The characters were fantastic and the story was interesting and painful. Thanks for writing about what rape victims go through and for the light at the end of the tunnel.

Suzie is a masterful storyteller that weaves you into feeling the pain and agony of the leading characters yet the story is told with suvh grace and finesse that the reader is unable to put the book down. What a talented author! The characters, well developed and relatable. find their backbones or chutzpah to overcome the obstacles that were stifling their joy.

I’m hooked Ms O’Connell’s books and love a wrong-shall-fail, right-prevail story.

Although this deals woh a difficult subject from many angles, it was an enjoyable book.

Don’t waste your time on this book. I skip pages and pages because it was too boring and slow. It is a sensitive theme but I was not able to sympathize with the characters.

Quit. It just dragged on with a repeating conversation.

I did not like this book. If you love a simpering fool being lead around by a man and letting him DO everything for her. Well, this book is for you. Come on...... you mean to tell me her family cares SO little for her that they don’t really look into what happened? Anyone with any imagination would realize he raped her. ANYONE would than take action. Nope, not in this book. In this book everyone just lets her slouch around behind her “best friend” and do nothing.

Even though this book deals with such a sad topic it’s a really sweet love story! I loved that Beth grew stronger overtime. I also liked that Nick was emotional and had true feelings.

This book came with a warning so you should read that first but I liked reading the prospective from Beth and Nick

You can almost feel the pain that Beth was feeling and the agony Nick felt for her trauma.

Tough topic but very well written. Loved the characters, their strength and loyalty. Definitely recommend!

I enjoyed First Instinct, as well as the other books in this series. Good friends are hard to find but Beth and Nick hold on to each other through difficult situations which end in a happy outcome.

I was amazed at the human touch this story showed and the depth to which the characters feelings were displayed. This is one of the “can’t put this down” books and am anxious to read the next one in the Northstar series!

Handling a difficult story with the delicacy it deserves. Also very honestly portraying the very real struggles and emotions faced and the possibility for hope for a happy future in spite of the past.

This is a very well written book. Beth Carlyle is a dedicated college student. When her boyfriend grows violent and rapes her, her world is shattered. Nick Hammond has been Beth’s best friend since childhood. When he tries to defend Beth, his world is also shaken. What will happen to the two friends and can there ever be more between them after such violence? This book is definitely a page turner. For any reader who may have lived through sexual assault, this book might be too difficult. The scence described is explicit and hard to read through. But Beth discovers that she is stronger than she realized. A very powerful story..

This book is an amazing introduction to the North Star series. Suzie tells the story of Nick and Beth in such a wonderful way that really helps you connect to the characters and what they are going through. By far one of my favorites out of the entire series, but can also be read as a standalone. Definitely worth reading!!