Razing Kayne (Walking The Thin Blue Line #1) by Julieanne Reeves

Jenny: 4 Solid stars.
Gitte: 4 Stars

Jenny:  Gitte, I must be honest, I know we were recommended this book by quite a few fellow readers on our TB Facebook page,  but up until I started reading the story I really didn’t know a lot about the plot etc. and it completely took me by surprise.

This story was heartbreaking from the first pages and you cannot fathom the absolutely shocking tragedy that Kayne faces in the early part of this book.  The loss of his wife and children in these circumstances ripped my heart out and had me hooked.  My need to follow our hero, State Trooper Kayne Dobrescu as he tries to get to the bottom of this tragedy, deal with the fallout, and share his journey to see how he moved on, how he healed, consumed me.

Gitte:  Absolutely Jenny. Going into this story, having no idea what was awaiting me left me shocked to the core right from the get go. I was gutted, my heart broke right at the beginning and I could not put this book down. I had no idea where this was going either so with a pounding heart there was no way I could stop reading.

Jenny:  Exactly! So we meet sweet, beautiful Jessica Hallstatt, a recent widow and single mother to four adopted children, who crosses paths with the irresistible  State Trooper, after he pulls her over for speeding.  Jessica is also trying to overcome the loss of her husband and carries the emotional scars as a result.

These are two damaged, sad people.  Two beautiful souls who are drawn to one another from their first encounter, yet a game of avoidance ensues as they try and deny their feelings for one another. These two have many obstacles in their way and very painful pasts to deal with.

Gitte: It was beautiful Jenny. Jessica was such an admirable sweet and loving woman with a heart of pure gold. She has seen tragedy and carries so many emotional scars yet despite this she holds a family together. And Kayne, he has seen the ultimate devastation. How does a husband and Father ever recover from seeing and experiencing what Kayne did? I just couldn’t comprehend what I was reading and the tears wouldn’t stop falling.

Jenny: You are so right Gitte and I felt exactly the same.  You just couldn’t imagine a more painfully, heartbreaking experience for this man to have gone through.  This isn’t just a book about two people meeting and falling in love.  This book is so much more.  It is a story of dealing with the most unimaginable horrific tragedy that could befall you and how you move on from that and learn to love and trust again. Big call for someone who has gone through what Kayne has.

There are some absolutely heart-warming moments in this book that will have you clutching your heart.  The children are just beautiful. There is some pretty steamy heat between Jess and Kayne and there is much drama and angst that will have you gasping for your breath at the anticipation of what is to follow.

Gitte: I loved this Author’s style of writing, the emotions leapt of the pages. This story is all about the second chance at life and love after tragedy and heartbreak. How we can hit the brink of despair but the love and support of another person can teach us how to re-discover what makes life worth living. All this wrapped up in one suspenseful yet romantic package. Seriously I cannot stress enough that this is one emotional and tense ride, oh and it has perfect sexual tension thrown in too.

Jenny:  It was certainly emotional at times, Gitte, that’s for sure.  For me though, the story of Jess, Kayne and the children was the glue holding this all together.  The suspense and drama, while pulsating at times, took a back seat to the developing and beautiful relationship between these two damaged people.

I will say some of the coincidences throughout the story felt a little far flung at times and I did find it a bit predictable but this in no way detracted from my connection to this book.  I found the story compelling, the characters so warm…you really do care about Kayne, Jess and the children and all in all this was a very fulfilling read.  Can’t wait for more in this series.

Gitte: I have to agree Jenny, the relationship between Jessica and Kayne was for me the pivotal story line. I wanted them to get their HEA, and seriously those children had me in tears, the backgrounds they had come from. The purity of love and the innocence was beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. I did get confused at times over the drama Kayne and Jessica got embroiled in and yes I too found parts of it far-fetched however it didn’t take anything away from my enjoyment of this book. Bring on book #2 in this series!!

Check out Razing Kayne here:

Razing Kayne (Walking A Thin Blue Line)

**Book #2 Nick of Time due for release 2nd April 2013

**Book #3 Without A Trace due for release 8th October 2013