Ten Tiny Breaths – K. A. Tucker

Title : Ten Tiny Breaths
Author : K. A. Tucker
First published in : 2013
Genre : New Adult
Edition : Atria Books
Pages : 279
Status : read from 06/26/19 to 06/29/19
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Synopsis : Just breathe, Kacey. Ten tiny breaths. Seize them. Feel them. Love them.
Four years ago, Kacey Cleary’s life imploded when her car was hit by a drunk driver, killing her parents, boyfriend, and best friend. Still haunted by memories of being trapped inside, listening to her mother take her last breath, Kacey wants to leave her past behind. Armed with two bus tickets, Kacey and her fifteen-year-old sister, Livie, escape Gran Rapids, Michigan, to start over in Miami. They’re struggling to make ends meet at first, but Kacey’s not worried. She can handle anything – anything but her mysterious neighbor in apartment 1D.
Trent Emerson has smoldering blue eyes and deep dimples, and perfectly skates that irresistible line between nice guy and bad boy. Hardened by her tragic past, Kacey is determined to keep everyone at a distance, but their mutual attraction is undeniable, and Trent is desperate to find a way into Kacey’s guarded heart – even if it means revealing an explosive secret that could shatter both their worlds.

Review : It’s been a while since I wanted to go back to English-written novels and read K. A. Tucker’s series. I’m glad I chose this book to start my Summer reading program as this is a perfect story for this season. Indeed, it takes place in Miami, is about a love story and friendship, but also about the danger of driving being drunk, recovery after a shock or a big loss, and forgiveness. This is a strong story, with funny scenes but also serious ones. I really liked the fact that the author wrote a book about important themes but succeeded in adding light chapters with humor, love, friendship and characters we learn to like page after page. Her writing is fluid and enjoyable. I liked the fact that the title has been well chosen and that we find a lot of references to it throughout the story. I especially appreciated the dialogs, which seemed real, as if they were written after a conversation which existed. These details help the readers going deeper into the story, to be a part of it. They also reinforce the suspense about the secrets the main characters try to hide. Nonetheless, I have to say that I quickly discovered one of them, the biggest I should say, and it slowed a little bit the plot for the rest of the book. Moreover, I’m not sure the end of the novel is the one I wanted. I don’t want to say too much so you can discover it by yourself, but now that I know everything Kacey had to go through the last four years, I don’t really understand why she took this decision and I can’t imagine someone doing the same in real life. Forgiveness is an important thing to heal, but this is more than that for her. Is it credible? I don’t know because I never faced this kind of situation, but this is hard to believe.
However, I insist on the fact that this is a really interesting book with a good moral throughout the plot and in the author’s note. Now that I finished the first book of the series, I’m curious to know what is going to happen in the next ones. Will it be about Kacey or another character? I don’t know as I haven’t read the synopsis to have the surprise to discover it with my reading.
If you like atypical romances and stories about serious themes and life lessons, you definitely should take a look at Ten Tiny Breaths by K. A. Tucker.

Also by K.A. Tucker : One Tiny Lie + Four Seconds to Lose + Five Ways to Fall