Blurb
There are some debts you can’t repay.
Josh Walker is loyal, reckless, and every girl’s dream. But he only has eyes for December Howard, the girl he’s craved since his high school hockey days. Together they have survived grief, the military, distance, and time as they’ve fought for stolen weekends between his post at Ft. Rucker and her college at Vanderbilt. Now that Josh is a medevac pilot and Ember is headed toward graduation, they’re moving on—and in—together.
Ember never wanted the Army life, but loving Josh means accepting whatever the army dictates—even when that means saying goodbye as Josh heads to Afghanistan, a country that nearly killed him once before and that took her father. But filling their last days together with love, passion, and plans for their future doesn’t temper Ember’s fear, and if there’s one thing she’s learned from her father’s death, it’s that there are some obstacles even love can’t conquer.
Flight school is over.
This is war.
My Review:
Hallowed Ground is the fourth book in author Rebecca Yarros’ Flight & Glory Series and if you know anything about me, you know how much I adore this series. Since the very first book there was something insanely special about these characters and the lives they lead. That feeling has continued for me through all four books and now to reach the end with Hallowed Ground I am hit with incredibly mixed emotions. As sad as I am to say goodbye to this group, this was an exceptional send off and I loved every gut wrenching and poignant moment.
If you haven’t read any of the books in this series leading up to Hallowed Ground, you really need to before picking this latest installment up. Otherwise you may be quite lost and you certainly won’t have developed the bond I have with this cast of characters and trust me, you certainly want to. They’re all amazing in their own way and forged such a strong bond as a mini family and I just adore them. (I promise I’m not crying right now….ok I lied.)
So this book focuses mainly on Josh and Ember and is almost full circle to where it all began. Only now, relationships and emotions are a lot stronger. Not just between Josh an Ember but in the friendships that have been formed. This time, the guys are out of flight school and headed into very real danger. War. Now, I’m not going to ruin anything for you by giving away any parts of what Josh, Ember, and all of the group go through but I will say this was one of the most touching and emotionally charged book I’ve ever read. Ever. There were complete chapters I couldn’t see because I was crying so hard. I went through an entire box of tissues by the time I finished this book. I experienced such a wide range of emotion as I read. I was terrified for these brave men and the women they left behind while fighting for peace. I hurt when they said their goodbyes, not knowing if they would ever return. I was in awe of the bravery all of them showed in the face of unimaginable obstacles. I was heartbroken when they experienced a huge loss. (I promise I’m not crying…I just got some dust in my eyes.) But beyond all of that I think what stuck me most is that people do this every day. It’s real life. All of it. These people have different names but rest assured they are all out these somewhere, living similar situations and I was completely humbled while being drawn into the pages of this book. Filled with ups and downs this book ripped my heart out and put it all back together in one sitting. And I loved every second of that experience.
Of course all of this emotion and the bond I feel for these fictional characters is truly the mark of one hell of a story-teller. All of the little nuances each character has. The little quirks. The things that make them unique and enjoyable to read. All of that is a gift Rebecca has and one I am so thankful she has shared with us.
While I am sad to have reached the end of Flight & Glory I am so excited to see what Rebecca has in store for us next. I have no doubt it will be amazing.
Thank you, Rebecca, for bringing Josh, Ember, Paisley, Jagger, Sam, Grayson, and Will, into our lives.
Five Loves
Excerpt:
I pulled her onto my lap, gently squeezing the sweet curves of her hips.
“Behave,” she whispered into my ear, but ran her tongue along the edge.
My fingers flexed, teasing under the edges of the black skirt that had slid higher on her thighs as she sat. I couldn’t help it—her skin was a magnet for my hands. “You like it better when I don’t,” I answered.
She locked those blue eyes on mine, and for that second, I wanted everyone to go the fuck away so I could get my remarkable girlfriend out of her clothes. Not a girlfriend for long. Not if I found the perfect moment for that little velvet box hidden upstairs.
Mrs. Walker. December-fucking-Walker. Sounded perfect to me.
“Earth to Josh and Ember,” Jagger called, waving his hand like he’d been at it a while.
“Yeah, yeah, a toast,” Ember said, wiggling against my now-hard lap. I locked her down with my hands, and she threw me a smug grin, well aware of what she’d done.
Jagger raised his beer. “To friends. Hell, that doesn’t even cut it. You guys, all of you…I wouldn’t be here”—he looked over to Paisley—“or even the man I am, without you. So more than friends…to family.”
We glanced around the fire at the family we’d made, and I felt it—one of those moments you can’t forget, the kind that stay with you when it’s long past, so you try to memorize everything. It was a deep peace, a contentment laced with the silent knowledge that we wouldn’t be together again for far too long. “To family,” we all said in scattered rhythm, and I kissed the underside of Ember’s jaw.
**VIEW THE Hallowed Ground TRAILER HERE: https://vimeo.com/148520997 **
About the Author
Rebecca Yarros is a hopeless romantic and lover of all things chocolate, coffee, and Paleo. In addition to being a mom, military wife, and blogger, she can never choose between Young Adult and New Adult fiction, so she writes both. She’s a graduate of Troy University, where she studied European history and English, but still holds out hope for an acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Her blog, The Only Girl Among Boys, has been voted the Top Military Mom Blog the last two years, and celebrates the complex issues surrounding the military life she adores.
When she’s not writing, she’s tying on hockey skates for her kids, or sneaking in some guitar time. She is madly in love with her army-aviator husband of eleven years. They finally can call Colorado home along with their gaggle of rambunctious kiddos and snoring English Bulldog.
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