Falling Embers

The Tattered & Torn Series, Book 2

By: Catherine Cowles

Narrated by: Joe Arden, Vanessa Edwin

Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

I’ve loved Calder Cruz from the moment he taught me how to fly. Racing down a mountain and giving me the release I so desperately needed. My understanding. My safe space.

Hadley has fought for a life of her own ever since her sister’s kidnapping. When she was drowning in expectations and family pressures, Calder was always the one who understood her.

Until one night changed it all. From best friends to strangers in a single breath.

She’s like a fire that lives inside me. Even when I thought it was all burned out, there were still embers that lived in my bones.

Calder knows what it’s like to almost lose the people he loves most. He’ll never make that kind of mistake again. Working at the fire station and taking care of his daughters are the only things he needs.

All it takes is a single moment to make him realize how wrong he is. A split second of coming close to losing the woman he has always loved.

But as long-buried embers light anew, there are those who lurk in the shadows. And they’ll do whatever it takes to extinguish that flame for good....

©2021 The PageSmith LLC (P)2021 Catherine Cowles

Great Friends-to-Lovers with Twists and Suspense

4.5⭐️
“Everyone but you could see how much you owned me, way before you should've.” Review: This is book 2 in Catherine's new Tattered and Torn series. I always love the small town romances Catherine writes with the added element of suspense. My favorite trope is Brother's Best Friend and I think a lot of the times it's because the characters have history together as younger kids. Those feelings for each other when they are little just always wrap me up in a warm hug. I love it! This one did not disappoint. Hadley has always had feelings for Calder until something happened altering those feelings. Calder is a single dad working as a fire fighter on the same crew as Hadley. I LOVED Calder! Ugh he is the best especially with his protective nature. I love how he stood up for Hadley and would stop at nothing to protect her. Once he decided, there was no going back for him. I loved Calder's girls. Twins are always a weak spot for me!👭 I loved Hadley's relationship with the girls and how she just knew what each one needed. The twists surprised me since I had my eye on the wrong suspect.😂 I did want to smack Hadley's mom upside the head mutltiple times. She made me mad!😂 I loved the updates on Hayes and Everly. I listened to the audiobook by Joe Arden and Vanessa Edwin. Joe was great and brought Calder to life. Vanessa was a little breathy for me, but once I sped up the speed to 1.5x (I ususally listen to books at 1.25) I was fine. I love the characters that Catherine has created in this series. I am excited for Addie and Beckett next! Addie deserves all the happieness in the world and I can't wait to get to know more about Beckett!

Wow!

I have a hard time flowing a series sometimes but this one has been awesome so far. There’s characters that are contours in all the books but each character and story line is so different. There’s no repeating the same thing in each book. The narrators do an amazing job and you really get hit in the feels with the writing and the emotions being brought to life.

Amazing Story with Wonderful Narration

This story is EVERYTHING!! Catherine writes the best stories that will pull on your heartstrings and make you love the characters she writes!

I love Calder and Hadley together.. They are the perfect match and you can see that instantly. The way they find their way together is wonderful..
The love these two have is one I love to read about.

Calder is one of my favorites characters, he has such a big heart and and so loyal!
Hadley has so much spirit, and you will love her!

I love the suspense you get with this book. It keeps you guessing and will keep you at the edge of your seat!

This book is one of my favorites! I listened to an early copy of the audio... The narrators do a perfect job with this book!! I could not stop listening to this, I finished in one sitting!

You don't want to miss this book or this series!! Catherine has a way with words that writes a beautiful story!

Cute Story!

Cute story with a happy ending. I have enjoyed this series by Catherine Cowles so far!

Wow

This is just perfect. This story gives you everything. Smiles, hope, tears,swoon and most of all love. I experienced it all. Oh how I love Calder and Hadley. The narrators as always brought such emotion feeling to this beautiful story. You won't be disappointed.

can't wait for the next in this series!

great story, good mix of suspense and romance. can't wait for the next book in this series

emotional performance and storyline!

🅰🆄🅳🅸🅾 🆁🅴🆅🅸🅴🆆 🆄🅿🅳🅰🆃🅴

What can I say about Vanessa Edwin and Joe Arden that I haven't said before? Her voice is perfection and really conveyed all of Hadley's emotions, especially when dealing with her family. Joe gives a solid performance as Calder, and who doesn’t enjoy his kid voices?

♡♥♡♦♡♥♡♦♡♥♡♦♡♥♡♦♡

𝐎𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐭, 𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞!!

Hadley and Calder have been friends since childhood. He's her big brother, Hayes, best friend. Growing up she had feelings that went beyond friendship and hero worship.

Hadley is headstrong, brave, loving and caring. After a family tragedy involving her sister, Shiloh, the family was never the same. Her mom has become overprotective and relentless with her worry.
☆ 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘷𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘛𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘑𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘍𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴. ☆

She's almost vicious in her protection and doesn't see how she's ruining her relationship with Hadley . I felt so bad for her because of just how terrible she's treated.

Calder is pretty amazing though it took him way too long to come to his senses. He did get 2 beautiful little girls out of that mistake of a marriage, and they are just too precious!

Hadley has a secret life she's been living that her family doesn't know about until she starts getting threats.
Calder and Hayes need to solve this mystery of anonymous and escalating threats... before its too late.

So many twists, unexpected suspects and a trail of clues to follow before Hadley and Calder can get their happily ever after!

Full of swoon worthy romance, suspense & adventure

“There’s no shame in fear. It’s how you tackle it that counts.”

Full of swoon worthy romance, suspense and adventure, Falling Embers is a story that hooked me from the prologue and made me fall in love with all things Calder and Hadley! I don’t normally love a best friends brothers romance, but the friends to lovers’ aspect of this story gave me all angst and longing that I love without the drama of the overbearing brother. Hadley had been in love with her brother’s best friend Calder for years, but circumstances and life were never in their favor. Infatuated with his no fear attitude when they were younger, she never stopped her adrenaline seeking ways while Calder settled down with adorable twin girls. I loved watching Calder let himself take the risk of loving Hadley; his romantic past had left him scarred but the fear of never having Hadley’s love opened his eyes to all he could have.

“Never feel more alive than when I’m with you. You’re like a fire that lives inside me.”

When you give me a romance with a hero who is protective, a firefighter, and a single dad, I am SOLD for falling in love! Then you add in a heroine who is an adrenaline addict with no fear, a stalker trying to ruin a reputation and an overbearing mother, that is all the drama and angst I need to make this book a 5 star listen. A few of the subtle twists in this book were unexpected as well as the bigger reveal that kept me guessing who could be behind it all! Overall, I loved how the romance developed slowly between Calder and Hadley, how sweet Hadley was with his twin girls and how loving and caring Calder was with Hadley. Be prepared to swoon, laugh and fall absolutely in love with book two in the Tattered and Torn Series.

“Family. It’s not all by blood, but that doesn’t matter. We have the kind of people in our lives who will always show up, especially when the chips are down. So many people don’t get that.”

I fell in love AGAIN!

It's no secret that I LOVE Catherine's books! Her heroines are strong and fierce, and her heroes are SO SWOONY! However, Calder and Hadley have stolen my heart. This is the first time I've listened to an audio narrated by Vanessa Edwin and she was absolutely perfect as Hadley! And Joe Arden can basically do no wrong, let's be real. As far as the story goes...AMAZING!! Single dad, firefighter, strong and independent female, friends-to-lovers, all the things I need to fall in love! But more than that, I love how the relationship developed slowly over time, and that Calder's girls, Birdie and Sage, were such a main focus in their story. This book is 10/5 stars all the way around!

Joe & Vanessa as Calder & Hadley were marvelous

Audiobook review: This book checked so many boxes for me...Single dad, firefighter, brother's best friend, small town romantic suspense, Joe Arden, & Vanessa Edwin. You truly couldn't ask for a better story. I want to yell from the rooftops...LISTEN TO THIS BOOK!!!!!

Hadley has been in love with Calder for as long as she remembers. But she knows he will never see her as the love that she desires. She loves being a part of his life though, so she will take what she can get...his friendship. She has such a wonderful relationship to the cutest little girls you will ever meet. She is their Hads and they love her so much. Hadley also has to deal with the way her mother treats her, with no back up from anyone else in her life. There were so many times I wanted to jump into this book and shake that woman to wake her up.

Calder is doing the best he can being a single father since his ex-wife almost killed their daughters a few years ago. When she shows back up wanting to be a part of their lives again he is furious and determined to keep her away from all of them. When a tense callout gives Calder the scare that he might lose Hadley, he finally sees what's been in front of him the entire time. Now he has to show Hadley that he is serious and doesn't want to live without her.

When Hadley begins receiving threats and unwanted attention, Calder will stop at nothing to protect her. So many twists and turns in this story will keep you on the edge of your seat. This is a beautiful slow burn romantic suspense that couldn't have been any more perfect.

Joe Arden and Vanessa Edwin did a marvelous job of bringing Calder and Hadley's story to life. Both of these narrators do fantastic kid voices and I love them more for it.

I am hooked on this series and can't wait for the next one.