Changing Course Tour Blog

Title: Changing Course (Wrecked and Ruined #1)

Author: Aly Martinez

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Expected Release Date: January 29, 2014

Cover Designer: Ashbee Designs

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https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18753789-changing-course

Synopsis

I met Sarah Kate Erickson when I was 21 years old. I was lucky enough to keep her for seven years before a tragic accident stole her from me. She didn’t die, but sometimes I think it would have been easier if she had.

I lived in a haze for those four years after the accident. Catering to her every need, even though she hated the very sight of my face. I tried to hold on to her and the future that we were supposed to build together. But you can’t hold on to someone that doesn’t exist anymore.

It wasn’t until I met Jesse Addison, a barista at the local coffee shop, that I realized I didn’t just lose Sarah that tragic night, I lost myself as well. Jesse taught me how to let go of the past and learn to love again. But what happens when your past haunts your present and the woman you used to love refuses to accept the woman you can’t live without?

**Intended for readers 18+. Each book in this series can be read as a standalone.**

Prologue

"Sarah, don't do this. Damn it! Stay with me." I reach over and gently brush her blood soaked hair off her forehead. Even in this horrific moment, I'm in absolute awe of how beautiful she looks. Bleeding and broken, unmoving in my arms she is still the most mesmerizing woman I have ever laid eyes on. Deep down, I know this just the husk of my wife. My Sarah would never have done this to herself. More importantly, she never would have done this to me. Maybe it takes this level of madness, but I finally realize that I have lost her completely.

Whether she lives or dies, Sarah is gone. This is not the woman who made me laugh more in seven years than the rest of my life combined. She definitely isn't the woman who I spent years planning a future with, a future that now no longer exists. I feel a heavy weight in my chest at my silent confession, but oddly enough I also feel a weight lifted off my shoulders. I have watched this woman disintegrate in front of my eyes for almost seven months; everyday losing her a little more. The light in her eyes fading, while piece by piece and bit by bit, she lost grip of reality. Mentally, emotionally, and now physically, she's left me.

My Sarah died seven months ago on her way home from dinner, and I will never see her walk back into my life. Suddenly, I can't breathe. I'm terrified, and not only because Sarah might finally succeed in taking her own life. I'm paralyzed by the realization that my life is spiraling down in a free fall headed straight for misery and the only thing I can think to do is anchor myself to this dying woman. I love Sarah with all my heart, but I am clinging not to the woman in my arms but rather to the life I thought we were going to have together. I have to accept that she isn't there anymore. Her heart might still be beating but the bloody, confused, emotionally lost woman I am holding now is only the shell of my first and only love.

"Where the fuck is that ambulance!" I yell as loud as my cracking voice will allow. Stroking the little bit of her unmarred skin that I'm able to reach, I whisper in her ear, "Hang on baby." Then I repeat the one sentence I have said almost daily since the tragic event that stole her from me. Maybe I say it for her, maybe just for me, but I know it is the biggest lie I have ever uttered. "Just hang on baby, it's all going to be okay."

Review:

Wow… if I had one word to sum up “Changing Course” by Aly Martinez, then WOW would definitely be it!  This was such an amazing story of love…but more than just love, it’s how love can start out so perfect and then such a tragic and unexpected event occurs that really, I don’t think anyone would be prepared for….that just destroys that love.  Oh my gosh!  I have never been in a position before where I loved and rooted for both relationships that are the main focus of this book. 

So, we start with Brett and Sarah…I really fell for their relationship…so much fun and craziness and such a zest for life and each other.  Brett and Sarah were just so good together and only seemed to grow stronger as they married and shared seven wonderful and loving years together.  Then…the very worst of disasters and heartbreak occurs in one horrible night. 

Fast forward four years and we find Brett doing the absolute best that he can manage with trying to cope everyday with the loss of the perfect marriage he and Sarah shared and loss of his true love Sarah.  Enter Jesse, she’s almost the complete opposite of Sarah…physically and personality wise.  So, while Brett is struggling with trying to hang on to the ideal marriage he had with Sarah, there’s also some part of him that starts to find a connection with Jesse.  And…I just loved that connection between Brett and Jesse too!  It was such a different kind of relationship, no less loving and heated…but maybe a little more…uhh.. mature and grounded.  Actually, I don’t even know if mature and grounded are the right words.  Maybe a better way to say it was that the two different relationships gave each individual EXACTLY was they needed at the time of that relationship. 

I just have to say “BRAVO” to Aly Martinez… to create a situation that seems, at least to most, to be so unrealistic with the circumstances of the erosion of Brett and Sarah… and then weave this masterful tale of new love and everyone involved trying to do the right thing… I have just never felt SO strongly positive about the very different, but equally strong relationships of one man.  And like I said, it would almost seem way too strange for the events to unfold the way that they did…but as you engross yourself into the series of events and characters of Brett, Sarah and Jesse…. well, they just don’t seem that farfetched after all.  The entire storyline just flowed so incredibly well and you feel such happiness and overwhelming hurt for everyone…its just so… WOW… Aly Martinez is one talented lady!  I’m so looking forward to the next book in this series!

5 Stars  ~Kathy

About the Author

I’m a 32 year old wife and stay at home mom to four kids under the age of five, including a set of twins. My life is crazy, which is probably why I drink entirely too much wine. Oh who am I kidding, I had a love affair with wine long before the kids came along. I was born and raised in Savannah Georgia, but we recently moved to Chicago. Let me tell you, this southern girl was not ready for the cold weather up here!

I’m an avid reader, but I haven’t always been that way. A few years ago my sister loaned me her Nook Color, and it changed my life forever. In the span of about two years, I read over 500 books. My newfound love of reading led me to start a book blog with two of my best friends. (Insert shameless plug here: WhiteZinBookends.com). Through WZ Bookends, I've had the opportunity to meet some of the most amazing authors, bloggers, and readers out there. Now that I have taken the leap into writing my own book, they’ve all shown me endless amounts of encouragement and support.

While driving home from Walmart one day in late October, a story embedded itself in my head and would not let go. It spiraled out of control until I finally opened my laptop and started writing. This journey has been a wild ride filled with tears, hand cramps, and tons of laughs. I love company, so follow me at one of the social links below and join me aboard this crazy train!

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Giveaway

(2) $25 Amazon Gift Cards

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