“Intense, gritty, and full of heart.” They say it takes 21 days to form a habit. They lie. For 21 days she held on. But on Day 22, she would have given anything for the sweet slumber of death. Because on Day 22, she realizes that her only way out means certain death for one of the two men she loves. A haunting tale of passion, loss, and redemption, The Paper Swan is a darkly intense yet … Swan is a darkly intense yet heartwarming love story, textured with grit, intrigue, and suspense.A full-length, standalone romantic suspense novel, intended for mature audiences due to violence, sex and language. Subject matter may be disturbing for some readers. Please note: this is not a love triangle.
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3.5 stars
My 1st book by this author. This story took some time to pick up for me. But I didn’t DNF because there was something, a little feeling telling me that there was a good story coming… and it did.
This is quite an unusual storyline. There’s action, suspense, love and revenge.
I was happy with the ending.
I’m a sucker for a good Stockholm syndrome romance, and this one is right at the top of my list. It is very believable, and not rushed in the story or the romance.
I feel like I was SUPER LATE to this party. I had it on my TBR for a long time and thought i should just suck it up and read it. This book was twisty, angsty and at times, shocking and heartbreaking. I don’t want to give too much away because there are so many twists and turns. I’m glad i went in completely blind. It takes place over the course of many years and you get to see the evolution of these characters and how far they veer away from each other. It shows the power of love and the power of hate. How a broken boy is healed by love. This is a must read.
This book was one of those books you can’t put down and when you do it just haunts you. I love a good book and this one was one of my top reads so far this year.
The story starts with a kidnapping and from there it just gets darker. As it progressed it goes from Skyes past to her present. The way it was written just sucked me into the story.
It was so dark and gritty and parts of happiness. Pain and vengeance laced with love and forgiveness. This book went from their childhood to present it was over a 24 year span but the tale was waved so well I wanted more.
Two broken souls piece together and prove that love doesn’t die.
Wonderful Read!
My goodness, this book was one of those that after you turn the first page, you are unable to put it down! The love that developed as young children through to adulthood… Lots of miscommunication from everyone in the story aids in 2 people who clearly love each other but are forced apart due to circumstances. The twists and turns along with the perfectly flowing story line makes this book one of my favorites so far this year!!
Read August 2015
What a story! I definitely recommend this book and this author.
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~~5 ELECTRIFYING STARS~~
“You can either choose love or you can choose hate, because where one lives, the other will die.”
THE PAPER SWAN by New York Times bestselling author Leylah Attar left me completely and utterly enthralled! I knew even before going in, after hearing all the positive buzz and glowing accolades, that this book was going to be something special. But nonetheless, there are no words to adequately describe how absolutely MAGNIFICENT it was!!
This is truly one of the most deeply moving, harrowing, hauntingly beautiful romantic suspense novels I have EVER read. THE PAPER SWAN is an epic story, spanning decades, which follows the lives of two childhood friends-turned foes-turned lovers, who are tragically separated by time and distance, torn asunder by blistering rage and unbearable heartache and festering resentment, but whose destinies are forever intertwined! There is so much gorgeous imagery and symbolism weaved throughout the book, and I am still trying to wrap my brain around it all. But in the end, my takeaway is that this story about innocence lost and found again, finding hope and quiet majesty even in the darkest moments of despair, and the incredible resilience of the human heart.
“We lay on the floor, wishing for the simplicity of childhood, the wholeness of hearts, the sweetness of pure, unadulterated life. Muddy puddles and chocolate faces and skinned knees and skipping rope; me hiding behind MaMaLu’s skirts after painting his face ballerina pink as he slept under the tree.”
This stunning novel held my heart in a vice grip from the first page to the very last, and sometimes I was so embroiled in the story I barely came up for air! I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough yet at the same time I wanted to read in slow motion so I could savor each and every exquisite word. Very gorgeous nuance. Every spellbinding, searingly emotional moment. To put it simply, this book left me transfixed! The narrative was eloquent, poetic and beautifully textured, the plotline gritty and raw, the love story brutally painful yet sweepingly romantic, and the characters so profoundly flawed yet endearingly human they splintered my soul.
It hard to describe the gamut of chaotic feelings this novel evoked in me. Anger. Fear. Trepidation. Devastation. Outrage. Love. Longing. Hope. Tenderness. Euphoria. My emotions kept swinging back and forth like a pendulum, and it was such an incredibly taxing, gut-wrenching read at times that I had to take breaks in between to avoid sensory overload. Is it a dark, twisted, disturbing read? Heck yeah!! But at its core is a heartstirring love story that stands the test of time. Through good times and bad, happiness and sorrow, these two soulmates were tethered together by their all consuming passion for each other—and the legacy of one remarkable woman, MaMaLu. But the cruel hands of fate nearly destroyed them both.
In the classic setup of an eye for an eye, Damian was out to right a past wrong. He lived for vengeance. Retribution. Revenge. And it set him on a dark, diabolical path of destruction that nearly decimated both their worlds.
“Hate was an illusion, rage was an illusion, vengeance was an illusion. They were all empty husks that he had watered and nurtured, and in the end, they bore no fruit.”
It is via the sheer power of Ms. Attar’s writing that she was able to make me sympathize with a “hero” who I started off absolutely loathing. Damian Caballero was evil personified in the beginning, a cold-hearted, soulless monster who did despicable things to our beloved heroine, Skye Sedgewick. In fact, some of the physical and emotional torture he inflicted on the innocent heiress made my skin crawl. But as the story started to unravel and shift, flashing between the present and the past, so did my feelings for this confounding, complicated man. I eventually came to realize that NOTHING was as it appeared.
Was Damian worthy of redemption? Of love? Of forgiveness? Could he ever truly atone for his sins? Yes…yes…1000 times YES!! Because by book’s end not only was he fully rehabilitated in my eyes, but I ended up forgiving him fully and loving him as intensely as I once reviled him. And, miraculously, what started off as a dark, depraved story of cruel captivity transformed into an exquisitely beautiful, LIBERATING, fiercely tender love story that moved me to tears.
“When I follow my heart, it always leads me back to you.”
For no matter what obstacles were strewn in their path, no matter how much danger and madness, murder and mayhem and bars of steel were erected between them, Skye never stopped loving Damian, never stopped fighting for a future with him, ultimately giving him the courage to claw his way out of the darkness. For her. The girl who’d forever own a piece of his soul. Her strength, courage, kindness, capacity for love and forgiveness were absolutely AWE-INSPIRING!
“Because when we love, we carry it on the inside, and we can turn on its light even in our darkest moments. The deeper we love, the brighter it shines. Love don’t die. ”
This plot was so brilliantly crafted and executed, with so many jaw dropping twists and turns it had me gasping at times! I relish big “full circle” moments in books, where everything that has been building from the beginning reaches a shattering crescendo, and this novel had one of the most spectacular climaxes I have EVER read. I still get chills just thinking about it! And the ending couldn’t have been more perfect.
Ultimately, THE PAPER SWAN is a powerful, profound, hauntingly beautiful story that branded my heart and soul. This is my first novel by the marvelously gifted Leylah Attar, but it will certainly not be my last!!
WOW this was such a beautiful and heartbreaking book. I really loved it, I was sucked in from the first page on. Leylah has this way of telling a story that really touches you. I was crying during a few scenes and smiling and laughing at others. I think I felt almost all emotions that can be felt: from anger to sadness to happiness. I am not going to tell anything about the book itself because it would be spoiling it. The ending was perfect. I also really enjoyed the flashbacks, while I normally am not such a fan of them. Can’t wait to read more by Leylah Attar!!
Leylah Attar…I need to remember that name! The author who just gave me a wonderful reading experience.
Since this is my first book of hers I didn’t know what to expect, but I was surprised that it captivates my attention after turning a few pages and I just can’t put it down. There’s the twist that I didn’t see coming, but I love how it turns out to be.
The way she writes the story of Skye, Esteban & Damian are well thought of. Characters that will stay with you after you are done reading them.