Old Wounds

Old Wounds #1

by N.K. Smith

5 STARS
"It was so believable and interesting" Grace, Book Like Breathing

5 STARS
“Wow. This book was amazing.”
Andrea, Books, Baking, and Other Objects of Beauty

5 STARS
“engrossing, a page-turner”
Francine, Goodreads.com

4 STARS
“I throughly enjoyed Old Wounds and could not put it down once I started reading it.” Bonnie, Hands and Home



Summary for Old

Sent to live with her estranged father, troubled seventeen year Sophia Young is biding her time until school is over and freedom is hers. But running from her painful past is not as easy as she was expecting, especially after meeting a kindred spirit in Elliott Dalton, the shy, withdrawn son of a prominent doctor.

In the first novel of the series, they are paired together in therapy; a seemingly unlikely pair who have nothing in common.

Or do they?

For Sophia and Elliott are about to learn that appearances can be deceiving...

**
(excerpt)
He looked tired. I wanted to talk to him, but it was incredibly awkward. There was no privacy at school and what the hell would I have said anyway? Most of the class I just daydreamed about being somewhere else. I did my best to ignore that somehow I had managed to let Red Dalton get under my skin.

It was so messed up. I was so messed up. Sophie’s number one rule was to not let anyone in; especially stupid high school boys.

But he wasn’t stupid.

Learn more about N. K. Smith at thewriterscoffeeshop.com/nsmith

Need more Elliott and Sophie? Search Little Battles and Weight of the World

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Abuse, Fan Fiction, High School, Drugs, Contemporary

236 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2010

About the author

Based in the American Midwest, N.K. Smith is the author of the Old Wounds Series, Ghosts of Our Pasts, My Only, Are You Mine?, Hollywood Lies, and Hollywood Sins (available 7/2014).
An avid lover of history, art, music, books, and people, she is interested in telling stories that speak to the human condition.

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/NKSmithAuthor

Reviews

[Andrea (mrsaubergine) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book was amazing.

I never read it when it was part of an online writing community (IYKWIM) but I had heard all the buzz and knew it would be something special once it was published. What I wasn't prepared for was the fantastic writing - amazing for a first novel - and the way in which the characters were developed. I became really invested in their lives, and by the end I was begging for more. Thank goodness the second book in this series comes out next month!

Sophie is a troubled teen who is sent to live with her father in small town Damascus after evidence of abuse by her mother is discovered. She soon falls into her old habits of getting high and having sex in order to forget about her problems. Her father forces her into therapy, where she is paired with shy, stuttering Elliott. He also comes from a troubled background - more of which I hope we find out about in the next book - and slowly they begin to open up to each other about their pasts.

Elliott is lovely. Just lovely. I wanted to hold his hand and run my fingers through his hair and remind him to breathe. Of course, the fact that I pictured him as HHH was a bonus. I could totally see she-who-must-not-be-named as Sophie too. Yeah, so it's a bit like Twilight crossed with Misfits, but it's just excellent and I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend to all.

[I ♥ Bookie Nookie (bookienookiereviews.blogspot.com) · Rating 4 out of 5]

OLD WOUNDS is a dark and sad story about a group of teens thrown together in a counseling situation in an attempt to heal the old wounds that plague their existence. Although an unlikely group, they find ways to interact and trust one another with their secrets and fears.

I originally shelved this as a "romance" - after finishing the novel, I have removed this tag as there really aren't many romantic elements to the story. I am very interested to hear more about Elliot's story in the next installment.

✳✳ Reviewed on I ♥ Bookie Nookie Reviews


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[talon smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another case of bad cover good book.

I feel like most people have a pretty closed off mind when it comes to high school and drinking/drugs or anxiety or being promiscuous but if you ever wanted to open that closed mind of yours I feel like this book portrayed what it's like perfectly.

And did you know that this was originally a fanfic? the more you know!

Anyways, the writing in this book blew me away. For something that many people portray as YA, I certainly didn't feel it. And that was okay to me! That made the story much more interesting to me. And as far as the characters go, I couldn't ask for anything better than what I had with Elliot and Sophie. They were both such great characters who had such a story that needed to be heard.

Elliot is broken. But he's such a strong character. Sophie is broken. But she's such a force to be reckoned with. The secondary characters. What is their story? I loved them. I need more.

This book wasn't your typical girl and boy in high school story. The cheating boyfriend or back stabbing friend. It went way deeper than all of that. It's dark and gritty and it was just real. This is what it's like, folks!

I'm blown away that this was the authors first work. Utterly blown away. Their writing was just flawless in my opinion. Not to mention I'm a full on paid member of the AngstWhore club so that definitely sealed the deal.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie is sent to live with her father after she is caught stealing a car. In court mandated therapy, she meets other teens, with secrets of their own. They are all messed up in their own particular way. This is a YA novel that has crossover appeal, as the reader cannot help but fall in love with these teens. Sophie meets Elliott, who has his own ghosts to conquer, particularly his horrific stutter. As the two begin to get close to each other, mostly using e-mails, more and more of their story is revealed. This book and the way it was written, in alternating chapter between Elliott and Sophie, kept me interested until what I thought was the end. There is another book planned after this one so I guess I just need to wait to find out what happens to Elliott and Sophie.

[Sigita]

Really liked this book! I love stories like this,where the relationship between main characters are built slowly and gradually,it just seem natural and realistic especially if both of them had very traumatic past. Also the book is written in dual POV which I appreciate and gives me better understanding what's going on. Can't wait to know more about Sophie and Elliot and what actually happened to them ,so I'm off to start second book in series

[Rachael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apart from the fact every character is pretty much an exact copy of a twilight character, it was a nice easy read. Not a lot happened but it set some good foundations for the rest of the series which I am looking forward to reading.
ETA I just read this was originally a twilight fanfic which explains a lot!

[Sundae · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would think everyone has or knows someone who has struggled with anxiety, depression, drugs, promiscuity, and such all before the end of their high school years. This book portrays it well. I just really love the truth this book tells. Great story.

And it hurts.

[Claire Contreras · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire series is great. It's painful, sad, angst filled, but great. The characters are relate-able, their situations are real. I enjoyed these books a lot.

[Fyrephoenix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read but a difficult story. Grab the tissues for this one...

[Holly *Confessions of a Lit Chick* · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://confessionofalitchick.blogspot...

This is the second time I've read this book.

I love Sophie's sarcasm and bitchy attitude. She seems tough and thick skinned but underneath she's scared. Scared of her memories and the feelings they induce when remembering. This she believes makes her weak; She hates feeling weak. She also doesn't believe in dreams or happily ever afters, she believes in existing.


But then she meets Eliot. After being forced into taking group therapy, Eliot and Sophie are paired together.

Eliot is a quiet, shy, attractive young man. Who unfortunately, is bullied by one individual and shunned by other students because he has a speech impediment, a stutter.

Both Sophie and Eliot are troubled by their pasts and begin a budding friendship that slowly blooms through the novel. As they learn things about each other that they haven't shared with anyone else. Which is new for both of them since trust doesn't come easy.

This novel is fantastic, you begin to get to know the characters and slowly you come to love them.

You begin to learn about Sophie's destructive behaviour with drugs, her need to smoke reality away is a call for help, and Eliot is just the person to try.


They both need a hug!!!



And I'm hoping soon they're budding romance will grow and turn into a happily ever after :')

[♡B♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect at first with this book.

I went a little click happy on Netgalley and this was one of them.

I was pleasantly surprised. I was pulled into it in the first chapter! This poor girl has gone through so much (well it is at first implied and we know what it is for the most part by the implications). We don't really get the back story just that things were not good at home with her mother. She goes to live with her father after getting in trouble.

This is where we get to meet Elliot and his family. As well as other people from school.
I have to say that I instantly fell in love with Elliot! His story is another that we are left wondering exactly what happened to him.

I was happy to learn that this was a part of a series because when it ended I was left wanting more, wanting to know what happens now. Now that things were said and put out there and some things happen.

Sophie is not your "normal" (what ever that is) teen girl she is the tell you how it is kinda girl. One that smokes weed, curses, and is so broken and lost. Elliot is just as broken. They have to be around each other because of counseling she is required to do. As well as them having a class together.

It is a darker story, one that I never thought it would be. I am sure that there are many teens who have been through something similar or know someone who is in a broken home and have to deal with some of the issues that are touched upon.

I love that this isn't the normal teenager in high school whose only issue is that her boyfriend is cheating on her, or her best friend is a back stabber. This is much deeper and darker than that. It touches on issues that are real and true for many I am sure. I always love getting a book that is just different from the norm.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first started reading Old Wounds the first thing that struck me was how raw and strong Sophie’s language and behavior were. Normally that would really turn me off a book – or a character – but as I kept reading I came to appreciate the rawness of Sophie's character and felt it added to her authenticity. After I thought about it I couldn’t really imagine a 17-year-old girl who had been through what Sophie had been through acting much differently.

As far as characters go, I couldn’t have asked for more when it came to Sophie and Elliott. I found their relationship to be so strange and wonderful at the same time. I really became invested in their stories, their pain and hope for their futures. I loved how Smith chose to write their stories and I think it really helped the reader to feel as though they had been granted a privileged look into their lives. It is through this developing relationship that they learn more about themselves and how their pasts have shaped the people they have become.

Sophie and Elliott’s stories are heartbreaking and painful but it is also amazing to see the differences in how they look at their lives (both past and future) as well as the ways that they cope with their pain. I throughly enjoyed Old Wounds and could not put it down once I started reading it. I feel like in the first book of this series we have only just scratched the surface of these complex characters and am really excited to further exploring their lives and relationships in the next installment of the Old Wounds series Little Battles.

[Kindaslick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This will be the strangest review I've ever done for a series because I haven't finished it and I know I won't but as this is a series that is so far removed from anything else it makes an odd sense. So I'll just start.

I can't finish this series. I can't. Not because of anything negative about the stories, characters, writing. I can't finish these books because I have old wounds myself and the heart in these pages rips them open and leaves me bleeding. Days, weeks, months later. It's so true, so pure, so heartfelt it takes me back to the harshest, coldest days of my life. I barely survived once. I can't go back even, if only, in my mind. I don't have it in me. I've read books on abuse and had no problem going through the stories because it never seemed real. It never rang as truth. This rings true. But this isn't a bad thing. This isn't something that should be held against them. They're amazing. They break my heart. They'll break yours too.


To the author:

Words can not begin to express the depths of emotional upheaval you brought out in me. You took my breath away. Thank you for making it real.

[Francine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not quite sure how to review this book other than to say "Wow!" It delves into the lives of two very broken individuals who each, in their own way, provide strength for each other. I have not read the previous Old Wounds books in the series but was given just enough background information to understand what was going on. This is one of those books that you find yourself still thinking about long after you have finished it and put it down. The characters became very real because of the obviousness that this sort of thing happens in real life, not just the written page. It was engrossing, a page-turner, and all the other cliches reviewers use when a book is so damn good you don't have words to describe it.

[Jennifer Plummer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know what it is about these characters but they make me want to scream at them, throw things across the room, and then hug them for the rest of my life! The author states that she likes to write books that speak to the human condition but her books scream at mine! I am so in love with Elliot Dalton that he is my new leading man. Watch out Edward, Christian, and the Professor, this beautiful, broken boy is moving in. Sophie can be hard to handle at times and very frustrating but that's what keeps the story moving forward. The struggles of her past are hard to imagine and you can't help but forgive her and feel bad after she does something that makes you want to slap her. I am SO rooting for these two! This book might make me change my mind about brussel sprouts as well ;)

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the beginning this book captured my interest.
I had to keep reading to figure out Elliott and Sophie's toured pasts.
Both characters are quite interesting. I've never come across one who stutters like Elliott. And Sophie... Usually I like the female lead, but I was not a fan of certain activities she did with Jason. Of course it's some sort of coping mechanism or something. It just bothered me reading about all the things she took part in.

I'm surprised to see how many books are in this series. This book is definitely a page turner and I'm glad it's not ending here because I've yet to read about the rest of Elliott's past.

I loved Elliott's and Sophie's friendship. And I can't believe he admitted (to himself) that he's in love with her!

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm in between three to four stars on this book. The reason I didn't give it four is because I feel like the process of Sophie and Elliot is a little slow developing. I understand there is a lot to cover with all the baggage between the two characters. It also doesn't help that Elliot can't talk fluently. However, the story is interesting enough for me to want to continue on to the next book to see what happens between the characters.

[Mina_rrat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where to start off this one? I have both the shortest and most informative review for you:

moving - therapy - drugs - being stoned – having sex - being high - hang out with Elliot - being high - having therapy - having sex - hang out with Elliot - being high - being high
Put on repeat and you've got the story.
The story itself has potential, a lot actually, but the way it is told and drawn out in, makes it unattractive.

[Jill Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

I vaguely remember reading this in it's fanfiction form but could not remember much about it.

When I first started reading it I wasn't sure wether I was going to enjoy it.

Somehow I fell for the characters and my heart went out to them and I am now looking forward to reading the next book.

[♥︎♥︎Sofia♥︎♥︎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the most depressing FF I've ever read (and I'm a full paid up memeber of the AngstHoor club), and yes there is a difference between angst and depressing. Angst fiction squeezes your heart and makes you long for a happy ending, depressive fiction makes you want to slash your wrist.
End. Don't think I can stomach this again even in it published form.

[Michelle Birbeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started and finished reading this today, and honestly, I don't think it was really my kind of book. Some of the issues raised in it aren't my cup of tea, but having said that, I did think they were dealt with very well.

[Donna Huber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this story and can't wait for the sequel. See my full review at http://www.girl-who-reads.com/2011/03...

[Margarida · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the fanfiction version and was amazed by it. N.K.Smith writing is so good, so intense and real. I'll have to buy a copy, that's for sure.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it now as i did back then ;)

[rameau]

See comments.

[Say · Rating 4 out of 5]

nice....I'll make a proper review after I finished the last book.

[Jaime Arkin]

This was originally published as the Twilight fan fiction Just Wait under the pen name InstantKarmaGirl

[Dawn Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful well written book of teens going through troubled times. I really loved seeing the relationship develop between Elliott and Sophie. Can't wait to start reading book 2.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

HOOKED the book just grabs you, never have i felt so sorry for two teenagers before and thats with out knowing the full story. Can't wait to read more in the series to see what happens.

[Tabs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. Very well written. Loved it.