someone you would like to take a chance with, how do you juggle being a mom and a woman? It’s a difficult balance and the author didn’t sugarcoat it at all.

Now Pipe took me by surprise. I assumed he’d be so far from reach that it would take ages for Layla to touch him. But that wasn’t the case. He was able to see his way out pretty quickly and it was all due to the almost instantaneous connection he shared with Layla and her children. And when this man came out of his shell… when he allowed himself to feel… when he acknowledged that he didn’t die with his wife and that it wasn’t his time to go but to live… oh man, this dude showed up!! Pipe has always been loyal, tried, tested and true. But when it came to Layla and those kids, he became so much more than just the SGT at Arms. More than the poor boy from horrific circumstances that tried to make the most of the opportunities he was given. He became the right man for his new family. Whether it was fixing the plumbing, taking a little girl to a dance, or recreating a bedroom to make someone happy, he was all in. I couldn’t have asked for better.

This book was a bit different from those I’m used to from this author. It had less action and more heart. But I’m not over here complaining. Not one bit. Because the author always shows heart in her writing and this story showed it the most. Maybe because it hit some personal points for the author. Maybe because it hit some personal ones for me. I’m not sure, but it was definitely one of my favorites so far. So if you’re a fan of motorcycle club romances or a fan of second chances, I highly recommend adding this book to your list!