The
Rundown
If I would have known then what I
know now.
If I would have known that having my
heart broken at thirteen by my one and only friend, Garrett Rhodes, would never
compare to the empty feeling at sixteen when I buried my mother.
If I would have known that changing
schools in my senior year would throw all that back in my face.
If someone would have told me that
when you drink a fifth a night and get in bar fights at twenty one, I’d end up
in jail … again.
Maybe … just maybe … I wouldn’t be in
the hell storm I’m living in these days. Letting my past dictate my future,
allowing the best of the best male MMA fighters bully me day in and day out and
knowing no matter what I do, Garrett will always be the only man that
understands me. I didn’t have to live this way. One day changed the course of
my life forever.
Through all this mess, the one thing
that I’ve found that keeps me centered … martial arts. And I’m damn good. If
only someone would give me a chance to prove my worth.
All I can do now is make the best of
it and try to not let the fight consume me.
Buy Raven Now!
Meet the Cast
Read this awesome excerpt
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman, you’re
gonna wanna get in our next contender’s pants … show some love for our hometown
legend, The Switch Hitter!” I snort at
the name, expecting to walk out and see a fighter carrying a baseball bat. What do ya know? No bat in sight. Extra reinforcements might not have been a
bad idea since I’m on fire and ready to bust the bricks off this clown.
Waiting for the emcee to call my name, I think of all the
crazy things in my life that have led me to this point. I’ve experienced more than any one person
should by the age of barely twenty-two—few happy moments surrounded by almost
constant anguish. What doesn’t kill you
makes you stronger, right?
“Being escorted to the cage by the most badass entourage
I’ve seen tonight, all the way from Corbin, Kentucky … the newest fighter this
side of the Mississippi … The Raven!” At
least my name makes sense. Ravens are known for being alone, having no
problem flying solo. That’s what I’ve
done for the past four years anyway.
After my announcement, the crowd erupts into cheers that I
can hear loud and clear, even over the song streaming out of my iPod through my
ear buds. Bouncing back and forth on the
balls of my feet, I crane my neck side to side, examining the mass of
people. It’s a good sized crowd for this
venue. I sometimes wonder if these guys
come to watch the fights for the love of the sport or because they like to see
the ring girls walking around, barely dressed, carrying signs to designate what
round we’re in. Oh well, they paid their
cover and that money, if all goes according to plan, will be in my pocket later
tonight.
With my coaches leading the way, I follow, bobbing my head
to Down with the Sickness by
Disturbed, mentally preparing myself. I
run over everything I’ve been taught over the last year—how to get out of a
submission hold, finding opportunities to take my opponent down, remembering
not to be a cocky asshole.
It took a lot of
convincing for Zan to let me fight tonight.
He’s not the kind father figure he portrays himself to be. He says he loves and supports his “children”,
but deep down he’d rather me not get in that cage. I know damn well if I blow my first match,
it’s going to be a long time, if ever, until he puts me on another card.
“You ready for this?” Zan asks, pulling out one of my ear
buds.
Smirking, I eye up my competition that’s already inside
the cage—a small, tiny thing that doesn’t look to have much muscle mass. I got
this. Standing on the opposite side
of the mat surrounded by coaches, glancing in my direction, the slightest tinge
of fear flashes across those brown eyes, similar to mine. Physically, I’m not very
intimidating—weighing in at average weight for my class with an average stature
to match, but the menace written across my face is an entirely different
situation.
Since my first introduction into the world of mixed
martial arts, it’s all I can think about.
It may be cliché, but I live, breathe and sleep MMA. It’s the one place I have any control. Nobody can take a match from me unless I
allow them to, and my opponent isn’t going to walk away with anything … maybe
disappointment, but I’m taking the purse.
I already know I want it more; I can taste the victory and it’s going to
be as sweet as I imagine it to be.
Stepping into the steel cage, I shrug my midnight blue
robe off, right into the hands of my coach.
Wearing standard MMA gear and my hair pulled back tight, I walk straight
to the official who checks my taped hands.
Once cleared, I step back to Zan who pops my mouth guard in for me, pats
me on the shoulder and whispers in my ear, “It’s only you two. If you want it, make it happen. If not, we can leave right now.”
“Don’t worry, Z. I
wouldn’t bring you all the way here to disappoint you.”
Zan and the other coaches walk out of the cage and the
door slams shut, leaving only me, my opponent and the official inside. Meeting them in the middle, the ref goes over
the standard rules for the fight. Both
of us nod, bump fists and the bell dings, indicating round one is under way.
Pacing myself and testing Switch Hitter’s skills, I toss a
few jabs in the air, needing to know if we’re on compatible levels. Weight class isn’t everything in the MMA
world. Sometimes the smallest contender
can be the best fighter. Without even
flinching, my advances are shut down and every punch is dodged while some are
tossed in my direction as well. None
land. I may have to reevaluate my
plan. This isn’t going to be as clean as I thought.
It doesn’t take long before hands are wrapped around my
legs. I try my hardest to center myself
and stay on my feet, but I’ve been hit in just the right spot. I position my body to flip and mount, like
I’ve been taught, but I’m not quick enough.
Before I know it, a strong forearm, stronger than I
assumed, is wrapping around my neck, pulling back to cut off my air
supply. Rear naked choke, shit.
Taking a few deep breaths, I try to calm my overheated and exhausted
body and find a way to maneuver out of this situation. From the corner of my eye, I see Zan
signaling me to tap. Not yet. If I’m going to go down, the officials are
gonna have to call a medic in here—quitting isn’t
an option. Dangerous or not, it’s how
I’ve been taught.
The phrase that’s been drilled into me for months dances
around in my head. Don’t let the fight consume you.
Well, I’m consumed and I’m not giving up. I’ll figure a way out. I always have, I always will.
Teaser Time!!
The Raven Playlist
Meet Ashley Suzanne
Ashley Suzanne is a married mother of
three little boys as well as a daughter, aunt, sister, best friend, birth
mother, blogger, book whore and author.
Ashley is a native to the suburbs of Detroit, with most of her family
living in Kentucky and New York.
You can usually find Ashley sitting
in bed, with her laptop, playing on Facebook, pretending to write, entering
giveaways (she’s also a swag whore) or on a football field with her oldest son,
Tyler. Yep, not only is she a football
fan, she’s a football mom!
When she’s reading, it’s typically
something to do with romance, contemporary being her favorite genre. She’s a total fan-girl over a few authors;
Pamela Ann, SE Hall, Madeline Sheehan, Jasinda Wilder, Maya Banks, CM Stunich,
Nicole Jacquelyn and Riley Rhea to name a few.
Ashley has no pets, unless you count
her children and she is a little OCD.
Her favorite color is pink. Her
favorite drink is cherry vodka and coke and double chocolate brownies are a
must.
Other Works by Ashley Suzanne (all available on Amazon,
BN, iTunes, Kobo and Smashwords)
Mirage (Book One: The Destined Series)
Inception (Book One 1/2: The Destined Series)
Awakening (Book Two: The Destined Series)
Façade (Book Three: The Destined Series)
Epiphany (Book Four: The Destined Series)
Sign up for Ashley’s Mailing List
Inception (Book One 1/2: The Destined Series)
Awakening (Book Two: The Destined Series)
Façade (Book Three: The Destined Series)
Epiphany (Book Four: The Destined Series)
Sign up for Ashley’s Mailing List
Don’t forget about the Giveaway!
Hosted by Enticing Journey
___________________________________________________________________
Laura's Review of Raven by Ashley Suzanne
The
Rundown
If I would have known then
what I know now.
If I would have known that having my heart broken at thirteen by my one and only friend, Garrett Rhodes, would never compare to the empty feeling at sixteen when I buried my mother.
If I would have known that changing schools in my senior year would throw all that back in my face.
Maybe … just maybe … I wouldn’t be in the hell storm I’m living in these days. Letting my past dictate my future, allowing the best of the best male MMA fighters bully me day in and day out and knowing no matter what I do, Garrett will always be the only man that understands me. I didn’t have to live this way. One day changed the course of my life forever.
Through all this mess, the one thing that I’ve found that keeps me centered … martial arts. And I’m damn good. If only someone would give me a chance to prove my worth.
All I can do now is make the best of it and try to not let the fight consume me.
Or has it already?
If I would have known that having my heart broken at thirteen by my one and only friend, Garrett Rhodes, would never compare to the empty feeling at sixteen when I buried my mother.
If I would have known that changing schools in my senior year would throw all that back in my face.
Maybe … just maybe … I wouldn’t be in the hell storm I’m living in these days. Letting my past dictate my future, allowing the best of the best male MMA fighters bully me day in and day out and knowing no matter what I do, Garrett will always be the only man that understands me. I didn’t have to live this way. One day changed the course of my life forever.
Through all this mess, the one thing that I’ve found that keeps me centered … martial arts. And I’m damn good. If only someone would give me a chance to prove my worth.
All I can do now is make the best of it and try to not let the fight consume me.
Or has it already?
First Impressions
So I like the book, Rian is definitely an easy character to latch onto
emotionally and immediately your heart goes out to her. So far she definitely has a riveting story
and I can’t wait to see how things will end for her. Saying that, I feel like the story is being
told at me, instead told me and maybe a little robotic and not flowing
nicely. Her past, as far as her
childhood felt kind of rushed through rather than showing examples of how
Garrett was there for her as a little girl, it’s just explained to you then
moved on from. I don’t want a character
to tell me she’s heartbroken, I want her to show me she’s heartbroken. I’m about 33% of the way through and I hope
more detail is added into the book as the story moves on.
What I Loved
Of course I have fallen head over heels in love with
Garrett and everything about him. When
he first leaves Rian because his father got transferred it sucked, but when he
left again to join the Army, I was heartbroken.
He always proved to be an amazing man though, and I love that at certain
points the book switches to his point of view, so when he’s anxious you’re
anxious, when he’s mad, you’re mad. I
could only wish for a man like him in my life.
Not So Much
I really
enjoyed reading this book and the story was a definitely an emotional one, and
I love tear jerkers. But this book was
definitely lacking in details and it frustrated me a lot at times. Throughout the entire book I have no idea
what color Garrett’s hair is, and it’s hard to get a real description of Rian’s
looks as well. Those tiny details like
if Rian’s short, or tall, is she curvy, or lean? None of these characteristics were addressed
at all.
I enjoyed
Rian’s inner monologue at times, but other times it seemed a little too
elementary for the character and took away from the emotional situations going
on. Nothing was really just detailed
enough for me. I felt like things were
just kind of talked about rather than shown to the reader and at times it made
me feel like an outsider rather than being a part of the story. For example in the synopsis you see that MMA
really changed Rian’s life around, but while reading there just wasn’t a lot
evidence to support that. You don’t even
get to the MMA part of the book until you’re about 65% of the way through and
it’s really a small section rather than what the synopsis leads you to
believe. I would’ve liked more detail in
her training, or how MMA was changing her outlook on life or emotionally.
This Book Was…
Really
great! Wonderful story filled with great
characters. Very emotional towards the
end that just has your heart beating right out of your chest. Rian is an easy character to love, and there
is no way that thinking of Garrett wouldn’t bring a smile to anyone’s face; he
is just that amazing. Although this was
an emotional book, it was an easy fast read which I love. I definitely had a book hangover after finishing
this one. The writing isn’t my cup of
tea, but that’s not the author’s problem that is mine so I can’t hate on
that. I do wish there was more detail in
the book, and felt a little more natural and not robotic, but overall great
story!
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