Unlike Any Other (Unexpected #1) by Claudia Burgoa

1:02 pm 1 March 2015

Unlike Any Other (Unexpected Book 1) - Claudia Burgoa

Book – Unlike Any Other (Unexpected #1)

Author – Claudia Y. Burgoa

Publication Date – March 5, 2015
Genre –Romance
Type – Companion Series
Cliffhanger – No
Rating – 5 out of 5 Stars

Synopsis

AJ

The name AJ Colthurst may not have any meaning to the public eye, but it should, as I’m the daughter of two famous celebrities. Like any superstar, they crave privacy; so much of it, they built a house in the middle of nowhere for us children. As we grew older, we discovered the lies they built as a fort to protect us from the media, ended up causing emotional damage along the way.

I carry a portion of the guilt on my shoulders; the other part I discovered is the separation of my parents. Their unorthodox ways may have driven me bonkers, but knowing they are no longer together is unacceptable.

That’s why I decided to rattle their cage by reminding at least one of my parents of the past and the reason they belong together. They need to remember why their love is so perfect and why they have to fight to keep it alive. Even if it means I have to dredge up some of my own painful memories along the way.

Gabe

Back in the early eighties, I set myself to succeed in the financial world. The first step had been moving to New York City to become a stockbroker, but things didn’t work out the way I had hoped. Instead, I ended up making movies and by the end of the decade, Gabe Colt had become a famous name. The downside to my career of choice: the paparazzi. In order to protect my family and our privacy, I maintained my family away from the circus. It had been for their own good; a decision we had made before we started our family.

However, those past decisions ended up chasing my entire family away and now I’m trying to put the pieces back together along with my little girl.

My Thoughts - Story
I have to start off stating that this may be a biased opinion since Claudia is a very close friend and I’ve had the pleasure of seeing this baby born and grow. Now, putting all that aside – I can’t even find the words to express how much this book affected me.

Why?

*There is a hidden gem that I never saw coming – definitely had that OH SHIT moment!

*I cried and choked up a few times – it affected me deeply

*I hated characters but then loved them and then hated them again but then ended up changing my mind throughout the book.

*Every emotion was tested in this book

*I wanted more after reading the last sentence

*These main characters (and some secondary ones) were developed perfectly

The above checklist is mainly what I look for in a book when I debate on how to rate the stars.

How to read this book?

*Go into this blind

*Don’t read spoilers (I know you are tempted)

*Don’t share spoilers (Let others enjoy the OH SHIT moments)

*Open yourself up to your internal “feels”

*Be patient (the beginning may seem slow and cookie cutter but it develops)

Trust me with the above advice…it will make your reading experience so much more delightful and will leave you with a storyline that you will reminisce about for a long time.

Re-Cap
I can’t say much about the story without giving the important parts away and spoiling this for you – so I’m going to try my best.

This is a story about a father and his daughter who are at odds with each other.

AJ, the daughter, thinks her childhood is the reason why she is so screwed up in the present and even though she loves her parents, she has an underlying disappointment with them. Gabe, her father, believes he did what was best in the past for his children by hiding them from the media.

After being estranged from her parents for a few years, AJ sees a front page article about her dad with a 20 something woman who is pregnant – no less with her father’s baby – she freaks. What happened to the great love between her parents? Why would her father announce this child but never told the public about her and her brothers?

She decides to confront her father, which leads to the two of them sharing the past with each other. We take a journey through the “Great Love Affair” between her parents in the 80’s, and AJ shares with her father her painful past. Through sharing, the two learn that they had made mistakes with each other and their significant others – to feel so much pain opens their hearts to rectify the present.

Along the way we meet the family and friends of these two and also sets the stage for the next book in the series!

This is the story of Gabe’s ultimate love and sets us up for the next book with AJ and her romance!

Reason for Reading – Beta Read with Wendy/Edited
Story – 5 out of 5 Stars
Steam – 5 out of 5 Stars
Angst – 5 out of 5 Stars
Writing – 5 out of 5 Stars
Content Flow – 5 out of 5 Stars