Tell Me When by Stina Lindenblatt

Amber Scott should be enjoying life as a college freshman. She should be pursuing her dream of becoming a veterinarian. She should be working hard to make sense of her precalculus math class.

She shouldn’t be waking up her college roommate with screaming nightmares. She shouldn’t be flashing back, reliving the three weeks of hell she barely survived last year. And she definitely shouldn’t be spending time with sexy player Marcus Reid.

But engineering student Marcus is the only one keeping Amber from failing her math course, so she grudgingly lets him into her life. She never expects the king of hookups will share his painful past. Or that she’ll tell him her secrets in return, opening up and trusting him in a way she thought she’d never be able to again.

When their fragile future together is threatened by a stalker Amber thought was locked away for good, Marcus is determined to protect her. And Amber is determined to protect Marcus…even if that means pushing him away.

This book is definitely intended for a mature mind. It has strong scenes referring to murder, rape, PTSD, torture, child abuse and neglect as well as gang affiliations and much more.

It is a dual POV book with AMAZING, strong and shattered characters. Amber is a freshman in college. A girl with a dark past suffering from PTSD. She lived at the University of Illinois at the dorms but isn't getting along with her roommate and all because she keeps waking up at 2am with those awful nightmares that bring those awful memories of her past. All Amber wants is to get through college, become a veterinarian and move on!!!

Marcus is college playboy. He uses women for satisfaction, but he is very upfront and real. He wants the benefits but not the relationship, until he meets Amber. She makes him feel like he has to protect her. But the darkness of his past aren't allowing him to fall in love. Or will they?

The element of suspense is great. I was not able to put the book down. At times I was so into the book that I forgot whose POV I was reading. I felt as if I had to save both characters, they deserved to love and be loved.

5 stars from me... very eloquent... and very STRONG topics addressed... and very well written! 

Amber has suffered through an event that has not only changed her life, but the lives of so many others. She knows in her heart it isn't her fault, yet she continuously blames herself. For that reason she has pushed everyone who matters in her life away and went away to college.

"I miss being that girl. The girl who had lots of friends. The girl who didn't have secrets. The girl everyone cheered for when she was on the basketball court. The girl who never gave the wrong guy the wrong idea and now has to pay a horrendous price for it."

Marcus has had his own tragedies and yet, is unable to admit the truth to what horrors have haunted his past.

"The first part is right, even though I don't live with my mom. She is sick. Sick enough not to stop Frank from hurting me and Ryan. Sick enough to have babies and not care about them."

I enjoyed this book. It kept me intrigued trying to figure out what had happened to both Amber and Marcus. The writing was great. I think what disappointed me was the whole scenario of tortured girl/tortured bad boy meet is so played out. Other than that, the mystery kept the book fresh for me. Not only the mystery of what had happened in their pasts to bring them to where they are today but also the suspense that plays out quite regularly throughout the book. They other characters in the book were also interesting to me and a big draw. I would even venture to say if she decided to do another book with the background characters, I would read it. I even may have gotten something in my eyes and they watered a bit. I will say I was hoping for more of Amber's story of what happened in her past. That being said, I am a dark romance kind of girl and if that had been done, the book would have fallen into a whole different category. I also checked this author out to see what other books I may want to read by her and was pleasantly surprised to see that this is the author's first book. She shows a lot of promise with her great story lines and ability to write. I look forward to reading more by her.

Once in a while you come across a book that is just so meaningful and written so well, it instantly becomes part of your top ten favorite books.  This one is certainly one for my top ten lists.  The author did such a beautiful job at bringing us two of the most broken, yet strong characters and making their story a message for all who will read.

Amber is lucky to be alive.  After escaping a horrific nightmare that left her with scars, fears and guilt, she tries to focus on life in college and staying safe.  Feeling like she can’t tell anyone what she endured and what she sees every time she has a flashback, she has not only lost her brother and boyfriend to death, she has lost her mother and best friend. 

Marcus is this sexy dream come true playboy that every woman dreams about sleeping with.  What he doesn’t share is he is a broken little boy who has endured his own hell in life and is alone other than his roommate Chase.  When he sees Amber for the first time he tries to make the moves on her but her quick refusal was more than a turn down, this girl was scared. 

Marcus couldn’t let go of the fear he saw in Amber and a strange feeling like he needed to protect her overcame him, but how could he do that when he couldn’t protect the one person he loved more than life himself?  They continue to run into each other and the more he saw her the more his need to protect grew till one day he just took over and became a wall between her and other men.  She finally admitted she needed help in her Math class and offered him some money to tutor her.  After that, there was no way he was going to not know her story.

As both of their stories were revealed, my heart broke for them and they became my couple of the year.  I loved how the author didn’t wait till the end for all the answers, she gave us peeks into her nightmares, his fears, by the end of the book we had a general idea of what had happen to them, but the whole picture came together after they had built trust with each other. 

Stina gave us a story of survival and love.  We also see that until you let go of the guilt you carry for others actions, you are never really healed.  I cried at times because I just love Amber and Marcus so much it hurt to hear what they overcame in life.  I felt such pride in both because when they had every right to hate the world, they both displayed such love and empathy and forgiveness for others, they became heroes to me. This book will capture your heart and mind from the first chapter and give you a renewed sense of survival and the human spirit.  I can hardly wait to read more from this author.    

    

Born in England, Stina loves to travel, and has lived in England, the US, Canada, and Finland. She spent a semester in graduate school living in central Finland, and a summer during her undergrad degree working in Helsinki. She has a Master’s of Science degree in exercise physiology and has worked with elite athletes. In her free time, Stina is a photographer, mother of three adorable kids, and devoted wife. She currently lives in Calgary, Canada.

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