Left (Still Standing) (Volume 1) Paperback – August 31, 2013

First lets admire the cover. I love it, its beautiful and unlike most covers these days there is NO COUPLE ALMOST KISSING!! Yes, I do like those covers im guilty however I do enjoy when a artist thinks out the box.Now lets get down to the nitty gritty. Left is not what I expected at all. I ran through a plethora of emotions. Baylee's mother committed suicide after the painful and heartwretching delivery of a stillborn child. Severely depressed she takes her own life. 10 year old Baylee finds her in a bathtub drowned with her wrists slit. The tragic story begins the novel. Now Baylee is an adult, a registered nurse and living with her boyfriend Colt, after following him all around Texas they have finally settled and she became a healthcare consultant. Shes convinced Colt is ready to propose. Only hes not in fact he breaks up with her. At her favorite restaurant. Did I mention there were plenty of witnesses and Classy Colt gives her a million dollar parting gift (yep strings attached). Yeah, hes a charmer. So she makes a bit of a scene who could blame her. All the while Colt is crossing lines with her. Thankfully a stranger steps in and comes to her aid.Ryker is that stranger. Though he wont be a stranger for long. Ryker is amazing. He immediately won me over. And of course he made the book boyfriend list, but it doesnt end there oh no. He topped my fecking list. Hes completely perfect in soo many ways. Seriously be prepared to swoon. Hes Baylee's knight in shining armor. Lucky bitch. Surprisingly I actually like Baylee, normally I do not like competition.There's somewhat of an instalove with Baylee and Ryker, but given the circumstances I was fine with it. SOME CRAZY SHIT GOES DOWN!! With the rate of what was going on I could totally see how they could become so close so fast. I should probably warn you now. There are some horrible things that happen to Baylee at the hands of her ex. Im not exaggerating in the least.I mentioned a plethora of emotions and I was dead serious. I really felt the despair, heartbreak, sadness, hope, love, understanding, desire {felt that one big time for Ryker ;) }, strength, excitement, anxiousness and worry. Graves in an extremely talented writer. I was so impressed with her ability to grab me.I kid you not I finished this book purchased it for one of my besties {Tyffers shout out!} insisted she read it. Then I gracefully fangirled all over Graves! What?! I needed a place to channel all of my excitement and giddiness. I truly hope to read the sequel soon. Left is one of the best books ive EVER EVER read.

This was an incredible book. I couldn't put it down.How do you go from happily ever after to your worst nightmare in 2.5 seconds? When you see white picket fences and PTA but are informed none of that will happen because a master manipulator's whims don't include you. When you are suddenly thrown off a cliff by the man you adore only to find the lifeline he's thrown to you is frayed and unwinding in your hands.Somehow, step by step, you just go on.The h of this story is a lot stronger than she thinks she is and her character is so well defined, you can feel her emotions as if they were your own. I really like that.I do think Baylee's relationship with Ryker was pretty fast. After the first night, it jumped into an almost obsessed love.There were some surprises I didn't see coming, some real A-ha moments that really got me. Very clever.Overall, I really loved this book. I can't find book two and I'm hoping it's out there.Even though I really liked this author's writing style a lot, I won't start a new series if this one is unfinished. Nothing is worse than unanswered questions.

This book was ok, not great. Ryker is very wealthy and happens to fall for Baylee in under a week. Colt's actions are just as unbelievable because there doesn't really seem to be anything special about Baylee. One of the biggest issues that I have is that this book basically ends in a cliff hanger and I have had this book on my kindle for about 2 years waiting for the next book, which still hasn't come. I seem to be great at choosing series to read that author don't care to finish.

I have to say that I did enjoy this book, and I do have to acccept part of the blame for not checking to see if the 2nd book was out yet, but come on...4 years...seriously? Obviously, this author has moved on to other realms and the rest of this book will forever be just a figment of the readers imagination. Sorry, but I won't be reading anything else by Ms Graves. I just don't care for authors who sting!

Great story, loved the characters, loved the cover. A stand alone story, so no second book to wait for, and that's was ok with me. Sometimes you want a story to continue but this one is a good story that is great and works well as a stand alone. It doesn't leave you in doubt as to what happens in the future, the author does a great job on the conclusion. Although a 300 plus page story, it didn't feel like it, it was fast paced and had a great flow to it, I couldn't put it down.

Holy carp what a book filled with twist and turns. The drama filled into this book keeps you reading until the very end. I must say Bay is a strong woman but can be a bit annoying with her whole gotta be strong attitude. Ry is amazing but still has a mysterious manner about him and James the man he works with. Cole is just plain bat s*** crazy, spineless and completely controlled by his dad. Mix all that together and your in for one hell of a story. Looking forward to the next book.

So there are no other words than to say I loved this book! Ryker has been promoted to my 2nd book boyfriend (: there is so much compassion and love going on that the bad isn't so bad at time and it ends on a good note I mean it's kind of a cliffhanger but one of the good ones I'm not ranting about that and that is why it got the 5th star!

I absolutely loved this book. I felt such sympathy for Baylee from the first chapter, when things were still good in her world. The imagery used was perfect,I could picture Ryker in great detail. The story wasn't predictable, I can't wait to start the second book. Awesome book.