If I Break

By: Portia Moore

Narrated by: Megan Solesski

Length: 11 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

This is not your typical happily ever after.... Lauren Brooks wants to do three things: Escape the small town she grew up in, get accepted to her dream school in Chicago, and graduate without drowning in debt. Now she's working her ass off to do just that.

With a full course load and a waitressing job at one of the hottest nightclubs in Chicago, she does not have time for distractions; namely ones who only want to get into her pants. She's been burned before.

Only a fool goes for a second round.... With just two semesters left until graduation, everything's on track. Until she meets Cal. Enter distraction. At six-foot-two, with ebony hair, deep grey eyes, and a smile that could only hide an agenda, she knows he's trouble. And for the first time in her life, a little trouble might be just what she needs.

No, what she wants. It isn't like she'd ever marry the guy. Until she does.

What she thinks will be her happily ever after, is only the beginning.

Cal has a secret. One that makes loving him come with a price, and being his wife cost more than she bargained for.

©2014 Porsche Moore (P)2015 Porsche Moore

Good read

Love this story but the ending was a little off but it is still worth reading.

Unique story that left me with lots of "feels".

If you could sum up If I Break in three words, what would they be?

passionate, painful, ingenious

What did you like best about this story?

lauren is a likeable character; sweet yet strong. Her vice is the man that she loves to distraction. I loved that I could not predict the plot twists. I didn't always agree with how Lauren handled things, but I still felt empathetic towards her. I wanted to hug her. I know that sounds weird, but I felt like Portia really flushed out her character. I understood her motivations, even when I did not agree with her. I felt like she was my friend. I cried when she cried; I contemplated opening a bottle of wine to commiserate with her. I also got angry with her, for not focusing on her own life, and letting Cal go. She had a college degree; I wanted her to use it. I guess that is what I liked best about these books-- that the characters felt like real people to me.

Which scene was your favorite?

The thing I like best about this book is the fact that I didn't foresee the plot twists. I, usually, have the ability to figure out movies, and books easily and then spoil the ending for myself. With this book, the whole series in fact, I could not do that and I found that refreshing!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Small town girl tames big city bad boy, or does she? Sometimes love is messy, complicated and painful. It can also heal you, inspire you, and fill you with so much passion it's worth the risks...

Any additional comments?

I enjoyed the entire If I Break series. I jumped at the chance to listen to the audio version of the books. Megan Solesski did a fantastic job of narration. As a performer, it would be challenging to sound differnet, and believable in some of the scenes that consisted of a narrator, and 4 different women talking. I think she handled switiching charcacters very well. In the subsequent books, I know this is unheard of, but I would love to hear Zachary voice Cal/Chris and Megan voice Lauren. The only coplaint I have, and I feel like a nitpicker writing this, is that I live near Saginaw MI. I nor anyone I know, would consider it a safe place to live--not enough to not have to lock your doors that's for sure.I still loved this book series. I will re-read, and listen again!

The story is good

The story is good it did drag a bit for me and I think that was the narrators delivery but I did enjoy it. I will definitely finish up the series

Found it hard to pull away from it!

This was a great dramatic and intriguing story. The narrator held my attention and drew me in. I could visualize every scene. The author told a great story.

Love this!!!!

Man, I love these books! Portia Moore is able to tell such a compelling story in the If I Break series and I love how she weaves the story of Lauren and Cal’s past and intertwines it with their present throughout the book.

This was my second time with If I Break, this time listening and I’ve got to say I think I enjoyed it more this time. I think it was because I knew what was coming so I could grab onto the small details and think “oh, that makes sense now”. The story is SO creative; seriously the plot twist is great and not at all what I was expecting.

I’m popping my rating from a 4 star up to a 5 for the overall story. The reason I originally gave it a 4 was because I felt like Lauren’s character should be a bit stronger in regards to her sexual attraction to Cal. I didn’t like that she could be so infuriated with and hurt by him and then the moment he started touching her she gave into him. I understand lust, but letting it repeatedly overpower your rational thoughts bothered me.

Revisiting this book I was still a bit annoyed with that aspect but I also paid more attention to the many other things that were happening. In particular how much I loved the way Moore wrote Lauren. She was such a strong character in every aspect of her life besides her body’s interactions with Cal. Even her reaction to the huge plot twist shows not only her fierce love for Cal but also her strength of character and overall fairness.

The audio book was really great. The narrator did a wonderful job with both Lauren and Cal’s voices. Some of the female and male secondary characters sounded a little similar to each other and when they were talking during the same scenes it would get a little confusing, but nothing that was overly distracting or took away from the story.

I HIGHLY recommend this entire series!!! It’s such a unique story! So many romance stories out there are just variations of the same plot, but I can honestly say this is different than anything else I’ve ever read. Try this series out, you won’t be disappointed!!

Not for me, but maybe for you.

I was given an audible for my honest review.

Unfortunately, this story wasn't my cup of tea. I don't like bad reviews because no two people read the same story.

The audible was very good as far as performance & narration goes. She delivered the story the way it was meant to be.

There is very strong potential for this story but it just didn't jive for me. A lot of redundancy & that makes me roll my eyes & skip ahead.

Others have enjoyed this book, so give it a try. Might be a good book for you.

Nice storyline.

I got a little dizzy from the jumps back and forth through time, but I understand it had to be done to get their romance (or lack there of) out.
I was glad when, in the last few chapters, she stayed in the present.

Great premise!

I thought the characters were well developed, this book set the stage for the rest of the story, it’s a great series!

so sad...but so good! I highly recommend!

rollercoaster ride. So sad...but so good! I highly recommend. Interesting concept. The story line kept me interested the whole way through.

Excellent

What made the experience of listening to If I Break the most enjoyable?

The fact that the narrator read each character with such expression and you could tell she differentiated each one.

What other book might you compare If I Break to and why?

There aren't any other books I have read that are even close to this story line.

Which scene was your favorite?

It is to hard to choose

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Don't be judgmental until you know the whole truth

Any additional comments?

I have to say I was impressed when I read this book and now listening to it makes me want to continue listening to the series.