Monday, August 3, 2015

Caught in Us by Layla Hagen is Now Available & Reviewed


Dani Cohen knows Damon is trouble the second he walks in during senior year. He has bad boy written all over him. . .from his proud smirk to his perfectly toned abs. He is arrogant, intense, and rebellious.

Dani has her future all planned out. She’s not the type to fall for a bad boy, no matter how panty-melting his grin is or how shamelessly he flirts. But something about Damon draws her in, awakening a desire she’s never felt. Slowly, she uncovers the secrets Damon hides: underneath his arrogance lies a tortured soul, his flirting smile masks despair.

Damon arrives in Dani’s life against his will. Carrying the scars of a dark past and facing an uncertain future, he knows he should stay away from her, but can’t. Her innocence consumes him, as does the desire to indulge in the passion igniting deep inside her.

An all-consuming bond blooms into a reckless love. But when mistakes from the past threaten their already fragile future, can their love survive?

A steamy and emotional full-length, standalone love story from the USA Today Bestselling author of Withering Hope.

*No cliffhanger* This novel is recommended for 18+ due to romance and sex and mature themes.* Each of the romantic books in this series can be read as a STANDALONE*

Add to Goodreads


Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo



Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela☆☆☆☆
As it has been well over a year since reading the last book in this series, I really didn’t remember much about the characters, but the author’s note informing the reader that Caught in Us is written as a standalone novel gave me no reason not to proceed. Rest assured that you can indeed read Caught in Us as a standalone because even as I began to place Dani, her brother James, and their cousin Parker, the previous books don’t really play into the story even where their timelines overlap. My inability to recall the details from Lost in Us and Found in Us had no bearing on this book or my enjoyment of it. And enjoy it, I did.

While the story is told from both Dani and Damon’s points of view, we spend more time in Dani’s head and the book begins during her senior year in high school. Dani is a self-described nerd. She knows this and accepts that she is not part of the “in crowd” and can’t compete with them. When a gorgeous new guy transfer in mid-year she enjoys the view accepting she has no chance. But Damon’s rudeness to a teacher that Dani likes sours her on him almost instantly and she has no problem telling him off when she literally runs into him later that day. Despite making bad impressions on one another, Dani and Damon form a tentative friendship that progresses to more as they spend time together. Dani learns why Damon is so rude to others, preferring not to form relationships with people he has no interest in. Despite his best intentions, Damon finds himself drawn to Dani as her innocence and calmness brings him comfort. Although both of their parents forbid them to see the other (for different reasons), Dani and Damon continue to hang out in school. But after an incident with one of Damon’s rivals puts Dani in danger, his father ships him off to boarding school and except for a chance encounter abroad, they don’t see one another for a year. And while Damon took that time to get his act together and become – in his mind – deserving of Dani, she showed her parents what it really meant for her to rebel.

Despite Caught in Us begin a new adult novel, the way in which Dani and Damon were torn apart gives it a second chance romance feel. Yes Damon is a bad boy, but not for the reason one would expect and it’s the man inside that Dani is drawn to. While Dani considers herself less than, Damon sees beyond her insecurities and is drawn to her smile, her intelligence, and her acceptance of him. Rather than rushing through their history to get to the happy ending, Hagen spends the first half of the book building Dani and Damon’s relationship during their senior year in high school and it is entertaining to read because these two can banter. Because neither is looking for more than friendship in the beginning, a firm foundation is built and it makes their progression to more believable as well as how quickly they fall back into each other when they’re reunited. The outside conflict that threatens Dani’s safety due to her relationship with Damon felt realistic and it gave Damon the opportunity to show how he’s grown by his asking James for help. While the precipitating event the led to Dani’s relationship improving with her parents was unfortunate, it was nice to see something positive come of it, especially as it also made them more accepting of Damon. Caught in Us was a very enjoyable read that combined a sweet romance between the nerdy girl and the bad boy with a bit of danger that kept me glued to my Kindle. I do hope Ms. Hagen plans to continue the series as I would love to find out how Hazel and Chase’s budding romance turns out.




Also Available in the Lost Series

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IWD65I8/?tag=wickedreads-20
Book 0.5
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo


http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IFEMIG2/?tag=wickedreads-20
Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo


http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M2F2F7C/?tag=wickedreads-20
Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the Found in Us Blog Tour.




My name is Layla Hagen and I am a New Adult Contemporary Romance author.

I fell in love with books when I was nine years old, and my love affair with stories continues even now, many years later.

I write romantic stories and can’t wait to share them with the world.

And I drink coffee. Lots of it, in case the photo didn’t make it obvious enough.

Connect with Layla

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Google+  ~  tsū




Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Caught in Us (Lost #3) by Layla Hagen to read and review.

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