Review: One to Leave by Tia Louise (One to Hold #5)
One to Leave is the fifth overall novel in the One to Hold series from bestselling author Tia Louise, but it's the first book focused on former Marine Stuart Knight and smoothie-making gypsy Mariska Heron. Stuart's life has always been on being the best possible Marine, living up to the legacy left behind by his late father and serving his country. But with injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder affecting him, his plans of being what they call a "lifer" are no more. He's trying to make do with private security jobs and focusing on the security firm he and his best friend are partners in, but nothing can compare to his life as a Marine. It gave him purpose and without it, he's lost. Then he meets Mariska, and the two of them form an uncanny connection from the very moment their eyes land on one another. When a dream leads her to reach out to the recovering Marine, their lives are about to be changed in ways neither of them expected.
Having glimpsed at the other synopses of the other books in the series, the other characters do make major appearances in this one and some actually end up telling the story from their point of view, which was a tad distracting since I couldn't help but think that some of these people were irritatingly thinking only of themselves and how Stuart's current situation was messing with whatever they had going on. Now, I have no clue what these supporting characters have been through with him, especially his younger brother Patrick, and it felt as if I was supposed to know why Patrick and his fiancée--who had never met Stuart--called him "Captain Asshat". Suffice it to say that because this was Stuart and Mariska's story, I didn't really like Patrick or his fiancée all that much and same goes for several other presumptuous secondary characters, save for Derek Alexander and Stuart and Patrick's uncle, Bill, and mother, Sylvia.
Setting aside my personal feelings for some characters in the book, the story itself was kind of interesting, especially since it brought in an element of mysticism in Mariska's belief that her dreams are warnings or messages that she should take note of. There's no denying that what Stuart is experiencing--both the withdrawals from his pain medication and from having to leave behind his dream of being a lifer--is difficult to handle, which is why the attitude of some of the characters in the story had me feeling rather violent toward them. Mariska's approach was unexpected and different, which is probably why she touched his life more quickly than you would think. Her attachment to him was swift and while her sensitivity to his rejection at times seemed a bit overboard, I really did like them together because strangely enough, they just worked as a couple. One to Leave was enteraining and I'm giving it four stars. ♥
Date Read: 24 February 2016
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