{ARC Review+Giveaway} The Rules for Disappearing by Ashley Elston

She's been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she's been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last. Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they've given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he doóor seeóthat landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all of the Suits' rulesóand her dad's silence. If he won't help, it's time she got some answers for herself. But Meg isn't counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who's too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there's only one rule that really mattersósurvival.

Summary:

She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.

 

Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

The Rules for Disappearing is one of those books that is so different than everything else I have been reading lately. Sometimes I feel like I read the same storyline over and over. And it is a storyline that I love, but nonetheless it starts to get a little old the more you read it. But that is just not the case with The Rules for Disappearing. I loved how fresh and unique the concept was to me. I loved that the main character had some edge and anger to her. I loved how there was a mystery that we needed to solve, along with a reluctant romance, and along with amazing character development. The Rules for Disappearing was a complete win for me!

Anna, or Meg, or Isabelle, or whatever Anna’s name of the week was. I swear the poor girl had to change lives and names a million different times it seems. I can’t even imagine how that would be. I love that she created the idea of a “go-bag”. She had to be ready to go at a moments notice and she had no idea who did what to land her and her family in the witness protection program. That also had to be frustrating. So by the time the book starts, and now Meg and her sister “Mary” get dumped in the middle of nowhere it seems like, it was really easy for me to picture how annoyed and frustrated she must have been with everything. So it made perfect sense that she didn’t want to make friends or stand out at this new place. I would have done the same thing. But of course, when you want to stand out you can’t get noticed and when you just want to quietly blend in you stand out like a sore thumb. And it was no different for Meg/Anna. Being a new girl in a tiny town drew lots of attention to her, and right away there was a potential love interest. But it was not insta love at all. Maybe insta curiosity, which was super cute.

Ethan was kind and charming. I loved that he was always offering to drive Meg/Anna places and that he would take her home from work just so that she didn’t have to walk out in the cold. Ethan is the kind of book boyfriend that you could easily see yourself dating in real life. He was the real deal, and not a jerk at all. I mean, bad boys are fun in books but I wouldn’t want to date one.

What I loved about The Rules for Disappearing was that it was an adorable romance stuck inside this cool and kind of creepy mystery. Why did Anna and her family end up in the witness protection program in the first place? What happened, and why do they have to move around all the time? Why wasn’t their first or second move and new identity enough? I also loved that this book kept me on my toes. I didn’t always know what was going to happen. There were a few twists and turns that completely took me by surprise. I haven’t read anythign by Ashley Elston before, but I am already a fan of her writing. It just seems effortless how she makes everything work.

All of the characters fit together like a beautiful puzzles and her writing style was almost lyrical to me. I really just loved it. The whole package of The Rules for Disappearing worked for me. Fans of contemporary romance, realistic fiction, action, suspense, mystery, and heck just about anything should pick up this book immediately. You will love it just as much as I did! I don’t even think my review did this book justice. There is such depth and complexity in every character, even the secondary characters. Ashley Elston paid such attention to even the smallest of details in her writing, that I want to go back through the book again and see what little things I didn’t pick up on in the first reading. I really and truly enjoyed this book.

5/5 Gavels

 

Ashley Elston lives is North Louisiana with her husband, three sons and two cats. She worked as a wedding and portrait photographer for ten years until she decided to pursue writing full time. Ashley is also a licensed Landscape Horticulturist and helps her husband run a commercial lawn and landscaping business. They also custom harvest pecans and have cows. Yes, cows.

ashleyelston.com | twitter.com/ashley_elston

 

If you enjoyed this post, please Subscribe to Book Briefs in a reader

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Related Posts

• Related Posts
• By Ashley Elston
• Same Genre
• Disney-Hyperion

{Review} The Play Mate by @KendallRyan1

{Spotlight} The Forbidden Trilogy by Kim

{Review} TALK BRITISH TO ME by @RobinBie

{Review+Giveaway} Love Show by Audrey Be

{Review+Giveaway} Lost by Nadia Simonenk

{Review+Giveaway} 10 Truths and a Dare b

{Review+Giveaway} 10 Blind Dates by Ashl

{Review+Giveaway} The Big F by Maggie An

{ARC Review} Hungry by H.A. Swain @Heath

{Review} A Dragonbird in the Fern by Lau

{Review+Giveaway} Chasing Eveline by Les

{Review} A Light in the Sky by Shina Rey

{Review+Giveaway} So This is Love by Eli

{Review+Giveaway} Feather and Flame by L

{Review+Giveaway} 10 Blind Dates by Ashl

{ARC Review+Giveaway} Scavenge the Stars

{ARC Review+Giveaway} Dark Metropolis by