‘Safe Haven’ is the story of Blake, a lonely, deeply hurt man in his late twenties coming out of his shell after twenty years of secreting himself away from the world. He takes daily doses of a sedative just to keep him vaguely functional, he finds it almost impossible to interact with people other than his uncle, and he has not left his house for all that time. What Blake suffered as a child of seven would drive anyone into seclusion – or being institutionalized if their circumstances were less financially secure than Blake finds himself after his parents’ death.

While the realism of the timeline may be questionable - based on what I know about deep trauma and agoraphobia it can’t be “cured” within mere weeks – this is fiction and I found the basic premise of this novel interesting and convincing. More than that, the writing makes this book a compelling journey and the mix between self-discovery, awakening of previously unknown emotions, and a newly found curiosity about the world had me pulled into Blake’s account of what happens with his three new bodyguards and why he begins to change once they tease him into opening up.

Blake has a list of issues that prevent him from leading a normal life. Thanks to his inheritance and his talent for game development, however, he has managed to set up is life in a way that makes him feel (mostly) safe. Nobody other than his uncle gets to see him. His rooms can be hermetically sealed off from the rest of the house, and the constant presence of a bodyguard ensures nobody can “get at him”. The people he works with, including his therapist, have accepted his “condition” – but all of that changes when Blake’s old bodyguard retires and his uncle hires a team of three to replace him.

Malcolm, CJ, and Rex are more than a professional team - they are a stable, committed triad. Blake has no idea what that means or how to deal with it, and watching them interact via the internal security system only makes him more curious. But what throws him is that all three men are curious about him, push his boundaries, and entice him to want to find out what it’s like to have friends. This curiosity finally brings out Blake’s need for human interaction and physical touch – a very slow process with many, many setbacks. But in the end, Blake falls for each of the men in a different way and it is those newfound emotions that ultimately drive him to makes some changes.

If you like complex characters who go on a journey of self-discovery they never signed up for yet can’t resist, if you think that curiosity and blossoming love are powerful motivators, and if you’re looking for a read full of drama, setbacks, real fear, suspense, and a great message of hope, then you will probably like this novel as much as I do. I found it to be a compelling read and an intriguing fairy tale-like story about the power of love at the same time.


NOTE: This book was provided by Pride Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )