Blog Tour Review: Through Her Eyes by Ava Harrison

This was my first Ava Harrison book and I have to say, despite the gut-wrenching angst, I enjoyed this.  The Aria, the heroine was a tough one, especially given the emotional upheaval she was in for most of the book.  But by the time I got to the last page, I truly believed Aria has managed to turn her life around and found her happiness.

When we meet Aria, she was a hot mess.  She lied to the man she loved, got a phone call that sent her on a downward spiral and she hops a plane to Europe.  I was left wondering what kind of message she got in that phone call and how had this girl gotten through life clinging to her best friend Patrick.  But as the story unfolds, we discover there is quite a bit about Aria that has made her the mess she is today.  Her brother drowned while saving her, her mother is a verbally abusive alcoholic who likes to take her shots at Aria and her father ignores her.  There are only 2 people in her life that actually give a damn about her:  her brother’s best friend, Parker, and her best friend, Shelly.  Both may care about her, but it’s Parker she holds onto.  Parker who she loves and withstands his rejections.  And ultimately Parker who is the catalyst for Aria’s European getaway.  We discover Aria is a runner and her trip across the pond isn’t so much about doing something she and Parker wanted to do, but rather a convenient excuse for her to run away from what she doesn’t want to accept back home.  Her one saving grace on his trip, meeting fellow American Chase Porter.

Chase waxes poetic and often dispenses thoughtful advice to a somber Aria.  She doesn’t always believe what Chase says, but she finds herself wanting to believe.  She wants to find her happy, she just doesn’t know how to do it.  She’s lived her life for so long for other people, figuring out who she is and what she wants becomes important to her and to Chase.  Chase helps her face her fears.  To realize she can be her own person.  And to finally understand what true love is.  Nothing comes easy for Aria, mainly because of her own actions, but when she finally figures things out so goes to the one person that feels like home and writes her own adventure.

Meet Chase Porter in Through Her Eyes by Ava Harrison!

NOW AVAILABLE!

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1Pkn5Do

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1pwweEx

Prologue

I was a horrible person.

    Truly.

    But I had goals, and he didn’t fit into them.

I didn’t know how to take back the words I’d said. They filtered through my brain like a bad dream that I just couldn’t awaken from. Just when they started to slowly slip away, they resurfaced. Rooted so deeply in my psyche, there was really no place for them to hide.

    If only I’d known the ramifications of my actions. If only I’d known how my decisions would hurt me beyond repair.

    But at the time, I couldn’t let him halt my progress. I was so close . . .

    “Are you in love with me, Aria? Do you want to be with me?” Parker asked, and my heart completely stopped. I had waited so long to hear those words, for him to see me as more than a friend.

    “No. I don’t want to be with you,” I
replied. Even as the words left my mouth, I knew they were a lie.

    I didn’t just love him. It was so much more than that. So much more than love. He was my rock, my friend. He was the lifeline that ran through me.

    At the time, I thought I had no choice . . . I thought he would be able to see that after everything I’d been through I needed to succeed. I needed to make up for the loss of my brother Owen. In the end, though, my decisions were always toxic.

    Toxic to him.

Toxic to Owen.

    Toxic to everyone.

“No, I don’t love you.”

Those were the last words he heard as he turned and walked away.

    My heart tightened in my chest as the words replayed over and over again that afternoon. A record skipping that I just couldn’t turn off.

Then the phone rang.

Three words were uttered.

Three words that changed my life.

The phone slipped from my trembling hand, and I dropped to the floor.

I couldn’t swallow. I couldn’t scream.

Cemented in place.

My shoulders curled in, and I clutched my stomach through dry heaves.

I’d lost my soul mate, and now I’d lost my future.

Everything I’d worked for crumbled, and it all no longer mattered.

About the Author:

Ava Harrison is a New Yorker, born and bred.

When she’s not journaling her life, you can find her window shopping, cooking dinner for her family, or curled up on her couch reading a book.

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