Scarred Love
M.S. Brannon
New Adult/Romance
Date Published: 6/6/2013
Book Description:
Darcie Claiborne spent several years of her young life living with a monster, always fearing what he would do next. Clasping onto her last ounce of hope, Darcie releases a scream. It’s her final attempt to live; to survive the villain of her reality. Sweeping her up in his arms, Darcie’s knight in shining armor rescues her from the hell she’s been living; from the stepfather she's feared for all those years.
Reggie Evans has been forced to grow up before he’s ready when his mother dies of an overdose, leaving him responsible to raise his younger brothers. One fateful night, Reggie jogs by an old, run down house and discovers a young girl clinging to life as she screams for help.
Three years later, Darcie is healing and always protected by the man who saved her, but now she's fighting with something she isn't prepared to face. The growing love for the man who saved her life three years ago, the same man who’s nine years older. All the while, Reggie fights to protect Darcie from the demons of her past and new ones of her present.
Guest Post:
A Day In Your Writing Life:
To explain a day in my writing life I need to break it down to weekdays and weekends. Currently, I still maintain a full time job where I spend nine hours a day five days a week working in a cubicle. I also have a young son who needs mommy time as much I need to give him mommy time. Which leaves me with limited time during the week to devote to writing, but I make it happen because it’s a passion of mine.
During the week my day begins around three in the morning. I get up, let out the dog, brew a strong pot of coffee, blast the tunes and then sit down at my computer. Call me crazy, but I absolutely love writing this early in the morning. I find my creativity has no bounds and several critical scenes are written in the wee hours of the morning. My mind has not been exhausted from the busy work day and I feel like I can really immerse myself in the story. I will work diligently for three hours before I need to start my day of daycare, work, and mommy routine. Once the day has passed and my five year old is snug in his bed, I go back to the computer and write for another two to three hours before I go to bed at night. I am one of those weirdos who can function on four to five hours of sleep a night and be perfectly fine.
Weekends, more like Sundays, are spent entirely in my office writing. My husband will take our son
somewhere and do something special with him so I can have quiet time to work. I will sleep as late as I can, which usually is about six in the morning, brew the coffee, turn on my music, and then sit and write.
I get a lot of writing done on Sundays and by the time the sun is setting I am at a good stopping point
then get up to start it all again. It’s a pretty regimented routine, but I’ve been doing it for so long it feels off when I’m not following it to a tee.
Excerpt # 1
Darcie ~ Age 12
“Darcie, your stepfather does these things because you refuse to listen to anything I tell you,” my mom says while swallowing a handful of pills with her glass of red wine. “Just stay out of his way, be in your room when he’s home and it will give him less of a reason to punish you.”
I’ve been putting up with Robert’s punishments for eight years and I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never escape them until I leave. My mom takes pills and drinks from her bottle of wine several times a day. When she’s not drinking or downing pills, she’s sleeping.
I despise my mother. She’s weak and I fucking hate her.
She tells me I deserve punishments and she’s probably right, but what she’s neglected to tell me is why she allows him to do it. I barely remember what our life was like before Robert Stein, but I know it was never this horrible.
We managed to have fun and I never lived in fear. Why did she let Robert change her? Isn’t a mother supposed to protect their child? Once a child is born, isn’t their mother expected to possess this sixth sense, that same kind of sense that can allow women to lift cars off their children? My thoughts fade as soon as she squeezes the ointment on her finger and rubs it onto the fresh cigar burns on my back and thighs. Robert never gave me a reason why he did it other than he couldn’t find his ashtray.
Excerpt #2
Darcie
Suddenly, I am transported back in time to three years ago. The feeling of being pinned down by my arms and legs, the feeling of a man’s weight restraining me and the inability to breathe flashes into my mind. I start to violently shake my head from side to side. My breathing gets short and fast.
Without even realizing it, I start to scream; just like I did the night he planned to touch me.
Jake freaks out and quickly releases my body from under his. “Shit, Darcie, I’m sorry. I forgot how you get.”
I’m still screaming, unable to move. I’m frozen to the carpet. I’m still in that house. Lying on that urine soaked bed.
Salvation arrives.
Reggie appears out of the nowhere. He kneels down beside me. His hands are wiping the anger away from my face as he whispers into my ear, “Shhh, Darcie. It’s okay. I won’t let him hurt you again, never again. As long as there’s breathe left in my body, he will never harm you again.” His voice is all I need to hear. My eyes begin to focus. My brain begins to register the only true protector I’ve had in my life.
My Review:
Scarred Love (Sulfur Heights #1) by M.S. Brannon
My rating:
5 of 5 stars
M.S. Brannon debut novel is riveting, emotional, brought tears to my eyes kind of novel. Her writing is fantastic, her characters are well developed this is one of those books you can’t put down. Well I did put down to control the emotional turmoil I was going through. I absolutely love M.S. Brannon’s writing and this series; I cannot wait to read more. Reading the prologue had me hooked.
This is a story of a young woman named Darcie who has suffered from all kinds of abuse growing up. From being raised by a drug addicted mother to being left with her abusive step father. Her life was a living hell!
We meet Reggie who has just rescued Darcie from that hell, and from this point he will make sure she is protected and safe no matter what he has to do. Reggie brings her home to his make shift family and Darcie for the first time feels safe. This story shares with us some of the tragic life Darcie survived and how she moves forward. We meet the Evan’s family and fall in love with all of them.
The love, romance and tragic way Darcie has lived and reading how she has coped and gained strength to go forward is fantastic. We get to meet her brothers and how they all develop their protective side towards Darcie. You absolutely can’t help fall in love with the entire family. I am hoping each brother will have his own story.
The plot is fast paced, everything is written brilliantly. I have rated Scarred Love a 5 star rating. This is the first book in the Sulfur Heights series and I cannot wait to read more.
Fantastic, emotional, riveting, dark, and the romance makes this a top rated novel and the ending was perfect. I definitely recommend Scarred Love to anyone who enjoys the New Adult Contemporary Romance genre.
About the Author:
M.S. Brannon was born and raised in the Midwest. She still resides there today with her wonderful husband and son. When she is not writing or reading, M.S. Brannon spends time with her family, watching movies, and discovering new music. She writes romance because she believes love and heartache is the rawest emotion one can experience.
Contact Info:
Email: MBrannon16@gmail.com
Links to Purchase:
