Saving Me- Nicole Draga

 Title: Saving Me by Nicole Draga

Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance

Pages: 358

Rating 4/5 Stars

 

**ARC received in exchange for an honest review**

Summary: 

Ryan Trescott is moving to New York with one thing on her mind, her sister. Unable to escape the demons of her past Ryan’s new plan is to hold onto them rather than move past them. That is, until she meets Ashton and the rest of his surrogate family. With demons of their own they still manage to be family that Ryan always dreamed of. Can she finally move on with her life? Or are there just too many secrets to release?
Ashton O’Conner is living the ultimate bachelor life. No commitment and no feelings means he doesn’t have to open up. He may not be happy with it, but it’s what’s best. Or so he thinks, until the mysterious and closed off Ryan stumbles into his life. Ryan manages to turn everything he thought about relationships around, but is he setting himself up for heartbreak?
Can these two damaged souls finally get what they’ve always wanted in life? Can they save each other?

Review:

A Romance filled with deep rooted issues in which two main protagonists battle their inner demons and learn to trust one another

Saving me had my heart pumping in my chest, my eyes watering and my mouth popping open with shock. To say this book is not predictable is the honest truth,I thought I had a grasp on what happened to Ryan’s character but turns out I was far from the truth. I then thought I would know what happened next but nope, once again Nicole Draga dropped another spanner in the works taking the story to a new level.

Saving Me is truly a story about Ryan and Ashton’s journey to save themselves and one another, both characters are flawed in some way. Emotionally they are unable to truly let anybody in therefore Saving Me is focused on them trying to let one another in, acknowledge their feelings and see if they can trust again. Ryan has lost her whole family within the last 6 months and Ashton has previously lost his parents and his best friend, in terms of this as a couple they share a-lot of pain and are so similar.

A common criticism associated with New Adult Romances; one which I have touched about in previous reviews is that their storyline is thrown aside whilst sexual content is thrown in for little or no reason. Saving Me is nothing like this, the story line features deep rooted issues for the characters and these are fully interwoven within the storyline; each issue plays apart in adding to the serious content and realistic element of the  novel which include touching upon alcohol and substance abuse, physical domestic violence and pure violence. Any sexual element to the story actually plays a role in the healing of the characters trust issues and we get a resolution to each of the issues faced.

I loved witnessing Ryan and Ashton be so stubborn towards on another, they were both assuming the other would run if they learnt the truth that they never gave it a chance. At times this was frustrating because I just wanted them to finally act on their desires but it built the tension between the couple.

Finally in terms of writing style; Nicole Draga’s writing is easy to get into and her characters are easy to identify with, the chapters alternate between the point of view of Ryan and Ashton therefore allowing us to experience both protagonists thoughts and feelings towards the other whilst also giving us an outsiders perspective on their past and witnessing the truth be revealed.

Overall Saving Me kept me on my toes and it constantly throws new information at you whether it be about Ashton or Ryan’s past or something that can make either of their futures go a different way. I couldn’t predict what was going to happen next and if I got a rough idea, Nicole Draga would throw me through a loop and the story would go a different way. Saving Me is more than just a romance, their will be bits to make you smile, cry and laugh and the feature of such strong subject matter such as abuse is what sets it apart from other romance stories.

 

To find out more about Saving Me you can find the novel and Nicole Draga on Goodreads. Saving Me – Nicole Draga GOODREADS