RIVERBuried deep under a mountain of lies, I’m struggling for air. My life, my choices are being dictated by my father. I was forced to give up the man I love in order to protect him and now I must marry a man who I hate. I thought I had found a way out.I thought my time in this gilded cage was almost over. Then one day Jaxson Holden walks back into my life, flipping it upside down. He’s angry, I … it upside down.
He’s angry, I get it.
But he has no idea how much I have to lose—how much he has to lose with him coming back.
Now I need to find a way to hold on while I’m gasping for breath as my past and present collide.
Just keep breathing, River.
Just keep breathing.
more
I love to read about second chances and this one was a good one!! River has to give up the love her life, because of her ruthless father and it kills her. Fast forward to this story and you find out why and you will be mad and sad for River. Angst, drama, trusting others from your past, heartbreak, sickness, loss, romance and revenge are all the greatness you get with this book. This is a must read!!
I have not read a bad book from this author yet and this book is no exception! The great plot and character development kept me so engaged throughout the entire book that I had a very hard time putting this book down until the very last page was turned!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
WOW!!!
River Graham is a woman who on the outside looks beautiful, strong, and put together. But what lies beneath the surface is that she is living in hell. She used to have it all a happy life, she was a wife, but one night changed her life forever and she had to leave behind everything to save him and his family. Now, she is the perfect little princess working for daddy, engaged to someone new. But no one knows what lurks beneath the surface and how much pain she has endured. And now standing there is her ex, the love of her life. How is that possible?
Jaxson Holden is a man looking for payback for the years he lost. He’s sexy, smart, and willing to do whatever it takes to get back at his ex for leaving him and their life behind. That’s why he is there in front of her taunting her to make sure she knows that he’s ready for the next step. To take her off her pedestal. But when he looks into her eyes he doesn’t see the same woman that he loved reflected back in his eyes. All he sees is pain and someone willing to be walked all over. What is going on?
This book is one of a kind. A real honest to god real book on what it’s like to fight for what’s right and how sometimes you can lose your way. But when you find your way back, all the pain and all the hurt made you stronger in the end. It had me laughing, crying, and then so happy that you’re going to have to get a copy for yourself. It was beautiful.
Barely breathing is book 1 in the Keep breathing series. Rivers father is very controlling. Where he threatens River, if she doesn’t leave Jax and go with him, he will destroy him. She had her life now she was under her dads control. Fast forward 2 years. She is engaged to a man she doesn’t love. He is her dads right hand man. River runs her grandfather company after he passed and is the CEO. But her dad has other plans. He wants it back because he is a money hungry and wants the power back. This is great story. I love suspense and second chances.
Oh wow, this book was absolutely amazing. I spent the whole night reading this book and once I started reading I really could not put it down. This is my first book by this author but it definitely won’t be my last. Fantastic read and highly recommended.
Holy Wow! This book blew me away! Honestly I thought that it was going to be the kind of book where it’ll take me a while to get into, but boy was I wrong! This book had my face buried in my kindle for two days! I could not put it down. Jax and River’s story just had me hooked! Ms. Marselas hit this one out of the park! I can’t wait to read more by her!
This is a new to me author, but I was really intrigued by the description. I really enjoyed River and Jaxson’s story. While I liked how it was told through flashbacks, some of the timelines were a little hard to follow.
I loved how they worked past what drove them apart in the first place, and the theme of him being her oxygen was a strong concept throughout the book, proved over and over again.
I’m excited for more!
Jax and River are torn apart by her manipulative and unscrupulous father. River vanished and Jax has no idea why. Two years later, he finds her and wants answers. I love books told from dual POVs, you are given a whole different picture of the story. I the years that River’s been gone from Jax, she has grown as a woman, with strength of purpose and determination. These two have intense chemistry and regardless of how things ended years ago, Jax still loves her and comes to see that she has suffered as much as he has. This book has some really awful bad guys, River’s father and her fiancé, Harry. But, can Jax and River persevere? The book has great flow, is a page turner from start to finish. I don’t recommend starting this unless you have the time to finish, it will hang on to you. Great read.
Love this book. Could not put down till i finished to see what happened between Jaxson and River. Can not wait to see whats next
When Jaxson shows up where River works she is not too happy. She left him behind and doesn’t want the memories. Jaxson wants revenge for when River left him. There are so many secrets unknown.
This book was full of so much romance and angst. Throw in some revenge, hate, and so many secrets and you have a great read. You have characters you love and characters you will hate. The angst will keep you guessing. The ending was so great.
I was so wrapped up in reading about River and Jaxson I didn’t want to put it down to go to work. River is the CEO of her company and engaged to Harry but River is an excellent actress, so has a lot going on behind the scenes. What can wreck her goings on? Jaxson her ex husband, the man she destroyed. This book is so action packed you won’t want to miss a thing.
Barely Breathing is a second chance standalone romance and the first book of the Keep Breathing Series. This is my first read by this author and holy cow, she has gained a new follower!
I literally could put this book down! Once I started reading about Jaxson and River, I got sucked in and I was not coming back out until I was done. I even sat my desk with my computer hiding my Kindle…that is how sucked In I got!
Jaxson and River’s story has all the feels and then some! I laughed, I cried, I wanted to kick some butt, I wanted to slap her father Jeff and Harry (multi-times I might add), had my heart torn out and put back together.
Jax and Rivs have had their lives torn apart by her evil father. The road to getting their lives and their love for one another back is long and narrow with many twists and turns.
This was a well written story and left me wanting more and seriously cannot wait until I can my hands on the next installment – Liam’s story! I highly recommend – you won’t be disappointed in picking up this book.
Barely Breathing is the first book in Erica Marselas’ Keep Breathing series featuring River, who is being forced into a marriage to a man of her father’s choosing and must give up Jax to protect him, and Jaxson, who decides to take revenge against River for breaking his heart (he doesn’t know she did it for his protection). I could not put this addictive second chance romance down with its great plot and heartfelt characters. I highly recommend this great read.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Wow!! Jaxson is the bad boy that’s tattooed that meets River a girl who wants a tattoo but they’ve never gotten along. Jaxson see her as a goody goody and River just is trying to hold onto her life. Her mom passes away who she loved and knew she was safe. Then her grandfather was after her mother. Jaxson became her sole and she needed him. As they grew up feelings changed and they became lovers and more. Till her father pulled her away from Jaxson to protect him and his family. She didn’t really have a choice. Jaxson finds her and wants revenge but after learning everything that has happened he only wants to love her and help her and protect her. Will they find happiness or will her father get control of her again?
In Barely Breathing Erica Marcelas delivers not only a heavy dose of steam and romance, for which she is known for, but adds in a suspenseful, twisty, thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The story of Jaxon and River leaps off the page from the first page. The backstory of River clearly places you in her corner and prepares you for the wild ride to come.
Erica does a fantastic job of layering in complex characters who are much than their initial impressions. This serves her well, when the stakes rise, chapter after chapter, and you are left guessing as to what may happen next as Jaxon and River encounter roadblock after roadblock.
However, Barely Breathing balances the fast-paced thrills with blush-worthy steam that will force you to slow down, turn down the lights and shut the door.
Barely Breathing is a great novel that will leave you breathless. 5 stars.
I was unable to put this book down!!! River and Jaxon’s story is amazing and beautiful!!! This is a steamy, fun, thrilling second chance book that you have to read!! River has had a rough life and had to give up the love of her life because of her evil father! She has a plan though to take down her evil father! This book has soooo many twists and turns and everyone needs to read it!!! I loved this book and can’t wait to read more by this author!