Opening Line: “This is how it starts. It’s the end of a long day, one of those craptastic ones you wish you could fast-forward past the bad parts…”
HolOpening Line: “This is how it starts. It’s the end of a long day, one of those craptastic ones you wish you could fast-forward past the bad parts…”
Holy hell this was good! Not what I was expecting and full of surprises; it's a love story and a tragedy. Its little girl lost and I wish it had been longer. Spun is (unfortunately) only a novella but jeez what a story Catherine Mackenzie weaves in the pages provided.
As a huge fan of Spin I was super excited to read this sequel which focuses on celebrity train wreck Amber Sheppard -who we first met in rehab there. This is her story 2 years later as she tries to put the mess of her life back together and OMG it's good. The tone is different from the original, missing some of the snark and humour that made that book such a fun read, but this is also a very different story.
I don't want to give away any spoilers (and Wow in that respect) but I think New Adult fans will love this. Peppered with social media references Amber reads a bit like Lindsey Lohan; a tough, confused, girl who's made some bad decisions and you can't look away from what she's doing next. Her love affair with Conner is ...epic and the final chapter "three minutes past the hour" just killed me, in an ugly cry sort of way. The chapter by chapter playlist included at the end didn't help either.
Amber Sheppard has been sober for two years. Not that you’d believe it if you read anything on social media or picked up a gossip magazine these days. The Paparazzi still always managed to catch her at her worst, and make a front page story out of it. This former It Girl has been trying to get her life back on track, trying to land a decent role but casting agents won’t touch her anymore and today she’s been coerced into being the face of some crappy new perfume called “Fabulous”. Amber is anything but fabulous these days. But it pays the bills and her career is at a standstill.
So for the past twelve hours she’s been running through an abandoned warehouse trying to look scared or devastated or pretentious or psychotic or whatever the hell vision the director had in mind for the ad campaign. During all those hours she’s been trying not to answer her phone, it’s buzzing with yet another message from him. Of course it’s him. It’s always him.
They haven’t spoken for six months and she’s never returned any of his texts but that doesn’t matter. Today is different, today he’s been using their secret language and all his texts say the same thing “meet me baby.” All twelve of them.
Conner Parks, movie star bad boy and the love of her life. Her first crush, first kiss, her reason to breathe. Her family, her everything. Her toxic ruin, her downfall. How can she resist?
“No one said no to Conner when he asked for something. He was like kryptonite to reason.”
The tabloids will of course call this the reunion of the decade if they see her getting on his private jet or anywhere near the airport.
“You’re here.” He says “I’m here.” “I knew you’d come.” I drop my bag on the floor and follow him. Like I always do. Like I’ve been doing my whole life."
“He takes a step towards me. He smells like chemicals and Crystal and the worst idea I’ve had in a long time.”
Opening Line: “The first time I saw her again, I felt as if I’d been hit.”
I absolutely loved this book, another winner from JoJo Moyes who bases this Opening Line: “The first time I saw her again, I felt as if I’d been hit.”
I absolutely loved this book, another winner from JoJo Moyes who bases this moving story on real events (and her own grandmother) Taking the reader back to 1946 in the aftermath of the Second World War as thousands of young war brides are transported from Australia to England to meet up with their GI husbands who they’d married during the conflict. For many woman it was a time of huge uncertainty, leaving their families and everything they’d ever known behind and preying they didn’t receive the dreaded “Not wanted, don’t come telegram” once aboard.
Ship Of Brides follows four of these woman (out of the 650 on board) all from very different backgrounds and covers their experience from a boarding house in Sydney throughout their 6 week journey at sea aboard an aircraft carrier (which also still carries over a thousand naval officers so rules of honor, duty and separation must be enforced.
The story begins in India in 2002 (which initially threw me a bit) as an elderly grandmother on vacation stumbles across the broken hull of a once great British warship, now in the process of being dismantled for scrap on an oily, debris littered beach. She has come upon a ship graveyard and can just make out the name on one of the rusted hulls “Victoria” and at once is overwhelmed by memories…
I was surprised by how involved I got in this story but Moyes not only takes the reader back to 1946 but manages to keep a huge element of suspense going throughout the journey (Frances, a former nurse is kept frustratingly mysterious until the very last pages – and I kinda loved her.) We also enter the POV of the injured and grieving Captain, a Marine who has received a Dear John letter, a woman widowed before she reaches her destination, another who discovers her husband is already married and follow stowaway dogs, boiler room brawls, disastrous fires, miscarriages, lovely leg contests, ashore days in India and Gibraltar, excitement, fear, heartache and joy.
Because this has been based on an actual sailing taken by the HMS Victorious, Moyes was able to include extracts from journals, newspaper clippings, and diary entries from the actual men and women aboard which added an element of real emotion to the voyage.
The writing is fantastic and by the end I felt like I really knew these women and wondered how their lives had turned out, in fact I didn’t want to let them go.
Opening Line: “I wake up. My shirt crumpled on a fuzzy carpet. My shorts astray on a dresser. And I think my underwear is lost for good.”
Ok that was Opening Line: “I wake up. My shirt crumpled on a fuzzy carpet. My shorts astray on a dresser. And I think my underwear is lost for good.”
Ok that was different and OMG the ending! These cliff-hangers are killing me.
Wow, what a unique, intense, all-consuming train wreck of a story this was and I just couldn’t get enough. Not at all what I was expecting to find from the New Adult category, as it was pretty eye opening -just make sure to have book #2 on standby when you begin (bangs head against the wall)
College students Lily Calloway and Loren Hale have it all; young, beautiful, in love, exceptionally wealthy, and in a great relationship together for the past 3 years. At least that’s how it appears on the outside. In reality things are a little different; nobody would suspect the truth and the unmanageable, secretive mess their lives have become. Together Lily and Loren have a system and as long as nobody teeters too far, it’s working out just fine. Together they’ve mastered the art of hiding their addiction.
Lilly is a shy, caring, somewhat introverted girl. She is also a sex addict. Completely reckless in her choices; hooking up with random guys in bathroom bars, hotel rooms, college dorms, 1 guy 2 guys, gigolos on speed dial, a pendency for porn and an absolute all-consuming need to find her next fix. It`s described in such a way that sex might as well be cocaine, Her addiction owns her in a very real sense which leads to her inability to be responsible for anything, letting her family down and constant shame. It’s a good thing her “boyfriend” Loren understands.
Loren was a little easier to relate to, he’s your standard alcoholic. Standard except for the fact that he’s only 21 and drinks all day, every day to the point of passing out, comatose. His best friend (even above Lilly) is bourbon and his addiction has reached the point of becoming life threatening.
Together Lilly and Loren keep up a united front, hiding each other’s vices from their families and picking up the pieces after especially bad nights. They support each other and have been friends forever, thrust together at the same stuffy country clubs as kids at some point they must have sensed a sameness and after graduation took on the pretense of being a couple so they could indulge in their addictions. They`ve mastered the art of lying and concealment however the real problem may be that their addiction to each other and getting sober is also going to mean having to let go.
Watching these two spiral out of control was consuming in itself and this character driven story took turns that surprised me. Unfortunately though I've lived with an alcoholic and it's not quite as pretty as portrayed here, especially at the level Loren is drinking at. I`m doubtful that he would have a six-pack or be someone you would want to (or even be able to) have sex with. On that note despite Lilly’s addiction most of the sex scenes take place off page. Now I'm off to read book #2 (Addicted for Now). Cheers.
“Promises from Lo are like bars at 2 a.m.--empty.”
“I'll always be yours. No distance or time apart will change that, Lily.”
My thanks to NetGalley and Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) who provided a copy in exchange for an honest review. 397jb4...more
Wow, what a brilliant book, another near 5 star read from JoJo Moyes, damn can this woman ever drop me into her stories.
I loved, loved, loved the firsWow, what a brilliant book, another near 5 star read from JoJo Moyes, damn can this woman ever drop me into her stories.
I loved, loved, loved the first part of this book which takes place in 1916 German occupied France (an apparently largely unrecorded corner of First World War history) I mean I was right there with our heroine Sophie and her family at their hotel La Coq Rouge. I could hear the German soldier’s boots marching by on the cobbled streets, I was anguished by the decisions she was forced to make, and I felt her hunger, anxiety, and the cold.
I feared for her husband fighting on the front lines and laughed with the rest of the townsfolk at the “pig baby.” And when the Kommandant started to show an interest in Sophie and the portrait her husband had painted of her I knew nothing good would come of their “arrangement” but I also didn’t expect the brutal reality of what did happen. I’m totally rambling here but this was just so good.
I was jarred back to reality when in Part 2 the book switched to 2006 London. Suddenly I’m reading texts and e-mails, riding in cabs, swearing and drinking too much wine in gay bars. It was like starting another book altogether and honestly it took me a while to get with the program, to get into Liv’s equally heartbreaking story.
I eventually did find Liv almost as interesting as Sophie as she struggles with the death of her husband and tries to hang onto the painting he bought her on their honeymoon. The painting that “TARP” is now trying to get her to return to its rightful owners as it has been earmarked as stolen by the Nazi’s. Liv was also put in an impossible situation by circumstances beyond her control and then to have the awesomely played twist of who her new boyfriend Paul is as well.
Towards the end there is a court case and the story seemed to waffle a bit and go on (and on) but I loved the outcome, especially when we get to see a glimpse of a quiet, reserved couple living in the Swiss Alps. That made me smile. Pretty excellent all in.
Moyes is a definite auto buy and I can’t wait to see what adventures await from her back list. Cheers.
Opening Line: “I sometimes think to myself that I’m the last of my kind.”
Well I’ve gotta give this 5 stars because Nicholas Sparks did it to me again Opening Line: “I sometimes think to myself that I’m the last of my kind.”
Well I’ve gotta give this 5 stars because Nicholas Sparks did it to me again with another unforgettable romance. I just can’t help myself when it comes to his stuff. By now I’ve also come to terms with the fact that I’m not going to be guaranteed a HEA, which may actually be part of the attraction, it sure adds to the suspense factor as I never know who he’s going to kill off and I’ve thrown more than one of his books across the room in disgust but, yeah I keep coming back for more.
The Longest Ride was different than the last couple in that there’s no mystery or unscrupulous bad guys here. No big suspense factor or real tragedy. It is still a fantastic story though, the romance is just beautiful –soft and slow burning between our modern couple and sweet and sad via the Notebook-esque flashbacks from our older couple, who manage to give us a complete picture of their long life together –I just loved them. I also enjoyed the bull riding aspect, with its descriptions of the PBR and Luke’s battle with his nemesis “Big Ugly Critter”. The accounts of a hard working ranch life are also well done. Sophia was a little harder for me to relate to; a New Jersey college girl and her sorority sister issues. A great pairing of opposites.
Despite the lack of an antagonist the ending still managed to be pretty exciting, keeping me up late to see the outcome and wondering once again if Sparks was going to kill off another hero. I will say that this one is a little twisty, a little sneaky and (view spoiler)[ we do very much get our HEA so I didn’t have to throw anything or cry. (hide spoiler)]
Alternating with 3 different POV’s we begin with 91 year old Ira Levinson crashing his car over an embankment during a snow storm. Ira is alone in the world and no one is going to be looking for him for a very long time. In poor health to begin with he is now suffering from multiple injuries, unable to move and barely conscious, somehow his beloved wife Ruth appears in the passenger seat beside him. She’s been gone for 9 years now so couldn’t possibly be here yet she forces him to hang on, her clothes and appearance changing with the times as she urges him to recount the stories of their life together. Their early courtship, the dark days of WWll when he served as a pilot, their eventual marriage and their discovery of art which begins a lifelong hobby of collecting paintings from as then unknown artists. It is a life well lived.
We also meet Sophia Danko, a college senior in the midst of being pressured to join her roommate for a weekend at the local rodeo. Sophia is recovering from a recent breakup after her boyfriend of 2 years cheated on her and realizes her friend might be right, she needs a night out. She meets former PBR champion Luke Collins at the bull riding event, when he comes to her rescue in all his yummy cowboy goodness. Luke bears no resemblance to the silly college boys she’s used to and despite their differences the two start dating and fall in love. We follow them through the early stages of their budding relationship as they try not to think too hard about what the future holds as their worlds are so far removed. Luke is trying to keep the bank from taking his flailing ranch all while attempting a comeback after a horrific bullriding injury sidelined his dreams. His days are long and filled with guilt and fear.
Alternating characters throughout we see Ira and Ruth’s life lived while waiting and hoping for Ira to be rescued, growing weaker as the days pass. We witness young love and difficult decisions as Luke keeps a weighty secret and pushes himself to the limits. In the end Sophia and Luke’s lives are changed forever by an old man and the last letter he wrote to his wife on their anniversary. Cheers. Sigh.
Killing Me Softly is a love story but not in the typical sense; it’s obsessive, all consuming, violent, inOpening Line: “He knew he was going to die.”
Killing Me Softly is a love story but not in the typical sense; it’s obsessive, all consuming, violent, intense, desperate and ultimately terrifying. And oh my god is it good. I literally could not put this down.
If I could compare this book to anything I would say that initially it reminded me of a combination of 9 ½ weeks and that Richard Gere/Diane Lane movie from a few years ago (Unfaithful) -based on the passion, intensity and utter randomness of our couples first encounter. Of course it then unravels into a tense psychological thriller which much in a car wreck sort of way you can’t take your eyes off of. Throughout I had a feeling of, this just can’t end well.
I should mention that despite the fact that the blurb on the jacket describes this book as ‘erotic’ all the sex scenes are off page; it’s still sexy as hell -in an alarming sort of way. And I’ll admit to being very uncomfortable in sections, shaking my head at our heroine’s decisions and basic lack of “self” (“what the hell are you thinking girl?”) I also doubted myself, doubted Alice and Adam and was left utterly raw and heartbroken by the end. Just the kind of reading experience I love.
Alice Loudon has it all: a comfortable life, a stable (nice) live-in boyfriend, a good job, clever friends, and then one day while walking down a London street on her lunch hour she sees him, standing there, staring, as if waiting for her. The attraction is immediate; it’s unexplainable, like a lightning bolt that neither of them can turn away from. He is Adam Tallis and without speaking a word she follows this complete stranger to his apartment where she proceeds to let him take her clothes off and engages in the most intense love making she has ever known. In fact with Adam she needs a new word for sex. He envelopes her, obliterates her, he is unlike any man she has ever known, and within days she is lost to him.
Abandoning everything (and I mean that literally) Alice leaves her boyfriend and moves in, within months they’re married. Nothing matters except him and them and her world becomes very small. She barely recognizes herself in the mirror anymore as Adam begins to possess every aspect of her being. He worships her, desires her, loves her in an all-consuming way and there isn’t room for anyone or anything else. Alice’s world shrinks to being just Adam; the stranger she fell in love with on a street.
Adam. Her enigmatic husband, world renowned mountain climber, guide and reluctant hero after his last expedition in the Himalayas left half of their group dead. Adam comes with a whole circle of mysterious and exotic friends and it’s when Klaus decides to write a book about the tragedy of the Chungawat expedition that Alice opens her eyes. Reality creeps in, jealousy and doubt takes hold and the tension level rises. How well does she really know this man? Told entirely from the first person we witness Alice’s inner turmoil, doubts and fears as curiosity about her husband’s past and former lovers becomes in of itself an obsession.
“What a ghastly farce it all was. Our whole marriage was built on desire and deception.” 359jb5...more
Yup how good was that!? I'm left feeling shattered and a bit raw. Need more time to process before I can write a review that says anything more than wYup how good was that!? I'm left feeling shattered and a bit raw. Need more time to process before I can write a review that says anything more than why god why!
Okay, I caved. Picked this up yesterday and now I'm readying myself for the pain!...more
SIDECAR was one of those books that I couldn`t stop reading yet wanted to put away and slowly savour because I just dOpening Line: “The Kid was cold.”
SIDECAR was one of those books that I couldn`t stop reading yet wanted to put away and slowly savour because I just didn`t want it to end. I absolutely loved Casey and Joe and I`m fast approaching phonebook status with author Amy Lane, you know if she wrote a phone book I`d read it cover to cover, probably cry at the end then write a gushy fangirl review all about it. Everything she writes just grabs me by the guts, sometimes destroys me, always makes me sigh and smile and generally leaves me a hot tear streaked mess. Sidecar was no exception.
This is amazing and rare story; encompassing twenty-five years of love and well, life. And because of the length of time we get to spend with our characters this also becomes more than just a story, this is a lifetime, this is every little heartache and hope and triumph. This is epic. Thanks for the ride Amy!
Ponytailed, Harley riding, bear of a man Joe Daniels is on his way home from his job as a pediatric nurse when he comes across a visibly distraught teenager on the side of the road. Joe has picked up his share of runaways over the years in this remote area, feeding them and giving them a safe place for a few days until they head out into the world again. He’s assuming this 16 year old will be the same but Casey is about to change everything.
At first Casey is wary of accepting the big hippie bikers offer, knowing some of the shit he`s had to do over the past few months just to get a meal. But he`s also reached the end of his endurance; he’s exhausted, dirty, hungry, lice riddled and reeling from the recent abuse of a trucker. He can either go back to the bridge he almost jumped off or he can go with Joe.
Casey’s story is not a revelation, on the run because his parents couldn’t accept him being gay; now all he needs is a break, just a place to make a start for himself. He`s found it with Joe and so much more. Joe doesn`t want anything from him (definitely not sex even though Casey offers) he just wants Casey to have a chance to grow up without judgement and become a good man. So Casey doesn`t leave, with Joe as his legal guardian he goes back to school, gets a job, helps remodel the house, they get a dog, he dates a few boys and life goes by.
At 27 Joe is pretty settled in his life, he works at the hospital, he likes his seclusion, he loves having Casey around and he dates a few girls and a few boys. Their relationship works, for several years it works but Casey is growing up and he`s never hidden the fact that he wants Joe. So far Joe’s been able to play it off, telling him he`s just a kid and doesn’t know what he wants and that’s where the conflict comes in because suddenly Casey isn`t a kid, suddenly, overnight (well 6 years) Casey is a man and Joe can no longer deny what s been growing between them. How it hurts now to see him with his silly boyfriends.
Gawd the moment Joe realizes that he`s in love with Casey, that he wants him is so perfect and so beautiful and so well written it makes you want to cry. I`ll be honest though I had my doubts as to whether Lane could pull off this transformation taking them from a pseudo father son relationship to lovers but I needn’t have worried and YES, Finally, the payoff for their first time together is so worth the long wait.
”I want you. I want to hold you. I’m suddenly, terrifyingly, overwhelmingly possessed with the idea of what your mouth would taste like under mine, and I don’t know how to say it or even think it.”
And still their story goes on. Joe wants a child, same sex adoption wasn`t really a thing in the nineties so that’s a problem, Joe also wants Casey to travel, to see the world and experience everything before he settles down. Casey just wants Joe and time marches on, in the blink of an eye 25 years has passed and that is life. Cheers.
I want to mention that Amy has also included a song title for each chapter, relevant to when it takes place and what our characters are going through. And because this starts in 1986 –the year I graduated (!) I had an absolute blast with this playlist, bringing back lots of memories for me, when I had super big hair and Corey Hart was the bomb. 319jb5+
Opening Line:"I was thirty years old when the seaplane T.J Callahan and I were travelling on crash-landed in the Indian ocean."
Gawd this left me shattOpening Line:"I was thirty years old when the seaplane T.J Callahan and I were travelling on crash-landed in the Indian ocean."
Gawd this left me shattered, easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. It’s taken me ages to get a review organized because I just couldn’t figure out how to write one that would do this amazing story justice.
There were just so many things I loved about this; a survival story, a forbidden romance, a tropical desert isle location, action, suspense, (freakin sharks) uncertainty, heartbreak. ON THE ISLAND was unputdownable from the very first page, took me on a ride that I didn’t want to end and tugged at my heartstrings every step of the way. Anna and T.J’s story of survival and ultimately love is fascinating, well written and not one that I'll be able to forget.
Thirty year old Anna Emerson has just taken a job tutoring a wealthy family’s 16 year old son for the summer. The job takes her to the Maldives, which is perfect because her current relationship is going nowhere and she wants the time away to sort out her feelings. Anna meets up wither student in the airport where they begin the long multi connection journey together. T.J Callahan is old beyond his 16 years, having just stared cancer in the face but spending his summer vacation with his family and a tutor is the last thing he wants to do even if she is kinda hot.
On the last leg of their journey the pilot of their single engine plane suffers a heart attack and crash lands somewhere in the Indian Ocean. With Anna unconscious T.J manages to get them ashore and then their journey begins. For 3 1/2 years Anna and TJ struggle for survival on the deserted tropical island (think Tom Hanks in Castaway) armed only with only with items that wash up on the beach, a determination that they will be rescued and each other. Together they face insurmountable odds and with each year that passes their bond and dependence on each other only grows.
A lot of other reviewers have mentioned the age factor being an issue but I never had a problem with it. I felt that their relationship took a natural progression due to their circumstances. I mean they relied on each other completely and after a time rescue and the outside world would have seemed a dream. Through uncomplicated writing and an alternating 1st person POV the author really gives us a feel for both characters. This is particularly important in T.J’s case because his POV matures from boy to man, assuring the reader that there isn’t anything wrong or dirty with the romance aspect.
The survival side of their ordeal is also realistically portrayed and this is definitely one of those books that will make you stop and think; what would I have done in their situation? Would I have done anything differently? Would I have survived? Could I have bettered the situation?
Throughout I kept having flashes of The Blue Lagoon (especially during the shark scenes) which was an absolute favourite movie of mine as a teenager (Come on, Christopher Atkins romancing Brooke Shields in a loin cloth) This may have played a part into why I loved this book so much, well that and haven’t we all had the marooned on a desert isle with a hot guy fantasy at one time or another? Other influences here were Lost and as I mentioned Castaway.
This is a beautiful love story that until the very end I was never sure how it was going to play out. *Sigh* the epilogue. I want to thank everyone who recommended it to me and I’ll be doing the same Cheers.
Opening Line: "November 12, 1975. A cold night in Philly."
So, a little known (and completely unnecessary) fact about me is that I’m huge fan of the RoOpening Line: "November 12, 1975. A cold night in Philly."
So, a little known (and completely unnecessary) fact about me is that I’m huge fan of the Rocky movies. That’s right Rocky Balboa is my hero. I couldn’t even tell you how many times I’ve seen the movies over the years but I still cheer along every single time and get all caught up in the struggle, heartbreak, training montages, music, love story and that final 15 round, blood splattered, go for glory, give it all ya got, fight. I’m actually at a loss as to explain why they move me so much? Maybe it’s because I’ve always loved an underdog and this is the story of the ultimate underdog; a man whose whole life centers on a million to one shot. It’s also about going the distance and in the case of the original movie losing but winning the girl anyhow.
When Rocky Balboa came out a few years ago my fan-girl status piqued and I hunted down all the novelizations. I’d been hoping that I might find something new in the novel, some in depth characterization or at least some scenes that weren’t in the movie because honestly just how in depth can Rocky be? He’s a pretty simple character. Anyways there are a few gems here but for the most part this was just an okay, somewhat clunky read that didn’t really add anything to the experience. In fact it often read more like the original screenplay than the novelization it was meant to be. “Adrian was visibly upset. She walked across the room. She turned the light on.”
Rocky’s relationship with Gazzo is better developed here, while his relationship with Micky is less so and there is a great scene with Balboa nervously riding up the elevator to Apollo’s office when he still thinks he’s being sought after as a sparring partner. The final fight scene which is so spectacular in the movie is kind of lack luster here and the actual ending is different with both Rocky and Adrian being carried overhead by exuberant fight fans after the final decision is announced instead of Adrian sneaking under the ropes and telling Rocky she loves him as the decision is announced. The one here felt very awkward and I’m glad Stallone changed it.
Anyways I’m still rockin my Italian Stallion t-shirt on the weekends and have quit questioning why I’m such a fan. One day I’ll make it to the natural history museum in Philadelphia and run up those steps. It’s on the bucket list. Cheers. ...more
Opening Line: "Driving down Long Valley Road. Lovely day; bright sunshine, blue sky."
This week has been one filled with romantic tragedies for me. FirOpening Line: "Driving down Long Valley Road. Lovely day; bright sunshine, blue sky."
This week has been one filled with romantic tragedies for me. First I went to the see the re-release of Titanic in 3D (oh Jack) and then because I hadn’t had quite enough heartache I decided to revisit one of my all time favourite romances with Somewhere In Time (Bid Time Return.) It’s been years since I first read this as a teenager, -god knows how many times I watched the movie starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve (another tragedy there) and I wasn’t sure if I’d feel the same about it now.
Really the only difference this time around was that I was able to appreciate the quality of the writing and amount of research that must have gone into making this tale of time travel, well, believable. The romance is still as moving as it was. And yes much like Titanic even though I knew what was coming I still shed a tear at the end.
Told from a first person narrative and written as if you were reading a journal, we meet Richard Collier. A 30ish Los Angeles screenwriter with an inoperable brain tumour. Not wanting to burden his family, Richard packs up his life and decides to end his days wherever the road takes him. These beginning chapters are fast moving, choppy and written with short slightly erratic paragraphs as Richard dictates into an audio diary. In the second half the journal entries become longer and more detailed and quite honestly a little dry in places.
Through the fate of a coin toss Richard finds himself at the Hotel Del Coronado, a grand seaside resort, steeped in history that manages to become a character onto itself here. It’s within the hotel museum that Richard comes across a turn of the century photograph of an actress named Elise McKenna, and at that moment everything else in Richard’s life ceases to exist. He can’t stop thinking about the beautiful woman, or the look in her eyes, becoming obsessed with her and the time she lived in. Richard then begins to research her life and in every instance notes a complete change in her character after her acting troupe left the hotel 75 years before. If only he could meet her, if only he could get to her and find out what made her so sad, why she never married.
Its then that Richard begins researching time travel and self hypnosis, convinced that he can get back to her. When he finds his name in an 1896 hotel registry he knows with certainty what the change in Elise was. He was with her, now he just has to get back to her. Some of the time travel paradoxes in this are positively mind bending and you can’t think about them too long for fear of brain explosions.
As I mentioned the writing changes as soon as Richard finds himself in 1896 (yeah he does) becoming more formal and detailed. It is explained that he is now writing his accounts instead of dictating. Matheson’s descriptions of the time are pure genius, not just taking into account the obvious like clothing but the social attitudes, the language differences, the size of people. Is everyone short and stocky? I loved the descriptions and Richards discovery of it all. The romance aspect here is beautifully done albeit a little soppy and with a hint of the supernatural, because as it turns out Elise was expecting him. Well not him but through a physic she’s been waiting for someone mysterious to sweep her off her feet. Her over protective manager plays the antagonist here, trying in vain to keep them apart and while Richard should hate him he finds that he cannot because he knows how the man dies.
I suppose you can’t change the past though and as much as I found myself cheering for our couple it was already written. Probably the most moving part of this book is in the afterward (provided by Richard’s brother) which explains that his time travel was only that of a form of escapism provided by his tumour amassed brain. Robert Collier cannot however explain the love letters in Richards pocket or the antique (yet new) pocket watch or Elise McKenna’s famous dying last words. He leaves it up to the reader to decide if it happened or not. I think it did. Cheers. 291jb4...more
Opening Line: "I suppose the important thing is to make some sort of difference."
So I’m going to try to write a somewhat sensible review here that doeOpening Line: "I suppose the important thing is to make some sort of difference."
So I’m going to try to write a somewhat sensible review here that doesn’t come across as all gushy fan-girl. I will say (hopefully only once) that I adored this book but you should know that I'm a bit of a sucker for a tragedy too. ONE DAY was brilliant in every way; making me laugh and cry while filling me with nostalgia and longing. And because I’m the same age as Dexter and Emma the time frame here was also totally relatable (see nostalgia) with little details I had forgotten about from the past two decades.
Equal parts heartbreaking and hilarious yet also suspenseful as each chapter takes place a year to the day after the last one so you have to figure out what’s happened in that time between. And of course you want the H/h to get together so you’re waiting with bated breathe for them to finally “see” each other too. In the end this also made me want to seize the day like it’s my last, phone up all my long lost friends and lovers and look at old photographs. Hmmm and I haven’t even gotten into the genius of the writing yet (how do you put that into words?)
I knew that writing a review here was going to be difficult (when you love a book this much there doesn’t seem to be enough correct words to do it justice) and I promised myself to just keep this short and to the point so here goes... This is one of the most hilarious, perceptive, witty, moving and heartbreaking books I have ever read.
Told in 5 parts in alternating POV’s and over a span of twenty years Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley meet in 1988. Em has just graduated from university and hooked up with that boy she’s seen around for ages. He is Dexter, beautiful, pretentious and in his mind destined for greatness. As the sun rises they drink wine and talk about their futures. They have their whole lives stretching out ahead of them in an endless number of days and isn’t it going to be wonderful they can achieve anything they want to.
Starting as lovers Dexter and Emma continue as friends and the book joins them on July 15th of each year (St Swithin’s day) through their 20’s and 30’s and into their 40’s. As anyone in their 40’s knows, life happens and it doesn’t always go as planned, missed opportunities and the like.
“When I was younger everything seemed possible. Now nothing does.”
Through phone calls and letters, in different countries and towns, through assorted relationships, jobs and life’s little surprises and ruts we join Em and Dex each year in a unique snapshot of their life. They don’t always get along but they do think about each other everyday in some way and in case you haven’t figured it out this is ultimately a love story.
I can’t say much more about this without giving it all away. But when I read the last word I wanted to start it again and nothing I’ve tried to read since compares. Cheers.
“Live each day as if it’s your last, that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that?” ...more
Opening Line: "It had been exactly fifty years since she'd seen him."
This was just the perfect Valentine’s Day read. In the style of (The Notebook), aOpening Line: "It had been exactly fifty years since she'd seen him."
This was just the perfect Valentine’s Day read. In the style of (The Notebook), a heartbreaker with flashbacks to the second World War, religious undertones and a love story that knows no bounds.
Betty White starred in the Hallmark movie version of this which is how I first became aware of the story. I liked the book even better though, even if it did jump around a lot with different time periods and up to 10 POV's including some very minor secondary characters. The battle scenes from the Philippians were particularly well done.
As well as the main 1940’s war time romance we’re also given a modern day older man/younger woman second chance romance (as the son of our couple tells his parents love story to a TV reporter) I enjoyed it equally as much.
The Last Valentine is just an all-round, beautiful, albeit bittersweet love story that left me believing in magic, requiring some tissues and unable to forget. Cheers ~4.5~ 350jb45...more
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