The Twisted Road to You - Barbara Longley

I should probably start this review by saying that I always picture myself as the character of a book when we share the same name, so my image of Carlie is 100% different than everyone else who read this book.  It doesn't matter how a character is described, if her name is a variation of Carly, she's a tall blonde hair woman from California. Just cant help it! In case you were wondering, Wesley has joined my list of book boyfriends, so it's really okay that I pictured myself with him.
I enjoyed this one and definitely recommend you check it out.

Rating: 4 Stars
Published: October 2015
Published: Many thanks to Netgalley and Montlake Romance for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Wesley has closed himself off from getting attached again, he's got PTSD and a real hard time trusting people. He's got his fellow friends and veterans he works with, his dog Rex, and a schedule he follows meticulously. Part of that schedule involves visiting Carlie at the diner for breakfast after his night shift, but when she's not there one day and her ex-husband is to blame, Wesley is willing to do whatever it takes. After vowing to protect Carlie and her son while her ex is wreaking havoc, Wes starts letting Carlie in little by little. Carlie thinks it's time to run again, ready to start over in a new life for the second time, but that plan didn't involve Wes and he's made her rethink the running. Carlie has to put aside her fears, Wes his trust issues, and together they must face the danger of Carlie's ex.

I love a good military man, I'm dating one for goodness sake, but Wesley has definitely taken the spot for my favorite book military man. Sure, he's been closed off for so long from letting any girl in, but he deals with some pretty heavy thoughts, going so far as to working nights so he can try to sleep during the day when he is apt to have less nightmares. He also is incredibly kind, awesome with Carlie's son Tyler, and seemed to come out of his shell over time. I love that he didn't want to recognize how much he cared for Carlie, even when he was willing to do anything for her. He was a very realistic character for me and I appreciated the level of detail Barbara Longley gave when it came to Wesley's thoughts. As for the object of his affections, Carlie, I really liked her as well. She had a ton of strength and out of every abuse novel I've ever read, she's been the character who handled it best. Her reactions and desire to hide were believable, and justified, and I appreciated that the timeline of her recovery to really date again was realistic. There are also some amazing minor characters in this book, both Carlie and Wesley's friends brought a lot of background to the story and provided some interesting dialogue. The romance and suspense is done very well; I didn't feel like either story line was overwhelming the other. I enjoyed how the threat of Carlie's ex pushed Wes and Carlie together. The PTSD and survivor's guilt was handled beautifully by Longley and I was impressed with its accuracy.

I have not read anything else by Barbara Longley, but you can bet I'll be picking up some of her others. This can be read as a standalone and I highly recommend it.