ARC Review: HERO by Lauren Rowe

The first time I laid eyes on Lydia Decker, I couldn’t speak. Or breathe. Or string two coherent thoughts together.

And I don’t mean any of that figuratively.

I’m not talking about a guy being floored by the sight of a gorgeous woman—although, of course, Lydia is gorgeous beyond words.

No, when I first laid eyes on Lydia Decker—my physical therapist—I was lying flat on my back in the ICU, high as a kite on painkillers, breathing on a ventilator, my bones as broken and splintered as my spirit.

When I first laid eyes on Lydia Decker, she was a ray of light in the dark. Hope for the hopeless. A salve for my singed and battered soul.

She said she’d been assigned to fix me. That she was there to bring me back to life. She said helping me was her calling.

And then she touched me. Physically, emotionally, spiritually. She healed me.

And I fell in love.

But what I didn’t know... what I couldn’t possibly know... was that Lydia Decker needed fixing far more than I ever did.

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REVIEW

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the best stories I’ve ever read!! I don’t say this lightly. I’m still stunned by how much I completely loved everything about this book. I hope each and every one of you reading my words right now go out and get it today because it is right up there with the best of all time!!

After reading the first few chapters, I bawled my eyes out. I don’t cry. I’m recognized by everyone who knows me as being tough as nails. I’ve survived a lot of crap. I work in one of the ugliest fields of law and witness atrocities almost every day. I’ve created a very thick shield of armor. I’m usually calm and collected in high pressure situations. I’m the go-to during hard times because I’m the cool-headed and oftentimes coldhearted one. But the first few chapters had me crying like a baby. Like someone stole my last chocolate-covered almond. Like someone desecrated my favorite book. I wept like someone hurt my very soul. It took me a good twenty minutes to get myself under control.

And I loved every single minute of it!!

Because if the author hadn’t torn my heart out, stomped on it, put it through the meat grinder, then took a piss and spit on it, I wouldn’t have been able to truly feel and appreciate the many beautiful, poetic and profound ways that she painstakingly cleaned it up, knit the pieces back together again, and tenderly handed it back to me.

The author took me on a journey through pain and grief in order to take me on an adventure of new beginnings, fresh chances, and the overwhelmingly welcome possibility of love. The love that virtually leaked from these pages was immeasurable. I could not get enough of Colby and Lydia. These two were the epitome of everything that is good and hopeful and astounding and awe-inspiring about love. And while I discovered all of the amazing feats that Colby accomplished to be considered a hero, I found that Lydia was a hero in her own right as well. She conquered a fear that could have been debilitating and opened her heart up to the risk. Because as Colby loves to say ‘Here today, gone tomorrow.’ And seriously, that statement rang out so true and it was evident in every part of this story.

Don’t even get me started on the kids. While Colby and Lydia made this story, those kids… man, each and every single one of them made my heart sing. They were just too precious. Who doesn’t love a story with precocious and adorable kids??? And then Colby’s family was the icing on the cake. These people were the kind of people one could only hope to meet in real life. People with beautiful personalities and beautiful souls. It’s no wonder that Colby and Lydia recognized the purity of soul each carried. Every thought and feeling came from a warm and helpful place. These families were a cohesive unit and I’m not too proud to say that I had more than a touch of envy while I smiled over every encounter with them.

You know those books that you want to find quotes for because HOLY JEEVES the quotes are so incredible you have to share them? Well, this book had way too many of them. I highlighted more than half the book by the time I figured out picking my favorites would be an endless game. My entire review would have to be quotes because really, who the heck is going to read all of that? I can’t express enough how utterly incredible this story was. I recommend it to anyone who loves love and romance. If you’re looking for a story about love and loss and hope and surrender and peace and family, then look no further. Have I got the book for you!

Release: 03.12.2018 | Genre: Contemporary Romance | POV: Dual - 1st person | Heat: 4 | Standalone - Morgan Brothers series