Burn It Down

Here's Nicole Dyke's "Burn It Down." Yet another book by Nicole that talks about really, real stuff, no matter how hard is it (and yet another book that made me sob).

["Kade
I’ve always wanted to be a firefighter, and I never thought I would become a father, but it turns out—I’m both.
And while being a firefighter was the only career I ever wanted—being a father has become my greatest destiny in this world.
Now I need to do everything I can to protect my son, even if that means going back to my hometown. I won’t let my son down, no matter what, and I will do my duty as a fireman.
Hopefully, I can do it without everything else burning down around me.

Spencer
I never expected to see Kade again—my high school crush and my biggest heartache in adolescence.
I’m not the same person I once was. I’m stronger now. I won’t allow myself to be invisible.
I love being a teacher, and nothing will stop me from being the best one I can be. But Kade coming back into town with his adorable young son in tow—makes it a challenge.
All I can hope is to get through this school year without going back to that unsure, terrified kid.
I have to remember who I am—and when that fear comes back, threatening my newfound confidence—I hope I’ll find the courage to burn it down to the ground and come back stronger than ever."]

This was a book that proved over and over that someone having your back and showing you bravery, makes you stronger. They saved each other in high school without barely saying two words to each other. They saved each other again in adulthood was new fears and new traumas threatened to keep them down. But they made each other want to try, want to keep going, want to find a HEA.

Also, I looove that this book was (probably) intended to be a stand-alone, but Bowen (and others) was just so fucking load, that Nicole has future plans in this town for more (trauma and) HEAs.

Trigger Warnings: near-death experience, drug and alcohol addiction, death of a parent, PSTD, past bullying, homophobia, and more.

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