Untraditional Love in the Dark by Victoria Jackson Review & Giveaway

Untraditional Love in the Dark
Author: Victoria Jackson
Publisher: Favic Press
Pages: 236
Genre: Romance
Format: Paperback/Kindle Purchase at AMAZON

It has been a long time since Samantha has felt loved by a man. For now, she just wants to be left alone. She continues to live a lonely life, but an early morning visit to the beach changes everything. Her future husband, Isaiah, enters the picture.

Their marriage is every woman’s dream until Isaiah becomes distant and remote. Samantha becomes curious about his behavior and the absence of his immediate family. One part of her wants to overlook the uneasy feelings, but curiosity causes her to search for the truth.

Isaiah has a disturbing secret. Once Samantha discovers the truth, she is forced to travel a painful journey to recovery. Is Samantha prepared to lose her husband forever?

Samantha finally learns about self-love. She is torn between salvaging her marriage and the desire to find true love. Samantha is unable to deny her life will never be the same even if she decides to remain married to Isaiah.

First Chapter:

It was December 19, and there I was strolling down the beach. I don’t truly know what had possessed me that morning. I had been awake, crying practically all night long. My heart was heavy and overflowing. I wanted to leave my body, to escape it all.

I had only gotten about two hours of sleep. Those two hours were not a peaceful sleep. I had a nightmare. I dreamt I was driving across a bridge in New Orleans. The bridge suddenly collapsed. Within seconds, my car was covered with water. I tried to continue driving. The car would not move. The engine made a clicking sound. I saw other cars floating on by. I saw what appeared to be seaweed or some type of plant.

I could not get my car door to open. I used the heel of my shoe to kick the window’s glass. It did not break. My eyes opened wide as I struggled.  It was to late for me to escape.

I awoke from the dream gasping for air, almost as if I had swallowed some seawater. The water engulfing me was a sign of how I felt about my life. I was in too deep.

My body was totally drained after the dream. I guess I was physically struggling while I was asleep.

I could not get myself to relax. I was so angry and bitter. My emotions were out of control. It felt worse than being trapped in a tornado. I was stuck in a miserable life based on the lies fed to me by a man.

I was tired of wasting time pretending I was going to get some sleep. I wanted to sleep, to dream, to be held, but I was far from getting any of the three. I decided to go out on the beach, just to think for a while. I thought being near the water would work magic on my situation.

If it didn’t, I could always have jumped in and got my clothes wet. That was a stupid thought. Not to mention, sharks are known to swim close to the shore before dawn. Sharks are more prone to attack if a swimmer is alone as opposed to being in a group. A kid was attacked by a shark three weeks beforehand. The shark devoured the child’s arm in one bite. Beachgoers were being more precautious. Besides, I had enough problems already to add pneumonia and a shark bite to the list.

The water is extremely fierce on the beach early in the morning. It was around six-thirty a.m. The wind was kind of chilly but not too cold. The sky was a medium shade of gray with bits of white peeking through the center. I could smell salt water and fish. Around Christmas time in Miami, it always gets windy. The change in weather signals Christmas has arrived.

Usually when a person is depressed, the first thing to go is their appearance. Depression has a way of making a person forget about materialistic things.

I was bundled up in a cream colored sweater, an old sweatshirt, and a pair of jogging pants. I didn’t want to get cold when the waves blew in towards the shore. I was having a bad hair day. I used my fingers to comb my hair towards the back.

Living in Miami kind of spoiled me as far as the weather is concerned. I was accepting of the brief visits of wind during the holiday season mainly because Miami is mostly sunny year round.

On my feet, I wore a pair of Nike Tennis and regular cotton socks. It would not have been a wise idea to wear open-toed shoes especially if I didn’t want to get sand on my feet.

And God knows. I did not want any jellyfish finding a resting place on my feet. Those little things have a sting strong enough to send you to the hospital. Better yet, the poison from their sting can swell your feet bigger than a grapefruit.

I once had a jellyfish to land on my feet while I was walking near the shore. I did not realize it was there until a sharp pain shot up my leg.

I started running and screaming, “A shark got me. Run everybody, run.” I worked myself up so bad. I nearly fainted. I got weak in the knees, and I collapsed on the beach.

The lifeguard pushed his way through the crowd of people who had circled around me. I assumed he looked at my legs and did not see any torn skin or ligaments, so he knew it was not a shark attack. He laughed as he rubbed my right leg. “You are not dead. I think a jelly fish bit you,” he told me.

Yes, I was embarrassed. There I was lying on the beach. Thank God I had a sense of humor. I lowered my head and smiled. Through all of the commotion, I noticed the lifeguard’s muscular build. If the circumstances were different, I probably would have flirted with him.

The beachgoers were irritated when he said jellyfish. They grunted and walked away. I heard a teenage boy tell his friend, “She got everybody all worried. She knew she was lying. She thought they were going to put her on the six o’clock news or something.”

Fresh mouth kid. He was lucky I was not his relative. I had the mind to take my shoe off and give him a good whipping.

I was not worried about getting on the news. I honestly thought I had been attacked by a shark. How was I supposed to know it was only a jellyfish?

About the Author

Victoria Warren Jackson was born in Milledgeville, Georgia. She was raised in Milledgeville, Georgia and Miami, Florida and attended Miami Norland Senior High School. She distinguished herself as an excellent student in high school and received numerous honors.

After graduating from high school, Victoria earned an Associate in Arts Degree in Broadcasting Journalism from Miami Dade College. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature and a Bachelor’s Degree in Dietetics from Oakwood University. She earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University and an Educational Specialist Degree in Educational Leadership from Nova Southeastern University.  Victoria is FCCPC Certified and has a CDA National.

Victoria has been an educator for sixteen years and began writing her first novel while teaching middle grade students. Victoria soon realized that writing is therapy and continues to write daily. She is the author of three books, Can You Feel Me? Intimate Poetry, Not Just Us, and Untraditional Love In The Dark.

Victoria is passionate about helping children become their best. She remains busy writing, teaching full-time, and volunteering in her community.

Victoria currently lives in Florida.

You can visit Victoria Warren Jackson’s website at: www.victoriawarrenjackson.com or connect with her at Twitter.

My Review:
This was a book that I could easily see turned into a drama. To have such bad luck with men is tough. Then to finally get married to a man that you really do not know at all is even worse. Samantha was a character that you wanted to gossip to your girlfriends with over coffee. How can Isaiah be so cruel? The ending left me with a sense of awe for Samantha. There are way to many people living with spousal abuse, and Lisa reminded me to be there for anyone that needs help. I am giving this book a 4/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own.

GIVEAWAY

Victoria Warren Jackson is giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card!

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive a $50 Amazon Gift Card.
• This giveaway begins May 5 and ends May 31.
• Winner will be contacted via email on Monday, June 2, 2014.
• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway