Book Blurb:
Fayleen is not sure she knows what happiness feels like anymore. How can she when she lost the love of her life three years back? With her mom pressuring her to date again and the town’s Teen Center she loves being threatened—it really isn’t the perfect time for a man resembling her dead husband to show up at her door. Attempting to untangle the truth in her heart, Fayleen wonders if happiness is only found in memories of the past or the unexpected gifts of the present.
Take a journey as Fayleen comes to find that sometimes love comes from the most unimagined places in this sweet holiday romance.
I received this book from the author for free. All comments and opinions are entirely my own and this review is voluntary.
Renae’s Review:
This story was so incredibly sweet, it actually brought me to tears at the end (don’t worry, I’m not gonna spoil it!). Fayleen lost her husband in the Marine Corps 3 years ago and has remained faithful to him in the time since. However, her friends and family are more than ready to see Fayleen really happy again, so when her mother bothers her one time too many, Fayleen finally gives in and agrees to a blind date. At about the same time, a mysterious stranger claiming to be her husband’s brother shows up and throws a wrench in things. To further complicate matters, as Christmas approaches, so too does the scheduled demolition of the teen center Fayleen’s husband took refuge in as a young man. Fayleen fights to preserve the memory of her husband and to keep the teen center open for other young people, while the two new men in her life fight for a place in her heart. Will Fayleen’s heart be big enough for it all? Grab a copy of To Love Again to find out- and maybe give a copy as a gift, if you’re feeling generous!
“She whispered between her grief-stricken sobs. ‘Stu, I miss you so much, but I don’t want to cry anymore.'”
Whitney Hurst did a fantastic job of making ALL of her characters likeable. I’m serious! While I definitely had a clear favorite throughout the story, both of the romantic contenders were wonderful guys and treated Fayleen with such kindness and tenderness. They both made sure to respect Fayleen’s grief over and love for her deceased husband and gave her the space to process her feelings about opening her heart. I really appreciated that aspect, and while I’ve not lost a spouse, I would tentatively say that this would be a sweet and encouraging story to read for someone who has gone through that. I also loved the background characters (can’t wait to see what happens to her best friend- if I’m not mistaken, she’s getting a book of her own!).
“Her eyes caught on his five o’clock shadow, then fell to his rolled-up sleeves that revealed lightly tanned arms. Inhaled sharply, she began to cough.”
There are times in the story that time seems to fly by too quickly between scenes. The author does well to help orient the reader, but I feel like there needed to be more of a bridge between scenes. That being said, everything else really was very well done and I greatly enjoyed reading Fayleen’s story. It is definitely a feel good book that is perfect for the holiday season. In fact, it often felt like I was reading a Hallmark Christmas movie, so if you’re like me a look forward to Christmas on the Hallmark channel, you’ll love To Love Again!
Rated:
