Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Blog Tour: Sink or Swim by Jamie Canosa


Synopsis
There are some things you just can't walk away from.

When sleeping in vacant warehouses and dark alleys becomes preferable to living at home, something is seriously wrong. But when word reaches Allie that her mother is facing a life threatening illness, she has no choice but to return to the place of nightmares. Leaving wasn't a choice, it was a necessity, and if returning hadn't been equally necessary, Allie never would have set foot back inside that hell-hole.

Dean is no stranger to hardship, but the day Allie walked out of his life, taking his heart right along with her, was hands-down the most frustrating. Six months later, she's back and Dean refuses to rest until he figures out exactly what the hell happened.

Now, Allie's drowning. Drowning in lies. Drowning in the truth. Drowning in pain, and anger, and fear. But there comes a time when every drowning person must decide whether they will . . . Sink or Swim?


4 Star review by Jen Hagen

This is not a light easy read.  It contains explicit details of parent/child violence. 

Allie ran away from home 6 months ago and had been living on the streets until she received news that her mother was dying of stage four cancer.  Allie returns home to see her mother and face her father, the father that she fears.  Her father has been beating Allie since she was 12. 

Dean lives across the street from Allie and her family.  Dean hasn’t had it so easy in his life either.  His father died, leaving Dean the burden of being the “man” in the family and working harder than a high-school senior should in order to take care of his mother and two sisters.  Dean and Allie had dated off and on for 6 years.  The night before Allie ran away, Dean expressed his feelings for her and ever since then he has had the burden of his words making her run.  Dean doesn’t know the truth about Allie’s torturous home life and she intends to keep it that way in order to keep them all safe.

Allie is treated as an employee in her father’s home and as long as her dad is happy and sober, then everything is okay.  The minute he gets angry, Allie knows what’s going to happen and she grows weary of trying to protect herself.  She’s tired of fighting.  She’s tired from being on the streets.  She pushes Dean away when he gets too close to the truth in order to save him.  Her father will no doubt kill both of them if the truth is ever revealed.  Allie not only fears for her life, but also for Dean’s.  Dean is forced to watch from the sidelines.

“Were they really destined to spend their lives separated by only a street, watching each other suffer, but being unable to do a thing about it? Was their love story really destined to be a goddamn tragedy?”—Dean


Dean is a wonderful caring man who will stop at nothing to keep Allie safe.  Is he strong enough to fight for Allie?

“Time and time again, he’d failed her. But, not now. Not this time.”

Although this contains a character from the first novel, Fight or Flight, it has no connection to the original book and can be read as a stand alone.  For those of you wanting to read more about Jay and Em, their presence is not made.   Sink or Swim is told in alternating points of view between Allie and Dean.  There are times during this book that it becomes very intense and you may need to step away.  I blinked back a lot of tears while reading this book and I applaud the author for being able to bring out these emotions in the reader. 

Excerpt

Finally managing to pry away one of his hands, Allie rolled up onto her knees and took off, sprinting across the open field. She didn’t have to look back to know Dean was right behind her. She could feel him closing in.
Still, she was taken by surprise when he grabbed a hold of her arm, spun her around, and planted a shoulder in her stomach. It didn’t hurt, but it definitely knocked the wind out of her as he lifted her off her feet.
“Put me down, you caveman!” She hung nearly halfway down his back, pounding on him with her fists and laughing so hard tears formed in her eyes.
“Don’t make me tickle you up there,” Dean warned with a quick slap to her butt.
“Hey!”
Laughing, Dean lowered her slowly down the front of his body until she was standing on her own again. His arms encircled her waste, pressing them tightly together and Allie was so wrapped up in him that she didn’t even realize Sarah had been snapping away the whole time. Later on, she gave one of the pictures to Allie. The sun was starting to set and the image was over exposed, but—just like the entire day—it was absolutely perfect.


About the Author:



Jamie Canosa is a full time author of YA literature, which she absolutely loves. When she’s not writing or spending time with her family, she can usually be found with her nose in a book. She currently resides in Ravena, NY with her wonderful husband and three crazy kids . . . plus the dog, the bird and the rabbit.

Author links:
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Buy Links
Sink or Swim ~ Amazon 

Other Books by Jamie Canosa
Fight or Flight ~ Amazon
Dissidence ~ Amazon
Vengeance ~ Amazon


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