Book Review and Author Interview: Just Breathe by Rachel Brookes

Rachel Brookes just realsed her debut novel Just Breathe and not only did I get to read her debut book but I also got to do a interview with her. 

Blurb from Goodreads: 

For Savannah Rae, living life without her parents was unimaginable. But being blamed for her first love’s suicide? That destroyed every part of who she was. Gone were the days of innocence, happiness, and dreams. Now her days simply meant attempting to survive. In her mind, her only means for that was replacing her grief with men, booze and the fast life. And for five years, it worked. When an opportunity to leave the nightmares of her past in Australia opens up, she takes it. Los Angeles beckons - with hopes of late nights, new beginnings, and the promise of a string of endless men to distract her, she can’t wait to dive in. One thing she didn’t count on was meeting her match. In the eyes of outsiders, Tate Connors has it all; the ultimate LA bachelor who is content with his lifestyle of wild nights, women and one night stands. He's Mr. Unpredictable with looks that could destroy any woman with one glance. The craziness of Los Angeles throws them into the chaotic path of each other. Savannah becomes the perfect game, and Tate becomes the ultimate prey. Lines are crossed, emotions are smashed, and the idea of who they truly are begins to be tangled. However, one thing will become clear. They are more alike than either one could ever have imagined.


~~~REVIEW~~~~
Sav is an Australian coming to LA to find a new path and right in the middle of that path is Tate Connors. Oh hey there hot guy. Don't mind if I do. :) Sav has really met her match with Tate and I loved that. This debut book is a great story of new exciting places and trying to find out where you belong.

"Tequila, shoes and guys were my weaknesses"

There were a lot of great things in this book: Tate and Sav both seemed to have figured it out, or at least figured out what will chase the demons away. When they first meet they butt heads but they soon find that they work well together. What I also loved was the side characters in this book. Jack and Tanzi were great, and the dialogue between them a bit snarky with a dash of love mixed in.

'You're the greatest challenge Ill have, Savannah." 

Sometimes I would get frustrated with Sav but I understand that this is all new to her and it could very well be overwhelming. The ending I didn't see coming and I was a little bit offish about Tate and his reaction. I just hope that he figures it out. It seemed that Sav grew a lot in this book, but Tate still has a long road. He might have fallen in love but that doesn't always fix every problem. I am interested to see how it plays out from here.

~~~AUTHOR INTERVIEW~~~~

1.  Where did the idea of Just Breathe come from?

I have had the idea for a while now and I want to write a book that shows that sometimes life isn’t easy and life throws you into circumstances and situations where you either sink or swim but ultimately it’s your decision. Just Breathe is about just that… making the decision whether to sink or swim and knowing that if you give it a chance you can find sunshine after the storm. Your destiny is in your hands.

2. Did you ever envision yourself being a writer?

I have always loved to write whether it was letters, lyrics and poetry and I remember writing countless short stories when I was younger. I have always had a dream to be a writer and I am overwhelmed that I can now call myself one. It’s crazy.

3.  How much of yourself did you put in this book? The characters?

There are certain emotions and situations that Sav found herself in that I can relate to. I tried to make the story as relatable as I could and I hope that came across. Certain characteristics from the supporting characters… I definitely have a Tanzi in my life and I know someone who reminds me of Mr. Davenport.

4.  What is the biggest misconception Americans have of Australians?

It’s pretty funny about the whole kangaroo thing.

5.  If you were Sav and had to tell Tate the five most quintessential things that are Australian, what would they be?

Australian humour

Beaches

Tim Tams

Lifestyle

Aussie sport

6.    Did you have your story plotted out or did you find yourself listening to the characters and having them write this story?

I knew how the story was going to start and I had an idea of how it would finish but I let the characters decide where the story was going. Sav and Tate are both such strong characters that I needed to let them take me to their story.

7.   What music was playing when you were writing Just Breathe?

I created a playlist for Just Breathe that I constantly listened to… it had songs from a whole bunch of different artists… a few aussie artists thrown in. Everything from silverchair to Rihanna, Paramore to Incubus, Missy Higgins to The Pretty Reckless. The playlist can be found here: Just Breathe by Rachel Brookes

Rapid Fire

8. Favorite place in the whole world? My family go camping at a place where there is no electricity, fresh water creeks, no phone reception… that’s my favorite place in the world.

9. Favorite author/ book? My favorite author would be Abbi Glines. I can’t pick one favorite book, I seriously have SO many.

11. The one thing you never leave the house without? lipgloss

12. Favorite guilty pleasure? Chocolate pizza… two of my favorite things combined as one