If You Leave

Starred review from May 26, 2014
Cole’s searing second Beautifully Broken contemporary (after If You Stay) portrays the aftereffects of
trauma in this riveting, heartbreaking tale of a former Army Ranger who’s
witnessed countless atrocities and a
woman recovering from a parent’s abuse. Gabriel Vincent has left the military, but he can’t leave his memories behind. Madison Hill’s brutal father and battered mother die in a car wreck, leaving her running the family restaurant and doggedly avoiding romantic relationships. Gabe heads to the tiny Illinois town of Angel Bay for his sister’s birthday—and runs
unexpectedly into Maddy, who he’d had a memorable encounter with in Chicago. Gabe tries to convince Maddy to take a chance on him, but they both may have too many demons to fight. Cole doesn’t stint on the graphic descriptions of horrors in war and at home, giving readers an unflinching look at the realities of PTSD while bringing the slow-building relationship between Maddy and Gabe to a delicious peak of passion.