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Full of

Love

Longing

Want

Need

A maelstrom of music pulsates through my veins

Lyrics brimming with pain and passion dance in my cells

And my soul revels in the pure, unmatched beauty I can find only in Julie’s writing

“I wake. I breathe. I sleep. A ghost of a girl. Not so much a life – merely an existence.”

Two years ago, Felicity Wilde lost her home. For two years, she lived hidden. Without music. Without color. Without hope. Until that unexpected turn of events that dragged her against her will back in the spotlight, and forced her to face the one person that gave her the world, only to rip it from her hands.

“I’m living a nightmare I’ll never escape.”

Two years ago, Ryder Woods lost his way. His path was paved with drugs, alcohol, fame and all kinds of addiction that led to a life without her. But fate smiled back at him when the starry-eyed girl that stole his breath and his heart re-emerged from the shadows. When Wildewood hits the road for a sold-out tour, Ryder finds the opportunity to fight for her. To prove her how much she means to him. That he can be the person she deserves.

If only she’d let him.

“Keep singing, Felicity. You’re a light in the dark.”

Julie Johnson is the light in my dark. Every single time I lose myself in one of her soulful, powerful stories, I end up finding pieces of me I didn’t know were missing. Her prose is always compelling, I taste her rich metaphors in my tongue and feel her lyrics caress my skin. The tension she masterfully crafts and the ambience charged with lust and longing baptize me in fire, and the tears staining my face soak my parched soul. Her talent lies in capturing every single moment, the big and the small, the joyful and the sad, in weaving constellations of star-crossed lovers that beam even in the blackest night. She awakens sensations and dreams. She conjures nightmares and pain so primal that makes you scream. She writes about every feeling you could possibly feel, and you experience its enhanced version that swallows you whole.

“So here’s the truth I never said

A promise I can’t forget

For you I’d move the stars”

In the past, Ryder and Felicity let their demons overpower them, and that tore them apart. Now, they have a second chance. Their connection is still there, unfaded. And so is their anger, their bitterness, their disappointment and their fear. Unfaded is full of angst and tangled emotions that make Ryder and Felicity hurt each again and again. Sometimes I rooted for Felicity, and admired her for her resilience and the way she grew up, but some others I was mad at her for not seeing how much Ryder tried, for running away when she had every reason to stay. Ryder on the other hand attracted me like a moth to the flame, he easily became of my most cherished male characters (and also made me drool incessantly). When they sang, everything ceased to be. It was only them, their palpable chemistry and me, a tiny figure swept in their tornado. The secondary characters were precious, their presence soothing, a comfort much needed. And I have a feeling that we are not done with them yet.

“You’re the eye of my storm, a shot burst of sun

If I thought you’d listen, I’d tell you to run”

Julie Johnson’s Faded Duet is a heartbreakingly beautiful song I will never forget.

*ARC generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*