Reality Bites! Let's Get Lost!: Giveaway, Review & Tour: Light in the Shadows (find You in the Dark #2) by A. Meredith Walters

5 Hearts

Goodreads Summary

How do you keep going when you feel like your life is over?

Maggie never thought she’d see Clay again. So, she attempts to put her life back together after her heart has been shattered to pieces. Moving on and moving forward, just as Clay wanted her to.

Clay never stopped thinking of Maggie. Even after ripping their lives apart and leaving her behind to get the help he so desperately needed. He is healing...slowly. But his heart still belongs to the girl who tried to save him.

When a sudden tragedy brings Maggie and Clay face to face again, nothing is the same. Yet some things never change. Can the darkness that threatened to consume them be transformed into something else and finally give them what they always wanted? And can two people who fought so hard to be together, finally find their happiness? Or will their demons and fear drive them apart for good?

The thing about love, is even when it destroys you, it has a way of mending what is broken. And in the shadows, you can still see the light.

**ARC provided by author for an honest review**

*PLEASE NOTE: if you have not read Find You in the Dark, the first book in the series, then this review will contain spoilers.

Sometimes, you read a book where you become invested in the characters and the outcome of their story. It is like they almost become real for you. That is how I feel about Maggie and Clay. From the moment I read the beginning of their journey in Find You in the Dark, I felt this connection with them. I HAD to know they would both be okay.

Before I started reading Light in the Shadows, I was nervous. I decided to go back and reread my review for the first book. And the one thing that i was feeling at the moment when i wrote it that really stood out to me was this..

I am hoping that as their story continues, Clay will be in a better place. I also believe that if Maggie and Clay stand any chance of finding their way back to each other, she must seek help too. She needs someone outside of her world to talk to about everything that happened. No one could endure all that and not be emotionally scarred in some way.

But it was immediately apparent that Maggie didn't seek out the help I so strongly believed she needed. And because of that, I feared there would be no hope for her and Clay. You could sense the underlining anger she had. Not only for what Clay did but also for him making the decision to cut her out of his life completely. Yes, that anger was what was pushing her forward and allowing her to function somewhat normally. But I also felt it was hindering her from truly moving on. Not so much from Clay, but more from the things that had happened.

Clay did what he believed was the right thing by telling Maggie to move on. He truly believes her life would be better without him in it. Especially after the events that occurred in North Carolina. He is now over 1000 miles away, trying to fix himself. And in the process he is learning that the one girl he loves more then anything, is also a trigger for the darkness he is trying to move past. This bit of news was hard for me to read. Because even though I had told myself I would be okay if Maggie and Clay didn't end up together, I knew I was lying to myself.

But then tragedy hits and Clay must put his treatment on hold to return home.

It throws Maggie and Clay back together. And though things between them are definitely different this time, there is still much of the same. Can they possibly make a relationship work with Clay's illness and their past history? I asked myself this question many many times through out this book. And I finally realized that just maybe I needed to make peace with the fact that they might not end up together. I loved them both so much, all I wanted for them both was to be happy and healthy.

I won't tell you anymore then that. This book is one you need to read and experience for yourself. To feel all the emotions Ms. Walters will no doubt pull out of you with her beautiful, heart wrenching story about a broken boy and the girl who loves him. In the end, I was proud of both Maggie and Clay. And felt the ending was just as it should be.

The New York Times bestselling author of Contemporary and Paranormal romance including Find You in the Dark, Cloud Walking and Bad Rep.

A. Meredith spent ten years as a counselor for at risk teens and children. First working at a Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault program and then later a program for children with severe emotional and mental health issues. Her former clients and their stories continue to influence every aspect of her writing.

A. Meredith recently moved to England and is trying to get used to driving on the other side of the road, eating fish and chips and all things British :-)

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twitter username

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Goodreads Page

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Goodreads book link

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17155039-light-in-the-shadows