Colleen HooverRomance · Fiction·b. 1979
Layla
Synopsis
Leeds Gabriel is an aimless musician playing in a wedding band when he meets Layla at her sister's wedding, and the two fall for each other over a single weekend. Months later, Leeds's obsessive ex-girlfriend shoots Layla, and she spends the better part of a year in and out of consciousness. The woman who eventually comes home is not quite the woman Leeds fell in love with: her temperament has shifted, and she remembers things she should not and forgets things she should.
Hoping to recover something of what they had, Leeds takes her back to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. Instead of healing her, the house unsettles her further — and Leeds begins to sense a second presence there, a woman who calls herself Willow. Willow knows things about the house, about Layla and eventually about Leeds himself that no stranger could know, and Leeds finds himself drawn to her in a way that sets him against the woman he came here to save.
Layla is Colleen Hoover's first paranormal romance and a marked departure from her contemporary realist fiction. It keeps genuine ambiguity for much of its length about whether Leeds is experiencing something supernatural or simply losing his grip, and it resolves toward a choice that decides what happens to all three of them. Readers who come to Hoover for emotional contemporary romance should expect a genre shift; the supernatural premise is literal rather than metaphorical, and the novel asks to be taken on those terms.
How it reads
Prose complexity 4/10
Content warnings (3)
ViolenceGun ViolenceTrauma
- I received this book from Brilliance Publishing for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. When I learnt about Colleen Hoover’s latest book, Layla, I was eager to get my hands on a copy and was lucky enough to receive both the e-book and audiobook directly from the publishers. I knew from experience with Verity that Colleen Hoover knows how to shock her readers to the core, so I expected nothing less from her latest release. Once again, her brilliance shined through with this engaging story. The story introduced the reader to Layla and Leeds. They met at a wedding where they had an instant connection. They had amazing chemistry, which no one could deny. Then calamity struck, and their lives would never be the same. What a ride. I am still trying to wrap my mind around the events which occurred in imaginative and well-written tale. It had me on the edge of my seat and I had a hard time putting it down. I had moments while listening where chills ran down my spine. It didn’t help that I listened to it at night with the lights off. The characters enthralled me. Their actions, their thoughts and decisions made for an interesting read. I found Leeds to be the most complex of all the characters. He elicited a wide range of emotions. However, the deeper the reader went into the story it would reveal things are not always as they appear, which altered my opinion regarding Leeds. The story took some unexpected turns, which contributed to my altered opinion of Leeds. I would never have guessed that was the turn the story would take. I am happy with how the events unfolded, although there were moments when I feared disaster would strike. Narration Brian Pallino narrated, and this was my second experience with him. I enjoyed his range of voices. He captured the substance of the story and I loved the way he reflected the emotions of the characters. His character voices were distinct and added to the enjoyment of the story. I was sad to learn of his passing. Conclusion/Recommendation Colleen Hoover created an intriguing page turner which kept the reader entertained from start to finish. I would recommend this to readers looking for a unique and enthralling paranormal story. This review was originally posted on Totally Addicted to Reading
- הספר הזה היה פשוט עינוי. (ברצינות זה היה הספר הכי גרוע שקראתי)
- What is Colleen doing to me 😍😍