"Just Breathe" by Kendall Grey

JUST BREATHE

By Kendall Grey

So . . . well . . . I'm not an official part of the "Just Breathe" blog tour today but I just have to share my review or I might bust!

There were parts of this book that I wasn't crazy about, things I could nitpick about. But I'm not going to do that because this book deserves better than that.   

First, the characters.  I will go on and on about Zoe and Gavin shortly but we cannot overlook Sinnder and Scarlet.    I talked about Scarlet in a previous review.  I loved her then and I love her in this book.  She is beautiful, oozes sexiness and is the embodiment of evil.  What's not to love? She's fun in her own devilish way.  Lust pours out of her.  She knows what she wants and heaven help the person who gets in her way!

And then there is Sinnder - sort of a male version of Scarlet but with some morals.  He fills women with desire and knows it.  He literally can get them in bed, give them the most amazing night of their life, and have them wondering how the heck they ended up with him the next morning. They don't care how though, they just want more. He has a conscience though and, unlike Scarlet, he knows when he should dial it back.  He also hates Scarlet.  We find out why at the end of "Just Breathe". 

Zoe and Gavin - {deep, audible sigh}.  What can I say?  They're beautiful - inside and out.  Meant to be together (literally - there's a charming story about this). They save each other from themselves.  They show each other real love.  They hurt each other.  They forgive.  They go on and love each other even more. And then there is the sex.  (Noticing a pattern here?) 

The sex between Zoe and Gavin is a whole different ball game than what we associate with Scarlet or Sinnder.  It is physically amazing but it's way beyond physical.  It's heart and soul and body and mind.  The sex is amazing because of all of the non-sexual parts of their relationship.  It's on a whole new level because their love for each other is on a whole new level.

I could go on about Zoe and Gavin but I'll shut up because I want to talk about the main message of "Just Breathe". There are many purely fantasy things about "Just Breathe" - battling elementals, talking whales, and the Dreaming to name a few.  But the lesson it illustrates is very real.

"Just Breathe" is about real love - between lover, friends or family - and love vs sex.  It's about the unselfish nature of real love.  Gavin is tempted by the undeniable sexual magnetism of Scarlet.  Even Zoe is tempted by the fire of Sinnder that fills her head with ecstasy-filled images. Neither of them even briefly considers that they love these people.  I won't say anything to spoil the plot but suffice it to say that they both know that their love for each other vastly surpasses any fleeting thoughts of sexual encounters with anyone else.

"Just Breathe" is also about the unselfish nature of real love.  Real love is not "what's in it for me". Real love is me wanting the best for the other person, whether I gain from it or not.  

I'll quit gushing now. I'm a big fan of Zoe and Gavin and the more I read the deeper I fell for them.  Get the book.  Read it.  Laugh, cry, roll your eyes, fight the internal battle between loving some of the things Scarlet says and does and hating her evilness. Bet you'll want some vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce when you're done. (Read the book, you'll understand. ;) )