Alyssa Fontaine’s life, loved ones—everything familiar and dear—are brutally taken from her.
Taken captive by two men, she endures a horrific nightmare. A new life is forced upon her and even a new name.
Just when it appears that no hope is in sight, she is saved by an unlikely twist of fate. Trapped in the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains, life will open its arms to her again and she will embrace it. She will find love such as she never knew existed.
Sierra is a heart-wrenching story of the power of the human spirit to survive amidst impossible circumstances and severe losses. It is a story of survival . . . and hope.
Romantic Suspense
Date Published: 6/13/12
Synopsis:
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| Taylor Dean |
Taylor Dean lives in Texas and is the mother of
four grown children. Upon finding herself with an empty nest, she began to
write the stories that were always wandering around in her head, quickly
finding that she had a passion for writing, specifically romance. Whether it’s
paranormal, contemporary, or suspense—you’ll find all sub-genres of romance in
her line-up.
Twitter - @taylordeanbooks
Links to Buy
—Excerpt—
Stay strong, Alyssa. Another opportunity for escape will come, you just have to wait for it. And yet, she wondered if she would live through the next day.
It wasn’t a matter of being lost in the woods, it was a matter of being totally, and utterly, lost.
“WE HAVE TA find our community today. We’re out of food,” Pa said at lunch as they ate the last of the granola bars. “I know wur close.”
As they hiked, Adam walked behind her and pushed her every time she slowed down. They were all slow today. He never walked behind her. The trip was getting to all of them.
Alyssa felt as though she could simply lie down and die. Her pain, which had been significant, seemed to have diminished into a dull, anesthetized feeling that enveloped her. Maybe this is what death feels like—a sluggish, agonizing death, that is, she thought numbly.
As they hiked down the mountain through a heavily wooded area, a deluge of rain descended upon them. They did not stop or seek any shelter, they hiked right through it. The noise of the storm hid the fact that Alyssa sobbed out loud. The moisture hid her tears. She didn’t even try to rein it in—she just let it out and was glad for the cover of the storm. Lightning and thunder roared around them and still they walked. Pa was sure the community was just below them.
Alyssa knew that life—as she knew it—was over.
Her fate was to be with Adam.
The thought set in and her heart sank. She couldn’t remember ever being so terrified in her entire life.
It soon became obvious they were nowhere near their precious community, however. Pa cursed and yelled in a fit of temper. They were all hungry and tired. When they stopped for breaks, Alyssa fell asleep each time, hardly able to hold herself in an upright position.
That evening as they walked through an area dense with pine trees and foliage, to their surprise, they came across a cabin in the woods. Pa and Adam stood in the trees staring at it. It was obviously occupied. Smoke wafted out of the chimney, the smell of fresh bread was in the air, and the tinkle of music could be heard if you strained your ear.
As Alyssa's eyes alighted upon the cabin for the first time, she thought perhaps she was dreaming. It was like seeing a mirage in the desert. It couldn’t be real—the sight, the sound, the smell. It was . . . charming. She was seeing things. It must be her imagination. After all, who lived up here in the middle of nowhere? But if she was seeing things that weren’t really there, then so were Adam and Pa.
They decided to pay the occupant a visit and cautiously began the walk up to the door of the cabin. Alyssa suddenly felt like Dorothy along withtwo cowardly lions approaching the wizard. The cautious music from the movie played in her befuddled brain.
Yep, she was losing it.
Puffs of smoke shot out of the chimney and she wondered if Adam would turn around and run.
Maybe the wizard would grant her deepest wish.
Freedom .
. .
This book was pretty good. The story line, the adventures, the couple, just great.
In the beginning, we see Alyssa and her husband Sam, and their 2 year old little boy heading home from their family vacation in Tahoe. While driving through the Sierra Mountains (a trip I have taken many times in my youth as well) they were getting antsy. Sam was getting tired, Clay was fast asleep. Alyssa knew she'd be driving a little ways, soon. When Sam pulled into the rest stop to stretch their legs a little, Alyssa couldn't have dreamed her life was about to change forever.
When she met her guys back in the car, she noticed first the man in the backseat with the gun to Sam's head. Then the knife at her throat, and a stern voice telling her to drive.
Alyssa was scared, she was afraid for Sam and Clay, and herself. She thought once they got these guys where they wanted to go, it would be ok.
But that wasn't the case at all. When Adam told her to pull over, and get out, they thought this would be the last they saw of them.
But it just got worse.
All of a sudden she was in a truck, and images of Adam and Clay falling to the ground haunted her.
When Adam and Pa reached their destination, they got out of the truck and started to walk towards the woods. They hiked until they couldn't walk anymore. With a concussion, sore feet and only a few pieces of jerky (with pocket lent on them) and a small amount of water, Alyssa was struggling to keep up. But Adam wouldn't let her fall behind either.
Days went by, after a couple of times of trying to escape, and their beatings, she gave in. She felt numb.
After about 5 days, they were about out of food, and still not where they were supposed to be going. That's when Pa saw the cabin.
Alex lived alone in the middle of the mountains. it was a good 6 day hike to any amount of civilization. and that's how he liked it. He didn't want to be bothered. After 3 years of living in the mountains, with helicopter delivery once a year with his supplies, he was happy.
At least he thought he was happy. Until that one night when the front door burst open, and 2 men with shot guns pointed at him entered his life.
Once he got a look at those big doe eyes begging for his help, he knew then and there the battered, badly beaten woman was about to change his life forever.
Like I said, i really enjoyed the storyline to this book. It was a bit tame from what I usually read. But it was still pretty good. It had more than a few places where I cried. And I'm not talking about those silent tears that come when reading something emotional. I actually had to take a break to get myself under control -
I think the ending was a little rushed, though, as well as a few places in the story where they skipped through time. They spent so much time preparing for those 4 months of being snowed in, but we only got a page or two or what happened during those 4 months :(
1 comment:
Thanks so much for the review, Jen! I'm so glad you enjoyed Sierra. I appreciate you taking the time to read and review my book!
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