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A review by the_novel_approach
Don't Plan to Stay by Kaje Harper
5.0
~ 4.5 Stars ~
Donnie has spent six years surviving in a prison cell he didn’t deserve to be in. During those years, one boy stayed on his mind—the one he left a wreck in a hospital room after crashing the car they were both in. Who could blame him for wanting to check on Adam just to make sure he was truly okay. He was determined not to stay—not to further complicate or disturb Adam’s life more than he already had. But Adam had different ideas.
Adam had taken some time off from getting his social work degree to help at the family store after his mother had passed away and his father had resigned from most of his daily activities while mired down in mourning her. Helping his older brother manage the Christmas crowds, Adam is shocked when he sees the familiar face step inside the door. Despite dating other men, Adam has never lost the feelings he had for Donnie—his first love. Now he was back, and Adam knew he had to do whatever he could to keep him there. But Donnie was not the same boy he once was, and Adam knew that he had to take it slow or lose the man he was still hopelessly in love with.
Don’t Plan to Stay by Kaje Harper is a Christmas story that’s all about second chances. Donnie has lived a quiet hell while in prison, and while we only get occasional glimpses of what he must have endured, we are given just enough to know it has changed him forever. Adam has grown as well, not only physically filling out but emotionally maturing as well. He has never forgotten how much Donnie meant to him, and it takes little interaction with him to set those feelings aflame again. But this Donnie is different—wounded, raw—and Adam wisely realizes if he is to win Donnie back, he has to take it ever so slow and reassure the man that no matter what he has endured, it has not changed how Adam feels about him.
Forgiveness is key in this story. Donnie is tortured by what happened that drunken, fateful night when an accident landed him in jail, and Adam in the hospital fighting for his life. Donnie needs to be sure Adam forgives him before he can move on with his life. Told in alternating points of view, there is more expressed through internal dialogue than verbal discourse with these two men. The passion that flares between them is almost painful for Donnie, who has done things in prison in order to survive that have left him feeling soiled and dirty. Adam is heartbreakingly gentle and kind, slow moving and careful to allow Donnie to take whatever he is capable of handling. With just the right pace, Kaje Harper allows for Donnie to begin healing emotionally and mentally.
I so wish this had been a full length novel and we had been made privy to more of the backstory concerning how Donnie ended up in prison, and what part Adam’s older brother played in landing him there and why. These characters were so captivating that I wanted more of their story, and felt a bit cheated when it wasn’t provided. I think that’s the highest form of praise I can give for a novella—that I desperately wanted there to be more of it, more of their relationship growing up, more of Donnie’s experience in prison, and more of the confrontation between Donnie and Adam’s brother after Donnie was paroled. The novella was so enticing, so rich in pathos and emotion that I just didn’t want it to end.
Don’t Plan to Stay is not your typical light and fluffy Christmas fare. Instead, it is a bit stark, a tad darker and yet full of healing and grace. If you’re looking for a deep and meaningful holiday story, you won’t go wrong with Kaje Harper’s offering.
Reviewed by Sammy for The Novel Approach
Donnie has spent six years surviving in a prison cell he didn’t deserve to be in. During those years, one boy stayed on his mind—the one he left a wreck in a hospital room after crashing the car they were both in. Who could blame him for wanting to check on Adam just to make sure he was truly okay. He was determined not to stay—not to further complicate or disturb Adam’s life more than he already had. But Adam had different ideas.
Adam had taken some time off from getting his social work degree to help at the family store after his mother had passed away and his father had resigned from most of his daily activities while mired down in mourning her. Helping his older brother manage the Christmas crowds, Adam is shocked when he sees the familiar face step inside the door. Despite dating other men, Adam has never lost the feelings he had for Donnie—his first love. Now he was back, and Adam knew he had to do whatever he could to keep him there. But Donnie was not the same boy he once was, and Adam knew that he had to take it slow or lose the man he was still hopelessly in love with.
Don’t Plan to Stay by Kaje Harper is a Christmas story that’s all about second chances. Donnie has lived a quiet hell while in prison, and while we only get occasional glimpses of what he must have endured, we are given just enough to know it has changed him forever. Adam has grown as well, not only physically filling out but emotionally maturing as well. He has never forgotten how much Donnie meant to him, and it takes little interaction with him to set those feelings aflame again. But this Donnie is different—wounded, raw—and Adam wisely realizes if he is to win Donnie back, he has to take it ever so slow and reassure the man that no matter what he has endured, it has not changed how Adam feels about him.
Forgiveness is key in this story. Donnie is tortured by what happened that drunken, fateful night when an accident landed him in jail, and Adam in the hospital fighting for his life. Donnie needs to be sure Adam forgives him before he can move on with his life. Told in alternating points of view, there is more expressed through internal dialogue than verbal discourse with these two men. The passion that flares between them is almost painful for Donnie, who has done things in prison in order to survive that have left him feeling soiled and dirty. Adam is heartbreakingly gentle and kind, slow moving and careful to allow Donnie to take whatever he is capable of handling. With just the right pace, Kaje Harper allows for Donnie to begin healing emotionally and mentally.
I so wish this had been a full length novel and we had been made privy to more of the backstory concerning how Donnie ended up in prison, and what part Adam’s older brother played in landing him there and why. These characters were so captivating that I wanted more of their story, and felt a bit cheated when it wasn’t provided. I think that’s the highest form of praise I can give for a novella—that I desperately wanted there to be more of it, more of their relationship growing up, more of Donnie’s experience in prison, and more of the confrontation between Donnie and Adam’s brother after Donnie was paroled. The novella was so enticing, so rich in pathos and emotion that I just didn’t want it to end.
Don’t Plan to Stay is not your typical light and fluffy Christmas fare. Instead, it is a bit stark, a tad darker and yet full of healing and grace. If you’re looking for a deep and meaningful holiday story, you won’t go wrong with Kaje Harper’s offering.
Reviewed by Sammy for The Novel Approach