jillie's review
dark
emotional
tense
4.25
Wow. This was a wild ride. I thought I understood what was going on, and then the story took a crazy turn. I cared so much for Issy & was very satisfied with her faith journey.
Definitely felt a little less realistic than Gray’s other books, but I was gripped & couldn’t put it down. My heart was racing during the entire last third or so.
Mind the content warnings! This was very intense with the things that happen to Issy & what she does to herself as well.
2/2/23
Definitely felt a little less realistic than Gray’s other books, but I was gripped & couldn’t put it down. My heart was racing during the entire last third or so.
Mind the content warnings! This was very intense with the things that happen to Issy & what she does to herself as well.
2/2/23
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Alcohol
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, Trafficking, and Stalking
Minor: Blood, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
mrssmithreadsrom's review
5.0
T L Gray has once again shown how the lack of the love of Christ can devastate our lives and wreck us from the inside out. I love how she used a story of a young lady who, after a lifetime of being shown that people can and will only disappoint you, deals with the emptiness like many people do today, with alcohol and meaningless relationships. Then she turns around and shows how even in the least likeliest of places, God will show up and give us the strength and the support to overcome the darkness these temporary fixes only make worse. Mingle in a little love story with a happy ending and you have yourself the perfect weekend read. What a great way to relate to real people and show that even in the midst of suffering, God is always present and will never be far away.
gothicsunshinebooks's review
4.0
Dear T.L. Gray,
This novel deserves a long review. Yet Iѓ??m struggling for words. It has been a while since I have completed this novel. I had so much to say, right before I lost my thoughts. Shackled Lily was so much better than Shattered Rose. One thing that struck me about Issy, is she is so full of life. I loved her instantly.
Since Izzy was let out of the hospital from drinking herself to death, she is now forced to live with her dad, the one person she hates. Izzy hates her dad for what he did to her mom, for controlling peopleѓ??s lives, not only with her, but also with Jake, Grant, and everyone around her. He held all the power. Not only Izzy was stuck with her dad, sheѓ??s stuck with Grant. Lizzy did not want to be around Grant, with good reasons. It made her care for him. Then one day Izzy found Grant with another girl and that broke her heart, becoming the start of a vow to herself to never let any guys hurt her again. Since then, Izzy does her best to do whatever she could do to be enjoying herself, and her life, when really she's on the run. Eventually Izzyѓ??s problems have caught up with her, leaving her with the option to surrender and become a puppet, or fight and get out of her situation.
This story is about Izzy and Grant. Grant had so much patience. I donѓ??t know how the hell he does it. I donѓ??t know how he keeps putting up with Izzyѓ??s antics. Izzy is always partying, getting drunk, never settling down, just to rebel against her dad. Izzy parties so she can feel alive. Without the constant distraction, her mental wall breaks down. Grant can see through her facade, accepting whatever Izzy was always willing to give. Even if it means he wasnѓ??t getting anything back, such as a friendship, or an emotional support buddy.
I am rambling. The plot, for me in some way does not make sense. It was the merger portion. Where Izzyѓ??s dad sold her to Robbie. When I first read the description of the book, the phrase "he vowed to make her his," sounded quite dark, dangerous, and mysterious. I also thought at first it was referring to Grant himself, but it was referring to Robbie. But now that I think about it, either guys, it works.
When I picked up this book, I have also thought the narrative would sound exactly like Shattered Rose. I was wrong. Even though it was part of the same series, there was a slightly different tone to this novel. Issy is a fighter. It was not just the control she was fighting for. I did not feel this novel was pushing the Christianity theme so much as the last book, which is also another reason I particularly enjoyed this. The only part of this book I did not like was how the merger ended. I wanted to know more, at the same time the abrupt end to the novel, it's unrealistic. The way this novel ended, does not do justice for Izzy's story. Her ending would be much more epic.
One last book to go in this series...
I didn't like Jake at all. I actually don't care for him either. If i could remember correctly, he was always taking care of his mom. He had to grow up so fast. I wonder what it is about Jake that made Issy keep him around. The idea of having on last book in the series to read is quite exciting because I can finally put this down and never look back. At the same time with the last book being about Jake... just no. I would rather the series end at Issy's story.
This novel deserves a long review. Yet Iѓ??m struggling for words. It has been a while since I have completed this novel. I had so much to say, right before I lost my thoughts. Shackled Lily was so much better than Shattered Rose. One thing that struck me about Issy, is she is so full of life. I loved her instantly.
Since Izzy was let out of the hospital from drinking herself to death, she is now forced to live with her dad, the one person she hates. Izzy hates her dad for what he did to her mom, for controlling peopleѓ??s lives, not only with her, but also with Jake, Grant, and everyone around her. He held all the power. Not only Izzy was stuck with her dad, sheѓ??s stuck with Grant. Lizzy did not want to be around Grant, with good reasons. It made her care for him. Then one day Izzy found Grant with another girl and that broke her heart, becoming the start of a vow to herself to never let any guys hurt her again. Since then, Izzy does her best to do whatever she could do to be enjoying herself, and her life, when really she's on the run. Eventually Izzyѓ??s problems have caught up with her, leaving her with the option to surrender and become a puppet, or fight and get out of her situation.
This story is about Izzy and Grant. Grant had so much patience. I donѓ??t know how the hell he does it. I donѓ??t know how he keeps putting up with Izzyѓ??s antics. Izzy is always partying, getting drunk, never settling down, just to rebel against her dad. Izzy parties so she can feel alive. Without the constant distraction, her mental wall breaks down. Grant can see through her facade, accepting whatever Izzy was always willing to give. Even if it means he wasnѓ??t getting anything back, such as a friendship, or an emotional support buddy.
I am rambling. The plot, for me in some way does not make sense. It was the merger portion. Where Izzyѓ??s dad sold her to Robbie. When I first read the description of the book, the phrase "he vowed to make her his," sounded quite dark, dangerous, and mysterious. I also thought at first it was referring to Grant himself, but it was referring to Robbie. But now that I think about it, either guys, it works.
When I picked up this book, I have also thought the narrative would sound exactly like Shattered Rose. I was wrong. Even though it was part of the same series, there was a slightly different tone to this novel. Issy is a fighter. It was not just the control she was fighting for. I did not feel this novel was pushing the Christianity theme so much as the last book, which is also another reason I particularly enjoyed this. The only part of this book I did not like was how the merger ended. I wanted to know more, at the same time the abrupt end to the novel, it's unrealistic. The way this novel ended, does not do justice for Izzy's story. Her ending would be much more epic.
One last book to go in this series...
I didn't like Jake at all. I actually don't care for him either. If i could remember correctly, he was always taking care of his mom. He had to grow up so fast. I wonder what it is about Jake that made Issy keep him around. The idea of having on last book in the series to read is quite exciting because I can finally put this down and never look back. At the same time with the last book being about Jake... just no. I would rather the series end at Issy's story.
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