Awakened

Awakened #1

by Cara Malone

Leah McAllister is starting a new job in a bland maze of cubicles where she hopes to blend in – she’s had enough attention for one lifetime. What she never expects is to find herself working with Morgan Park, a mesmerizing woman who turned her world upside down when they met one year before.

A lot can change in a year, though, and Morgan is a different person now. She’s reserved and sullen, trying to get over a broken heart that came with a heavy dose of guilt after her troubled girlfriend, Allison, disappeared with nothing more than a vague goodbye note.

Thrust together in the cramped quarters of a cubicle, Morgan and Leah can’t deny – or resist – the forces of attraction driving them together. Morgan even begins to think she can find happiness again... until Allison blows back into town with a terrible secret that threatens to tear Morgan and Leah apart forever.

Is the mystery of Allison’s lost year enough to destroy Morgan and Leah’s chance at love?

Genres: Romance, Lesbian, Adult, LGBT, Disability

200 pages

First published April 7, 2017

About the author

I write stories that explore the thrills – and challenges – of falling in love as a woman-loving woman, including the bestselling Lakeside Hospital medical romance series and Rainbow Award honorable mention The Rules of Love.

My books are for you if you’re a fan of contemporary romance, if you love strong women who aren’t afraid to be vulnerable, and if you like a little heat with your sapphic love stories.

Grab a free copy of Mind Games on my website, CaraMalone.com

Reviews

[Alexis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate Morgan so bad it ruin the entire book!

Good grief I will have to start a new shelf for books that I've read in which I absolutely can't stand one or more main characters. The only reason this book is even getting 2* is because there is nothing wrong with the writing style. Even the pacing and the chemistry between Morgan and Leah was good.

However I just can't get over the fact that Morgan drugged Allison using Nyquil even after Allison had previously been drinking at the club. That little tidbit already made me severely dislike her. The very next day Morgan is making out with Leah in a bathroom, if there is one thing I hate with a passion it's cheaters. At that point it didn't matter what else happened in the book because to me Morgan was permanently cast as the villain. The last main strike against her was even after she slept with Leah and came to the conclusion that she was in love with her, she still kept thinking of Allison as her girlfriend. Maybe that was just the author referring to Allison as such but it still grated on my nerves.

I was thinking about reading Love in the Stacks next but I think I will put that off for a while now.

[Mirtha Siblesz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intense story

This was an intense story. Morgan and Leah's relationship development was very special. They both fought their attraction and Morgan kept fighting her guilt about the way she felt that she had let her ex girlfriend down for not resolving her unwillingness to get help for her bipolar mental illness. Overall, this was a well done story.

[Joc · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nebulous ending of Sleepwalking after setting up some fantastic chemistry between Morgan and Leah encouraged me to read Awakened. It's over a year since Leah interviewed Morgan in the coffee shop only to find, on the first day of her job, that Morgan will be her trainer. Morgan is now single (and broken) but Leah is so far in the closet she's in Narnia.

I enjoyed the way their work environment was set up because it created a clever contrast between people on the straight and narrow and those not willing to be boxed. The chemistry between Morgan and Leah was fantastic and made all the more powerful by events tossed at them. Great read.

[Coral Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

FF. Leah wants a job where she can blend in. High school caused her to stand out and not in a good way. Morgan is trying to move past a difficult, dependent relationship. Both women must decide to move past their previous failings and chose their future. I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book.

[telemakhos · Rating 1 out of 5]

Since I'm now reading another book by this author, I figure it's time to finally write this review.

I'll start with what I liked since, as I mentioned, I'm giving Malone another shot. On a technical level, she's a good writer. Her style keeps me engaged, her plots are tightly paced, and her steamy scenes are, well, steamy. And as the type of romance reader who generally skips sex scenes, that's saying something.

Admittedly, there were parts of this book that were just never going to work for me. I'm not big on office romances, and the soul-sucking cubicle farm setting was a major turn off. But that's on me; if you've liked those tropes in the past, you might like this one. I did find the characters to be flat, but that's entirely subjective. If these had been my only issues with this book, it would've been 2 stars: I didn't enjoy it but you might. However, there were other elements that just rubbed me the wrong way. Spoilers for this section.


I'll start with the most minor: a subplot between two of Leah and Morgan's coworkers. These coworkers were in a secret, kinky relationship; when the office finds out, one of the coworkers quits in shame and the other eventually resigns in anger. I just didn't like how this subplot existed solely to make Leah and Morgan think about their own relationship and how it was never resolved. I'm 99% sure we never hear from them again after they've lost their jobs due to their relationship. I don't know if this was meant to be a set up for a sequel that never happened because Malone only writes lesfic, but it was dissatisfying.

I suppose this 2nd point is subjective, but I hate how Leah's sexuality is handled. She insists that she's straight at the beginning of this book, but her friend/roommate insists that she's not. Saying that you know someone's sexuality better than they do to their face is never okay in my book. But even ignoring that, Leah's "straightness" never convincingly feels like a portrayal of either comphet and/or coming to terms with your sexuality. And frankly, it just feels lazy; if you're at all familiar with romance beats, than you know that both characters are supposed to have a reason in the beginning for not wanting a relationship with their love interest, and Leah's "straightness" is so glaringly that that it might as well be written in neon lights.

But the most egregious, and the issue I genuinely got upset about, was how this book portrayed bipolar disorder. Morgan's ex left her in a maniac episode some time before the start of this story and it left her jaded on love. Alright... Up until the point that her ex returns, lying about being pregnant with their child, and serving as roadblock/villain to Leah and Morgan's budding relationship. The moment it's revealed that she's actually pregnant with some guy's child, she's completely forgotten. The story is never sympathetic to her or her struggles and she's portrayed as every negative stereotype about people with bipolar.

Basically, every conflict in this book is Yikes.

[Kandice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a little skeptical that I would really like this book due to it's somewhat shorter length. For me, the length fell between what I consider a novella vs. full-length novel. I was very pleasantly surprised! The character development was excellent and I never felt like I was told and not shown. I really felt like I got to know the characters and their chemistry felt true. Both heroines were dealing with heavy issues, acknowledging that life is one big grey mess. While it was sort of insta-love, the characters had met before and their connection had simmered for a year. It never felt unrealistic to me.

I was a little hesitant when there was a D/s couple introduced as that's just not my thing. But there were no details of their lifestyle. Their presence was really about showing the lack of tolerance and compassion for people who don't fit the straight and narrow.

I loved how they finally journeyed to their HEA and look forward to more from this brand new author!

**ARC provided by the author for honest review via AuthorXP.

[T.B. Markinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast-paced lesbian romance filled with drama, steamy scenes, and love.

[Aris Duarte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my sweet baby gay heart suffered with all that anxiety and frustration this book gve me (in a good way, of course). Morgan and Leah are sweet, nice and a hell of a lot stubborn asses! Lol

I couldn't put the book down, today I didn't wanted to go to work because I wanted to finished it, also I even woke up 2 hours before me having to go to work to keep reading.

When Allison first came back and told her secret to Morgan, I was just waiting for the other show to drop, but the book came closer and closer to the end and I was freacking the hell out because the other show wasn't droping! Wow, that was a close one, for sure.

What I like a lot about Cara Malone is that she is hella awesome while writting steamy/sexy scenes. Awakened is a great book, she's an awesome author and you couldn't imagine that is her first book.

A must read, just keep reading her books and you won't get dissapointed.

[Bree · Rating 3 out of 5]

This took me a bit to get through. This was okay, it was fun to read and I liked the smut. But I didn’t find the characters that likeable and I also felt like there was barely any fleshing out of the characters or the story. This probably should have been a longer book. A lot happened within the short amount of book and it came across really rushed and sudden. I also really didn’t like Morgan that much or how she treated her mentally ill girlfriend. Just wasn’t my favorite but wasn’t horrible.

[Kori Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Love

I read this book in one sitting. I'm absolutely in love with it and I really hope another one is coming. For a first time author, I was extremely impressed. You're very talented and believe me when I say, it's so hard to find GOOD lesbian driven books. You've accomplished just that.

[Cara Ramsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leah and Morgan's story, which started in Sleepwalking, continues in Awakened. And Morgan now realizes more than ever that it's Leah she wants to be with. But when her ex, Allison, shows up on her doorstep with shocking news, Morgan feels she has no choice but to return to Allison.

But fear not. Destiny isn't going to be denied and Morgan is in for a huge shock.

I greatly enjoyed this book.

[Cathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I read by Cara Malone and am very impressed. The book held my attention throughout. I really liked the main characters of Leah and Morgan and want to read more about them and their friends. I haven't read many lesbian romances and would like to read more of this genre.

[Tanesha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice

Nice book. Interesting from the start. I was not expecting the whole thing with Anton and Amy, though. The happy ending was needed closure.

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed it. I've read every book by her and it was interesting to come back and read her debut novel. It was great

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - enjoyable read and nice twists along the way, but way too much connection too soon between the main characters was a negative for me.

[Maryp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good read

[Ce Caputo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nada del otro mundo, se le fácil pero no atrapa ni conmueve.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable love-at-first-sight story with all the complications of life trying to interfere.

[Maelie Royal · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,75

[Lez_be_readin_ya · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading book one I knew I had to read this book, and I'm so glad I did, It was brilliant, the connection between Morgan and Leah is undeniable and strong it's beautiful and wonderfully written and I couldn't put it down.

I love the drama in the book and the friendships they have around them Chelle is hilarious- love her, and Anton is a sweetheart. I will 100% be reading more books by Cara if this is anything to go by

1000% highly recommend this book.

Star rating. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice rating. 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was provided to me for free by the author in exchange for an honest review.

So, I read a lesbian romance. It’s not the kind of book I usually review, because normally I only read romance when my brain is feeling tired and I need to let it rest in some fluff. I was, however, pleasantly surprised with Cara Malone’s first full length book. Her characters are multi-faceted and relatable. The story itself is absorbing, well-written, and conscientious. It’s a comfortable mix of steam, heart, and conflict. The resolution is a little safe for my taste (I like a rowdy ending), but not so much that I felt the need to throw my eReader across the room. I will definitely look for more of Ms. Malone’s books.

[Heather Henkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

I enjoyed this story and had to laugh that someone would actually pursue a job with tan cubicles and try to be boring.

[Gloria Flamenco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unrealistic and cheesy

I love lesbian fiction. This is just not....good. It's cheesyand predictable...and lacks depth. It's easy to read but not worth your time