"Ten Tiny Breaths" by K.A. Tucker

Series: Ten Tiny Breaths #1
Genre: New Adult
Format: Kindle
Publication: December 11, 2012
Cover Rating: 5/5 Stars

From Goodreads: Kacey Cleary’s whole life imploded four years ago in a drunk-driving accident. Now she’s working hard to bury the pieces left behind—all but one. Her little sister, Livie. Kacey can swallow the constant disapproval from her born-again aunt Darla over her self-destructive lifestyle; she can stop herself from going kick-boxer crazy on Uncle Raymond when he loses the girls’ college funds at a blackjack table. She just needs to keep it together until Livie is no longer a minor, and then they can get the hell out of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

But when Uncle Raymond slides into bed next to Livie one night, Kacey decides it’s time to run. Armed with two bus tickets and dreams of living near the coast, Kacey and Livie start their new lives in a Miami apartment complex, complete with a grumpy landlord, a pervert upstairs, and a neighbor with a stage name perfectly matched to her chosen “profession.” But Kacey’s not worried. She can handle all of them. What she can’t handle is Trent Emerson in apartment 1D.

Kacey doesn’t want to feel. She doesn’t. It’s safer that way. For everyone. But sexy Trent finds a way into her numb heart, reigniting her ability to love again. She starts to believe that maybe she can leave the past where it belongs and start over. Maybe she’s not beyond repair.

But Kacey isn’t the only one who’s broken. Seemingly perfect Trent has an unforgiveable past of his own; one that, when discovered, will shatter Kacey’s newly constructed life and send her back into suffocating darkness.

My Thoughts: I love the New Adult genre, truly I do. But I have issues with it too. Almost every single New Adult book follows a simple formula: Girl has a troubled past, meets guy, falls in love despite trying not to for whatever reason, insert some kind of trouble here, they break up, they get enlightened and get back together. And it works. I eat that stuff up like cotton candy. The problem is, it gets old. Quick. I can't read a New Adult book right after another one. I get bored.

My problem with Ten Tiny Breaths is this: Instalove. I hate it. I absolutely loved the story that K.A. Tucker has written. It was sad and beautiful and everything that a romance should be... except for the fact that Trent and Kacey barely know each other. I actually really loved Kacey's character, I know some of my friends found her hard to connect with, but I thought she was awesome. She's tough and bruised from a tragic past. She makes poor decisions, but she owns up to them. I kind of respect her. Until Trent comes a long. Then all of a sudden just because he's hot she melts? It seemed way too convenient. I felt cheated out of my good romance. The really bizarre part is, I loved every other character in the book, EXCEPT Trent. It wasn't that I didn't like him, I just felt like I didn't know anything about him.

Overall the story itself is good, but predictable. Would I recommend it? Eh, probably not. The New Adult genre is just booming right now, and there are way too many other good romances that beat this one out for me. I love a good tortured, tragic heroine, but I need the quality romance too, and I just didn't get that with Ten Tiny Breaths.

My Rating: