REVIEW+ TOUR STOP: FIGHTING TO FORGIVE BY J.B. SALSBURY

Fighting to Forgive

by JB Salsbury

What do you do when everything you avoid, turns out to be exactly what you need? Easy and predictable, just the way he likes it, Blake Daniels flies through life the way he burns through women: on his terms, no regrets. With his fighting career in full swing, he's on the threshold of title contention. But when his training is compromised by injury, the stakes grow impossibly higher. The rage that fuels his punches also chips away at his focus, and he risks losing everything he cares about. He won’t let that happen. Not again. Layla’s through with men. After a marriage that never should’ve happened, she hopes to reclaim the pieces of the woman she lost years ago. Emotional abuse has left her insecure and terrified. A master at faking what she’s not feeling, she masks her self-doubt in false confidence. She’ll never let another man hurt her. Not again. Chased by shadows of the past, Blake and Layla know what they don’t want, but their hearts have a different plan. As a web of lies and betrayal threatens to destroy them, they’re forced to make a choice. Is love enough to heal even the deepest wounds?

Purchase:

Fighting For Flight (Book 1) on Amazon

Fighting to Forgive on Amazon

Author Bio:

Bestselling author JB Salsbury lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and two kids. She spends the majority of her day as a domestic engineer. But while she works through her daily chores, a world of battling alphas, budding romance, and impossible obstacles claws away at her subconscious, begging to be released to the page. Her love of good storytelling led her to earn a degree in Media Communications. With her journalistic background, writing has always been at the forefront, and her love of romance prompted her to sink her free time into novel writing. Fighting for Flight is her first novel in the MMA romance series.

For more information on the series or just to say hello, visit JB on her Website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads.

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Our Review

For a while now I've been hounding Courtney to read Fighting for Flight because I had a sneaking suspicion she'd love it...I mean why wouldn't she? It has a smoking hot UFC fighter, a bad ass fierce woman, sweet hot rods, steamy love scenes and a story with all sorts of twists and turns. So if you haven't read it...click on over to amazon and one click that shizz!! She's right. I did. She's always right though. But as a mini-note on book numero uno...you really need to read it. While I loved this book even better, Jonah and Raven are pretty amazing. And a great introduction to this UFL fighting world/gym. I am a huge fan. 

I've been eagerly anticipating the release of one of the companion novels in this series and Fighting to Forgive absolutely DID NOT disappoint. From the first page of the prologue to the last sentence in the epilogue I was entranced; I only put it down to sleep or taunt Courtney with texts about how amazeballs it was...and perhaps to blow up J.B. Salsbury's twitterfeed (sorry for being stalkerish!). 

We're good little stalkers, yes? Yes. But you know...it really was amazing from the first page. I was like holy batman, prologue. Which is my favorite expression ever. But J.B Salsbury took my Kindle by storm when she started this book this way. It was deeper, and darker, and sadder. And really gave us a much more intimate look into who Blake was compared to the Blake that he portrays himself as today. I liked that book one gave us a pretty stellar look at Blake so we had some prelim info...which is nice! 

You are going to LOVE the story of Blake and Layla. Blake starts off this story with a painful prologue and then quickly fast forwards us years later to his manwhore ways. He's loving life as a single, badass UFC fighter. He's not keen on romance or relationships--any further than a night in bed--and if he weren't so damn funny and likable I'd probably find myself hating him lots. Fortunately, he's funny and fun and a great friend and sex on a stick and the way J.B. writes him ..well you can't help but like him. Layla couldn't help but like him either...even when he infuriated her and he did that lots. She and her daughter, Elle, are new transplants to Vegas. She's left her life and her soon to be ex-husband in Seattle to reclaim her life and try to give Elle a chance at a new beginning. She's working hard to make ends meet as the new assistant to Blake's boss at the UFC gym and is subjected to many run ins and sexy smirks from Blake. Whew...that chemistry...it's hotness.

I also very much enjoyed getting to know these two! I waasn't sure how it was going to work since Layla represented every single rule that Blake didn't want. Older, No. Kid, No. See. 0-2 for Layla...and somehow, someway I had high hopes that she would be able to break through all of the BS that he was spewing on a regular basis. Layla on the other hand, really didn't have time to be messing around with a playboy like Blake. Yet she lit up like the 4th of July every time he came in the room. Just like the titles say...fighting to...(insert your own word here) and really that makes up this story. They were fighting their pasts, fighting against their future, and fighting against each other. I loved every page of it! 

As hard as both of them try to avoid the magnetic draw that they feel for each other...and believe me they try hard...they just cannot seem to deny it. Layla has accepted a life without love so that she can focus on Elle and Blake has accepted a life without love so that he can never feel the rejection he's lived with for decades. Layla doesn't want to be with a bad boy/playboy and Blake certainly would never see himself with a mom, for pete's sake! The universe has other plans for them though...and we should all know that resistance is futile.

Oh, did the universe ever. I was on the edge of my seat for a huge portion of the end. I didn't know THAT was going to happen, and my anxiety for how things were going to turn out were pretty high. I couldn't put it down, and I suspect if you get as sucked in as we did, you won't either! 

I love Love LOVED Blake and his sweet and tender heart. I LOVED Layla for her strength and honesty. I absolutely am in love with this series of books and cannot wait for the very next one. It's a definite MUST READ. Ditto. And like I said...I really thought this book was incredible and even better than the series premiere...and I pretty much loved the heck out of Jonah...so the fact that Blake ranks up there too is amazeballs! Read it. Love it. Thanks.

Shelley: 5 Stars
Courtney: 5 Stars (Thanks, Shel for the introduction to this series and this author. I love it!)