Whatever might help him forget his past and numb the pain, James has tried it all: booze, car races, fights, and then some. Especially women. College offers plenty of opportunities for everything. . .
Especially when you have a trust fund to spend.
Serena spirals deeper and deeper into a hurricane of pain. But no matter how far she falls, there’s no redemption from the overwhelming guilt.
Two souls consumed by their pasts fight to learn how to survive. But all hope seems to be lost.
Until they meet each other.
**Lost is a prequel novella to Lost in Us and can be read before or after. **
Published March 17th 2014
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
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AWRW Book Review:
Lost, by Layla Hagen is the prequel novella to Lost in Us. Short and sweet, it details the lives of James and Serena, and the circumstances that brought them together. Having read Lost, I look forward to reading the rest of the series!
Warning: The following summary does contain some spoilers.
James numbs his pain with whiskey, women, gambling his grandfather’s trust fund, and illegal car races. When his father cuts him off financially, James has two choices… Sink or swim! Having hit rock bottom, he can’t get down any lower.
Work becomes his new addiction, and he does well financially, allowing him to sponsor a local math challenge for underprivileged teens. At the convention, he spots a beautiful woman giving a speech, who makes him rethink his ideas about relationships.
Serena’s life goal was always to go to college, but the death of her sister has made Serena a shell of the person that she used to be. Despite crippling anxiety, and panic attacks, Serena wins the math challenge and earns herself a scholarship to Stanford University! While her academic life is going well, her love life isn’t…Her boyfriend dumped her, and her friend suggests a rebound…
Lost, by Layla Hagen is about two lost souls with troubled pasts who come together, and hopefully find themselves in the process.
I will admit, I wasn’t crazy about James at first, but as the story progressed and he matured, he grew on me. -Mostly because he blew through 3 million $ in three years… That really ticked me off! And his attitude towards women sucks! I’m curious to find out how he grows as a character in the next book.
Having panic attacks and a raging anxiety disorder myself, I could totally sympathize with Serena. Why she didn’t want to take medication confused me though, despite what her therapist said. I loved the scene with the blue nail polish. I felt like I was there, in the shower with her, fully dressed and crying… I’ve had my own moments like that and they aren’t fun! The author got it EXACTLY RIGHT!
I am giving Lost 4/5 stars, because it held my interest, and I look forward to cracking open the next book in the series!
About the Author:
“Welcome! My name is Layla Hagen and I am a New Adult Contemporary Romance author.
I fell in love with books when I was nine years old, and my love affair with stories continues even now, many years later.
I write romantic stories and can’t wait to share them with the world.
And I drink coffee. Lots of it :-D”–Amazon Author Bio
Book Review for Lost In Us to follow. 🙂
*** I was offered a copy of Lost in exchange for an honest, and thoughtful book review.
A Well Read Woman 