Between Breaths: The Seattle Sound Series, Book 2 is a contemporary romance novel written by Alexa Padgett. Briar was still recovering from her feelings of revulsion and outrage over her ex-boyfriend's controlling behavior. Ken was a doctor and came from money, but she was glad to be finally out of the stifling relationship she had endured with him. When her pharmacist had told her of Ken's attempt to have her substitute a placebo for Briar's birth control pills, she had ended the relationship immediately. The idea that he would take that element of personal choice from her was the final straw. Only the thought of losing Ken's Aunt Rosie caused her some concern. She loved Rosie and had immediately felt a close and warm kinship with the older woman. When Briar heard that Rosie was in hospice, she was stunned and rushed to Rosie's side. Briar had no idea how she'd get over losing the woman who had become her best friend and mentor. In the stark and imposing hospice building, there was another patient waiting to die, a woman pianist who had left her husband and son many years before that. Her son, now an adult, was a famous Australian rock star. He was there out of duty, but also to finally find out how and why she could have abandoned him all those years ago. Hayden and Briar inevitably found their visits coinciding, and the two seemed to have something special, something rare and totally unexpected. But living such vastly different lives, how could they ever hope to have more than a brief and intense affair?

Alexa Padgett's contemporary romance novel, Between Breaths: The Seattle Sound Series, Book 2, sweeps readers off their feet and drops them into the bustle and beauty of green Seattle, passing through Pike's Market, sampling truck cuisine, incredible coffee and sharing in the life and death turmoil Padgett's two lovers are caught up in as their loved ones are dying. Briar is a marvelous main character; she's resilient and strong, and she's not going to be bullied into an unwanted pregnancy for fear of her biological clock running down. Watching as she and the also relationship-shy Aussie fall in love is a joy. Padgett's novel is rich in the sounds that made Seattle the place for musicians to make their names in, while she also explores the true awfulness that celebrity and its attendant loss of privacy can be. Can these two actually get past the personal and physical barriers and barricades that seem at times so insurmountable? Finding out is just part of what makes this novel work so well. Between Breaths: The Seattle Sound Series, Book 2 is most highly recommended.

Hayden Crewe, handsome member of the famous Australian band Jackaroo has it all: money, talent, looks, and all the girls imaginable. What more could a guy want? So what if his upbringing was considered a bit unconventional. It all worked out in the end. But, while touring Sydney, Hayden receives a phone call he never anticipated. His estranged mother was dying and requesting his presence. After assuring his band mates that he would make a quick journey to America to square up things with his mother’s estate, Hayden boarded the flight that changed his life. As soon as he set foot in the hospice caring for his mother, his soul connected with the mink-haired stranger visiting her own dying loved one. Briar Moore stole his heart without his permission. It didn’t hurt that her sister’s boyfriend happened to be a friend of Hayden’s, nor that her own life was a reflection of his present situation. While dealing with their conflicting reactions to death, Hayden and Briar find themselves in the unlikely situation of love and lust at first sight.

Between Breaths: The Seattle Sound Series, Book 2 by Alexa Padgett is a mildly erotic romance novel that is a true reflection of the diversities of living in the limelight of fame. Padgett introduces her characters in a realistic light, while keeping the dialogue refreshingly realistic. With the expected theme conflicts of a stereotypical romance, this reviewer is impressed with the maturity exhibited by the main characters. Not normally a huge fan of romance novels, I really enjoyed Between Breaths. This is truly an adult romance written with evident substance.

Life has been practically a dream for Hayden Crewe, at least since he signed on for a world tour. But one phone call about a woman he hasn’t seen in nearly 20 years changes everything. His mother is dying, but it’s not her death that’s going to turn everything in his life upside down. It’s the girl he meets while he’s fulfilling his father’s last request, giving his mother a chance to explain. For Briar, however, her life has been a slew of disappointments, the latest of which was finding out that her boyfriend was definitely not who she thought he was, but will she trust what’s happening right in front of her in Between Breaths by Alexa Padgett?

If you’re the type of person who loves a hopeless romantic story with star-crossed lovers, then you’re definitely going to love this book. There was a whole lot of romance, but just enough of the rest of the story to have you drawn in right from the start. Hayden and Briar are both flawed characters, which makes them easily relatable, and they’re fun at the same time. I loved this book from start to finish and would recommend it to my friends and family. I know they’re going to love it too. I especially love that there’s just the right amount of drama and mischief throughout to make things interesting, but it definitely sticks to the idea of a romance. Between Breaths by Alexa Padgett is a book you won’t soon forget.

At your dying mother's bedside seems like a pretty out-there place to meet the girl of your dreams, but that's exactly where Hayden Crewe, the hottest rock star of the moment, meets Briar. It's the worst possible timing; they are both seriously emotionally compromised and the pressures of a life lived in the intense glare of the media spotlight seem bound to drive them further apart. Still, love will find a way, even in the darkest times, and that's what happens in Between Breaths ... love, eventually, does find a way, though there are some pretty tough obstacles that Hayden and Briar have to overcome along the way.

Between Breaths is an emotional roller-coaster of a book; Alexa Padgett does an amazing job of portraying the difficult emotions necessarily suffered by the nearest and dearest of dying loved ones. Hayden and Briar begin the story with a great deal already in common, and through the story even more is revealed, such that it soon becomes apparent that they are perfect for each other far beyond their initial physical attraction. The sex scenes are hot and realistic, the chemistry between Hayden and Briar is obviously off the charts from the beginning, but their relationship is so much more than that. I loved this book. It made me smile, it made me laugh, and at times it made me want to weep with emotion. It's powerful writing, the characters are extremely relatable, and the emotions they experience are beautifully described. I’m very happy to give Between Breaths five well-deserved stars.