Review: Watch Me Walk Away - Jill Prand

At the age of seventeen, Lisa was broken when Bobby left. He was suppose to be her first. First Love. First Time. First Everything. No word for six long years. She moved away from the painful reminders sacrificing her relationship with her best friend Brad. She struggled to rebuild her life. 

Now six years later she returns as a strong, successful woman grabbing a job at one of New York’s hottest marketing agencies. She is dating a gorgeous guy with his eyes on a corner office. But it all changes when she sees Bobby. 

Can she risk another heartbreak from Bobby? Will she be able to repair her friendship with Brad? Lisa will have to decide between the man she's with, and the two men that want her. 

Who will she be with, and who will she tell to "Watch Me Walk Away?"

Amazon

Is it possible to meet your true love when you're 15? That's the question Lisa asks her best friend, Jodi and to be honest with you, I may sound like a romantic but it is what it is. Some will tell you that at 15 you are too young to know real love and at most what you would feel is puppy love. I'd have to respectfully disagree. I think love is love. And you can meet that one person who is perfect for you in every way at any give time. Whether or not it works out is a different story.

Lisa knew from the moment she met Bobby that he was the one for her. What she didn't expect was for Bobby to walk away from her. Heartbroken, Lisa did the unmentionable, forever changing her relationship with Brad. Here is where I feel Prand did a phenomenal job with the characters and made them true to life. Lisa, like most teenage girls who have had their heart broken, goes through the stages of breakups. She is angry, vengeful and understandably depressed. But once that is all said and done she makes the conscious choice of putting Bobby firmly in the past and moves forward... and away. Starting over someplace that does not remind her of Bobby, she builds a life for herself. At first I was critical about how quickly she seemed to get over the hurt when Bobby came back in to her life, but let's face it, who among us wouldn't jump at the chance at a second chance with the love of our lives but with the added bonus of maturity that will hopefully make things work the second time around?

I have to admit that I was on an emotional roller-coaster fro the very beginning. I began firmly on #TeamStuart. He just seems so perfect for her. But then there's Brad. The best friend who has always loved her and always been there. That being said, who wouldn't be firmly in #TeamBrad? But oh Bobby! Bobby is the flawed hero. Although I understand his motivation for breaking up with Lisa, I can't help but think that he could have gone about it in a completely different way. But this new Bobby is so sweet and romantic. I want to cheer for him and put my ballot in for #TeamBobby. As a reader this puts me at a disadvantage because I like the characters and someone is bound to get hurt. See where my emotional roller-coaster comes in? I want them all to be happy but as there is only one Lisa and three guys, two out of four of these characters are bound to be upset and heartbroken.

There were a couple of hit or misses for me, I felt that Lisa was getting too emotionally invested in Bobby too quickly given that she was still involved with Stuart. However, as a freshman novel, I am both impressed and delighted with the story Prand gave us. It was heartfelt and emotional and everything I look for when I want to escape in to my books. Watch Me Walk Away is bound to be one of my favorites for years to come.