Greyson Ratcliffe. I met him at sixteen, the hot new guy sitting on my jetty, an aspiring artist just passing through. He was my first kiss and my first love. I wanted forever with him. I didn’t even get a year.
Five years later, I’m a budding writer who scripts stories of love and struggle, the good and the bad and the ups and the downs. He’s a star on the rise; his wicked talent and crazy good looks have his face plastered on countless magazines. We move in two different worlds and still our paths cross again. We’re older and wiser and as crazy about each other as we had been as teenagers.
My medium is words and my imagination is limitless, but not even I could have written the incredible journey we traveled to reach our happily-ever-after. Life isn’t like fiction, and the greatest love stories don’t follow a script.
I just finished Our Unscripted Story this morning, sitting at my desk in my classroom, praying that my eyes no longer look red and puffy when my students enter the room. I truly cannot express how much I adored Alexis and Greyson’s love story; it’s emotional…it’s passionate…it’s as heartwarming as it is heartbreaking…it’s a first love, last love book that illustrates just how powerful a connection can be formed with just one look…one word…one embrace. L.A. Fiore takes her readers on one hell of an epic journey – one that not only spans decades and continents, but also provides readers with a clear view of just how much people are willing to sacrifice when it comes to the people they love, even if it destroys them in the process.
Alexis and Greyson’s story began when they were teens and even though they took their own paths, which separated them for a significant amount of time, they promised one another they would find their way back because a love like theirs was meant to last forever, so as their story unfolds, it’s divided into three parts, and those parts show readers their lives as young adults, their individual lives as they work to achieve their dreams and goals, and the moments when their lives become one again, building off of their bond that was formed all those years ago and adding a deeper connection – one where promises and vows are made, which tether them together always, despite the obstacles and difficulties that force their way in and threaten to undo everything they’ve built since they were teens.
Alexis Owens is an incredibly strong heroine who uses her imagination and her words to help her cope with the reality of her childhood, and it’s that ability that allows Alexis to remain positive and hopeful despite the neglect…despite the loneliness…despite her unwavering desire to have the fairy tale life that she so easily loses herself in on a daily basis. But her life is not always a struggle; in fact, when Greyson Ratcliffe enters her life she finds her soul mate, and even though she understands that their paths will lead them away from each other, it’s with the understanding that their love will not dull even when they’re apart because one fateful meeting is all it took to know that there will come a time again when they will be together forever.
Greyson Ratcliffe is an amazing artist who captures beauty in every piece that he creates, but where he finds his home is in Alexis’ enchanting eyes. Greyson is driven to succeed and it’s that determination that not only makes him a successful artist but it’s what allows him to endure the years that Alexis is not by his side. Greyson is everything a hero should be, and it’s not because of his gorgeous physical appearance. He’s kind, giving, and so in love with Alexis that he only ever sees her…she’s his end game…she’s his everything, so even though they spent five years apart, she’s never far from his mind and she definitely never leaves his heart.
‘Life wasn’t like the fiction I wrote. It didn’t follow a script; it didn’t have a formula. Our story was still being written, unscripted, real…’
Alexis’ words will resonate with readers because she understands just how ‘unexpected’ life can be, and she sure as heck would not have scripted her separation from her parents, her mistreatment by her foster parents, or the heartbreak that comes into her life. Life is real. Life is difficult. Life is impulsive. Life is all about weathering the ups and downs, the highs and lows, the losses and the gains. And it’s that idea that drives both Alexis and Greyson to make the events of their life as full and as passionate as they can, and while sometimes, life throws them a curveball, they work that much harder to roll with the punches until the reality of their lives positions them together with a lifetime to create their story – one that began with one look and hopefully will end just as it began that day they first noticed each other and made their dreams a reality.
I can’t end my review without mentioning the secondary characters who become Alexis and Greyson’s family. The Cantenellis, Paige and Grant and their daughters, and Greyson’s grandfather, Callum, add so much to Alexis and Greyson’s life: history, love, support, and a multitude of memories that will last a lifetime. And it’s those bonds that help both Alexis and Greyson to cope with the loss of their parents, the loss of one another for those five years, and they are definitely the people who have their backs, call them out on their lunacy and give them a place to safely fall when things become too overwhelming. Alexis and Greyson may not have had their parents with them as they grew up and became successful, but they were not without family, and it’s the ones who choose to be with you that come to mean everything.
Every time I enter one of L.A. Fiore’s stories, I’m swept away by her beautiful words…by her descriptive storytelling…by her multifaceted characters. Her love stories illustrate just how much work a relationship takes as well as just how much a love like that is worth the heartache, the pain, and the fear that come with giving someone else your heart. There’s definitely a risk in loving someone so intensely because a life without them isn’t worth living, but to not have experienced that kind of love, regardless of the amount of time you have together, is a fate worse than loneliness.
Alexis and Greyson’s story is one that will stay with me for quite some time, and there’s a bevy of reasons why, but the one idea that I keep coming back to is the fact that Our Unscripted Story is an honest and open love story – one that allows both main characters to find their own successes and one that allows them a way back to one another. It’s a hopeful story despite the sadness, and it’s one spectacular love story despite their time apart and the missteps they take when they’re together.
It’s amazing what can be made with words and hands alone, and whether it be a work of art, a fictional story, or family’s history brought to life, all mediums provide the imagination the limitless opportunity to explore, to create, and to cherish.
5+ Poison Apples
🖌🖌🖌
Join L. A. Fiore & Hosts as she celebrates her release of Our Unscripted Story on March 29th!
Party will happen in her private group, starts at 7:45 – 10:00 PM EST.
Must join the group to participate: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lafemmefabulousreaders/
Hosts include:
7:45 – L. A. Fiore
8:15 – S. Nelson
8:30 – Joanne Schwehm
8:45 – Ann Marie Madden
9:00 – HJ Bellus
9:15 – LJ Shen
9:30 – Jessica Prince
9:45 – Logan Chance
10:00 – K. K. Allen
Enter to win $50.00 Physical Amazon Gift Card + A signed paperback HERE!
🖌🖌🖌
LA Fiore loves losing herself in the worlds she creates. She also loves a good movie; her favorite is Star Wars, a love her son shares. They hope to build their own Millennium Falcon one day. She would like to meet the Winchester Boys to thank them for enlightening her on the versatility of salt as not just a food enhancer, but also a form of protection against supernatural threats. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and kids, their two spoiled cats, their awesome dog and their new puppy.
🖌🖌🖌
The Wright Love — May 15th
The Wright One — May 29th
K.A. Linde is the USA Today bestselling author of more than fifteen novels including the Avoiding series and the Record series. She has a Masters degree in political science from the University of Georgia, was the head campaign worker for the 2012 presidential campaign at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and served as the head coach of the Duke University dance team. She loves reading fantasy novels, geeking out over Star Wars, binge-watching Supernatural, and dancing in her spare time.
Happily married to her college sweetheart, Poppy lived a blessed life with the husband of her dreams. Then everything changed. She is no longer a wife. She is no longer the envy of her single friends. Now, people look at her with pity as they whisper a single word behind her back.
Fairest Of All Book Reviews 
