Author: Natalie Gayle
Publication Date: July 10th 2015
Plot: A moment in time, that’s all it took. Beauty, pain and tragedy.
Xander “Pretty Boy” Todd was a demon in the ring. A professional MMA fighter with a career that had the world a buzz—but now it’s gone. Or is it?
Eden Sommers had her dreams of an international modelling career within her grasp—and lost it. Gone within a few seconds, leaving nothing but pain.
How do you go on, when the one thing that defines you is suddenly ripped away—only to leave scars and a hollow shell in its place? Has the beauty gone forever? Or has it just retreated—to now be hidden, and dormant; guarded by the inner demons?
Can these two wounded souls find the inner strength to fight back the demons together and find the beauty in their lives once again?
To do this, they must first accept—The hardest demons to defeat are the ones inside. They’ll have to be BRAVE.
Xander “Pretty Boy” Todd was a demon in the ring. A professional MMA fighter with a career that had the world a buzz—but now it’s gone. Or is it?
Eden Sommers had her dreams of an international modelling career within her grasp—and lost it. Gone within a few seconds, leaving nothing but pain.
How do you go on, when the one thing that defines you is suddenly ripped away—only to leave scars and a hollow shell in its place? Has the beauty gone forever? Or has it just retreated—to now be hidden, and dormant; guarded by the inner demons?
Can these two wounded souls find the inner strength to fight back the demons together and find the beauty in their lives once again?
To do this, they must first accept—The hardest demons to defeat are the ones inside. They’ll have to be BRAVE.
☆✮ My Review ✮☆
☆ I received an ARC via Give Me Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ! ☆
Brave was a lot different from what I had expected and from MMA reads in general.
Two characters, both at a critical and crucial crossroads in their lives, and have faced ordeals quite discerning than others.
Xander is your swoon-worthy fallen from grace, MMA fighter-- who finds himself a dilemma when in one of his fights, his opponent tragically dies.
As for Eden Summers-- an up and coming model hopeful, her dreams of making it big are put on the line after a disastrous incident occurs and she is left physically and emotionally damaged.
But when fate intervenes and brings these two together, they are put to the ultimate test of facing their pasts and themselves; as well as, are put through the ringer of learning how to move forward on with their lives while confronting the demons that plague them.
I have to say, that I really and truly enjoyed this first installment in this series and I’m definitely looking forward to more.
Brave was a lot different from what I had expected and from MMA reads in general.
Two characters, both at a critical and crucial crossroads in their lives, and have faced ordeals quite discerning than others.
Xander is your swoon-worthy fallen from grace, MMA fighter-- who finds himself a dilemma when in one of his fights, his opponent tragically dies.
As for Eden Summers-- an up and coming model hopeful, her dreams of making it big are put on the line after a disastrous incident occurs and she is left physically and emotionally damaged.
But when fate intervenes and brings these two together, they are put to the ultimate test of facing their pasts and themselves; as well as, are put through the ringer of learning how to move forward on with their lives while confronting the demons that plague them.
I have to say, that I really and truly enjoyed this first installment in this series and I’m definitely looking forward to more.
My Rating:
♥♥♥♥
☆✮ Praise for Brave ✮☆
"It’s hard to describe how much I
loved reading Brave. I have a mental list of what I think makes a great book.
It’s probably not everyone’s list, but it’s mine and it’s not very often that a
book ticks every one of those boxes. BRAVE is one of those books.”
Karen—A Thousand Lives Book Blog
“This book has a lot of heart and so
many emotional moments!! I totally fell for Xander, I mean how can you not??
Great great book, you’d be crazy not to one click this!!!” Melissa—Apha
Book Club
"This story resonated with me
from the very first page and I found it hard to put down. Compassion, jealousy,
sensitivity, friendship anger hate but most of all love and an overwhelming
desire to overcome their own demons makes this book a must read.” Susan
Kelly GoodReads Reviewer
"If I could give Brave more than
five stars I would. It deserves so many more than that. It has become my number
one book of 2015 and one that will stay with me for a very long time to
come." Angela—Books and Friendz Blog
If I could give 10 stars I genuinely
would this book is an amazing read and will have you feeling so many emotions
and will have you fallen in love with both Xander and Eden. And it delivers
such an inspirational message that you should never judge anyone because you
don't know what they are or have been through. Thank you so much Natalie for
sharing this beautiful story. Tracy
Supple—GoodReads Reviewer
“This book contains it all! There are
swoon-worthy moments, witty moments, steamy moments, and tearful moments that
all come together to make this one fabulous read. Both Eden and Xander battle
inner demons, proving they can overcome all adversity by being brave.
This is only the first book in the Oni Fighters Series, and I cannot wait for
book two.”
Paige Smith—Hooked on Books Blog
☆✮ Excerpt ✮☆
Fear struck
through me. I hated the conversation
directed to me, particularly when there were strangers involved. I could have cursed Tori. She knew better than to put me on the spot
like this. I could just see her smirking
face across the table from underneath my lashes as my throat started to
constrict.
“You’re more
than welcome to come along and watch. I
encourage people to come along and see for themselves what it’s all about.” Oh,
there was that voice again.
I was
torn. I didn’t want to look up. I didn’t want to see the embarrassment and
the man with the beautiful voice looking uncomfortable when he realised what my
face looked like.
Surely there
was a limit to the torture?
Manners, fear,
self-consciousness all warred within me.
The silence
around me was deafening. I could tell
they were all waiting. I could feel
three sets of eyes on me watching and wondering if I was actually going to
respond. Finally I took a deep
breath. What did it matter if he
rejected me? It had happened before, and
it would happen again. I could do this.
It would hurt, but I was no stranger to pain, both physical and
emotional.
Very slowly I
raised my chin and turned just slightly towards him. I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t because my throat was closed in
fear and uncertainty.
The first thing
I noticed was the dark jeans that hung on narrow hips, then a white T-shirt
that emphasised his flat belly and defined pecs. Bravely, I raised my eyes a little higher and
the pecs ran into a set of wide shoulders.
There was a hint of a tattoo peeking out from under one of his short
sleeves. It only made his bicep look
more delicious and enticing.
I took one
final harsh intake of air and allowed my eyes to complete their journey. They travelled up and up the column of his
corded neck to his wide angular jaw.
His full lips
were slightly turned up in what looked like a half smile or was it amusement? I
could only image how it would look once the shock registered when he saw my
face.
Above those
lips, that looked far too sensual for any man, was a long straight nose with a
hint of a flare to the nostrils. The
knot in my stomach tightened even further as I finally tilted my head back far
enough so my eyes could meet his.
Every muscle in
my body was tensed waiting for the shock, horror and embarrassment I was about
to see, once my scars registered with his brain. It was an involuntary reaction I realised. Nobody could hide it, no matter how hard they
tried. It was just the shock and
surprise. I don’t blame them for their
reactions, it just hurt that was all.
I raised my
eyelids that final few millimetres and forced my eyes to focus on his. Right then and there the world stopped
spinning for me. Time halted. My sisters faded into the background and I
looked into the eyes of one of the most compelling people I had ever seen. Oh, he was handsome, but he was so much
more.
But that was
not what had me struck dumb—nope that wasn’t it.
It was his
eyes—those bottomless pools of black onyx. I did a mental double take. For eyes so dark they should have appeared
cold and icy.
But they
didn’t—they weren’t cold at all. They
were warm and rich. Right then was the first time I could recall in the last
five years, a stranger looking at me with warmth in their eyes. Not shock, not pity, not embarrassment. It was warmth.
The shock
paralysed me. I didn’t know what to do or how to act. My brain was shorting
out. Nothing made sense. Somewhere in
the back of my mind I registered my leg being kicked under the table, but even
that didn’t break through my connection with those eyes. I wanted to swim in them, wrap myself in
their warmth and burrow down tight.
I have no idea
how much time passed.
Finally, he
thrust his hand forward to me and without conscious thought, I placed my hand
in his to shake. What happened next
shocked me even more.
He lent across
the table and pulled me into a loose hug and brushed his lips against my left
cheek.
My brain was
fried and my nerves were all misfiring.
Nothing made sense. I was so far
out of my comfort zone.
He pulled back
slowly and gave me a smile that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.
Then he spoke
and his words seemed to swirl around me in a caress.
“Hi Eden. I’m
Xander Todd.”
Suddenly, I
realised I had no box to categorise him into.
☆✮ Teasers ✮☆
☆✮ Book Trailer ✮☆
☆✮ About the Author ✮☆
A confessed readaholic and romantic junkie, Natalie spends her time juggling a busy career as an IT professional and author. In between staring at a computer screen (she spends lot time doing that!) Natalie, enjoys living the Gold Coast life with her very tolerant husband and two school aged children.
She loves spending time with family and friends, hitting the beach, cooking, working out and curling up with a good book. Her pet hates are cleaning and anything else that can be considered “domestic dullness”. If she could have one wish it would be to be able to fit 48 hours into 24.
Natalie is the author of the Centre Games Series. A fast paced, romantic suspense series set on the Gold Coast, Australia. The series tells the stories of the Centre, a quasi government agency established to fight environmental, biological and agricultural threats. The Centre Games books are filled with hot alpha males and the feisty independent females strong enough to capture their hearts. Natalie’s books pack lots of action, hot romance and surprises.
Natalie is currently working on her fifth instalment for the Centre Games Series and a brand new series for 2015. Look out for her new release BRAVE, coming very soon and a couple of surprise projects.
Author's Links:
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