A Single Step @GeorgiaRoseBook

About A Single Step

Meet Emma Grayson, heroine of The Grayson Trilogy, a series of mysterious and romantic adventure stories.

'The gun continued to be levelled at me. “Answer it...but don’t tell him I’m here or he’ll get to listen to you die.” That concentrated my mind considerably, and as I reached for my phone I came up with a plan...’

Emma Grayson was left devastated when her life was torn apart by tragedy and betrayal. Now someone believes it’s time for her to start again and puts an advert for a job through her door which leads her to the Melton Estate. Despite her desire for a solitary existence she finds herself discovering a life she could never have imagined, challenging her independence, her fears and her resistance to love.

My review of A Single Step

 A Single Step is a beautiful gothic, romantic read that is rich with suspense and I absolutely adored it. It was an addictive and joyous read.

At the heart of this novel we have Emma Grayson. She is a strong, independent woman who has carefully tried to bury her wounds and who wants to live a solitary life. She has suffered great pain in her life, and when she is offered the chance to work at the impressive Melton Estate in managing the stables, she jumps at the chance. She envisages a life of solitude, of quietness, but the inhabitants there have other plans.

This novel works so well because of Emma. I felt as if I knew her and understood her, more importantly I empathised with her. There is much attention to detail in this book, both in terms of characterisation and in the descriptions of the environment. I could smell the stables as Emma mucked out, as well as hearing her innermost, secret thoughts. I warned to her the moment I met her, and this was a crucial factor in enjoying the story. I needed to like her, and I'm so glad that I did. 

A Single Step is an addictive read. Once I started I couldn't put it down. I wanted to learn more about Emma's past, but also, I wanted to know more about the enigmatic and gruff Trent, the Estate manager. Now, here is a romantic gothic hero that you just can't help but fall in love with. Dark and ruggedly handsome, it took me a while to get a grip of him. This mysterious self assured man comes across as arrogant and instantly antagonises Emma, and I wondered how these two would get along, and where their relationship would lead, and I wasn't disappointed, although I was surprised. 

The romantic storyline is deliciously different and what starts out as a woman seeking solitude, soon turns into a dark and brooding suspense novel, when she falls from her horse, sustaining minor injuries. For me, this was the turning point in the book, and the moment when we saw Trent's true character. It is also from this moment onwards that he pace picks up. What starts out as a slow burner of a read, soon heats up and I found myself racing through the pages. 

A Single Step is an engaging, enjoyable and clever novel that hooks you in from the very beginning. I can't watt to read book two in the Grayson Trilogy series.  

With thanks to the author who sent me a copy of the book for review purposes.

A Single Step was published by Three Shires Publishing on 22 August 2015. It can be found on Amazon here.