Broken Fairytales — Monica Alexander

Emily Cole thought she was going to have the best summer of her life when she met Zack Easton, the dark, mysterious, gorgeous, guitar playing guy who captured her heart at first glance. He encouraged her to take risks and act without thinking, but more than that, he taught her what it was like to fall head-over-heels in love with someone. Then right when she thought he was falling for her too, Zack broke her heart and walked away without an explanation. Now Emily is back at school for her senior year of college and nothing in her life feels right. Without Zack, everything just feels empty, but Zack left, and now she has no choice but to pick up the pieces of her broken heart and move forward. But what she doesn't realize is that when she met Zack, her life changed forever, and without him, her heart might not go back together as easily as she hopes.

Zack Easton's life is falling apart. His mother is dying of cancer, he's in a dead-end job and he let go of the first girl to make him happy in years. But he didn't have a choice. He had to let her go. His life was too complicated for a relationship, he needed to focus on his mom, and he knew he couldn't give Emily what she wanted in the long run. He just wasn't the right guy for her. But more than that, he hadn't been honest with her, and he knew if she ever found out that he'd kept something so big from her, she'd never forgive him. It was better to just cut ties and move forward. But Zack soon realizes that it's hard to move forward when your heart is stuck in the past with someone else.

(Mature YA Fiction)