Ciera
All I wanted was to be able to make it through my senior year. I didn’t need the stares, the jokes, or the bullies. I thought I could do it all on my own, but I was wrong. He filled my veins like a poison, the kind you can’t run from. Harsh and uncaring, he was broken, but somewhere along the way he seeped into my pores. There was no way out, so that left me with one choice: to open his eyes to the beauty around him–to help him live.
Topher
She wasn’t on my agenda; it was fate’s cruel way of telling me I needed to get my shit together. To be fair, my head was so far up my ass, I’m not sure how we extracted it. I knew the power I held over my peers, and I exuded it daily. I could have had any girl I wanted at the snap of my fingers, and yet I found myself fantasizing about her–someone so far off my radar it wasn’t even funny. She helped me understand that sometimes you need to let go to really live.
Sometimes being alive means taking risks.
Learning to Live is the first book in the Infinite Love series.
The Infinite Love series comes with hard hitting subjects such as bullying, suicide, depression, disorders, abuse, addiction, fears, love, death, and more. The stories aren’t going to be pretty, but they are going to be real.
MY REVIEW
Learning to Live is an unexpected, and heartbreaking love story. Told from dual points of view, this story doesn’t back down from the hard and uncomfortable topics. Topher and Ciera’s journey isn’t easy, but is so worth the ride.
When we first meet up with Ciera, we learn that she just wants to disappear and fade into the background. She is relentlessly bullied by a former friend and the popular kids. Her goal, just to take one day at a time and make the most out of the time she has left. What she wasn’t planning on was him. The last thing on Topher’s radar was Ciera…that is until one day he stands up for her. Since that moment, he can’t help but take notice. There’s just something about her. She’s not the typical girl that flocks to him and hangs on his every word. And now that his eyes are open, he can’t stop thinking about her. Unfortunately for these two, fate has other plans for them…..
Overall, I thought this book was a quick read. I was pulled into the story instantly and couldn’t wait to find out more. I hated the way that Ciera was treated and that she was too afraid to stand up to her bullies. Topher was kind of a jerk, but I quickly discovered that he wasn’t cut from the same cloth as his friends. Once his eyes were opened to how horrible his so-called “friends” were, he didn’t let them disrespect Ciera. Speaking of Ciera, I thought Topher’s feelings and concerns for were real and genuine. I liked their unexpected friendship that quickly changed into more.
Learning to Live deals with a lot of heavy and uncomfortable subject matter. I applaud the author for the way she tackled these tough issues. I thought she handled them with care and honesty.
Learning to Live is my first book by this author and most certainly won’t be my last. Learning to Live is written with a lot of heart and honesty. It’s real and tough at times. It’s a story of unexpected first love and learning to accept the challenges life throws your way, and most importantly, learning to live….
*I was provided an ARC copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review*
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