New Adult Contemporary
Date Published: May 7, 2014
There are always two stories.
Robin fell in love with Kent, the boy next door, a long time ago. Once their romance is rekindled, getting married and starting a family seems like the obvious next step. But fate throws a wrench in that plan. Now Robin is tempted to walk away from their relationship rather than settle for anything less than perfect with the man she loves.
Bailey is certainly not the boy next door, yet Shayna fell for his well-played act. But real love only exists in the movies. When a chance encounter binds them together, Shayna finds herself relying on Bailey more than she could ever have expected. And while their resources are slim and their circumstances are far from perfect, she and Bailey slowly discover that they do have something special to give….
When things don’t go exactly as planned, it’s hard not to PANIC.
MATURE CONTENT Strong Language/Sexual situations
I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review!
What I say: In Panic Ryan Ringbloom merges the old and new. We get to revisit former couple Robin and Kent (they first appeared in Fast) and are introduced to new characters Shayna 'Shane' and Bailey 'Kid' as they come to terms with an unexpected situation (gonna admit I thought Shane was gonna be the guy & Bailey the girl until I started the story).
Told in multiple POV we get to hear from all four of the mains, which helped to understand this delicate topic from all sides. In Fast I wasn't all that impressed by Robin and much preferred Ashley, but I did warm to her in Panic. I think the reason I hadn't previously really liked Robin was because she was too uptight, but thankfully with Kent's help we get to see her loosen up and accept that things don't have to be perfect. Kent's grown up a lot since his teenage years and is really sweet with Robin, who has been through a lot!
Shayna and Bailey are young, troubled and in a pretty rubbish situation. I did find them infuriating at times, but I think this was mostly down to their age. They work so hard to fix things and have a terrible decision to make. I really felt their pain and also their hope for a better future.
The ending was bittersweet. I sat around analysing how I felt about the way Bailey and Shayna's story ended; it definitely made me think! It was nice to see more of Patrick and Ashley - I still love them!
4 Stars in my Sky!
Author Spotlight:
Ryan Ringbloom lives for anything Romance. The passion, love, angst, awkwardness… she loves all of it. When Ryan needs a break from reality she sneaks off to read a romantic story or write one of her own. Drinking coffee, reading Tweets and hugs from her five year old are the best part of her day.
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Excerpt:
She
looks like she’s about to be sick. Her hands dig into her stomach and she leans
forward. “Why are you saying this? I thought we weren’t going to rush into
anything? Now what, you’re proposing? What the hell? Here we go, moving too
fast all over again.” She steps free from the car and slams the door.
I
step out and slam my own door with ten times the force. “Well, maybe fast is
the only speed we know, maybe it’s the only speed that works for us.”
“You
know what, Kent? We shouldn’t have done this. It was stupid to think this would
work.” She reaches into her bag for her keys and walks down the sidewalk.
“Goodbye.” Her car flashes as she unlocks the driver’s side door.
“Don’t
you dare leave!” I shout at her. “I just said I want to marry you and now you’re
walking away from me and saying goodbye.”
She
walks back over calmly and stands right in front of me. Her head tilts back to
look up at me. “Sorry, but I’m not wife material,” she says.
I’m
furious. A clear thought couldn’t form if I tried. “Okay, good to know.” I grit
my teeth, my mouth set in a fine line.
“You
can’t be mad at me, Kent.” Her lip quivers.
“I
can’t be mad? Is that what you’re telling me? ‘Cause I’ll tell you, Robin, I am
way more than mad right now. You love me, you want to be with me, but you don’t
want to marry me because ‘you’re not wife material.’ What does that even mean?”
I holler. My fists are clenched, locked down at my sides.
“It
means I’m defective,” she screams back at me. “I’m not the kind of girl you
marry.”
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