Brave
A moment in time, that’s all it took. Beauty, pain and tragedy.
Xander “Pretty Boy” Todd was a demon in the ring. A professional MMA fighter with a career that had the world a buzz—but now it’s gone. Or is it?
Eden Sommers had her dreams of an international modelling career within her grasp—and lost it. Gone within a few seconds, leaving nothing but pain.
How do you go on, when the one … pain.
How do you go on, when the one thing that defines you is suddenly ripped away—only to leave scars and a hollow shell in its place? Has the beauty gone forever? Or has it just retreated—to now be hidden, and dormant; guarded by the inner demons?
Can these two wounded souls find the inner strength to fight back the demons together and find the beauty in their lives once again?
To do this, they must first accept—The hardest demons to defeat are the ones inside. They’ll have to be BRAVE.
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Definitely wasn’t what I was expecting, but sooo worth it!!!
#Brave
I didn’t know what to expect from this book as I have never read an MMA book before and I have to say I can’t wait for the next one. I loved that this was set in Australia and the dialect was authentic. I really enjoyed the storyline although I did find myself struggling to get into it in the beginning. I kept going and BOY I am so happy I did. I loved the courage of both characters and absolutely fell in love with Xander “Pretty Boy” Todd.
Xander and Eden are both trying to live their lives the only way they know how, to hide their fear and pain way down deep inside. When these two are brought together, they both realise that to move forward they must face their past.
Can they both be BRAVE enough to be together…..
Natalie Gayle
I liked this book. It is always interesting how people handle being kicked to the curb by life.
I love a tortured character and this story comes with two. Realistic without them coming off as whiny. Strong story about people facing that which holds them back.
Natalie Gayle’s Brave was simply an amazing tale. She brings two people from completely different walks of life together in the most beautiful of ways.
Eden Sommers had just signed her first modeling contract when tragedy struck. While saving her younger sisters from a house fire, Eden becomes badly burned. After facing almost a year in the hospital and countless surgeries, she feels she must hide away from the world because of her scarring. She chooses to limit her dealings with people and the outside world, spending time only with her family and her therapist.
Xander Todd, a rising MMA star is about to propel himself to superstar status when one punch changes his life. While deemed an accident, killing a man in the ring changes Xander’s life. Instead of being a professional fighter, he opens his own dojo to teach and train others while remaining out of the spotlight and trying to deal with his survivor’s guilt.
While seemingly from different walks of life, both Eden and Xander are beautifully scarred. When brought together through Eden’s sisters, their relationship immediately blossoms. Xander sees much more than Eden’s scars . . . he sees her soul and how brave she must be to deal with things, such as being seen in public, that most of us take for granted. Eden also sees through Xander and how he has avoided what he truly wants in life by pretending to be something he is not in order to hide his emotional scars.
Natalie Gayle created such amazingly strong characters. Yes, they are flawed. Yes, they struggle daily. And together, they seem to be a couple that stands no chance. However, Eden and Xander build each other up and become what the other needs in ways that cause them both to grow individually and as a couple. This story had so many emotional ups and downs and incredible moments that is sucked me in and kept me reading chapter after chapter, needing to know if Xander and Eden would be able to heal one another and have the relationship they both deserve.
Beautifully done, Ms. Gayle! I can’t wait to continue with this series! 5 stars.