Shackled by Angela Carling Review

Shackled by Angela Carling-YA Contemporary Romance

ARC given by publisher for review

Summary:

After shy, quiet Lucy and her family move from their small hometown in Minnesota to Seattle, Washington, she is surprised when Ryan, the most popular boy at school asks her out. Soon, she is swept up in a whirlwind romance and her naïve and trusting nature allows her to fall head over heels in love with her too-good-to-be suitor. Suddenly, Lucy finds herself enraptured by the excitement of her new relationship, leaving her blinded to the warning signs of danger ahead. Can her fairy tale romance last, or will she find that her prince charming is more like a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

My Take:

I'm going to start by saying that as a mother, this was an emotional read for me. I kept picturing my daughter or nieces responding this way to a boy and it made me hurt. I'm going to try very hard not to reveal any spoilers, but you may get the idea based on my feelings. 

Lucy. I liked her as a character, but also felt like she was a bit naive, therefore making bad choices. She never really had a boyfriend before, so when Ryan starts paying attention to her, she feels special. I get that. I totally get it. It didn't make it any easier to see her falling for a guy who clearly has some deep issues. In the end though, Lucy does recognize that this is not a healthy situation. Thank goodness. 

I really couldn't stand Ryan, even from the beginning. He just seemed too good looking, too perfect, but also seemed to be way overprotective and overbearing. I'm all for an Alpha male, but he gave me the creeps. That being said, near the end, I had developed some compassion for him based on the situation. He was raised to be the way he was and I really think he knew his behavior was wrong. Maybe I'm wrong, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. 

Now on to Mason. I really liked Mason and felt like his character was a bit underplayed. He really seems to be a great guy and genuinely cares for Lucy. I would have liked to have seen him more in the story. 

As for the story, I mention that it was a bit difficult to read. It's because of the subject matter. I liked the story and I liked the way it developed, but it was hard to read. I found myself involved in the story and in the characters lives. I wanted to wrap Lucy up and take her away from Ryan. I have one qualm that I have to mention. Most of the book is written from Lucy's POV, but there are a few chapters with Ryan and Mason's POV's written in third person. That just bugged me. I think it would have flowed better if all POV's were told in first person. 

So, I bordered on rating this a 3 or a 4. The reason I went with the 4 is because I kept thinking about it later on. I've had over a week since reading the book and it's still very fresh in my head. Reflecting on the story now, it reads like it would be a good script for a show or movie. I would recommend this book, but be advised that there is some difficult subject matter. 

For more information go to: Angela Carling.

Amazon/Barnes and Noble