Title: Ruin
Author: Clarissa Wild
Genre: Contemporary
Romance
Release Date: September
20, 2016
Blurb
Maybell Fairweather
was the girl of my dreams.
Always smiling brightly, she kept going, despite the names her classmates called her behind her back.
Always smiling brightly, she kept going, despite the names her classmates called her behind her back.
She was full of
curiosity and independence, the extent of which I could only be jealous of.
Even though she had all odds stacked against her, she knew what she wanted from
life and pursued it, no matter the cost.
She was completely my opposite in every way.
She was completely my opposite in every way.
Perfect, even though
she couldn’t see it.
Perfect … until me.
Because this is the story of how I ruined her.
Because this is the story of how I ruined her.
Based on a true
story. Standalone Romance. No cliffhanger.
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Ruin is also
available with a limited edition cover. This edition is only available in
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Excerpt
“I needed that …” she
murmurs, closing her eyes again.
“I know you did.” I
smile cheekily.
She lets out a long,
drawn-out sigh. “Alex Wright … you seem to know everything.”
“No, I just know
you,” I reply boldly.
“Really now?” She
opens one eye.
“I know you better
than you think,” I say.
Now, both her eyes
are open but hidden underneath thick lashes and a curious frown. “Really? Then
what am I thinking right now?” She smirks as her feet dangle below the bench,
one swaying, the other unmoving, and there is only one thing I can think of.
A tiny leaf that’s
fallen on top of her head makes my hand move closer to swipe it away, but I
linger. My fingers gently trail along her soft dark blond hair, past her ears
and down her cheeks, until they reach her chin. There, I subtly grasp her
between my thumb and index finger and lean in, cocking my head. My eyes slowly
close, the sound of her short breaths pulling me in.
Before I know it, my
lips have locked with hers.
I don’t know why I’m
kissing her.
Well, other than the
fact that I’ve been madly in love with her all this time.
She was just perfect.
Perfect, just the way
she is.
Her scrunched-up face
and rosy lips … just had to be kissed.
So I did it.
I’m actually kissing
Maybell Fairweather.
I don’t know what I’m
doing. I’ve only ever kissed one other girl, and that was in kindergarten. I
have no fucking clue, but I hope I’m doing it right. She isn’t stopping me or
pushing me away, so that’s a good thing. Right?
But damn, she tastes
so sweet, and her lips are so soft.
No wonder everyone
likes to do this so much.
It feels like it
lasts forever.
After a while, she
needs to take a breath, and our lips unlock. Her eyes wide and her lips parted,
still swollen, heavy, much like mine, and all I can think of is kissing her
again.
Is it so wrong to
want the thing I shouldn’t have?
She tucks a strand of
her wild hair behind her ear, her cheeks turning red as a strawberry, but I
like the color. I can’t stop looking at her, but it’s growing awfully silent
too. She’s still so close to me; I can feel her warm breath tingle on my skin.
“This?” I murmur, as
an answer to her question.
She bites her lip to
stop herself from smiling. “I …”
Her smile only makes
me feel more bold, so I place my hand on her cheek and pull her even closer. “I
just want to make you happy.”
I lean in again and
press another soft kiss on her lips, the touch exhilarating me. Goose bumps
scatter across my skin as I taste her on my lips. My blood rushes through my
body to the only spot it can go to, the sudden burst of greed filling me. My
pants tighten as my dick flinches from her lips alone.
God, I need to stop.
This isn’t right.
With all the
willpower I can muster, I unlatch my lips from hers, her taste still lingering
on my tongue. I can smell her perfume too, the scent rubbed off on my cheeks
and neck, and it’s making me giddy. Horny.
Fuck.
I clear my throat as
we both turn red as a beet.
“Well …” I get up
from the bench and turn away for a second to cool down my manly parts. I even
think of the delusional grandpa she has for a neighbor just so I can rid myself
of this hard-on. Anything to make it go away quicker.
When I’ve cooled
down, I turn to her and smile. She’s still looking at me. Her lips still
parted, her face still in shock mode. I can only hope my guess was right, but I
won’t ask. I’ll let her decide.
So I hold out my hand
and say, “Let’s go back inside.”
For a second, she
just stares at me, then my hand, and then me again.
Her hand slowly
reaches for mine.
Our fingers entangle.
The tip of her lips
points upward.
That’s when I know.
Title: Ruin
Author: Clarissa Wild
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Rating: ★★★★1/2 Stars (Rounded to 5 for Goodreads and Amazon)
Reviewer: Melyssa
Reviewer: Melyssa
I’ve never read a
book by this author before, so I have nothing to sit down and compare this book
to in terms of previous works. But I will say that for this reader, as far as
jumping off points go, this was a really good place to start for me. Especially
when you add in that this story was based on a true story, meaning the authors
life.
It bonded me not only to the characters and the story that was I reading about, but in a small way to the author herself. And here’s why.
I’m the queen of a special needs house. From me (the mom), straight on down the line over the span of 16 years and 4 kids, I’ve hit a lot of branches on the autism spectrum tree. I even did what this author did and wrote a book about it because it’s such a big part of my life. So when I read a book where that plays a part, even in the smallest of ways, I’m equal parts eager and scared to read it. But I do walk away almost every single time with a kinship to the person who wrote it, whether it’s fictional or real. I won’t give away what aspects of the story were reality based, but I will say that because of the way it was presented through the character that was living with Asperger’s, it helped a lot with the understanding and bonding process here.
I connected because in a lot of ways, I saw my own son (my own self at times) in this character.
Which brings me to the story itself.
The friendship (what blossomed into romance), was cute. I mean, it really was a first love situation. There were times when it was awkward as one would expect it to be, then other times where it was just moving and beautiful. Everything I think you come to expect when you’re young and you fall in love for the first time. Sure, these characters were actually older than I assumed they were based on the way everything happened (it has a very YA feel to it), but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the way it all played out at all. If anything it captured me more.
But pulling back from that, tackling these characters as individuals, well there was nothing really cute about it. Both Maybell and Alex were dealt and are dealing with a pretty heavy hand. Her injury, their bullying and what felt at times like the true loss of themselves in a world others seemed to be deciding for them, it was all there, all real and hard to read at times.
I saw myself in Maybell. The bullying, the name calling, just how long it went on and just how vicious the people doing it could be, it was like I had gone back in time and was still haunting my high school hallways. The flashes to the past were a little hard for me to take for that reason, and because as time moves on, I’ve lived it over again as the mother of a teenager. Seen it through the eyes of another as it happened. So besides her special needs diagnosis, my heart felt and often times bled for her in that regard as well. No instance greater for me than the strength she needed to have to get through life after the accident.
The same went for Alex.
These two were very similar in the way they experienced life leading into what brings them together and while I can’t say that I understood Alex’s home life (as something like that has never happened to me), I can say that I understood him in every other way. The guilt he lived with, the need to do right by Maybell and others. It was all very real. As the real truths come to light and his role in how everything played out is established, I just wanted the best for him. For both of them. I understood him. I understood his choices leading into that fateful decision and well, I wanted him, them, to be able to rise above them.
Because these two fictional people deserved better.
In the end, I got everything I wanted, but I also got more. Because I got to see growth in these characters. I got to see them change and adapt to the life they were given and become stronger people because of everything they’ve been through. I got to see them happy, instead of being driven by guilt or pain. I got to see two characters, two people, come into themselves in such a strong and empowering way, which for this reader, was even better than any HEA that would have been/will be achieved.
The pacing was well done, I enjoyed the smooth flow of the story as it unfolded because it made it impossible to put down once started. If any of her other books read quite like this one in that regard more so than the other more emotional ones I’ve mentioned, then I’ll definitely be reading more from this author in the future.
And on a final note…
My hat is off to Clarissa for wanting to take these aspects of her life and put them into a book. Having done it myself, I know just what goes into an undertaking like this and it’s in no way easy. I’d venture to say it took as much strength to relive a lot of these moments as it did Maybell as she had to heal, and Alex as he had to accept, learn and grow. But that’s what made this such an enjoyable read. Because it felt as though I was a part of the author’s journey. And that for me was as new and unique as it was beautiful.
My thanks to the author and all others involved in letting me read a copy of this story before its official release. This is one journey (both character and author) that I’m really glad I took the chance on.
It bonded me not only to the characters and the story that was I reading about, but in a small way to the author herself. And here’s why.
I’m the queen of a special needs house. From me (the mom), straight on down the line over the span of 16 years and 4 kids, I’ve hit a lot of branches on the autism spectrum tree. I even did what this author did and wrote a book about it because it’s such a big part of my life. So when I read a book where that plays a part, even in the smallest of ways, I’m equal parts eager and scared to read it. But I do walk away almost every single time with a kinship to the person who wrote it, whether it’s fictional or real. I won’t give away what aspects of the story were reality based, but I will say that because of the way it was presented through the character that was living with Asperger’s, it helped a lot with the understanding and bonding process here.
I connected because in a lot of ways, I saw my own son (my own self at times) in this character.
Which brings me to the story itself.
The friendship (what blossomed into romance), was cute. I mean, it really was a first love situation. There were times when it was awkward as one would expect it to be, then other times where it was just moving and beautiful. Everything I think you come to expect when you’re young and you fall in love for the first time. Sure, these characters were actually older than I assumed they were based on the way everything happened (it has a very YA feel to it), but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the way it all played out at all. If anything it captured me more.
But pulling back from that, tackling these characters as individuals, well there was nothing really cute about it. Both Maybell and Alex were dealt and are dealing with a pretty heavy hand. Her injury, their bullying and what felt at times like the true loss of themselves in a world others seemed to be deciding for them, it was all there, all real and hard to read at times.
I saw myself in Maybell. The bullying, the name calling, just how long it went on and just how vicious the people doing it could be, it was like I had gone back in time and was still haunting my high school hallways. The flashes to the past were a little hard for me to take for that reason, and because as time moves on, I’ve lived it over again as the mother of a teenager. Seen it through the eyes of another as it happened. So besides her special needs diagnosis, my heart felt and often times bled for her in that regard as well. No instance greater for me than the strength she needed to have to get through life after the accident.
The same went for Alex.
These two were very similar in the way they experienced life leading into what brings them together and while I can’t say that I understood Alex’s home life (as something like that has never happened to me), I can say that I understood him in every other way. The guilt he lived with, the need to do right by Maybell and others. It was all very real. As the real truths come to light and his role in how everything played out is established, I just wanted the best for him. For both of them. I understood him. I understood his choices leading into that fateful decision and well, I wanted him, them, to be able to rise above them.
Because these two fictional people deserved better.
In the end, I got everything I wanted, but I also got more. Because I got to see growth in these characters. I got to see them change and adapt to the life they were given and become stronger people because of everything they’ve been through. I got to see them happy, instead of being driven by guilt or pain. I got to see two characters, two people, come into themselves in such a strong and empowering way, which for this reader, was even better than any HEA that would have been/will be achieved.
The pacing was well done, I enjoyed the smooth flow of the story as it unfolded because it made it impossible to put down once started. If any of her other books read quite like this one in that regard more so than the other more emotional ones I’ve mentioned, then I’ll definitely be reading more from this author in the future.
And on a final note…
My hat is off to Clarissa for wanting to take these aspects of her life and put them into a book. Having done it myself, I know just what goes into an undertaking like this and it’s in no way easy. I’d venture to say it took as much strength to relive a lot of these moments as it did Maybell as she had to heal, and Alex as he had to accept, learn and grow. But that’s what made this such an enjoyable read. Because it felt as though I was a part of the author’s journey. And that for me was as new and unique as it was beautiful.
My thanks to the author and all others involved in letting me read a copy of this story before its official release. This is one journey (both character and author) that I’m really glad I took the chance on.
Author Bio
Clarissa Wild is a
New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author, best known for the dark
Romance novel Mr. X. Her novels include the Fierce Series, the Delirious
Series, Stalker Duology, Twenty-One (21), Ultimate Sin, VIKTOR, and Bad
Teacher. She is also a writer of erotic romance such as the Blissful Series,
The Billionaire's Bet series, and the Enflamed Series. She is an avid reader
and writer of sexy stories about hot men and feisty women. Her other loves
include her furry cat friend and learning about different cultures. In her free
time she enjoys watching all sorts of movies, reading tons of books and cooking
her favorite meals.
Author Links
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