Guard My Heart by Larissa de Silva
3 stars
Guard My Heart is a friends to lovers romance set around a human trafficking thread.
Misha and Billie were childhood friends and neighbours, until Misha suspected his parents were selling drugs. Then he overheard Billie’s parents planning to prostitute their daughter; it was too much for Misha and he attacked Billie’s dad and urged Billie to run for safety.
Years later, Misha found a job as a security guard at a medical centre. Billie worked there too, and the friends become united once more.
The opening chapters of this book were good; the drugs and human trafficking elements alone turned my thoughts towards a romantic suspense. However, the author took the story in another direction and focused on the reunion between Misha and Billie, while the opening suspense points remained in the background and I thought that they were explained away too easily. This left me rather disappointed and I never felt able to fully engaged with the couple as adults.
I also struggled to believe that Misha was a man; he had far too many female mannerisms and thoughts, and some of the dialogue was clunky and didn’t sound natural, which is a shame because, as I said earlier, the beginning was well written.
So overall, this didn’t work for me, I’d like to see it have a bit more work on the characters and the story arc to support the opening hook.
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debridement (n):
1. the act of removing foreign objects or damaged tissue from a wound.
2. the act of scrubbing every trace of Misha Ivanov out of your heart.
Dr. Billie Hodges knows everything there is to know about cutting out damaged tissue.
That’s what you do when a man breaks your heart.
And the only thing she could do with the pieces of her that belonged to Misha was excise them, throw them away, and leave them behind in a distant past she’d rather forget.
Too bad Misha Ivanov is unforgettable.
Six foot three. Chiseled arms writhing with sin-black tattoos. Eyes that haven’t changed since he was a boy, deep and penetrating.
A body that’s changed too much, pure toned bestial grace–until Billie can’t ignore him. Can’t ignore her feelings. Can’t ignore that the danger he brings is just as enthralling as it is terrifying.
That’s the problem with emotions. With hearts.
Cut them apart, and they just grow back.
And what’s growing between Billie and Misha might just destroy her, if the troubles brewing from their past don’t do it first. With more than just her love on the line…
Can Billie trust Misha to guard her heart?
Guard My Heart is a full-length standalone novel in The Heart Lines series, which can be read in any order. With a gorgeous HEA ending and no cheating, you’ll fall in love with this 18+ only story!
Rosie Amber 