Back To You Review

TITLE Back To You
AUTHOR Priscilla Glenn
PUBLICATION October 20th 2012 by CreateSpace
READ November 28, 2012
SOURCE From the author for review

When Lauren Monroe first laid eyes on Michael Delaney back in high school, she had every reason to stay away from him; within minutes of their first encounter, his volatile actions confirmed his notorious reputation. But Lauren saw something in him that caused her to question his bad-boy persona, and against her better judgment, she took a chance. She had no way of knowing that the unlikely friendship they formed would become so important to her.

Or that it would end so painfully.

Eight years later, when Lauren begins her new job at Learn and Grow Day Care, Michael is the last person she expects to see. Refusing to revisit the hurt and confusion of their past, Lauren vows to keep her distance from him. But staying away from Michael proves to be more difficult than she thought, despite her lingering grief and her instincts for self-preservation.

As Lauren and Michael recall the friendship that changed them forever and the events that tore them apart, will they finally be able to heal? Or will the ghosts of Michael’s past prove to be too much to overcome?

There’s something about a good, realistic love story that always warms my heart. I sat down on a Wednesday morning and cracked Back To You open and just after dinner, I was finished. I could not put this book down and it gave me a serious case of the butterflies. In the story we meet Lauren who has just gotten a job at a daycare so she can free up her evenings for school while she gets her Master’s Degree. On her very first day the man that was her high school sweetheart comes in to drop off his child and she is a little shocked, to say the least.

I loved Priscilla Glenn’s method for telling this story. We got chapters in the present and we also got chapters from when Lauren and Michael were in high school. We got to watch their teenage love flourish and we also got to watch them rekindle that romance as adults. I’ll admit in the beginning I was nervous that Michael would be a hot head and be much to angry and violent for me to fall for him, but that wasn’t the case at all. Through chapters of his childhood, chapters from his teens years and seeing him as an adult with his young daughter he became so human to me. I understood exactly why he had all of his pent up rage and I wanted to reach into the book and wrap my arms around him. I love reading about a man that has a hard exterior but once you get through his shell you see how sweet he can be. Lauren always brought out the best in him and their relationship was just so adorable, they were so understanding of one another’s feelings and were always there to perk each other up. I have to say here that while I adored Michael, Lauren irked me a bit. To me she just felt way too perfect; she was over the top understanding and she was also over the top forgiving. I wish that we got to see a bit more of her imperfections and then she would have felt just as real to me as Michael did.

One thing I did connect with as far as Lauren goes was her inner struggle about letting Michael back into her life. Glenn handled their issues with trust and their pent up anger for one another so well and I appreciated that it was a slow progression to get back to where they were. Their budding romance (in both time frames) is definitely at the forefront of the novel but we also have some side characters in Lauren’s chiropractor and her best friend Jenn. I was worried that I would be annoyed at the prospect of a love triangle here but I assure you that even that is handled quite well and definitely added to my desperation of Lauren letting Michael back in.

All in all, Back To You was a very pleasant surprise! I loved the writing and the story was one that will warm your heart. I definitely think that it is the season for a good love story and this is one place you can find it!