The First Day (Superromance)

Rating:
Summary: It was the first day of the rest of her life...
Review: The last eight years of Susannah Chapman's life had been a living nightmare. In the space of only a few months, she had lost her fiance, been framed for the murder of the man responsible for her fiance's death, and discovered she was pregnant with her fiance's baby, knowing the whole time that she would have to give her baby up for adoption. No one seemed to believe Susannah that she was innocent...that is, until a day eight years after the trial, when the assistant district attorney came to visit Susannah with the news that the man she had been convicted of killing may still be alive! Before she knows it, Susannah is free, and doesn't have a clue where to start. Her life is in shambles, her heart aches for the child she had to give up, and no one seems to want to give her a fresh start. Until the assistant district attorney, Jared Walker, offers to help her get on her feet.

Jared Walker feels horrible over having been partially responsible for sending an innocent woman to prison for the last eight years. He had become the assistant DA because he had wanted to make sure justice was done - but it wasn't in this case. So, to right the wrongs committed against Susannah, Jared is determined to help her anyway he can. He helps her get a job, find an apartment, and get on with her life. But as he spends more time with Susannah, he realizes what a wonderful person she is, despite all that has happened to her, and he wonders if he could possibly have a chance with the woman who was falsely imprisoned because of his boss's mistakes.

As soon as I read the synopsis on this book, I knew I had to buy it. The book sounded so different from the other romance novels I have read - and it was! It was packed with emotion, and you can feel both characters' frustrations, anger, guilt, hurt, bitterness, and eventually love and forgiveness. Susannah was an amazing character. She had went into prison a young woman, younger than me, and hadn't let the place kill her or destroy her. And now when she was given the chance to be free once more, even though it was extremely difficult to pick up the shattered pieces of her life, she managed to do so. As for Jared, his determination to try his best to right the wrongs done to Susannah was touching. I didn't like him at first - he had played a role in Susannah going to jail, but he wasn't the lead prosecutor - but as he tried to mend fences and hunt down the real killer, he won me over. What an incredible love story!

I also really liked how this book portrayed prison and the struggle to get your life back on track once you are released. I thought it was a very realistic portrayal. My younger cousin was in prison for a few years, and when he got out, his behavior and thoughts were a lot like Susannah's, so I could completely understand where Susannah was coming from. Although Susannah was innocent, her friend Marissa was most likely not, but the author portrayed Marissa in a positive light, which shows the truth, that not everyone in prison is a murderer or a maniac with an antisocial personality.

There's no explicit sex scenes in this book, so those who prefer clean reads shouldn't have much of a problem with this book. I'd recommend this book to anyone who was looking for a very emotionally-charged read. If your heart isn't moved by this book, I'll be very surprised.