Thursday, March 3, 2016

Book Review: Fight to Forgive by J. Leigh Bailey

Recent college grad Aaron Elliott is a pro when it comes to avoiding conflict. So when he hears his mother and stepfather plan to sell the family’s rambling summer retreat, it takes everything in him to object. The lake house is where he feels closest to his late father. It’s where he fell in love with his best friend…and it’s where he let family pressure decide his future rather than following his heart.

A combat injury has naval officer James “Freddie” Fredrick dry-docked, possibly for good. But the pain in his shoulder is nothing like the hurt he feels when he sees Aaron back in town. It’s been four years since the love of his life left without a word—and though Freddie would give anything to deny it, the heat between them hasn’t faded.

Once upon a time, Aaron let Freddie go without a fight. He won’t screw up their second chance to have a happy ending. But unless he makes peace with the past, Freddie won’t be able to face their future.


This book was just okay for me. I often found myself extremely frustrated with the main characters because both of them refused to communicate with each other and try to figure out why the other did what he did four years earlier. Freddie was very hardened by his broken heart and military life, and Aaron just seemed weak overall because he never wanted to stand up for himself out of fear of confrontation. It took quite a while for things to start moving in this book due to the amount of exposition and set up. If the MCs had actually sat down and talked to each other from the start, the book probably would have ended up being maybe 20 pages long.

I both loved and hated the side characters, especially the women. Freddie's mother and sister were wonderful! They were funny, witty and silly, but also wouldn't allow themselves to be doormats. Aaron's mother and step-sister, however, were vile, nasty and manipulative. They knew Aaron hated confrontation and used that against him to bend him to their wills. They had absolutely no redeeming qualities, and the book would have been much more enjoyable without them.


2.5 stars

                                                         Release date: March 28, 2016

An ARC of this book was provided the by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.



Buy Links
Carina Press | Amazon 


~ M

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