Giving It Up (The Lost Girls #1) – by Amber Lin

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SYNOPSIS

Allie prowls the club for a man who will use her hard and then ditch her. Hey, it’s not rape if she wants it. Instead she finds Colin, who looks tough but treats her tenderly, despite her protests.

He tempts her, but kindness and a few mindblowing orgasms aren’t enough to put her back together again. Two years ago her best friend betrayed her in the worst possible way; she’d be stupid to trust a man again. Especially one like Colin, whose criminal past threatens them both.

When her rapist returns, Allie must fight for the man she loves—and her life—hoping her newfound power will be enough to save them all.

Reviewed by Gitte

Giving It Up is unlike any book I have read in a long while. It’s dark with ‘stripped to the core’ raw emotions. It’s not pretty but it’s honest and it’s REAL! It’s so well written that you feel like you are watching this story as it’s playing out, which considering the content is quite an emotional, scary and thought provoking ride!!

This story is about Allie and Colin. Allie (22) is a single Mum, her daughter being the end result of her rape by a very close friend. She is so emotionally damaged by this experience that once a month she visits a rough club to find a man who for that night only will hurt her in the way she was by her friend. This is in order to validate the rape as her choice for that one night only. To her this initiation makes her feel in control…it is given back to her by the man. Pretty messed up.

Allie broke my heart, the things she went through and the trauma she had to endure..well to see her journey in this book was not only heart breaking but emotionally moving at the same time because her strength and persistence to feel love and be loved, her endurance – all of it so real and human. I wanted her and her daughter to find the safety and love that they truly deserved!

Colin, well he was a dark horse. He didn’t have a voice as such in this story. However, this is where I think Amber Lin is a bit of a writing genius because yes he didn’t have much of a voice – he was silent but his character presence was immense purely through his actions. He came across strong, protective, controlling and frankly kind of crazy at times. He is without doubt a very damaged character; hugely flawed, however his tenderness comes through by his behaviour and the fact that he gives Allie what she needs although hating it speaks louder than words!

I feel that to write anything more will too easily reveal spoilers and I believe that this story should be read without preconceptions.

I want to thank Amber Lin for sending me the ARC of her book and I can honestly say that I cannot wait to read more of her work!