Reason to Breathe (The Breathing Series #1) [Kindle Edition]

Rebecca Donovan (Author)

Book Description

USA Today Bestseller

"No one tried to get involved with me, and I kept to myself. This was the place where everything was supposed to be safe and easy. How could Evan Mathews unravel my constant universe in just one day?"

He knows there’s something more to the girl sitting in the back of the class the moment he sees her. She’s beautiful, intelligent, and athletic – but she slips quietly through the crowded halls, trying not to exist. Determined to get to know the elusive girl, Evan soon discovers…

Emma Thomas is hiding a terrible a secret.

Reason to Breathe is an electrifying page turner from start to finish, a unique tale of life-changing love, unspeakable cruelty, and one girl’s fragile grasp of hope.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"When hope is a fragile thread, love is a miracle." - Tammara Webber, New York Times bestselling author of Easy

"Emotionally intense and heart-achingly beautiful, Reason to Breathe will linger in your thoughts long after you turn the last page." - Tracey Garvis-Graves, New York Times bestselling author of On the Island

About the Author

Rebecca Donovan is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the highly-acclaimed New Adult trilogy, The Breathing Series. Her novels include: Reason to Breathe, Barely Breathing, and the eagerly-anticipated conclusion of the series, Out of Breath, available July 2, 2013.

Rebecca is a graduate of the University of Missouri -Columbia and lives in a quiet town in Massachusetts with her son. Excited by all that makes life possible, she is a music enthusiast and is willing to try just about anything once.

Visit Rebecca’s Website: www.rebeccadonovan.com
Follow Rebecca on Twitter: @beccadonovan
Follow The Breathing Series on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thebreathingseries

Product Details

• File Size: 708 KB
• Print Length: 377 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0615581927
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00505AZRS
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Not Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #165,217 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

135 of 140 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic & Emotional Read - Artful Character Building June 18, 2011

By A. Lennon

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book really surprised me as I was expecting a quick story about young love. The writing was superb and the character building was so artfully achieved that I was almost shocked at how much I felt for the main character and her friends. I am not someone who typically cries while reading a sad story or even laughs out loud, but I found myself actually sobbing at some points and grinning from ear to ear at others. It was almost an educational experience for me as well regarding domestic abuse from a child's point of view. Other books I've read with a domestic violence theme gloss over details and give an adult female's viewpoint, so although this story was even more heartbreaking it was also very eye opening.

I won't spoil this gripping story for you but I have to ask why we are allowed to invest so much in this character only to be robbed of any closure? There was a definite 'you decide the ending' vibe from the Epilogue which frustrated me immensely, but her web site[....] reveals that a sequel is in the works.

**My advice is to read this book at home and not at the doctor's office. It is very emotional and if you are like me, you don't want to start bawling your eyes out in the waiting room.

65 of 67 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Read July 3, 2011

By foursteele

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Okay, so I read the other reviews and people were obviously upset by the ending of the book. So I assumed I would also be upset by the ending. Let me just say this - REBECCA DONOVAN IS A GENIOUS!

She set this book up perfectly to go into a sequel. It ends on a cliff hanger. I absolutely loved this book. I hope the books go on for eternity. It makes you hate and it makes you cheer. It makes you love and it makes you feel heartbreak. This book also makes you think about Emma's situation. This happens everyday somewhere. I cringed every time Emma had to go home just because I was afraid Carol might be around.

Please people, give this book a chance and look out for the sequal for which I will be waiting with baited breath.

63 of 70 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing! July 8, 2011

By littleboysmom

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

First off, let me say that I have never felt the desire to write a review on here. That being said, I HAD to review this book! Being a survivor of child abuse, the premise interested me right away. The author does get it right. I know for someone who has never lived this, you may think Emma was stupid and she should have just told someone right away and the abuse would stop. But as a child, who has been conditioned by fear, you are literally paralyzed. My heart was wrenching through the whole story as Emma struggled to be a normal teenager. The ending was open ended and I know that left many feeling unsatisfied, but I am hopeful. Just buy the book! The story is haunting, heartbreaking and beautiful. It needs to be told. Congrats to the author, and I look forward to the next one.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not what I was expecting March 2, 2012

By Maras1ofakind

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

From reading the other reviews on here, I was expecting a book I couldn't put down and was very disappointed. It wasn't awful, but it definitely wasn't great either. While she did a good job describing the incidents of abuse, everything else about the book was too wordy and descriptive. I found myself skimming over a lot of the "background info". The dialogue between characters was stiff and didn't seem at all like how real teenagers would talk to each other. I couldn't relate with the characters at all, and found myself thinking "this is so fake" or "this is never how teenagers would act at a party" the entire time. I don't usually write reviews on here, but I felt that I needed to warn because of all the other outstanding reviews the book received for those (like me) who base their purchases on good reviews.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow.... November 23, 2011

By Reading Addict

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I read roughly a book a day, sometimes more, however I have yet to write a review. This book made me sit up and turn on the computer.
I absolutely loved this book. It was interesting, well written and it made me cry, laugh and smile. Not an easy task. It was thought provoking, yet it also managed to explain enough about where Emma's emotions were coming from that even in a situation, that would normally be beyond my understanding, I felt like I was apart of the story, I understood where she was coming from. I cried when Emma did and wanted to shake her when she continued to disillusion herself about her situation.
This book is one of the ones that has continued to haunt me. I read it almost 6 months ago and have probably read it 5 times or more since. Emma's story stayed with me, it was realistic and horrific in such a way that I was left contemplating her situaton. What she could have done differently, when Evan and Sarah should have stepped in, was Carol crazy or just mean?... What was best for Carol's kids?....Was George really that blind?..... I still don't know, but that, to me, is what makes this story so amazing. Life is rarely cut and dry, right or wrong, black or white. Even a piece of paper has 6 sides (the 4 edges, mathmatically they count), and this book highlighted that. Just when I was sure Emma should have acted differently, she had a reasonable explanation as to why she didn't act. She convinced herself that she could handle the situaton, just like a teenager does. I'm a teenager, and I have yet to meet any teenager who knows exactly what to do at any given moment, that is part of growing up and living, and this story really captures that.
So thank you Rebecca Donovan, I cannot wait for the sequal to come out (put us out of our misery!!!...), I now judge most, if not all, of my other YA books based on what you wrote. I hope you continue writing!!! Read more ›

More About the Author

Rebecca Donovan is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the highly-acclaimed New Adult trilogy, The Breathing Series. Her novels include: Reason to Breathe, Barely Breathing, and the eagerly-anticipated conclusion of the series, Out of Breath, available July 2, 2013.

Rebecca is a graduate of the University of Missouri -Columbia and lives in a quiet town in Massachusetts with her son. Excited by all that makes life possible, she is a music enthusiast and is willing to try just about anything once.

Visit Rebecca's Website: www.rebeccadonovan.com
Follow Rebecca on Twitter: @beccadonovan
Follow The Breathing Series on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thebreathingseries

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#21 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#2 in Books > Teens

#7 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance

#17 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction

#21 in Books

#53 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance > Contemporary

#2 in Books > Teens

#7 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance

#17 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction

#21 in Books

#53 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance > Contemporary