Emmaline has finally moved out on her own. She is in her thirties, but an accident on the playground at six years of age had left her unable to live by herself. Doctors couldn’t explain it, but Emm would enter into a state of darkness, a fugue, that may only last a few minutes, but to Emm fells like much longer. They compare it to seizures, but that’s not quite what it is. She hasn’t experienced one in over year, so she took advantage of that, got her license, and moved out on her own in the big city.

Emm has been doing well. She has a job at a bank and is starting to make friends. They all meet up at the local coffee shop called Mocha. Her friend Jen points out the mysterious guy that walks in as the famous Johnny Dellasandro. Emm doesn’t know who he is, so Jen takes Emm back to her place to show her the extensive movie collection when Johnny was famous back in the 70s. Jen and Emm were giddy like schoolgirls over Johnny’s hotness.

Unfortunately, Emm starts having fugues again, but now they come with hallucinations. Emm is transported back to the 70s and has an intense sexual relationship with the much younger Johnny. She is having a hard time discerning what is real and what is not, but she is drawn to the older Johnny as much as she is the younger Johnny in her head.

Collide is a very interesting and unusual story. It’s written in first person, so it’s limited in the point of view given to the reader. The first half of the book is mainly all about Emm and the world inside her head. It’s a little crazy and even though she tells herself she’s fine and not stalking Johnny, she really isn’t fooling anyone. I also found it was a little hard to follow at times, between the real world and the world in Emm’s head. The transitions could be a little cleaner, but then again, maybe that is the point.

After the first half, the story is much better as more characters are introduced and more dialogue begins. The pace of the story picks up and is more intriguing. Even though I could predict what the end result was going to be, the story left it open throughout, so that I was not really sure if my prediction was going to be right.

Emmaline as a character is very fascinating. She is very strong and has lived through a lot, but also has a lot of weaknesses. It is frustrating to read because this tough and independent woman doesn’t always act the way you think she will. Johnny is also hard to figure out. More of his feelings are revealed at the end and are satisfying, but since the book is from Emm’s perspective, it left some room for the reader to not connect with him.

Collide is definitely not an easy read. You’ll need to reserve some brain power to keep up, but if you like a different story from the norm and some pretty good erotica then you’ll enjoy this one.

--Nichole Howell