Review: LIKE GRAVITY by Julie Johnson
Synopsis
Like Gravity follows the love story of Brooklyn and Finn.
At age six, Brooklyn Turner witnessed her mother’s horrific murder in a car-jacking gone wrong, and sent the man who destroyed her life to prison for 25 years. After a childhood spent in foster care and later with her unflinchingly uninvolved father, now, at age 20, she’s jaded, drinks too much tequila, and isn’t interested in anything but no-strings-attached sexual encounters.
Still, when she meets Finn Chambers – the tattooed lead singer of the hottest band on campus – she can’t seem to shake him or his relentless pursuit. Brooklyn can’t – won’t – open up to Finn about either her past or about the foreboding feeling she gets whenever she steps outside her apartment: the unshakeable belief that someone is watching her, scouting out her weaknesses, and carefully planning some kind of attack. And as the all-too coincidental, ominous incidents begin to pile up, Brooklyn’s worries only increase – as does her need to push the scary thoughts far out of sight.
Finn Chambers has his own secrets- one he’s not ready to share with Brooklyn, since that would mean losing her. But as Brooklyn starts to piece together memories and his past comes to light, the fragile love they’ve been building gets completely derailed. Finn knows he has to fight if it means keeping the girl he’s loved for as long as he can remember…
At the end of the day, though, it might not matter how hard he fights. Not if Brooklyn isn’t alive to fight for anymore.
♥♥♥
Abby’s Review 4.5 Stars
Like Gravity is the kind debut novel that any author would be proud of. I really hope that this gets the attention it deserves because it is a very nice surprise. The writing moves along at a great pace. The story albeit slightly predictable had me completely drawn in.
Brooklyn is our damaged female. Except right from the start you understand that her level of damaged is way beyond most damaged. She has witnessed something so horrific anyone would be damaged. Brooklyn meets Finn and she has her guards up because of her horrid past. Sounds like a lot of books right? But it’s different, I promise. There is a lot to this story including our sweet and sexy Finn.
I did think at one point that Finn was falling a little too quickly and giving lines to Brooklyn that were not yet deserved, however once you read on you understand why and you no longer feel that way.
What I loved most about this story is the author’s writing style.
“I knew, at that moment, that my life was about to change irrevocably. I saw the change coming-I was standing in the middle of the tracks watching as the train bore down on me. I could’ve jumped the track. I even could’ve tried to outrun the damn thing, knowing it was futile but still intent on making an escape.
I did none of those things”
See ~beautiful.
I look forward to seeing what Julie Johnson has to say in the future and think that as far as debuts go this is a home run.
♥♥♥
Nicole’s Review 4 Stars
For me, books that can be read in a day are both a good and bad thing. They are good because, well, I read it in a day! Any book that sucks me in and causes me to neglect the basic needs of my family (You know…clean underwear, dinner, bath time!) must be a good read!! This is where the bad part kicks in. I did NOTHING else! I kept telling myself that I would just read to a stopping place or to the end of the chapter. It wasn’t until I finished the book that I realized that “my stopping place” was the end! And that’s a bad part too! The book is finished. There is no more to read!
Like Gravity by Julie Johnson was exactly that kind of book! I read it in one sitting and really enjoyed the story! This story grabbed me from the Prologue and didn’t let go until the Epilogue. Brooklyn Turner’s life is shattered at the age of 6 by the brutal murder of her mother. As a result, she lives her entire life with an attitude of fear and distrust that help her keep people from getting too close to her. For the most part, this coping skill serves her well. That is, until she meets Finn Chambers. Finn is the lead singer in a local band who immediately takes to Brooklyn. Unfortunately, Brooklyn doesn’t take to Finn. She sees him as your basic man whore looking for his next conquest. She could not be more wrong! Finn only has eyes for “Bee” and will do anything to prove her wrong. The development of their relationship from friends to lovers is a very sweet journey. There is so much more to them than either one really knows!
One of the reasons Like Gravity was so hard for me to put down was the fact that Julie Johnson’s debut novel was very well written. Her voice and the development of the characters and plot were spot on. Finn and Brooklyn are totally believable. Reading the murder of Brooklyn’s mother had me in tears. When Brooklyn was faced with danger as an adult, I was anxious and a little scared too. Getting to know Finn was a real pleasure. Finding out that he has his own childhood scars to bear had me empathizing with him. When they finally get together, I was cheering on their success!
Like Gravity gets 4 stars from me. It is a stand-alone novel full of romance, tragedy and mystery. Read it! It will only take you a day! 😉
♥♥♥
Author Bio:
Julie Johnson is a twenty-two year old Boston native. When she’s not writing, Julie can most often be found drinking too much coffee, stalking Goodreads for new books to add to her ever-growing TBR list, watching reruns of Veronica Mars, or studying psychology. Julie enjoys cooking, travel, photography, and spending time with her friends and family.
Connect with Julie Johnson:
https://www.facebook.com/
http://www.goodreads.com/
http://www.goodreads.com/book/
http://juliejohnsonbooks.com/
Twitter: @AuthorJulie
