The Girl She Used To Be by: David Cristofano

***Received a courtesy copy from Grand Central Publishing

Synopsis

When Melody Grace McCartney was six years old, she and her parents witnessed an act of violence so brutal that it changed their lives forever. The federal government lured them into the Witness Protection Program with the promise of safety, and they went gratefully. But the program took Melody's name, her home, her innocence, and, ultimately, her family. She's been May Adams, Karen Smith, Anne Johnson, and countless others--everyone but the one person she longs to be: herself. So when the feds spirit her off to begin yet another new life in another town, she's stunned when a man confronts her and calls her by her real name. Jonathan Bovaro, the mafioso sent to hunt her down, knows her, the real her, and it's a dangerous thrill that Melody can't resist. He's insistent that she's just a pawn in the government's war against the Bovaro family. But can she trust her life and her identity to this vicious stranger whose acts of violence are legendary?

My Review Comments:

This was an interesting concept for a book, dealing with a tangled web between a mobster’s son who falls in love with the one person who is being protected in the Witness Protection Program that could take them all down. In this book it really goes into detail about how the Witness Protection Program works and how even with the best laid plan for someone with a new identity, things can still go terrible wrong. After Melody makes a foolish slip up, her parents are found and killed by the Mob. Only she survives and is being tracked by the son of a Mobsters family who witnessed the same killing back when she was a little girl. John Bovaro (aka Jonathan), is obsessed with making things right, and falls in love with Melody in the process and wants to run away with her. Only one huge problem- his family wants her dead, plus, the Government is looking for any excuse to have them all arrested and put behind bars. There are a lot of twists and turns in this book, but in the end you will be surprised at how everything is made right. I did enjoy this book and was surprised at the how the power of love can make you give the ultimate sacrifice to save a life in return for your own.