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3.25 AVERAGE
3.25 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I'm not sure what to say about this one. It was...strange? I guess I wasn't expecting the "magic" element. It was a very quick read - I blazed through it in two sittings. I really liked the character of the little boy, Bobby.
I was fully immersed and really enjoying it, but certain elements took me out of the story. I was shocked by the
Anyway, this was a pleasant holiday read, and it made me appreciate Kristin Hannah. I couldn't get through [b:The Nightingale|21853621|The Nightingale|Kristin Hannah|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451446316l/21853621._SY75_.jpg|41125521], despite really wanting to, so I'm glad this book helped me see other styles of her work. I would be open to reading more of her books.
I was fully immersed and really enjoying it, but certain elements took me out of the story. I was shocked by the
Spoiler
plane crash. It was sudden and I don't know why, but I didn't buy it. I also didn't see it coming that she wasn't really there. Lastly, I wanted a bit more narrative at the end when she found Bobby and Daniel (I can't get the Elton John song out of my head whenever I think about this character.) I guess the point was that the magic couldn't/didn't need to be explained, but I guess I wanted her to have a robust conversation with Daniel at some point - since really, they didn't talk at all. If you read my reviews, you know how I feel about conversations in books - they NEED to be had, and at length. With balance. Oh, and as a non-religious person, the religious elements took me out of it a bit as well, but they weren't super in-my-face, so I could tolerate them.Anyway, this was a pleasant holiday read, and it made me appreciate Kristin Hannah. I couldn't get through [b:The Nightingale|21853621|The Nightingale|Kristin Hannah|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451446316l/21853621._SY75_.jpg|41125521], despite really wanting to, so I'm glad this book helped me see other styles of her work. I would be open to reading more of her books.
that was really a comfort and joyful book i can't imagine the ending though it was so shocking magical that this really happened and af it was really there like how couldn''t really but feel happy about it , it made me learn alot and that's when you really want something you should really say it outloud and never hide it when u feel hurt u should really say it cz once you hide it you can never really say it again , and you should be honest with the people around you and espically for the people they hurt you , and i learned the family is important no matter what , love in the family is a must that you should care about cz once the love is gone nothing can return it back , also parents love is the best kind of love it might be hard sometimes but it is what it is the best kind of love.
let's start with the story
it is about a women who had her husband cheats on her with her sister and after the divorce her husband and her sister are about to get married as she is also pregnant , the turning point was her broken log that she decided to run away from here and everything so she took the first plane she could get and as she was on the plane it crashed and she was able to really walk away from it and went into a lodge that she found a little boy to help her get in and the next day she discovers that this place is about to close from the boys dad and she did all she can to convince them to let her stay for a while and here where the fun begins as she disappeared from everyone all her focus was on that little boy to make his relationship with his dad better and to get him into Christmas spirit again , as the father doesn't really show her any interest and anything she starts to fall for him and all the little words he says she really loves him for that and fall hard and even putting up the Christmas tree didn't make him angry as he remembered all the happiness he had with his dead wife and as the story goes on nothing you imagined is really and as everything return to its place you can't really imagine what the reality was and the ending can't be more good than that i was crying knowing it had to be ended this way , like how someone falls in love in this way without even seeing or anything , you need to read to understand this please read it cz it has all the family lost and forgiveness vibes with some Christmas magic all around the book
let's move to the characters
FMC is the most heart breaking kind of a woman , she got through a lot of shit and as she was also in the lodge she could experience healing finding answers and knowing being on her own is the worst she wants her sister , and she wants her new family even of she was crazy enough to get through a whole country to find them again , but let me say something she is really a strong women and can face and fix every situation around her perfectly
MMC the best kind of a man even though he is a bit arrogant doesn't really like anyone, but he is the most caring father he really is there for his son even though he had to fight a lot to reach that point but it was worth every thing even dancing to his son on his own with no one around to see or look " just the one who read it will understand what I'm talking about.
the little boy omg was just so much to handle so cute so grown up need a lot of attention and loves his father a lot and his mother and the lodge means the world to him and he can do anything to convince his father to stay and he really did a lot and he was able to make his father stay , but also the journey of healing his heart for his dead mother was a heartbreaking journey as without joy he really couldn't even do it , just a boy i wanna meet in real life so cute to handle
let's say a quick work
that this book has got me into reading again as nothing really got me enjoying reading for the past few months and this one for sure broke the records for me finally a five stars books
let's move to the quotes then
“Those are exactly the kind of memories I try to avoid, but they're like abestos: invisible and deadly. You need special gear to get rid of them.”
“You see things and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were And say, ‘Why not?’” —George Bernard Shaw”
“And there it is: the core of everything. We’re sisters. We know each other intimately. Our pasts, our secrets, our fears. It is a precious gift that we tried to throw away but can’t really let go of.”
i hit the gass too hard and back out into the street, putting the memories in my rearview mirror if only they would stay there. instead they're like passengers crowding in on me,, taking up too much air
my sister has been the bed rock of my life and now I'm standing on sand. i have never felt so lost and alone. if i could simply blink my eyes and say a prayer to disappear i would
I've thought that my color was washing away in the shower or fading in the sun i wouldn't have been surprised to wake up and find myself a black and white woman moving through a colored world he doesn't even notice me
it's funny how things slip away pieces of us even
moving won't put his heart together
have we ? have we lost our light or have we perhaps just glimpsed it for the first time
before in my life i would have been silent now, waited for him to invite me , to want me but somewhere along the way of this adventure i have grown bold life can be short planes can simply fall out of the sky , sister can lose the chance they need
maybe boyo" daniel says, looking at me over bobby's head "athing like this comes down to I don't know" "fate" we whisper the word at the same time daniel and i . it seems as soft as a love song in the cab, and as sturdy as one of these old trees
i can tell that daniel is captivated by his son's smile, and i''m mesmerized by the pair of them
i learn something about myself this cold winter's night. something i should have known perhaps had i known it , i never would have walked away from the crash site . you can run away from your life and your past but there's no way to distance yourself from your own heart
given me that a lens through which to view my previous life.. it is not forgiveness . not even near that yet but it is acceptance , and that is better than nothing
a logging town on the coast and hour form the start of the national part . what if i don''t find this place i''m looking for. there is a crackling pause before my sister say you will, how can you believe that? , because you do
well im stronger than i used to be as i say the word , i realize the truth of them . i'm stronger now . strong enough to reach this dream and strong enough to handle dissapointment
let's start with the story
it is about a women who had her husband cheats on her with her sister and after the divorce her husband and her sister are about to get married as she is also pregnant , the turning point was her broken log that she decided to run away from here and everything so she took the first plane she could get and as she was on the plane it crashed and she was able to really walk away from it and went into a lodge that she found a little boy to help her get in and the next day she discovers that this place is about to close from the boys dad and she did all she can to convince them to let her stay for a while and here where the fun begins as she disappeared from everyone all her focus was on that little boy to make his relationship with his dad better and to get him into Christmas spirit again , as the father doesn't really show her any interest and anything she starts to fall for him and all the little words he says she really loves him for that and fall hard and even putting up the Christmas tree didn't make him angry as he remembered all the happiness he had with his dead wife and as the story goes on nothing you imagined is really and as everything return to its place you can't really imagine what the reality was and the ending can't be more good than that i was crying knowing it had to be ended this way , like how someone falls in love in this way without even seeing or anything , you need to read to understand this please read it cz it has all the family lost and forgiveness vibes with some Christmas magic all around the book
let's move to the characters
FMC is the most heart breaking kind of a woman , she got through a lot of shit and as she was also in the lodge she could experience healing finding answers and knowing being on her own is the worst she wants her sister , and she wants her new family even of she was crazy enough to get through a whole country to find them again , but let me say something she is really a strong women and can face and fix every situation around her perfectly
MMC the best kind of a man even though he is a bit arrogant doesn't really like anyone, but he is the most caring father he really is there for his son even though he had to fight a lot to reach that point but it was worth every thing even dancing to his son on his own with no one around to see or look " just the one who read it will understand what I'm talking about.
the little boy omg was just so much to handle so cute so grown up need a lot of attention and loves his father a lot and his mother and the lodge means the world to him and he can do anything to convince his father to stay and he really did a lot and he was able to make his father stay , but also the journey of healing his heart for his dead mother was a heartbreaking journey as without joy he really couldn't even do it , just a boy i wanna meet in real life so cute to handle
let's say a quick work
that this book has got me into reading again as nothing really got me enjoying reading for the past few months and this one for sure broke the records for me finally a five stars books
let's move to the quotes then
“Those are exactly the kind of memories I try to avoid, but they're like abestos: invisible and deadly. You need special gear to get rid of them.”
“You see things and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were And say, ‘Why not?’” —George Bernard Shaw”
“And there it is: the core of everything. We’re sisters. We know each other intimately. Our pasts, our secrets, our fears. It is a precious gift that we tried to throw away but can’t really let go of.”
i hit the gass too hard and back out into the street, putting the memories in my rearview mirror if only they would stay there. instead they're like passengers crowding in on me,, taking up too much air
my sister has been the bed rock of my life and now I'm standing on sand. i have never felt so lost and alone. if i could simply blink my eyes and say a prayer to disappear i would
I've thought that my color was washing away in the shower or fading in the sun i wouldn't have been surprised to wake up and find myself a black and white woman moving through a colored world he doesn't even notice me
it's funny how things slip away pieces of us even
moving won't put his heart together
have we ? have we lost our light or have we perhaps just glimpsed it for the first time
before in my life i would have been silent now, waited for him to invite me , to want me but somewhere along the way of this adventure i have grown bold life can be short planes can simply fall out of the sky , sister can lose the chance they need
maybe boyo" daniel says, looking at me over bobby's head "athing like this comes down to I don't know" "fate" we whisper the word at the same time daniel and i . it seems as soft as a love song in the cab, and as sturdy as one of these old trees
i can tell that daniel is captivated by his son's smile, and i''m mesmerized by the pair of them
i learn something about myself this cold winter's night. something i should have known perhaps had i known it , i never would have walked away from the crash site . you can run away from your life and your past but there's no way to distance yourself from your own heart
given me that a lens through which to view my previous life.. it is not forgiveness . not even near that yet but it is acceptance , and that is better than nothing
a logging town on the coast and hour form the start of the national part . what if i don''t find this place i''m looking for. there is a crackling pause before my sister say you will, how can you believe that? , because you do
well im stronger than i used to be as i say the word , i realize the truth of them . i'm stronger now . strong enough to reach this dream and strong enough to handle dissapointment
Phew. This was not what I expected at all. I enjoy Kristin Hannah but I walked away feeling - confused? It had a warm fuzzy ending but I was still reeling from the twist and how the story played out. I don't know that I'd recommend it to anyone.
emotional
lighthearted
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was clearly written in the early 2000s, which is fine, but I think it would be a different story today. What I liked about it was the in depth characters and dreamy setting. KH has a way of building out characters so that they truly feel like real people and places that seem so real, like you will just walk through on any given day. I loved the overall story and even though it didn’t necessarily need to be set during Christmas time, I think that helped with the plot of magic, believing, and hope.
What I didn’t like was that I clearly knew she was in a hospital dying or in a coma somewhere. I got a Sixth Sense (the movie) feeling so early on. I don’t know if we as the readers are supposed to know or not, but I knew the whole time….. it didn’t ruin the book for me but I feel like it was too obvious. Also, how in the hell did she forgive her sister?! Joy even says herself, acceptance and forgiveness are two different things, but then she forgives her sister and they try to act like everything is normal (as much as possible) WTF?!? If my sister was sleeping with my husband and then married him / having his baby, I would be in jail for murder….. or more realistically I would never speak to either of them again. It’s not like they got together after the divorce, still icky but kind of acceptable, they were SLEEPING together while she was still MARRIED, in the bed where she still slept with her husband. Aaaaaaarrrrrrrgghhhhhhhhhh!!!
But other than that, a really nice story and different than other Christmas time books I’ve read. KH is still my number one author!
What I didn’t like was that I clearly knew she was in a hospital dying or in a coma somewhere. I got a Sixth Sense (the movie) feeling so early on. I don’t know if we as the readers are supposed to know or not, but I knew the whole time….. it didn’t ruin the book for me but I feel like it was too obvious. Also, how in the hell did she forgive her sister?! Joy even says herself, acceptance and forgiveness are two different things, but then she forgives her sister and they try to act like everything is normal (as much as possible) WTF?!? If my sister was sleeping with my husband and then married him / having his baby, I would be in jail for murder….. or more realistically I would never speak to either of them again. It’s not like they got together after the divorce, still icky but kind of acceptable, they were SLEEPING together while she was still MARRIED, in the bed where she still slept with her husband. Aaaaaaarrrrrrrgghhhhhhhhhh!!!
But other than that, a really nice story and different than other Christmas time books I’ve read. KH is still my number one author!
This one was just okay, for what it is. I find that Hannah's older work just can't even compare to her newer stuff, which is a testament to her excellent growth as a writer. The "twist" was mediocre, and just too unbelievable. The hope of christmas magic was cute.
3.5 stars.
A solid but shorter Kristin Hannah book. The first half is good with some surprising dramatic moments. But the real hook comes at the end of Part 1 with a twist that is both surprising and makes total sense. The story from there takes an interesting turn and ends with a bit of unexplained magic. Just go with it, it's Christmas! I enjoyed this one a lot.
A solid but shorter Kristin Hannah book. The first half is good with some surprising dramatic moments. But the real hook comes at the end of Part 1 with a twist that is both surprising and makes total sense. The story from there takes an interesting turn and ends with a bit of unexplained magic. Just go with it, it's Christmas! I enjoyed this one a lot.
This was a cute story, but not typical Kristin Hannah. It was a light, happy ending read; perfect for Christmas when things are so hectic.
As the story starts, Joy, a high school librarian, is recently divorced from her husband, Thom. The marriage fell apart when Joy comes home early and finds her husband in bed with another woman.....her younger sister, Stacy! As Joy is coping with this during the holiday season, the final blow comes when Stacy hands Joy an invitation to her wedding with Thom. And announces she is pregnant with his child. This is more that Joy can handle, and she runs away.....or flies away.....to a place called Hope in the northwest. Before she gets there, she is involved in a horrific plane crash. What happens next is a mystery.....is it a dream?.....is it real?.....it is magic? Whatever, Joy escapes to the Comfort lodge and meets a young boy and his father who are also coping with a loss. This is a 'no spoiler zone' so I will just say, it is a short read and you really need to read it all the way through before you give up on it. There is a major twist to the story at the time of part 2. If you want a light read with a happy ending, this is the book for you.
As the story starts, Joy, a high school librarian, is recently divorced from her husband, Thom. The marriage fell apart when Joy comes home early and finds her husband in bed with another woman.....her younger sister, Stacy! As Joy is coping with this during the holiday season, the final blow comes when Stacy hands Joy an invitation to her wedding with Thom. And announces she is pregnant with his child. This is more that Joy can handle, and she runs away.....or flies away.....to a place called Hope in the northwest. Before she gets there, she is involved in a horrific plane crash. What happens next is a mystery.....is it a dream?.....is it real?.....it is magic? Whatever, Joy escapes to the Comfort lodge and meets a young boy and his father who are also coping with a loss. This is a 'no spoiler zone' so I will just say, it is a short read and you really need to read it all the way through before you give up on it. There is a major twist to the story at the time of part 2. If you want a light read with a happy ending, this is the book for you.