Review: Afraid to Fly

Title: Afraid to Fly
Author: SL Jennings
Published May 25th 2015
Genre: Contemporary, NA

Dominic Trevino had been called a lot of things.
Manwhore.
Womanizer.
Slut.
But he was most notoriously known as Dirty Dom.
Because that was who he was…for the most part.
It just wasn’t all he was.

His tortured past was as stained as his licentious reputation, and that was exactly how he’d designed it. It was the only way he knew how to cope with the ghosts that still kept him caged in horror and self-loathing. But the day Raven came tearing into his life—her temper as hot as her teeny tiny shorts—he knew he could never be placated with faceless hook-ups again. Still, he couldn’t let her see who—and what—he really was inside.

Raven freed him from his past…freed him from his pain.
She saved him.
Even though she didn’t believe he was even worth saving.


From the author of New York Times bestseller, Fear of Falling, comes a full-length, spin-off standalone about unbreakable friendships, the power of healing, and learning to love through forgiveness. 

Amazon US Link

4.5 hearts

This book has been on my TBR since its release.  As the year came to a close, I decided to catch up on some of those older books.  So happy that I cracked this one open first!  This is my first book by this author.  It is a spin off so for those who have read her other works, you may be more vested in the characters.  However, I was sucked in right from the start.  Easy to follow who was who and what the relationships were even though I had not read Fear of Falling.

This book follows Dom Trevino.  He has a horrible tragic past that has shaped him into the manwhore/ womanizer that he is.  He uses s3x to escape his demons.  What was wonderful to see as the story developed, is that Dom has a golden heart and would do anything for those he cares about.  I love that he is in a helping profession.  He helps children so they can succeed.  He is a support for his best friends.  He is aware enough of his own issues, that he can recognize when things are going south for him.

Raven is looking for some help for her young brother.  They are referred to Dominic’s community center and Dom takes on the challenge of becoming a friend to Toby.  I honestly did not like Raven at all for about a 1/3 of the book.  She seemed overly angry and rude.  I wasn’t sure why Dominic was even attracted to all that.  She wasn’t even remotely kind.  As things develop, she calms and becomes more reasonable.  I liked that Dom had to work for her attention a bit.  Something he wasn’t used to.  But I like to think, in polite society, people can be civil without letting down their shields.  I understand she felt a need to protect her heart and Toby’s interests, but it became tedious for a while.

That said, I did like how Raven became the balm to Dominic’s soul.  Love is love after all.  Everyone deserves to find that one person who can make them whole.  Loved the epilogue!  Would love for the author to jump ahead in time and give us more of Toby.  

Military wife, mother of 3 boys, and author of The Dark Light Series & Fear of Falling

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