Cole has been Lizzy’s best friend from the moment he found her crying in the woods two weeks before her tenth birthday. Growing up without a father, Lizzy was raised by her alcoholic and drug-addicted mother. Being branded as the town whore’s daughter, she had one bright spot in her dark world: Cole. He was the one constant in her life, the only person she trusted would never let her down.
He’s her savior, her protector…and the secret love of her life.
Now, sixteen years later, they both live successful lives in Boston. But while Lizzy still harbors hope that one day Cole will come around and see what’s right in front of his eyes, Cole enjoys his bachelor lifestyle with no intentions of slowing down.
It’s time for Lizzy to move on.
Cole has been in love with Lizzy since he can remember. Those gorgeous but sad green eyes of hers have held him captive since he was twelve years old.
But she is too pure, too perfect, too innocent for him and his lustful and promiscuous thoughts.
He has promised himself he won’t touch her.
That is, until he doesn’t have a choice but to claim her as his or lose her forever.
Is it possible for them to have what both their hearts desire or will the cruelty of life keep them apart?
FREE on Kindle Unlimited
MY REVIEW
Wrong Side Girl by Julia Goda
Lizzy & Cole
MOVING AND CAPTIVATING
5 STARS
This is a story of friendship, love, betrayal, and acceptance. They don’t really happen in that order and they happen more than once, but make no mistake about it… you will have to go through some awfully emotional shit to get to the pot of gold at the end of this rainbow. This story is not cut and dry, boy meets girl, boy wins girl. You’ll be on an emotional roller coaster for most of it. Lies, truths, and revelations will be revealed before you can utter a coherent word. I fell in love with these characters from the start and lived every aspect of their lives with them. I’m spent! It’s comical, it’s emotional, and it’s a beautiful story that will take you on a wild ride and, well, set you down not so gently. lol!
Lizzy is ten years old when she meets Cole. I believe she fell in love with him that very first day. She comes to trust in him and his friendship over the years. As she progresses into womanhood and blossoms into a beautiful woman her feelings for Cole only intensify, but her checkered past and soiled upbringing seem to be the one obstacle she can’t overcome in order to show him and the rest of the world that she is worthy of the love of this man. Not for lack of trying, but because there are town folks that just won’t let her forget where she came from and who her Mother is. To them she’ll always be known as the town whore’s daughter.
Cole is rough around the edges and seems to be missing a heart at times. He never settles down, he never commits, and for all intensive purposes, he’s a manwhore. Don’t get me wrong. He would never intentionally hurt Lizzy, but his actions are indirectly sabotaging his intent towards her. Cole also had a rough upbringing, but nothing like what Lizzy had to endure. His Mother seems to think she’s above being nice to anyone not within her standing. This includes Cole and most definitely Lizzy. Although Cole could care less what his Mother or anyone thinks, he’s still kind of tethered to that life and with it comes much defense for Lizzy and for him.
The supporting character cast is fairly large and mostly rotten to the core! Lizzy has some pretty good coworkers and friends she can rely on to get her through most anything. The malice starts with Cole’s Mother, her friends, and Cole’s Ex-girlfriend Courtney. Holy shit is this girl wicked. She makes the devil himself look like Mother Teresa. Throughout the entire story her sole purpose in life is to drive a wedge in between Lizzy and Cole so that she can take Lizzy’s place. The things this girl comes up with are inconceivable.
The storyline is extremely compelling. So much so that I found that the character’s lives became my main concern while submerged in their world. The dialogue flows with efficiency and feels exceedingly natural. It’s not necessarily a dark read, but by no means is it light hearted. The story itself was effortless to read and the pacing just right. The tension that Ms. Goda creates leads to an unexpected climax that shook my soul.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I have been writing stories in my head since I can remember. Much to my teachers’ dismay, given the task of writing a short essay I would always come back with way too long and detailed stories. Many discussions (I have always been somewhat of a smart-aleck) and bad grades were the result, so that for most of my life I thought I couldn’t write worth a damn and pursued other careers. But the dream of being an author wouldn’t be ignored and kept lingering. With a little help from my fantastic husband, who gave me the necessary kick in the behind, I was finally brave enough to start writing my first novel and finished it only a few short weeks later—well, the first draft, that is. But the seal was broken and since then I have enjoyed given myself over to my stories and making them come to live.
My novels jump genres and touch on all kinds of different topics, but the things I try to focus on no matter what are romance, strong women, and a good sense of humor.
Now, when I’m not in my writing cave, spinning the tales that have been prodding me or editing (yes, I am also a professional editor, guess that degree in Literature and Linguistics turned out to be useful after all!), I enjoy reading, drinking coffee, eating good food, and listening to rock music.
I have lived in Germany (Lower Saxony to be exact, the rainy-winter and super-humid-summer part), Virginia, and Colorado (where I fell in love with Boulder and the Rocky Mountains). My current home is Southern Alberta, Canada, where I live close enough to the Rockies with my husband and chocolate lab to enjoy the beauty and excitement that is mountain living.
Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon
Rough Draft Book Blog 