Overview: Rose Duncan is dancing on Broadway. She’s spent hours a day for the last two decades to get there, and now she’s living the dream. She’s happy, she’s driven, and life couldn’t get any better.
Ben Falco is a pitcher whose only goal is to make it to the Major Leagues. He keeps his grades up, he doesn’t party, and he stays away from committed relationships – they’ll only distract him.
But when Ben meets Rose, she’s no dancer, and she’s certainly not happy. In fact, she doesn’t seem to be living at all. Yet something about her makes him want to know what’s turned her into this shell of a person, and if he can be the one to reach inside her mind and pull her out.
Ben doesn’t want a relationship. Rose doesn’t want to get better. But once their hearts collide, it’s a whole new ballgame.
Reaching Rose is a story about Rose and Ben, and a little about their friend Johnny Gleason – a genius who has plans of his own until they too slip from his grasp. This is a tale about love, loss, and guts, and the ability to play hardball when life throws you a curve.
Purchase Links: Amazon
My Review: Home run and 5 brilliant stars for Reaching Rose. After a few chapters in I found myself comparing this book to Since Drew by J. Nathan, which I loved. The similarities are pretty striking with a few exceptions. Ben is the all American baseball guy, sweet as apple pie. Rose is struggling much more with herself than I ever thought possible.
An accident takes away Rose's one true passion, dancing. She goes through a hell of a time grieving and finds that Ben brings out her emotions and even makes her talk after refusing to for some time. Ben never gives up and really wants to get close to Rose. In this relationship I really couldn't help comparing them to Andi and Drew from Since Drew except Ben is Rose's saving grace with the grief, not the other way around.
The story weaves in and out of Ben and Rose's points of view allowing you to see their frustration, their anger, their pain, and the growing need for the other. It is a sweet, heartstrings pulling kind of read that will make you laugh, smile, hurt, and sigh with relief. Ben saves Rose and in turn she ultimately saves him by bestowing him with the chance to fall in love. I didn't expect the story to roll out the way J.P. Grider let it but I'm glad because it is one hell of a story. Long live love saving people when they most need it to!
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