Black Hawk Tattoo by Aundrea Singer

Black Hawk Tattoo Reviews

• 
  Ami

  3.5 stars
  
  I needed to sleep on it because I wasn't able to immediately decided on the rating. There were things I loved as well as few niggles, which were already captured by some of the reviews here. But I tried to explain mine and how I ended up with 3.5 stars...
  
  What could've made it a 4-star book a.k.a. What I loved about it:
  Solid portrayal of hurt/comfort theme that tackled PTSD. I thought Jake's trauma was very well-written. He already suffered from a terrible tragedy in his childhood (his house was on fire) and then the war, it definitely could paralyzed people and messed up their brain. It felt very realistic -- in a way that as a reader, I also became frustrated with Jake for being stubborn, determined to punish himself, claiming that everything was fine.
  
  This story also had colorful secondary characters ... most notably the teenager Hype and Jake's older sister, Alice. I read a review here that blasted Alice for being "an idiot and a harpy". I have to respectfully disagree with this opinion. I thought Alice was a layered character and very well-portrayed.
  
  Although Alice bullied Jake, guilt-tripped him, nagged him, and even at one time slapped Jake in the face, it was all done because she was frustrated and truly deeply scared about what would happen to Jake. That scene where she told Gabe everything, and her reaction when Jake returned, was vividly real. I felt that Alice didn't know what to do because Jake keep stone-walling her. She couldn't do anything else but trying to snap Jake out of it, hoping that by feeling guilty or realized how much it hurt other people to see Jake in pain, Jake could take that step to heal. It was a complicated sibling relationship that still based solidly on love.
  
  I also loved that this story didn't immediately sell the idea that "Love Fixed EVERYTHING". While it did help Jake to graduately forgive himself, but he still needed a professional treatment to get better. The last few chapters were intense and I loved it that Gabe stood his ground about his relationship with Jake ... that he wanted relationship, but Jake needed to get better first.
  
  What made it ended up only 3.5 stars a.k.a. My Niggles:
  Unfortunately, I also agreed with the review that said that they couldn't see the chemistry between Gabe and Jake. While it was easier to see how Gabe got attracted with Jake, I didn't really know what pushed Jake to Gabe. Not because Gabe was not appealing... but I guess I didn't really "get" that from Jake. Jake had been hiding himself for months, being fucked up in his brain ... so was it because Gabe was the first man who showed attention?
  
  I also felt that Gabe was clueless and naive when it got to Jake's problem. Like another reviewer said, it was easy to seach for PTSD definition these days. I couldn't believe that it didn't even come to Gabe's mind that Jake's issue was post-war trauma related. His tendency to think that everything was fine, and being a bit naive, frustrated me more than Jake's behavior.
  
  Oh, and also after I thought about it ... they only took few weeks to say that they love each other. Which was quite fast for me, especially since I didn't really feel them connected. Jake kept silent about his issue, his life, his family ... and Gabe didn't really know him at all, in that sense. It was a moment of disbelief for me. Although, at least, this was 'saved' by that turning point, that pushed Jake to his path of healing.
  
  All in all, it was quite good though, for a new author. I might keep my eyes on Ms. Singer in the future.
• 
  Mandapanda

  Quite a good example of the hurt/comfort theme in m/m romance. Irag war vet Jake turns up at artist Gabe's tattoo shop with an unusual request.
  
  I thought the characters were well drawn. Very natural and the sort of guys you could know IRL. I liked the setting (Canada) and the tattoo shop and all the extra details the author included which added a richness to the text. The secondary characters were also appealing and real. Especially Jake's sister. I often have trouble with the superficial portrayal of PTSD in romance novels but it's quite well handled here. The romance is good but fairly low key. The main emphasis of the story is Jakes struggle with mental illness and how it affects Gabe and Jake's family.
  
  Very good first novel and I'll definitely check out other stories by this new author.
• 
  Mandy*reads obsessively*

  I was reluctant to read this story, because the subject is difficult and heavy, but the reviews were promising so I went for it. I am very glad I did.
  Jake, oh dear, poor Jake, I believe the PTSD was portrait well and probably very realistically, at least for some sufferers, my heart broke for him, he had a great support system with his sister and Gabe.
  I understand Alice, even if I wish she could have been different about some things, I really really hate slapping!, but she was dealing with Jake blocking her and cutting her out of his life and feelings, her own issues with her ex and of course raising a young daughter. I thought she was holding up very well.
  Gabe was a little harder to figure out, he never pushed Jake, well at least not until the very end, when ever Jake said everything's fine, or I don't want to talk about it, he accepted that, but I figured he was afraid of losing Jake or pushing him away with any demands. He also had a less than ideal childhood which might have been part of his issue, to not be confrontational.
  I was glad that Gabe was there for Jake, but stuck to his guns as far as the relationship went, after the incident.
  Hype was a great side character and I really hope things turn out well for her.
  So, yes this story dealt with a heavy and sometimes very sad Jake and horrible thoughts and his suffering, it was also hopeful and happy and left me satisfied that things were all going in the right direction for all of them.
  
  On a side note, I was actually very glad that the relationship and character issues were at the forefront, and the sex is very muted and merely hinted at.
• 
  Feliz

  I was impressed with the characterizations in this book. Mainly with Jake and Gabe, since both are so lovingly drawn, well-wrought and realistic. Jake may be caught in a vicious cycle of guilt, nightmares, sleep-deprivation and depression, but he’s still capable of falling in love with Gabe, of feeling affection and responsibility for his family and friends. Gabe is used to cutting his own path, headfirst though walls if necessary, and Jake’s stonewalling confuses and irritates him to the point of giving up. But Gabe is not averse to seeing his own mistakes and learning from them. He and Jake go through an admirable growth over the course of the story, in conjunction with each other and together, and I could really see them share a future.
  
  The secondary cast was well-drawn too, particularly Jake’s sister, one of the most complex females I’ve met in m/m romance so far. She has a story of her own, carries guilt and trauma and problems of her own in spades–in a way, she’s the least suited person imaginable to take care of Jake. And yet, at the same time she was the only one who loved him enough to care about him at all. For this once, the caretaking family member isn’t portrayed as either a saint or a bitch. Alice is a real person who worries about Jake but also loses patience with him, who guilt-trips and nags and bullies Jake but also stands up for him and would always have his back if he’d but let her. The relationship between the siblings is as complex and multi-layered as their respective characters; I found this awesomely well done and again, totally life-like.
  
  The romance between Gabe and Jake was inextricably interwoven with Jake’s struggle with PTSD, the latter was actually the former’s front, back and center. Up to the crucial plot turn where Jake’s focus turned away from his self to their them, from his past to their future. I thought this particular scene the strongest in the book and the weakest at the same time, since I couldn’t quite fathom where Gabe found the wisdom and maturity to act and talk like he did. However, the pitfall of “love conquers all” was successfully avoided, and with a little suspension of disbelief and from a romance reader’s point of view, the solution they found was beautiful and uplifting.
  
  Parts of the background of this story were just as amicably detailed as the characters, namely the tattooing and Gabe’s artistic work. Other things were so sketchy they were hard to comprehend, at least for me, for example what happened to Jake directly after his return or how he came to live with his sister in the first place. However, these were minor niggles that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of this story.
  
  If you’re in the mood to accompany Jake and Gabe on their bumpy road to happiness, try this book; for me it was an intense and very enjoyable ride.
  
  Review originally written for
  www.reviewsbyjessewave.com
• 
  JR

  This is a tough story, that deals well with PTSD. Gabriel an artist and inker, meets Jake a broken, terrified Medivac pilot that nearly dies in Iraq. The reader is taken on the harrowing ride that is Jake's life after Iraq. It is no surprised that the artist, the angel named Gabriel is
  there to chase away the demons that haunt Jake in reality and in his nightmares.
  
  This is so well written. I cried a lot reading this. It is not a feel good story, but it is a story filled with love and the hope that love will mend what is broken, right the wrongs, grant peace and forgiveness to a man who desperately needs it.
  
  This story does not have a lot of sex, so if you are looking for that, you'll need to move on. If you want a terrific story with wonderful characters, this is for you.
  
  I give this a heaven worth of stars.
  Reread this, can't believe it's been 6 years since I first read it. Time hasn't dimmed the power of this storyline.
• 
  Elspeth

  
  A depressing read that dragged on for too long.
  
  In other words...emo book was emo.
• 
  BevS

  
  
  I bought this one on the strength of a chat with Kade, and overall it was a very interesting read. 4 stars
  
  Jake has come back from Iraq after flying medevac trips over there, his helicopter got shot down, everyone else on the 'copter perished, Jake was the only survivor and badly injured. Add this trauma to a house fire that Jake still subconciously remembers from his childhood, and you have a very toxic mix indeed, so it's no wonder that he suffers from severe PTSD, although why he is reluctant to get medical help for it and feels that asking for help would show weakness I really don't understand, but apparently it is quite common.
  
  He has no family other than his elder sister Alice and his niece, and so goes to Toronto to stay with her, you assume to recuperate, but no, Alice is finding it no easier asking him to get help than anyone else...she gives him all sorts of leaflets and telephone numbers but nothing doing. He walks into a tattoo parlour one day, and shows one of the artists Gabriel Navarro (Gabe) a drawing he has done which he wants to get inked onto his back. The drawing is of a Black Hawk helicopter going down in the desert surrounded by flames....is this the start of Jake's rehabilitation you ask yourself, at least he's acknowledging what happened...I'll leave you to discover what happens from there on. Many thanks Kade for the nudge.
• 
  Kaje Harper

  4.5 stars. Gabe is an art student, working as a tattoo artist on the side. Jake walks in the door of the parlor looking for an elaborate and dark-themed tattoo with obvious personal meaning to be put on his back. Gabe is intrigued with both the art and the man. But Jake's tattoo is a last-ditch attempt on his part to self-heal from the trauma that forced him to leave the military and that has him camping out in his sister's basement apartment, jumping at loud noises and hyperventilating when he tries to take the subway. Jake is a man barely holding himself together over a burning pit of PTSD, and even Gabe's calm friendship and affection are not likely to keep him from falling.
  
  There are quite a few PTSD M/M books out there by now, and this was one of the most real-feeling that I've read. Gabe is a bit oblivious about Jake's problems, but he is young at 22, and attracted to Jake, and possibly willfully blind about the possibility of a serious issue that might come between them. The "I love you's" happen early, but the depth of Jake's desperation propel the relationship forward enough to make it believable. And hours spent talking while Gabe inks Jake's design onto his back would be a way to get closer fast.
  
  I've seen reviews that disliked Jake's sister, but to me she was one of the highlights of the book. She was a genuine sibling, loving but human, not like some books where the caregiver is selfless and wonderful and cardboard. It's exhausting, to deal with someone who needs help and won't go get it. It makes you sad and it makes you mad, and sometimes you want to hit them, and sometimes you wish they'd just go away so you don't have to deal with them, so you're not responsible, so you don't hurt inside all the time watching them hurt. I didn't think the sister was cold, or a harpy. I thought she was human, and real, and worn out with caring.
  
  I also liked that love didn't make everything better - not the PTSD, not an act of violence, not a month of neglect. You can't just say, "Sorry, I love you" and go on from there. It takes time and work. This book acknowledges that. In fact, I'd have liked to see just a bit more of that time, between climax and epilogue, when a lot of that work was happening. I guess it might have seemed slow and uninteresting to some readers, and I can understand the skim-over that was done.
  
  So... not a perfect book. A bit more time together, deepening the bond between Jake and Gabe before things started happening, would have made me feel their relationship even more, I think. But a very good book and one I'll reread. One that felt like a breath of fresh air, with genuine people who acted exactly as I'd expect in real life. Refreshing, emotional, and well written.
• 
  JustJen "Miss Conduct"

  This was a very emotional story about PTSD and how it affected one young man’s life and the people around him.
  
  For starters, Gabe was wonderful. A very talented, sweet and caring guy. He fell for Jake, even with all the cautioning by his somewhat nosy friend/boss, Rob, and really just wanted Jake to be well. I was a bit disappointed that he put more effort into research on getting the tattoo right than he did on understanding and helping Jake with his trauma issues. It was nice to see Gabe stand his ground and let Jake go when it was necessary, all while standing by him when Jake needed him the most.
  
  Speaking of understanding and helping Jake with his issues, Jake’s sister, Alice was rather pathetic. She had more background than anyone about what could have caused Jake’s problems. Knowing he was in the house fire as a child, and knowing about the helicopter crash, etc. didn’t give her any clue as to why Jake would freak out when the kitchen filled with smoke? Her solution seemed to be to constantly berate and guilt him into better behavior, so no gold stars for her.
  
  I really want to be annoyed with Jake here as well, if for nothing else than his reluctance to somehow fix or better his situation when he fully realized he had such problems and how they were affecting those he loved. However, having no trauma/PTSD experience whatsoever, I cannot even remotely guess how one would or should act in these situations. So, Jake gets a pass, and suffice to say, I was happy he finally took charge of his life at the end without too much damage to those around him.
  
  I have to give an honorable mention to the shop mascot, Hype. She was a wonderful character, spunky and full of life, despite her horrible family conditions. I loved that she had the shop to go to where she could feel safe. Dee and Gabe taking her in was nice as well. I loved the way everyone teased each other and could genuinely feel that they truly cared for her.
  
  This story did seem to drag on a little bit, though there was never really any lull. I think it was more of a lack of patience on my part wanting to see things happen quicker. There could have been a stronger connection with the characters, but I think perhaps the underlying issues may have been the cause of that. This was a well written story, and I will definitely be looking to read more from this author in the future.
  
• 
  Val Kovalin

  This compelling and smoothly written book impressively handles several serious topics such as survivor’s guilt, PTSD, addiction and recovery, dysfunctional families, trust and betrayal, and redemption. There is some angst, but not an excessive amount. The book offers a vivid setting complete with street names, neighborhoods, and landmarks in Toronto.
  
  The book features two strong, complex heroes in Gabe and Jake. Gabe can be sarcastic and conceited, but he is also caring, optimistic, and resilient. Jake can be massively selfish and slightly self-pitying, but he is also a brave person full of integrity. Because they’re both so human, I couldn’t help being emotionally invested in their relationship.
  
  Meanwhile, we get three vivid supporting characters who happen to be female – Jake’s niece Molly, Gabe’s friend Hype, and Jake’s sister Alice. All three are realistic, complex humans with good and bad traits. The author risks alienating the readers with Alice’s rough edges. But it’s a brave risk that pays off. Alice is an unforgettable character.
• 
  Susan65

  I had a serious love/hate relationship with this story. Loved Gabe and Jake and Rob and Molly. I felt so bad for Hype, but she was a little too out of control. Dee was iffy. But, I hated Alice. She was awful. Yes, she loved her brother and didn't know how to help him, but come on...she bitched and bitched and threw guilt trips at him and then used violence to get her way...so not what I would consider a loving sister. It was ALL ABOUT HER. I don't care what anyone says, violence and guilt trips are not love! It was not her ways that forced Jake to finally seek help, it was Gabe's. So there!
  
  Sorry for rant/review but that really bugged me :-))
  
  A very worthy read and I would definitely recommend it.
• 
  Steph

  3.75 stars. I enjoyed this story. Gabe was a wonderful character, talented and caring. I liked that he stood his ground after a particular incident happened until Jake started working on himself and his PTSD. I liked Jake, I thought his PTSD symptoms were well portrayed and it seemed realistic. I felt for him and the issues he was going through. His lack of communication frustrated everyone including me as a reader. The secondary characters were fantastic and they enhanced the story. I especially loved Jake's sister, and she also helped to fill the gaps in understanding Jake, what happened to him and their childhood.
  
• 
  Jess Candela

  4.5 stars
  
  I stupidly started reading this before bed. I thought I'd read a few chapters and then sleep. It didn't work that way, as I ended up staying up way too late to finish it. It had a few odd moments here and there, temporarily pulling me out of the story to feel disappointed that such an otherwise-great story was falling into such stupid tropes. But those were the exception, or the story overall was good enough that I could dive back in and mostly forget about them.
  
  I also thought the final resolution was handled a little too quickly and easily. I would much rather have seen the development on-page rather than suddenly jumping to an epilogue when all is well. But despite those niggles, this was an intense and engrossing story. I ached for Jake, what he had been through and how he perceived it. It was a little extreme, but it mostly seemed to fit the character.
  
  I loved Gabriel, though I kept struggling to remember he was only 22. He seemed much older, and the timing of his education stuff even seemed to me like it took long enough that he ought to have been at least 24 for the chronology to make sense. I think I'd have found him more overall believable as a 24- or 25-year-old.
  
  So, yeah, lots of niggles that kept it from being a perfect book. But I loved it and am eager to read more by this author.
• 
  Sagajo

  Hurt/comfort in a very real way.
• 
  Tamika♥RBF MOOD♥

  3 meh stars
  
  Review to come.
• 
  Kathleen

  4-1/2 stars rounded up to 5 stars. A solid mm PTSD tale. Believable. Lovely in places, starkly sad in others. A very good read.
• 
  Heather K (dentist in my spare time)

  Dreamspinner's deal of the day for $0.99! 7/24/14
  
  http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor...
• 
  El Ma

  Puhhh, manchmal gibt es Geschichten, da lohnt es sich einfach dran zu bleiben. Ich habe bis 70% des Buches darauf gewartet, dass es zum großen Knall kommt. Das Jake eine wandelnde Zeitbombe ist, war eigentlich vom ersten Kapitel an klar. Das Liebe blind macht, weiß man auch, so dass man bedingt Verständnis für Gabe aufbringen kann. Zwischendurch hatte ich aber auch das Gefühl, dass er eigentlich nicht wirklich wissen will, was mit Jake los ist.
  
  Als es dann tatsächlich nach dem großen Knall zum Showdown kommt, habe ich, etwas erstaunt über Gabes soziale Kompetenz, verwundert die Augenbrauen gehoben. Irgendwie ist er in dieser Situation dann doch über sich hinausgewachsen. Wo diese Empathie plötzlich herkam, erschloss ich mir nicht so ganz, dennoch empfand ich seine Seite von ihm sehr hilfreich für die Gesamtsituation.
  
  Trotz dieses meiner Meinung nach komplexen Themas, ist es eine ruhige Geschichte, die ein bisschen an der Oberfläche eines PTSD kratzt. Lange liest man einfach nur wie sich die Beziehung zwischen Jake und Gabe entwickelt. Leider erfährt man zu wenig (oder wenn erst sehr spät), wer, wie und warum so gehandelt hat, wie gehandelt wurde.
  
  Schön beschrieben ist das Umfeld von Gabe und Jake. Hier gibt es wunderbare Nebenprotagonisten die sich wirklich gut in die Geschichte einfügen und jede(r) von ihnen den richtigen “Platz” einnimmt. Einzig Jakes Armyvergangenheit, als “Sanitäter/Helfer” bleibt wirklich blaß. Kann es wirklich sein, dass niemand aus dieser Zeit (explizit sei hier Skites erwähnt, der mMn zumindest in irgendeiner Form Erwähnung – ausser in einem kurzen Satz – finden sollte) mit ihm in Verbindung geblieben ist? Keine weiteren Kollegen, kein Vorgesetzter zeigt in irgendeiner Form wenigstens ein bisschen Interesse an ihm? Hier klärt auch der Epilog nicht wirklich auf, was mich dann doch ein wenig enttäuscht hat.
  
  Das die US-Army und auch die Regierung nicht wirklich Interesse daran hat, Soldaten, die an PTSD leiden, aufzufangen, ist leider hinlänglich bekannt. Entweder Soldaten funktionieren oder sie sind untauglich (ganz ehrlich, ich finde dies schlicht menschenverachtend). Es wird in diesem Buch allerdings nur ganz oberflächlich daran geschrammt, so dass man nicht wirklich einen Blick hinter die Kulissen bekommt und mit den vorgegebenen Tatsachen leben muss. Man erfährt leider auch nicht, ob Jake einfach keine Hilfe wollte, keine angeboten bekam, oder … Aber auch, als er sich dann ENDLICH Hilfe sucht, wird dies viel zu wenig thematisiert.
  
  “Black Hawk Tattoo” basiert auf einem sehr schwierigen Thema, welches leider immer nur ein wenig gestreift wurde. Es fällt mir, auch im Nachhinein, persönlich schwer, hier nur die Romanze zu sehen, die die Geschichte wohl sein soll. Vielleicht stört/verwundert den einen oder anderen diese Rezension, aber ich kann hier nicht einfach nur sagen, dass es eine sich gut entwickelnde Story ohne wenn und aber ist, hier muss ich einfach meinen “Senf” dazugeben. Schwierige Themen bedürfen einer besonderen Behandlung, dies ist hier – für meinen Geschmack – nur bedingt gegeben. Sollten andere Leser das Thema Kriegstrauma wirklich nur als gegebenen “Hintergrund” sehen können, dürfen sie sich auf eine schöne Geschichte freuen.
  
  Um diesem Buch 5* zu geben, ist es mir an einigen wichtigen Stellen zu oberflächlich geblieben, für “nur” 3* aber im Gesamten zu gut geschrieben.
• 
  Sarah Madison

  I've been very remiss in not posting a review as soon as I finished this story, but this is really one that you need to digest before racing to the review board. I loved it. What I loved about it was that I forgot that I was reading a M/M romance. Believe me when I say that this is a compliment of the highest order.
  
  I love M/M romance as a genre--I write it, after all! But it can sometimes be a bit formulaic in that we know what to expect going into it. Two characters will meet, be attracted to one another, have some major reason why they cannot easily get together--but overcome the odds in the end to be together. Sometimes, it seems one good conversation could clear the air, however, or we get a lot of angsty exposition about why these guys are afraid to say something to each other. As much as this can be a great story--a steady diet of this kind of romance can leave you wanting more.
  
  Boy, did this story deliver the 'more'. From the beginning, Singer drew me into the world of the Gabriel, the tattoo artist with a conscience, who refuses to put something stupid on a client's skin, even if he or she wants it. He is a craftsman and artist first, and an employee and businessman second. When Jake McLean shows up in Gabriel's parlor, asking for a tattoo of a crashed Blackhawk to be inked on his back, Gabriel doesn't realize at first that Jake sees this work of art as a terrible penance for his failure to prevent the deaths of his friends. When he does, he must find a way to turn Jake's self-flagellation into the work of art that Gabriel sees the tattoo--and Jake himself--to be.
  
  The secondary characters are not merely well-fleshed--they are as real and three-dimensional as the main ones. Jake is a mess. Gabriel is a positive influence in his life--but the 'power of the healing cock' is not enough for Jake to recover from the terrible traumas in his life. The subject of PTSD is handled in a realistic and truthful manner, and there are no easy solutions. Gabriel is forced to make some tough choices out of love, and I applaud Singer for handling this subject with deftness and grace. Really an amazing story.
• 
  Leah

  This is my 3rd five star worthy book in a row....I bet the next one will be a stinker. ...So why did I LOVE this? The writing is evocative, richly descriptive but at the same Ms. Springer makes room for the reader's interpretation and imagination. I don't rehash plots in my reviews (lo siento) however if you're in the mood for escapist fiction with complex characters that possess comparatively more fucked up issues than you have--this is the book for you.
  
  ***Potential spoilers***
  A few things did bug me....I wasn't too fond of the seemingly negative, because it was missing!, representation of veteran mental health services in the U.S. My sister has PTSD, GAD, and agoraphobia after her service in Iraq. I don't know where my family would be without the Veteran's Association and the many support services they provide...I get that Aundrea is Canadian but I can't let her bash the VA. So :P Ms. Singer!
  
  It really got on my nerves that I empathized so much with Jake's sister. I should think she's a royal friggin bi-otch but Aundrea makes her frustration so palpable I felt obligated to connect with her. **grumble grumble**
  
  ZOMG the aftercare and tattoo process descriptions...
  First if you're thinking about getting some ink---ROCK on! Of course you should do your research, pick a clean shop, think through what you want and all that jazz. BUT DON'T let people use petroleum jelly or A&D ointment on you! You are also not a slab of meat...well I guess we all are but...don't let anyone wrap your new tat in Saran Wrap either! New tattoos have to breathe. New tattoos are surface wounds---you SHOULD not soak them EVER! It's like washing your money and pain away. Use emu oil, shea butter, or tattoo goo; nothing with petroleum and take short showers for at least 2 weeks! Damn how did I start on this tangent? I could say a bunch more.
  
  Despite a few bumpy parts this book is a really great read!
  
• 
  Sara

  This book had my complete attention from the very first paragraph all the way to the very last.
  
  The characters are outstanding, in a way I rarely see or feel in any books regardless of genre. The main characters feel real, they both come with their own back-history making them realistically flawed. Jake's inability to open up and talk, his feeling of needing help but doing nothing about it, Gabe's wariness, his reluctance to see what is right there in front of him, his unwillingness to listen to his friend, makes both of the men realistically built characters.
  
  And this book comes with really strong supporting characters, including well-constructed, convincing female characters with lives of their own. Jake's sister is as real a person as they get in fiction, she's not the best friend with no life of her own, she's not the sugar coated perfect mother and/or wife - she's a chain-smoking, mid-thirties woman whose doing the best she can under dire circumstances. The same goes for Hype; she could have been an annoying fourteen year old putting her nose where she shouldn't, but instead she's an important contributor to the character ensemble and the story itself. Even the very minor supporting characters have a realistic feeling to them.
  
  The subject, PTSD, is heavy and sensitive for many. As for any mental conditions there are no easy or fast solutions and neither is there in this book. The story also shows how difficult it is to live with a person that is not mentally well, or how difficult it is for a bystander to even see how serious the illness is; I think the author shows this very well through Jake's sister and her actions.
  
  A brilliant book, with memorable characters and a strong story about a serious matter.
• 
  Tara Spears

  I rounded my rating up because I really liked the beginning. I didn't get along with this book really well. Maybe it's because I know so much about mental issues, and instability of the mind. I just couldn't fall in love with any character but Hype. Yeah, I loved Hype. It was very insta-love without any real anchor for it to be that way, and halfway through I kept putting it down, and going to something else. It just seemed long, drawn, and lost my attention several times. I wish I loved it more...I mean come on, broken character, tattoos and an angsty, broken teenager with a wittiness about her? What's not to love?
• 
  Lady*M

  3.5 stars
  
  I really liked the writing and the characters: Jake, Gabe, Alice, Hype and, even, Isaac although he showed up in only two scenes. The descriptoon of PTSD felt very realistic. But, I had some problems too and I think
  Ami described them the best in her review. Also, the story dragged in places, but that could be because I've just finished the book in which plot moved like a wind.
  
  Still, I'll definitely pick up the author's next book.
• 
  Southernangel

  I really enjoyed this book. The author gave such wonderful insight into PTSD, and the struggles Jake went through until he decided to get the help he needed. Gabe is such a loving young man. I also absolutely adored Hype. What a little gem.
• 
  Idamus

  This was just beautiful, so full of pain, hope and love
• 
  S E. Jakes

  LOTS of angst. LOTS. But it was understandable and real. Powerful, at times painful, but in the end, simply beautiful. Highly rec!
• 
  Mel Stein

  This book kept me up all night reading. I'm going to be useless on just three hours of sleep but it was worth it.
  
  *edit for word change. I blame sleep deprivation.
• 
  Annette

  enjoyable, angsty and very vivid describtions made this a good read. I like that there were no easy fixes and it was very realistic yet hopeful.