Review and Giveaway: Unbroken

Unbroken (Silver Creek - Book 3) by Maisey Yates

Publication Date: 08/04/2014
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Berkley Sensation
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 320
ISBN-10: 0425273695
ISBN-13: 978-0425273692

(Received for an honest review from Berkley Sensation)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Indiebound

Maisey Yates on the WEB: website, blog, twitter, facebook, goodreads

Books in the series: 

Silver Creek

1. Unexpected
2. Untouched
3. Unbroken

Coverart: Click the Image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.

Excerpt from, Unbroken, courtesy of the author's website (half way down the page)

Synopsis:

In the latest Silver Creek romance from USA Today bestselling author Maisey Yates, former rodeo star Cade Mitchell may never ride again, but there are still a few things he can do—like care for the woman he loves.
 
Amber Jameson has always thought of her best friend Cade as an older brother. A really hot older brother. But growing up in foster care, she learned to rely only on herself. As much as she likes stealing glances at Cade’s chiseled jaw and painted-on jeans, she resents the way he swoops in like a superhero to fix things for her.
 
When former rodeo rival Jim Davis starts harassing Amber to sell her grandfather’s failing ranch, Cade swoops in once again. To send Jim on his way, Cade pretends to be Amber’s boyfriend, moving in to help fix the place up. With her grandfather behind the idea, Amber and Cade have to keep the charade going—whether she likes it or not.
 
But as their make-believe romance starts to heat up, maybe Cade and Amber will learn to admit that they both could use a little saving…

Thoughts:

Author Maisey Yates continues her Silver Creek series, with her latest book, Unbroken. Readers continue to be enthralled by the Mitchell family, a family of ranchers and modern day cowboys and cowgirls. Yates uses the age-old theme of best friends becoming lovers to drive Cade's story and fans of the series will be captivated by his relationship with Amber. With Amber's grandfather's ranch and stake, as well as, Cade's self-respect, Unbroken is a story of love and redemption that readers won't soon forget.

What I liked:

This was my first experience with author Maisey Yates and I will have to say that I was surprised at how much I liked her writing style, her humor and her ability to get inside the heads of her characters. She took a well used theme and injected it with new life. The best friends to lovers theme is always a challenging one, because it has been done so many times before, but Yates was able to add a refreshing originality to the plot of Unbroken that was unexpected.

Yates uses a lot of humor and general banter to endear her readers to her characters and I found myself wanting to know more and more about them. She lets readers see a glimpse inside both Amber and Cade through their inner-dialogue and their interactions with each other. I loved the parts of the book where it was just the two of them talking, because it was light and fun and the reader will easily believe these two had been friends for years. There was a comfort and smoothness in how they related to each other.

This was a relationship that grew out of adversity. Both Amber and Cade have had some tough experiences in their past, from foster homes, to infidelity. From rodeo injuries to atoning for past mistakes. There was a lot of depth to their relationship and I liked the way Yates developed it. I think most readers can relate to having feelings for someone who you thought was in the friend zone. It was believable and beautiful to read. There was an underlying theme of redemption that ran throughout the story. Cade feeling guilt over his past mistakes and Amber trying to show that she had changed from a wild undisciplined youth to a young woman capable to taking care of grandfather. Overall it was a very gratifying read, as well as, a steamy one.

The romance was hot heavy once it got going and I think readers will be able to see just how much these two characters are feeling for each other. They not only respect each other and care for each other as friends, but the passion they share has a depth that comes from truly understanding the other person. That doesn't happen in too many of the fly by night romance books out there. Very nice!

What I didn't like:

Since I had not read the other books in the series, I was a little taken aback by Cade's relationship with his family. It appeared that the Mitchell's were this great ranching family, with lots of love and tradition, but the way Cade was treated didn't seem to fit into that mold. I guess there is always a black sheep in the family and Cade must have been it. 

Bottom Line:

I truly enjoyed this book. Yates was able to create a romance that didn't fall into the typical rut. It was different, it was engaging, it was funny and just down right romantic. I loved Cade and Amber and thought they made a great couple. I do think readers would benefit by reading the series in order, because I felt like I didn't get all nuances and relationships down as well as I could have.

Unbroken is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

About the Author:

Maisey Yates is a USA Today bestselling author who divides her time between dark, passionate category romances set just about everywhere on earth, and light, sexy contemporary romances set practically in her backyard. She has written many romances for Harlequin, including The Couple Who Fooled the World, as well as the Silver Creek Romances (Unbuttoned, Unexpected, Untouched and Rekindled) for InterMix. She lives in rural Oregon with her three children and her husband, whose chiseled jaw and arresting features continue to make her swoon.

Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of Unbroken by Maisey Yates.

~ You must be an email subscriber to participate.
~ US addresses only.
~ The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST,
September 4th.

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