Fragile Review

Devon Manning survived an abusive childhood, life on the streets, and dabbling with drugs. Now that her life is changed for the better, she works as a social worker saving kids from abusive families. The work is extremely emotional for Devon and she has never forgotten her past abuse and everything she has suffered. But instead of being a victim, she is a survivor and is determined to save as many children as possible from abuse.

Luke Rafferty left the Army after suffering a gun shot to his leg. He became a doctor and left his Army friends behind and has tried to move on with his life. But every couple months, there’s a funeral for one of his old friends and it brings back all the memories.

Then there’s Luke’s twin brother who is emotionally unstable because of his abusive childhood and from seeing too much while in the Army. All of Luke’s friends seem to resent him for leaving them behind to fight the war by themselves but that was his choice. Now Luke is working long shifts in the ER and is interested in a pretty social worker named Devon who he frequently sees at the hospital.

When Devon and Luke begin dating, Devon has no idea how her life will drastically change. Someone is stalking her, or at least Devon and Luke seem to think so. Is someone really out to get Devon or is her mind playing tricks on her? Will Devon and Luke be able to have a lasting relationship or will something come between them?

Fragile is a fast paced book that sizzles with suspense and sexual tension equally. The characters are nicely developed and their pasts bring an interesting aspect to the story. While I normally dislike books involving any type of abuse, I couldn’t help but root for the heroine to finally find some happiness in her life.

Fragile is a romantic suspense but it is not a happy romantic type of story. The tone is rather depressing and sad at times, throw in some sex scenes, danger, suspense, and then a happily ever after. I did enjoy this book but there is only so much you can put your character through and I thought it was a bit too much.

I disliked the constant repeating of lines such as Devon reminding Luke over and over again that she isn’t fragile (hence the title). Also when a paragraph would end with a sentence, the same sentence would be repeated word for word in the next paragraph with a different character thinking it. These small nuances took away from the story and I couldn’t help but groan whenever Devon called Luke ‘’slick.’’ Overall, Fragile is a well written book but its faults outweigh the positives.