The Me I Used to Be

Jennifer Ryan delivers a page turning novel in The Me I Used to Be. It’s one of those books that makes us search our own souls, and touches all the emotions. Well done, Jennifer, well done!!

Suspense, betrayal, and true love abound as Evangeline tries to rebuild her life and expose the shocking truth about the past.

The Me I Used To Be by Jennifer Ryan is the story of a woman just out of four years of prison after being arrested for transporting stolen goods. She was at her parole hearing when the arresting office came in and spoke to the panel. She was sure it was nothing good. She had been right. Her father had died the night before. She was released immediately. She hated this deputy, Chris. He had arrested her in the first place. Now he wanted to talk to her. He appeared he knew the truth of her silence and her life since then. He was offering her the opportunity to put the people who had instigated this whole mess behind bars in exchange for expunging her record. She didn’t trust him, but she was smarter than she had been four years ago. At the reading of the will, one entire life insurance policy for $50,000 came directly to her. She also had the deciding vote on what would happen with the ranch. They were already furious with her, now it was worse. What had her father been thinking?

Evangeline is a seriously tough young woman. She had been kind, caring, and fun loving, but four years being the target of some of the other prisoners had changed all that. Just surviving had changed that. All she wanted was her life back. She could not longer confront her father, but her brothers, her mother, and her grandmother were all still here. If she could have them back, she could be happy. Right off the bat, she starting using the degree she had earned in prison to earn money developing websites. Chris found her her first customer. He was a lot nicer guy than she thought. She liked him, but she needed to avoid him until the bad guys were put away. Could she do it? Could her protect her? This is a very different kind of crime novel/romance. It is stunning in its raw portrayal of the criminals involved and how far they would go to get what they wanted. The characters were compelling and likable (some of them) and I can’t say enough good about this book. I loved it. Read it…you will love it, too.

I was invited to read a free ARC of The Me I Used to Be by Netgalley. All opinions and thoughts are my own. #netgalley #themeiusedtobe

I have never read this author before, but I really enjoy this book. It was more emotional than I might normally pick up but it hooked me immediately. Great characters, too. I’ll have to check out more of Jennifer Ryan’s stuff!

This is my kind of story! Original plot with a cop, sign me up! Relatable characters with a strong-willed protagonist who takes what life throws at her without complaint. A heart-warming love story!

This is a book about secrets kept and lies told to protect others. Evangeline Austen is sent to prison after being found guilty of possession and transporting stolen goods. Did she do it, or was she protecting someone?

I liked Evangeline and some of the other characters, but I didn’t believe they were real. Emotions seemed to turn on and off, as if someone had flipped a switch. Evangeline comes out of prison and steps right back into her life. There’s no disorientation about being able to move around as she wishes, no looking over her shoulder for guards or aggressive prisoners, nothing to indicate that she spent four very difficult years locked in a prison where she was brutally attacked, to the point of almost dying, more than once. And while meeting with a parole officer was mentioned a time or two, it never happened, even after she’d been out of jail for weeks.

Her family members were beyond belief. Given that they knew her and who she’d been before getting arrested, they treated her as if she’d gone out of her way to bring shame and grief to them. Not a one of them ever asked her to explain what really happened or why she might have done it. They were just happy to throw accusations at her. Her mother was the worst. One incident, and they wrote her off and out of their lives. And while Evangeline mourned their treatment, she wasn’t about to reveal the truth, until she did.

The confrontation between Darren and Tom, Evangeline and the police seemed extreme, but I could see it happening when all you care about is yourself. I doubt Tom gave a thought to the repercussions of his actions.

I also thought this was just a so-so read. It’s nice, but nothing out of the ordinary for a romantic-suspense tale.

I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley. I thank them for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reactions to reading this book.

Very good read.

I loved this book. It was written very well and I came to know the characters. I couldn’t put it down.

Enjoyable read about a family tragedy that develops into a positive outcome. Hard to put down.

This book was a great read. It kept me interested in reading it. It interested Me from the beginning to the very end