Reviewed by Jen B.

TITLE: Full Circle

SERIES: Second Chances #2

AUTHOR: T.A. Webb

PUBLISHER: A Bear on Books

LENGTH: 191 Pages

RELEASE DATE: October 12, 2016

BLURB:

The funny thing about circles is that, to draw one, the curve must go down before it can go up again.

Robbie Jennings knows all about ups and downs. Used and abused as a teen by those he should have been able to trust, he almost gave up on life. Then someone stepped in to offer him a second chance. Robbie took the lifeline and ended up with a new family who wanted him…and a boyfriend who loved him.

Nevertheless, Robbie knows the downs can make a man crash. Faced with the perfect storm of woe—a painful voice from the past, a loved one’s grave illness, and a heartrending betrayal—Robbie’s not sure he can close the circle one more time.

His new family must join forces to show him that, together, they can always come Full Circle.

REVIEW:

Right off the bat, if you haven’t read Second Chances, I highly recommend you start there. It was the story of how all these characters are connected and shows us how Robbie came to be a part of it all. Full Circle fills in the approximately one year gap at the end of Second Chances prior to the Epilogue. A few years have passed since that was released, but it was well worth the wait for this book.

As far as the story goes, Full Circle focuses more on Robbie and his issues, past and present. He had horrid childhood which is not easily forgotten, nor should it be. Here, we get more of those details which help explain quite a bit about poor Robbie. Thankfully, he was found and taken in by some pretty amazing people who never give up on him, but it isn’t easy. Robbie is still struggling to accept he now has people that care about him, that those people don’t expect things from him in exchange for anything, and that he deserves to be happy. Aside from dealing with those ongoing thoughts, he has a few other major things standing in his way.

First is his relationship with Jason. These guys became fast friends and then more, but Jason is still at the confused stage of his life and is torn between his girlfriend and Robbie. Robbie has loved Jason almost from the time they met, and they obviously have a strong connection. But, Robbie is still having issues opening up more about his past, and having someone he finally trusts not be a solid force wreaks a bit of havoc when he already doesn’t feel worthy. These guys are young and haven’t gotten things all figured out yet, and it would have felt disingenuous had they not had to work on these things and learn to communicate and be more for each other.

The other big issue is Robbie’s biodad who is again making demands of Robbie even from prison. The true nature of the horrible things he has put Robbie through are hard to bear, but as is beautifully pointed out to Robbie, his scars don’t make him ugly, they make him a survivor. Unfortunately, he tries to handle things himself rather than put that burden on his new family who is dealing with a few blows of their own.

Every time Robbie seems to be pulling through and getting to a point where everything falls into place and everyone can just be happy, things come crashing down until Robbie simply cannot take it anymore and flees once again. When Robbie runs, the memories of his past haunt everyone who cares about Robbie. They saved him once from the downward spiral, but will they get a second chance? You can tell from the blurbs and titles that they do, so rest assured that it is worth it to follow this story to the end. As difficult as it was to learn about Robbie’s life, to see him triumph with the love of an actual family, whether connected by blood or by choice, is beautiful to watch.

I love Mr. Webb’s style and storytelling. He brings the characters alive, with humor and love shining through. I was riveted from the beginning and turning pages quickly right to the beautiful end. This was a bit darker but very well written and just as emotional, if not more, than the previous book. I absolutely love seeing damaged characters overcome and find peace and love. This story delivers that in spades, and I highly recommend it if you like stories that make the characters really have to go through hell and back before they make it to their happy ending.

RATING: 

BUY LINK:

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