Book Review: Riveted (Saints of Denver #3)

About the Book:
Title: Riveted (Saints of Denver #3)
Author: Jay Crownover
Pub. Date: Feb. 14, 2017
Publisher: William Marrow
Pages: 368
Rating: 5/5 stars

Synopsis:

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Marked Men books comes the next installment in the Saints of Denver series.

Everyone else in Dixie Carmichael's life has made falling in love look easy, and now she is ready for her own chance at some of that happily ever after. Which means she’s done pining for the moody, silent former soldier who works with her at the bar that's become her home away from home. Nope. No more chasing the hot as heck thundercloud of a man and no more waiting for Mr. Right to find her; she's going hunting for him...even if she knows her heart is stuck on its stupid infatuation with Dash Churchill.

Denver has always been just a pit stop for Church on his way back to rural Mississippi. It was supposed to be simple, uneventful, but nothing could have prepared him for the bubbly, bouncy redhead with doe eyes and endless curves. Now he knows it's time to get out of Denver, fast. For a man used to living in the shadows, the idea of spending his days in the sun is nothing short of terrifying.

When Dixie and Church find themselves caught up in a homecoming overshadowed with lies and danger, Dixie realizes that while falling in love is easy, loving takes a whole lot more work…especially when Mr. Right thinks he's all wrong for you.

Review:

“No matter what kind of armor we wear, all of it has a chunk, a dent that speaks to a battle we fought and lost.” 

If you follow my reviews, you know that I'm a huge supporter and lover of all things Jay Crownover. I will never get enough of her writing, and it seems as if her writing gets better and better with each new book that is released. Case in point: this book right here. Riveted destroyed me and patched me up again. It made me feel so many emotions while reading, and I honestly think this might be my favorite book of Jay's to date (I know, I say this every single time...I have a problem with picking favorites...so much pressure). I could write a book on why this story was so important to me, but I'm not going to, so don't worry. But what I want to say is that this book changed me, and to everyone who reads it, it will change you too. Whether it's in a small way or a big way, it doesn't matter. The beauty of Jay's writing and all of her novels is that you take away something and it gets incorporated into your being. And that is what makes her such an excellent writer.

"There was no outrunning the past. Somehow and someway it always managed to catch up to you, and when it did you were so tired from all the running that when it wrapped its arms around you there was no possible chance of evading it again. It held on too tightly." 

I've been waiting for Daisy and Church's book for a long time. I loved them ever since they were first introduced, and I knew right away that they were meant to be together. Dixie and Church share a special connection, one that many people pray to find, and when they finally get together...it turns into an amazing fire bursting with energy and sparks. This was very reminiscent for me of the original Marked Men series. Obviously they're set in the same world, but the story just had this nostalgic feel to it that I really enjoyed. From the Marked Men series, I felt that I was most like Shaw. There was never really a character after her that I related to more. That was until I started reading Dixie's story. Without a doubt, Dixie is me through and through. And that really hit home for me and made my love for the story multiple 100 fold. 

“I was the girl that everyone always assumed was good... so they never asked... but he had and the world stopped.” 

Dixie is such a lovable lead character, but her vulnerability makes me even more relatable. From the first few sentences, you know there is so much more depth to her character than what she portrays to the outside world. She tries to be happy all of the time and be that sunshine in other people's lives because she knows. She knows what it's like to not be happy, to not have that sunshine in your life, to not always be feeling optimistic. So instead, Dixie chooses to be there for others ahead of herself. She relegates what she wants to the background if someone needs her help. Ultimately, she wants to be that bright spot in everyone's life because she understands fully what it's like not to have that. And that is what makes her absolutely perfect for Church. 

"Everything about Dixie Carmichael screamed forever, and I knew probably better than anyone on this planet that forever wasn’t something that was real, no matter how good you had it. Forever was an illusion that soft hearts and warm brown eyes built dreams around. It wasn’t something a man that knew how quickly everything could be ripped away and shredded to pieces put much stock in." 

Church is your big, strong, tough guy that feels like he will destroy someone like Dixie. Which is why he has always prevented himself from acting on his feelings that have been present since the day he first met her. He doesn't want to spoil that happy girl that he sees everyday. But what he doesn't realize is that's exactly what he needs in his life. Someone that will always build him up when he's feeling down, someone that will fight his battles with him, and give him the courage to keep going when he doesn't feel like doing it anymore. 

“Sometimes the things that happen to those that we love are out of our control. The only thing you can make sure of is that you’re not the person or the reason she gets hurt. That you can control completely. If you hurt her, that pain falls squarely on you, Dash, and you don’t get the luxury of blaming God or piss-poor luck.” 

There are so many things revealed on Church and Dixie's road trip...some very poignant and hard truths, some risks that are now worth taking, some trials that have to be overcome. The chemistry they have is undeniable, and it's like nothing I have ever read. They are just so right for each other, and in each other's arms they feel at home. And I think every person in this world should have that in their life. 

"I’ve always believed that you get what you put out there in the world and my family was putting out enough bad vibes that someone had to counteract that before karma kicked all of our asses. Sometimes it’s so much easier to focus on what went wrong rather than what went right.” 

As I said, I could go on and on about this book and how it means so much to me. I do want to say this though...Jay Crownover is a goddess. She wrote a book that is so consuming and leaves you in a state of awe that you have no idea where to go after you finish reading. The story and her words weave themselves into your soul and take root there so that the book stays with you long after you are finished reading. This is such a brilliant and beautiful book that you need to read immediately. It's the type of book that you drop everything for, sit on the couch/bed, and stay there until you finish it. So go read it now.

“There was no good without the bad, no joy without sorrow, no peace without war, and there definitely couldn’t be love without the sour taste of hate. You had to know what one felt like to fully experience and appreciate the other.” 

Happy reading :)

~Cassie