Synopsis
“Without trust, we have nothing.”
These are the words which have haunted Melanie Erickson for six years. When she walked out of the house Xavier Ross bought as their forever home, she thought she was closing that door permanently, but fate had other plans.
Xavier Ross tried to keep everyone at a distance until Melanie came into his life. The more he tried to fight his feelings for her, the more he fell in love. One rash decision fractured the trust that was essential to their relationship.
Six years later, she is the last person he expects to see walk through his front door. Will Xavier and Mel be able to learn to trust one another again so they can fulfill a dying woman’s wish?
Review
Wow, I need to take a deep breath. And blow my nose due to the snot bubbles that have risen while reading the epilogue. I just finished Fragile Bonds by Sloan Johnson. There are many thoughts racing through my head. Let me see if I can get a handle on this and express to you just how much I loved this story.
I had to take a few breaks while enjoying this read, mainly due to very watery eyes. Sloan has such a natural way of making you FEEL every word she writes. It seems to come so naturally, so easily, and then BAM! you are blown away at the pure poetry on the page. Her writing has such a way of affecting your heart, making you think, making you struggle while trying to connect to the characters. Let me explain that. Xavier, the main man hunk-a-dunk in Fragile Bonds is kind of an ass. He is so conflicted. That’s it, the PERFECT word to describe him. He is conflicted about his past being shoved in his face in the present. He is conflicted about what type of parent he is and what type he knows he should be. He is at a crossroads in his life, having to say goodbye to his wife, due to cancer. The Big C word. Yep, grab the tissues. When the story begins, Alyssa, Xavier’s wife, is already terminal. They only have a few months left together and a nurse is hired to make sure the transition into death is as comfortable as possible. In walks Melanie. She just happens to be Xavier’s ex-fiance. Yep. He just happens to still reside in the home that he bought for him and Melanie, with his current wife, on her death bed. Yep. Head –>explosion. Let me just let that sit for a moment.
(see he’s sexy)
Admittedly, Xavier was not a good husband and not really a good father either. He was still hung up on the demise of his wayward relationship with Melanie to ever really commit to Alyssa. This being said, towards the end, he did love her and was completely broken up about the inevitable end of her life.
Melanie is a strong, confident woman who is an end of life nurse. She knew she was walking into a potential disaster when she took Alyssa’s case, due to recognizing the last name and the address (eek). However, something compelled her to go for it. Do you believe in second chances? I know I do mainly because of how my love life has played out, but I think that Melanie does as well. She may not have worked it all out in her head how things would go, but she was drawn to seeing Xavier again, and thank goodness she did. She is not the same Melanie that loved Xavier before. It’s been six years, and she has grown into her own person. This will prove to be the BEST thing for their budding relationship.
Of course, the first half of this book will pull at those heart strings. Writing and reading about death is never fun or easy. It is a part of everyone’s life and when it’s executed correctly, can be quite beautiful. Sloan makes Alyssa’s death beautiful. There are some very special moments there.
What makes the story even more complicated, is Jacob, the five year old rambunctious son to Alyssa and Xavier. He has to manage being a child and the death of his mommy. There are some very sweet moments where his child-like wonder makes you smile and your heart warm. He is larger than life, racing through the lives of adults surrounding him. His innocence is endearing. His love for Brody, Melanie’s doggy is so sweet, it reminds you that dogs can help with grief. These are the happy moments that help balance the tragedy in the story.
Fragile Bonds is a gorgeous story of conflicted love, and the bonds that we struggle to hold on to. Having doubts in life is common; working them out and still making decisions you can live with is often difficult. Xavier and Melanie both struggle and conquer these doubts. They hang on to those fragile bonds that held them together for over six years and finally build a life they can be happy with, together.
5 ENORMOUS smooches
~Nicole
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