Hot Tree Promotions: Broken Lights by Dianna Hardy

Title: Broken Lights

Series: None. Standalone

Author: Dianna Hardy

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction

Norman Smithson is at the end of the line. His wife left him, women don't look at him, he was made redundant, and at forty, he could be just that little bit slimmer. He would be a has-been if he'd ever been a 'was' in the first place. He's not the Alpha male of the 21st century – or of any century. He was the chubby oddball who used to sit silently at the back of the class so he wouldn't get picked on.

Rosa is a dreadlocked, tattooed and pierced twenty-something, who uses her image as armour to keep everyone away from every broken thing about her. But her past is about to catch up with her ... at the exact moment Norman finds himself in completely the wrong place, at the worst possible time.

One gunshot, one scramble for life, one unlikely couple, one very long night ... can one damaged woman and one ordinary man, find the extraordinary in the very last second they're given?

Broken Lights is a standalone story of what's really worth fighting for, when one second is all you have left.

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All book info and further buy links: http://www.diannahardy.com/broken-lights.html

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Dianna Hardy is the international bestselling author of The Witching Pen series and the Eye Of The Storm series. She combines a titillating mix of contemporary and paranormal romance into her writing, as well as urban and dark fantasy, to bring you stories that are action-packed, fast- paced and not short of heat, with the focus on both character development and the plot. She writes full-length novels and short fiction.

She currently lives in Surrey (United Kingdom) with her partner and their daughter, where she writes full-time.

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Review

5 stars!

Broken Lights is a beautifully realistic and raw story about two individuals who have had very different lives, but are brought together in such an unexpected, and indeed, life changing moment.

I adored Norman from the first sentence. He is your average guy, and that is not a bad thing. I know we are all attracted to the alpha male; they are exciting, but - and Dianna Hardy has touched upon this subject in some of her guest posts for this book - not necessarily, well, in real life they don't always turn out to be as great as they are in fiction. Whereas you're everyday kind and funny male has to take the back-seat in romance stories. Well, I have to say despite the fact I love a good macho male, I fell for Norman straight away because of the way he thinks about what is going on around him, and of how he feels about what's going on, but most importantly the way he reacts to those around him and what life has thrown on him. He is the most realistic male I have ever read about. So relate-able, sweet, considerate, caring, and he has a really great sense of humour, which I personally love in a man.

I mean, Norman isn't having an easy time at this particular point in his life. Such circumstances could ruin a person, make them bitter, and though he does do what any of us would do when we hit rock bottom - indulge in a couple of drinks - he has a good heart, which unfortunately gets him injured in this collision meeting with Rose, but he is just your every day man with no particular power, but regardless of the danger facing him when he stumbles into a situation with Rose, he selflessly helps her.

And then there is Rose, you can't not like Rosa. She has had such a horrible life, but she has spunk. And she is such a strong character in a way that she doesn't even realize. Despite everything she keeps going, she keeps pushing forward, and, as with Norman, your heart does go out to her. You want her to find her way into the light. You want her to know she can have a better life, and for her to gain that, because even though it is so clear to see she doesn't believe there is hope, she still has it inside her, buried in the darkness.

I love Dianna Hardy's work, no matter what the genre. She is a very talented and wonderful writer, so there was no way I wasn't going to love this story. Dianna has a beautiful voice and has that wonderful ability to hook you within the first paragraph. What I loved most about this story is how the events that take place lead the characters to this life changing moment. I personally believe in fate and that everything in life happens for a reason - which is not a nice belief when horrible things happen, I know, and I apologize for how that sounds - that you never know what is round the corner, and that life can indeed change in an instant, or rather a second. So, that aspect of the story was a big pull for me, but I loved that the characters were everyday people thrown together in a moment of horrific madness, and were able to rediscover their strengths and themselves through meeting one another. They do say we meet people in our lives for a reason; that everyone will make an impact on us in one way of another, and is wonderful to see how a selfless act of kindness can make such a difference to someone's views; not to mention how having your life hanging in the balance can really make you stop and look at what you really want and what is actually important in life.

I love that this story is the turning point in two individual's lives; the next phase of discovering themselves, rather than the beginning or a new relationship, which it is, but it's a fresh start all around. You don't see that a lot in romances so it was a nice change of pace.

Broken Lights is a beautiful story that not only proves that life really can change within a second, but that we all have hidden strengths and capabilities beyond our own beliefs. That we have the power to make a difference in other peoples life as well as our own.  

(This book was received from author in exchange for an honest review.)