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rosielovesreading 's review for:
Beneath the Surface
by Emily McIntire
Another incredible book from Emily, this series will always have a special place in my heart. Lily’s story is one I have been waiting for since Beneath the Stars and it lived up to every single one of my expectations! Emily’s writing is as incredible as always, and the emotional journey she puts you on is tough but so worth it!
Lily has been running for years, from her past, her family, her ex. She finally feels settled, with her son, in a town in the middle of nowhere where no one asks questions, and she can blend into the background. Until Mason enters her life, first as an occasional visitor the bar she waitresses at, and then suddenly more permanently when she’s in a bind with childcare. But little does she know that Mason is actually there for an ulterior motive, as a PI who’s been hired to track Lily down by her older brother Chase. But the more involved Mason becomes in Lily and her son’s life, the more he realizes he doesn’t want to betray her trust and give her up. In the meantime, Mason’s own past comes back to haunt him, and he’s faced with a big decision, but which will he choose?
Mason and Lily could be their complete selves with one another, with no judgement on either part and know that they would be accepted, darkness and light. But that didn’t mean they didn’t keep secrets, and parts of themselves hidden, slowly dismantling their walls that past hurt has meant they’ve constructed over the years.
Lily’s journey of recovery was one that was heart-breaking but had hope too. Emily wrote about the realities of a recovering addict so well, how the craving will never go away, but that learning what’s more important in your life than giving in, and what you could lose by making that choice. Mason was running from his own demons, solving other people’s problems instead of his own, but when he found Lily and realised what he wanted from his life, he knew he had to face his past before he could have a happy future. At times, their story felt quite separate, both dealing with their own lives before they could be a real couple, but I quite like that aspect as although it’s good to lean on each other when going through hard times, sometimes it is something you need to do on your own.
The Sugarlake series is one that will stay with me for a while. Each character is flawed, which makes them real. They aren’t a perfect version of themselves, and one of the things I loved most about the entire group was how after I turned the final page of each couples’ book was that I knew they would continue to grow as people, and couples, forever. Because that’s reality, you are never the same people throughout a relationship, but you develop and change together, adapting to life and what it throws at you as a unit. You support each other and love each other for every flaw. Emily did these characters justice in their stories, tackling difficult subjects with sensitivity and respect, but not sugar-coating anything. In the epilogue, it was amazing to see them all happy and settled, but still work in progress versions of themselves, indicating no one’s perfect, but they all have their own dreams and fears that they will never stop chasing or fighting. The stories were raw and real, and that’s one of the main reasons I would recommend anybody to read this series.
Lily has been running for years, from her past, her family, her ex. She finally feels settled, with her son, in a town in the middle of nowhere where no one asks questions, and she can blend into the background. Until Mason enters her life, first as an occasional visitor the bar she waitresses at, and then suddenly more permanently when she’s in a bind with childcare. But little does she know that Mason is actually there for an ulterior motive, as a PI who’s been hired to track Lily down by her older brother Chase. But the more involved Mason becomes in Lily and her son’s life, the more he realizes he doesn’t want to betray her trust and give her up. In the meantime, Mason’s own past comes back to haunt him, and he’s faced with a big decision, but which will he choose?
Mason and Lily could be their complete selves with one another, with no judgement on either part and know that they would be accepted, darkness and light. But that didn’t mean they didn’t keep secrets, and parts of themselves hidden, slowly dismantling their walls that past hurt has meant they’ve constructed over the years.
Lily’s journey of recovery was one that was heart-breaking but had hope too. Emily wrote about the realities of a recovering addict so well, how the craving will never go away, but that learning what’s more important in your life than giving in, and what you could lose by making that choice. Mason was running from his own demons, solving other people’s problems instead of his own, but when he found Lily and realised what he wanted from his life, he knew he had to face his past before he could have a happy future. At times, their story felt quite separate, both dealing with their own lives before they could be a real couple, but I quite like that aspect as although it’s good to lean on each other when going through hard times, sometimes it is something you need to do on your own.
The Sugarlake series is one that will stay with me for a while. Each character is flawed, which makes them real. They aren’t a perfect version of themselves, and one of the things I loved most about the entire group was how after I turned the final page of each couples’ book was that I knew they would continue to grow as people, and couples, forever. Because that’s reality, you are never the same people throughout a relationship, but you develop and change together, adapting to life and what it throws at you as a unit. You support each other and love each other for every flaw. Emily did these characters justice in their stories, tackling difficult subjects with sensitivity and respect, but not sugar-coating anything. In the epilogue, it was amazing to see them all happy and settled, but still work in progress versions of themselves, indicating no one’s perfect, but they all have their own dreams and fears that they will never stop chasing or fighting. The stories were raw and real, and that’s one of the main reasons I would recommend anybody to read this series.