Come Back To Me by Mila Grey

A whorl in the glass distorts the picture, like a thumbprint smear over a lens. I’m halfway down the stairs, gathering my hair into a ponytail, thoughts a million miles away, when a blur outside the window pulls me up short.

I take another step, the view clears, and when I realize what I’m seeing, who I’m seeing, my stomach plummets and the air leaves my lungs like a final exhalation.

Published by Macmillan in June 2014

Pages - 373

Book Summary

Home on leave in sunny California, Marine and local lothario Kit Ryan finds himself dangerously drawn to his best friend's sister, Jessa - the one girl he can't have.
But Kit's not about to let a few obstacles stand in his way and soon Jessa's falling for his irresistible charms.
What starts out as a summer romance of secret hook-ups and magical first times quickly develops into a passionate love affair that turns both their worlds upside down.
When summer's over and it's time for Kit to redeploy, neither Kit nor Jessa are ready to say goodbye. Jessa's finally following her dreams and Kit's discovered there's someone he'd sacrifice everything for.
Jessa's prepared to wait for Kit no matter what. But when something more than distance and time rips them apart they're forced to decide whether what they have is really worth fighting for.

*****

Wow! What a scorching tale of romance mixed with a topical, contemporary situation. I loved this book from the beginning until the end. For those of you who don’t know, Mila Gray is the pseudonym for Sarah Alderson, an extremely talented YA author. Well,with this New Adult novel, Mila (Sarah) has shown she can turn her hand to anything.

The story is told from the dual perspectives of Jessa and Kit. Jessa lives under the strict eye of her military father. She can’t even breathe without his say so. She is fairly innocent when it comes to love and romance, but she can’t hide the feelings she has for Kit.

Unfortunately Kit just happens to be her older brother’s best friend and the least popular person on the plant, according to her father, so any kind of romance will be hidden from the prying eyes of her family. The element of forbidden love, really added to the spiciness of the novel. Kit was oozing with hotness and yet gentlemanly in every way.  The sparks  of electricity between these two characters almost melted my Kindle! They really are a  hot couple.

I loved the plot to this book. Both Kit and Riley, Jessa’s brother, are Marines and are due to be shipped out to a war zone very soon. In today’s society, this really is a topical subject and I felt the novel gave an insight into what it really is like to be in love with a soldier during such uncertain and dangerous times. Not knowing when your loved one will return, of if they ever will return, must be so hard to live with on a day to day basis. At times this novel is very gritty and realistic, reminding you of the unstable times we live in.

In this book, the title, Come Back To Me, really captures the theme of the book. Not only is Jessa praying for Kit to come back to her safely, there are times when Kit is hoping and praying that Jessa will return to him. Each character is yearning the return of someone into their lives and some are struggling to deal with the fact that their loved ones may never return to the person they once were.

I really loved Sarah’s first New Adult novel and I hope it will be something she will quickly be returning to again.