Title: Tough Love
Author: Skye Warren
Publisher/Year: Createspace Publishing 3/21/15
Length: 120 pages
Series: Stripped #0.5
Overview
A story about the sacrifices we make for love…
I sneak out of my room every night. My father’s guards don’t see me. My sister doesn’t see me.
No one sees me, except him.
He’s the son of a mafia foot soldier. My father is the boss. I shouldn’t even know Giovanni. And I definitely shouldn’t kiss him. Our relationship is doomed to fail, but that won’t stop me from trying.
Not every girl wants to be a princess. I just want to be free.
My Thoughts
Reading this after reading the first book in the story doesn’t actually hurt anything, but what it does is give us context to the moments that changed the lives of both Honor and Clara. We remember meeting them in Tanglewood when they’ve run away from the life they knew, from the fear that they had living in their father’s world and being subjected to whatever decisions were being made on their behalf. It’s a sad existence, a scary one, and it was really nice to see how Honor and Clara took control. Or Tried.
In this prologue novella of sorts, we get to see how Clara was living her life in the weeks leading up to their escape. To see what kind of girl she was living in a world where she had hints that she wasn’t ‘one of them’ and yet she had no choice but to be what they expected her to be. She had a rebellious side that brought her closer to Gio, one of the ‘soldiers’ in her father’s army and that came with it’s own risks for her and him.
The timing of this story is all around the engagement for Honor and Byron – a man that we learned was absolutely no good for her. He has motivations that tie not only to Honor but to Clara as well and we watch how those plans are slowly being put into place. What he doesn’t expect, what no one expects is that Honor and Clara have the guts to run, the means to run, and when they do…..the story unfolds.
So on that note, young love, hope and a desire for freedom are really what kicks this series off for us. Enjoy!