Blog Tour Stop : Lost in Us by Layla Hagen ( review + giveaway )

Serena has learned to live with her past, locking her secrets and nightmares deep inside her. But when her boyfriend of six years abruptly leaves her, she’s catapulted back into pain, nursing a broken heart. When indulging in mountains of chocolate doesn’t work, Serena decides the best way to deal with her shattered heart is to indulge in something else. A rebound . . .

The night she swaps her usual Sprite for tequila, she meets James. The encounter is breathtaking.
Electrifying.
And best not repeated.

James is a successful entrepreneur in Silicon Valley. A man who has amassed a fortune by taking risks. A man who has shunned commitment completely, and still does. He’s the exact opposite of Serena. But sometimes opposites attract. Sometimes they give in to burning passion. Sometimes opposites are perfect for each other.

James is everything her damaged soul could want. His kisses are intoxicating, his touch out of this world. He makes her forget. He grants her peace from her pain. But as they grow closer, Serena discovers she isn’t the only one with a past. James carries the scars of a past much darker than hers. One that has left him damaged, hurt, and wary of love. A past that gives him the power to shatter her.

Now James and Serena must find a way to mend one another. Or risk losing each other forever.

Four words : make up your mind.

As much as I was annoyed with the both of them and their decisions, I was easily pulled into their feelings and rode right alongside with them.

Serena has gone through something we may all fear, the one she thought she’d be spending the rest of her life with has run off with another … and they’ve been together for 6 years. Nearing graduation as an economic major and trying to secure a position in investment banking, she has some choices ahead of her that can be life changing.

Not only does she have all of that to deal with, she’s still dealing and harboring guilt and lost of her sister, Kat. And her ways of coping are certainly something many newly-graduated college students can relate to (filling out applications ring any bells?).

And there’s James, the guy who seems like he has at all, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Demons from the past have made him a complete commitment-phobe, can Serena be the game changer for him or will he miss out on his chance to be free of his old ways?

As much as I would love to go through every detail of this book and share what truly perturbed me, I shall refrain because I don’t want to give any spoilers away. The first sentence of my review is a dead giveaway. It’s truly a rollercoaster of a book as we go through Serena and James trials and tribulations of their relationship. You’ll definitely get some pretty steamy sex scenes, angst BEYONE angst, perhaps a little furious/annoyed, maybe shed a little tears (because why would he do that to her?!) …, and then some tears of joys, and at last, happiness!

For the most part I did enjoy this book and am looking forward to the next installment, which deals with Serena’s best friend, Jess (who has jet setted to London to start her new job), and Parker. There’s so much to their story that was subtly shared in the book and I was so damn curious about, but we must wait for it.

MY RATING :

My name is Layla Hagen and I am a New Adult Contemporary Romance author.

I fell in love with books when I was nine years old, and my love affair with stories continues even now, many years later.

I write romantic stories and can’t wait to share them with the world.

And I drink coffee. Lots of it, in case the photo didn’t make it obvious enough