Oiso very much enjoyed this book and will definitely be looking forward to reading more from you thank you for arc

Review left on amazon uk

Her Lifeline is a highly emotional read and not your typical 'I love my brother's best friend' romance. It is full of pain and loss, bitterness and dread, and chock full of heart.

Erin (11) has a huge crush on her brother's best friend, Ward (19). When tragedy strikes, Ward leaves without a backward glance. Reeling from pain and destruction, Erin builds up walls and comes to resent and hate Ward, while he makes a big name for himself, earning fame and fortune and forgetting those he left behind. Or so it seems. When tragedy strikes again, over 10 years later, Ward comes back to face what he's done and hopefully he can mend what he's broken.

If I were to sum up this read with one word, it would be nice. Erin caused plenty of drama and definitely kept things interesting. I wasn't completely sold on the grand love affair that was Erin + Ward, but I understood what the author was trying to do. It just happened to miss its mark with me. A part of me was disappointed that the last tragedy occurred. I didn't get why it was necessary because it didn't do anything for the plot, nor did it further any character development. It was just one more painful event in a series of painful events.

I loved the Scottish elements of this story. I couldn't get enough of the brogue of the characters. I really need to find more reads with such sexy accents.

All those highs and lows of the emotional rollercoaster in the book kept me turning the pages till the very end.
I've read other books by this author and I had to read this one too.
I enjoyed the story, the drama, Erin that had so much that is happening in her life and her struggling with all that life served her... Can't wait to read the next book by L.A. Casey

Erin Saunders was only eleven years old when her world came crashing down. On the same day that her father dies, Ward Buckley packs up and leaves town.
He’s the center of her world. And then he was just gone.

As the years pass, everything the Erin works for seems to be for naught. Her only light appears when she’s with her brother, Tommy and his young son. But when a tragic accident has Tommy clinging to life, Ward rushes to her side. He’s still the only man who could either utterly destroy her or be her salvation. She’s not going to give him a chance to decide which one it’s going to be.

“It was foolish to assume she’d have remained that cute kid who used to giggle whenever I was in her presence. She wasn’t a young girl with shoulder-length white-blonde hair and the most adorable smile I’d ever seen. She was a twenty-two-year-old woman with a face so beautiful it was hard not to stare. Her thick, white-as-snow wavy hair hung to her waist, and she was couple of inches taller than five foot, if that. Though her crumpled clothing covered her well, it did nothing to hide the swell of her breasts, the dip of her small waist and the delicious flare of her curved hips.
Erin had grown up, and I found myself taking notice of it.
Dafty.
I shook my head, scowling at myself for thinking such things when Tommy was in a critical condition on an operating table. Not to mention, the woman clearly fucking hated me and I didn’t have a clue how to go about dealing with it. The last time a person had looked at me with that much hate, I was hurt. Physically. Over and over again. I’d run away from that situation, but I couldn’t run away from Erin.
I’d already done that to her before, and I refused to do it again.”

Ward Buckley had been planning the escape from his nightmare for so long. He and Tommy were going to finally be free to seek their fame and fortune in London. But his best friend chooses to stay behind with his family in their time of need.
Ward stayed on the course and worked tirelessly to bring their idea to fruition. Now he has more money and success than he ever dreamed of. And the only thing that he really wants is something that even his vast wealth cannot buy – Erin.

Now that he’s back, he’s going to prove to her that she can trust him with her heart. He will be her pillar of strength and her shelter from the storm. If only she will let him.

“She walked over to her books and plucked one off the shelf. She opened it, and in the centre was a perfectly pressed yellow rose. The pigment of the petals was faded, but its beauty was not lessened.
“You gave me this on Valentine’s Day… the day my dad died.”
I looked at Erin’s face, and blinked.
“I remember.” I cleared my throat. “Why have you kept it?”
I tried my hardest to remain cool and collected, but my heart was beating a mile a minute. She’d kept my rose. All I could think of was that she couldn’t truly hate me if she’d kept something from such a long time ago. Especially from a day that had brought her so much heartache. Hope surged through me.
“I’ve been askin’ myself that for years…”
“And what did you come up with?”
“It was the last thing you ever gave me before you left and everythin’ changed. I guess… I guess I wanted to keep somethin’ from when you were still mine.”"

I have been a huge fan of L.A. Casey’s books since reading the amazing Until Harry. It immediately shot to the top of my “Best of 2016” list and I couldn’t wait to devour more of her work.

Her Lifeline certainly lives up to its promise!

L.A. Casey creates a very special kind of unrequited love that feels like an arrow shot right through your heart. It’s that magic that makes Erin and Ward’s story nothing short of an emotional hurricane.

At times, I wondered how they could ever find their way to the other side – but the ending was as sweet as it was poignant. And it reminded me of how it really feels to smile through tears…

This is different from previous books I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. As usual the writing is amazing she has this knack of pulling you into the book. The whole story flowed effortlessly and although the characters aren't perfect you'll end up loving them. You go on a journey it's a rollercoasterof emotions, I cried several times. It's not a second chance love story but a story of second chances, of family , of love and forgiveness.

Actual rating 3.5 stars

I have read books by this author before and thought I knew what to expect. What I read, however, was more than I expected, yet at times it irritated me a lot.

This is a story of friends to enemies to something else. It is based in Edinburgh and the author uses the Scots dialect throughout. As a Scot I thought this would make the story more believable. Unfortunately it fell a little short at times. Yes we have a certain way of talking up here, but the broad Scots in this book is more up North I feel. We don’t tend to use slang all the time, but you wouldn’t know that if you read this. Also the author mixed up the use of ‘naw’ and ‘nae’ quite a lot I felt.

Aside from that, the story is a decent one, although the ‘hero’ does have a number of faults which didn’t endear him to me a lot of the time. His attempts at mending bridges have mixed reactions from those he is trying to appease. I didn’t love him, but by the end I liked him more than I originally did.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a copy.

Erin had a crush on her brother Tommy's best friend Ward she was only 11 but her heart was broken when he walked away. He walked away with an idea that belonged to both him and Tommy but he is the one that implemented it and now he is an extremely wealthy man (loyalty I don't think so). When Tommy is seriously hurt in a car accident Wade returns and tries to make amends (too little too late). Can they forgive him for what he did Will her childhood crush develop into ,ore Can this be called a second chance Oh no a 11 year old crushing on a 19 year old is not the first romance. I did get frustrated with this book Wade was a A...hole but they so quickly forgave him maybe I just hold grudges

Sfter saying that it was a good read that I thoroughly enjoyed

My feelings for this book are a little all over the place. I did enjoy the overall story and I'm glad that I read it, but I also had issue's with it that made it hard for me to connect to the story and the characters.

I did like Erin and Ward and I thought it was sweet how they were able to fall in love slowly as they're forced together after so many years apart. Ward was a little hard to like at first, because of the way he left in the past, but he grew on me and I came to really enjoy his character. He and Erin had me rooting for them to make it the entire way through the book.

Though I still felt like I was missing pieces of their characters at times and it made it hard to connect. Ward was especially a pretty mysterious character so when some things were revealed about him I was waiting for the story to dive into that more, but it didn't and it made him seem underdeveloped.

The other issue, and honestly my biggest one, was the accents. Oh my lord, my brain was not ready to handle reading Scottish accents like this. The "Dinnae" type things I could just replace in my head as I was reading with the English version of those words. But some phrases still have me scratching my head and it was difficult to read a book where there were times I had no clue what was going on because I didn't know what was being said. And sure, for the most part I could read on and would figure out mostly what a phrase meant by the responses it got or just the context it was said in yet that didn't stop me from kind of losing my reading mojo. It was almost like an interruption to my reading since it would make me pause in confusion.

Overall, I still this this was an interesting story and if you can ignore or understand the Scottish-isms then I definitely recommend giving it a try.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC for a honest review.

This novel turned me into a blubbering mess. It’s powerfully written to pull at your heartstrings. It’s definitely not for those who cry easily. Best for anyone who likes a little pain in with their romance. I can relate with her because I have experience what she went through.

The h and H are at odd with each other. Grudges are being held. Though the H changes her tune pretty quickly. I like that L.A. left us on the edge of our seats with each interaction. You won’t be able to put it down, guessing from one scene to the next. The road to HEA is a long one but one that is deserved and justified.

4 star Review Her Lifeline by L.A. Casey
Hard to believe, but this is the first book I have read by L.A. Casey. Her Lifeline was an emotional read that tugged at the heart strings and yet frustrated me. It was an emotional, story of love, heartbreak, drama, forgiveness and second chances; be prepared tissues may be needed. The writing was strong and I certainly felt the emotions as I was reading this story.
The book contained may Scottish “isms” and I admit to being lost at times as I struggled to figure out what was happening.
We all make mistakes in life and Ward’s mistakes were not ones that I could easily brush aside. In fact he acted like a jerk, particularly to his best friend Tommy (who also happened to be Erin’s brother) and I struggled to like him at times. It takes Tommy’s near death experience for Ward to wake up to himself.
Can Erin and Ward come to terms with the past in order to create a future together?
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book through NetGalley from the publisher.

A novel that will turn the reader into an absolute emotional trainwreck, Her Lifeline is a powerful written romance filled with drama and heartbreak. A word of warning to empaths, stay far away from this novel unless you want your day ruined. For those who like pain with their romance, this novel is perfect for you.

On one hand, it is understandable why the leads are at odds. However, the female lead seems to change her opinion pretty quickly even if her grudge is both justifiable yet not all at once. Each conversation left the reader on edge, waiting to see where it would lead. Watching their romance unfold, however was rewarding.

That being said, the ending is crushing. Even if the leads earn their happily ever after, the ending for the story itself definitely was not. Had I known what I was getting into, I would have passed on this novel. I love friends-to-lovers stories, but this novel was too much of an emotional roller coaster. That being said, it was definitely a novel I could not put down and read in one sitting.

I really enjoyed this story. The hero is a little tough to love at first but the author does a wonderful job of developing his story and laying it out in a way that draws you in and wins you over. The childhood crush thing is a bit hard to imagine given the age difference between Ward and Erin but that's not a huge part of the story so it's not too distracting. There are a ton of emotional ups and downs in the story which keeps you flipping page after page experiencing all the heartbreak, forgiveness, loss, and hope. Bring the tissues and a copy of this one for a relaxing enjoyable read. I highly recommend it.

Ward and Tommy were always best friends and Tommy’s little sister Erin followed them everywhere ... Ward was a part of their family. That all changed the night Tommy and Erin’s dad was killed in a car accident. Ward went off to college, while Tommy stayed and looked after his mother and sister and Erin hated Ward for leaving them when they needed him the most. But 11 years later, Tommy’s life is hanging in the balance after a accident and Ward comes home to help. The electricity between Ward and Erin is so strong, that soon they start a romance.

This is a gut wrenching romance that will break your heart. The book has a great storyline, but it took me so long to read it because of the Scottish dialect. I get that the author was trying to be true to their language, but I just found it so distracting. By the end of the book I was getting used to most of it, but there were some phrases that I never did know what they meant.

I received an ARC courtesy of Amazon Publishing UK through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

I am still undecided about this book - it was very well written with the author definitely able to tug at the heartstrings and certainly make you feel for the heroine.... the male lead though was a bit less sympathetic despite his childhood.

There were parts of the book that I enjoyed but other parts that I was a lot less happy about...

This newest novel by L.A. Casey is a bit of a break from the norm in my opinion.

This is a story of family, grief, abandonment, hate, forgiveness and love, all of which the author writes with a sensitivity that immerses the reader into her sometimes heartbreaking scenes. A fact you know when you can't read for the tears streaming down your face!

As a Scot, I found the author's use of the Scottish vernacular inconsistent and even sometimes wrongly used. However it didn't really affect my overall enjoyment of this well woven tale and wouldn't prevent me from recommending it to others.

This cover and the blurb were the lure and though it took me a bit to get into the story, but once I did I was hooked. It was a true emotional rollercoaster with extreme highs and lows and kept me turning the pages until the very end.

I loved Erin. This girl has had the rug pulled out from under her and her world turned upside down (in more ways than one) but she hasn’t crumbled. She keeps moving forward, no matter the obstacles in her path, and while her world view isn’t all rose colored, she still has an upbeat attitude and gives her all to those she calls her own. Ward was an interesting one. I loved him, I did, but he had a lot of things to sort through before that feeling truly solidified. He has a good heart, but some of his choices were definitely suspect ~ though when everything was said and done, I could empathize with all that he went through ~ thankfully he comes clean and I really did like the man beneath the armour.

I have to say that Erin and Ward’s journey to their HEA surprised me, but in a good way. There was a good bit of angst and the push/pull was real, but the connection they had ~ even though it was tenuous at best ~ showed me that there was hope for the two of them if one could come clean and one could forgive. I enjoyed their bantering, how they worked through the obstacles that stood between them and where they ended up when everything was said and done.

This is my first read by the author and I have to say I really enjoyed it. The writing was engaging, the pacing good and I liked the dual 1st person POV’s. This one definitely gets emotional and the triggers are real, but everything was well done and thought out and gave the story depth and realism. As for the characters, they were all well written and it should come as no surprise that my fav’s were Aiden and Jesse and I wouldn’t mind getting more of both in the future.

I have read several books by this author and so far I have enjoyed them all...This one is no exception, though I have to say that there were some things that did bother me. 

Erin has had a crush on her big brother's friend for some time...though she is eleven so I can't really take it too seriously. I had tons of crushes when I was 11 and none of them were to be taken really seriously. 

The hero is 19 at the time and he leaves her and her brother Tommy (his best friend) behind. I don't think any 19 year old should stay because of an 11-year-old girl...but I did want him to not abandon his best friend ... He had his reasons though, but I still think he should have gone about things differently. 

He goes off to make a fortune on an idea that wasn't just his...it was also his friend's...which is where the hero really pissed me off. I am a big fan of loyalty. Screwing your friend over like that...nope...you are in the doghouse my man !!

Fast forward more than a decade when tragedy strikes and they will come face to face again. I could understand that Erin hated Ward...her loyalty lies with her brother, as it should. She isn't able to hold on to her icy demeanor though...

This was a very nice "brother's best friend" / "enemies to lovers" / "second chance" love story. Lots of drama...even for me. Still, I enjoyed reading it. What I had a problem with were the accents. I love me some Scottish men..I really do and I have been to Scotland 2 times already and plan to go many more. But...there were times I had no idea what was being said... I may like Scotland and it's people, but that doesn't mean I understand what the hell they are saying :P

It took me out of the story a bit. It also sounded very funny in my head...I don't think I did the accent justice !!

ARC kindly provided to me via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

My reviews are posted on Wendy's Wycked Words

Argghhhh...this guy is no hero. So he may have had his reasons for leaving the Erin high and dry (he was much older than her and there was some stuff going on that no one knew about) but he never looked back. He developed an app along with Erin's brother, but then he was selfish and kept the glory for himself. He never credited her brother for his share of the work. (hated that!)

When Erin's brother is hurt, Wade returns. He's rich and a total manwhore. He's also living a fake life with a fake fiancee. He just seemed to lack a real genuine attitude. I just couldn't trust him. I felt no connection between Erin and Wade. She works like a dog, and he just has had it all.

Nope, this one didnt' work for me...not even a little bit.

*I received this novel from NetGalley for an honest review.*

Alright so this is my first novel that I finished this year. Yippee for that :p Anyway this most probably will be a short review as I have so little time to type out my reviews because I am looking after my very sick and confused grandfather and books are the only thing that is taking everything of my mind. Though I can’t believe that I am saying this about one of my favorite authors but I actually struggled to keep reading the novel especially here at the beginning of the book. I mean I literally had to force my self to keep reading and if it was any other author, I would have given up long ago but as I said before L.A. Casey is one of my favorite authors.  

Yes this book was full of emotion and drama like all the other books from this author but it did not pull me in as much as it should have. Normally I don’t care about age between couples but for me having a crush already at the age of 11 is a bit to young and Ward was 19 and I mean that is a huge age gap and I really don’t see a 19-year-old going for someone that young. The age in the beginning was just plain weird for me. Them meeting again when both are much older was so much more natural for me and just plain better in my eyes. Like I said I don’t care about the age gap {well in my eyes no older than 10 years} but both needs to be off age.  And Ward left when Erin was still 11 so how can he have feelings for her when they haven’t seen each other in such a long time. I mean its just creepy if you liked an 11-year-old romantically because Ward saw her last when Erin was 11.

Another thing that I did not like that much was all that Scottish dialect. I mean I love hearing the dialect but reading it was just so different for me that I did not enjoy it so much. The characters needed more depth for me, and there was so much heartbreak in this story for me. I mean I really wanted to love this story, I really did because this sounded like a good story but it just didn’t do it for me.

I really hate giving reviews less than 3 stars but sadly this novel only reached 2.5 stars in my eyes. I mean overall this would have good for if I did not struggle to figure out all those Scottish dialects and too much sadness. Don’t get me wrong I will read sad stories but now was just not a good time for me. Sadly, this book just was not for me, though I can still say that L.A. Casey is one of my favorite authors because me not liking this book that much will not change me loving her other novels.

The description did not do the story justice. It is by far more deeper and heavy than you can imagine. What a great story with such emotions through both Erin and Ward and their struggles. Absolutely a page turner and very well written and detailed. I have read this authors Slater brother series and loved them. It is great that she can change genres a little a still bring great quality in the story.