Review
3.678
There was something about this book that pulled at me. I knew going in that there would be a lot of POVs and once I reconciled that fact, I was able to enjoy the story.
Getting past the overlapping stories (sometimes the reader would go back a few skips in time in order to tie everything together) and the repetitive information (when you work with a ton of POVs I suppose it's necessary), I really fell for the characters.
Everything centers on Reagan; last name unknown until she walks into the Blue Moon diner in Harmony, Texas, a place she had heard about from a woman that has died. The town called to her, she reflects in the first few pages. A place to call home. She decides to take the name of the woman she had formed a bond with and becomes "Truman".
Through her we meet Hank Matheson - the volunteer Fire Chief, Alex McAllen, the hard and flawed sheriff and Jeremiah Truman, a man she will claim as Uncle if he'll claim her.
As Reagan discovers what family means, what friendship can do and what love ultimately is, we get a glimpse into the heart of Harmony. Every person we meet, from the lonely but kind funeral director (Tyler Wright), to the gypsy blooded Stella McNabb and Noah McAllen, Alex's younger brother and boy on the cusp of manhood, is part of the town and the story. They all bring elements that wouldn't have worked as well with one narrator. There are layers here and each layer needs a voice. Each voice brings a perspective that completes the whole.
This is coming from the person who is not that big of a fan of multiple POVs.
There are subplots that make up a plot in this story. Hank and Alex (short for Alexandra) have a history that is rife with pain due to the fact the only thing that have in common is the murder of Warren McAllen; Hank's best friend and Alex's older brother. Alex holds a debilitating guilt that is breaking her more than helping her and her path of self-destruction collides with Hank's more often than not. Hank sees her as the little kid he's always known but also a woman. Alex seems to hate him and Hank keeps coming back. At first you can't tell if he's a masochist or if he really loves Alex. Or if Alex is just a selfish stone cold bitch or if she's almost damaged beyond repair.
As the story progresses, you see the complexity of the characters and your heart goes out to them. I still see Hank as the more sympathetic of the two, I have some issues with Alex that will be carried on to the next book, but you warm up to both of them and through them you see the harder heart of Harmony.
Tyler Wright's story is just so pathetic, heart-warming and brave that you have to read it. I think there's a soft spot for Mr. Wright in my heart.
Noah McAllen is a fresh voice and a boy on the verge of becoming a man. He and Reagan are both 16 and while Reagan has been hardened by life, Noah is open and warm. Perhaps if Reagan had been born in Harmony maybe this is what would've happened. Noah is tied to the land, like Hank and Ol' Jeremiah Truman and he wants nothing more to stay on his homestead and build it into a working ranch like Hank's. Like the Matheson's and the Trumans, the McAllen's are one of the three families that settled the town. Harmony was willed to the three families by Harmony Ely, a man waiting for his family to show.
Noah is also a cowboy. He's a rodeo man and he's not that great at first but he wants to get better. With his determination, it's easy to see how he brings out Reagan's warmer side. His ardent devotion to Reagan is cute but it's also a bit sad because well, while Reagan is the same age, she is mentally about twenty years older. We don't know too much about Reagan's past but the fact that she never wants to date and is scared, at first, that Noah will turn into a "werewolf" if they are alone at night, she's had some bad experiences.
Being so damn resilient and adorable, Noah respects the boundaries but also tries to help her conquer her fears.
I'm holding out for Noah and Reagan because he's just so damn adorable. Seriously, I would've loved a friend like him as a kid.
There is a mystery here, a crisis that brings people and the town together. In the end, the town triumphs (how could it not) and to be honest, the mystery is really only there to show how a town can be brought together.
All in all, this book has some issues but nothing that will stop you from reading. It's engrossing and engaging and if you're the sentimental type, you may even find your eyes leaking :D
There was something about this book that pulled at me. I knew going in that there would be a lot of POVs and once I reconciled that fact, I was able to enjoy the story.
Getting past the overlapping stories (sometimes the reader would go back a few skips in time in order to tie everything together) and the repetitive information (when you work with a ton of POVs I suppose it's necessary), I really fell for the characters.
Everything centers on Reagan; last name unknown until she walks into the Blue Moon diner in Harmony, Texas, a place she had heard about from a woman that has died. The town called to her, she reflects in the first few pages. A place to call home. She decides to take the name of the woman she had formed a bond with and becomes "Truman".
Through her we meet Hank Matheson - the volunteer Fire Chief, Alex McAllen, the hard and flawed sheriff and Jeremiah Truman, a man she will claim as Uncle if he'll claim her.
As Reagan discovers what family means, what friendship can do and what love ultimately is, we get a glimpse into the heart of Harmony. Every person we meet, from the lonely but kind funeral director (Tyler Wright), to the gypsy blooded Stella McNabb and Noah McAllen, Alex's younger brother and boy on the cusp of manhood, is part of the town and the story. They all bring elements that wouldn't have worked as well with one narrator. There are layers here and each layer needs a voice. Each voice brings a perspective that completes the whole.
This is coming from the person who is not that big of a fan of multiple POVs.
There are subplots that make up a plot in this story. Hank and Alex (short for Alexandra) have a history that is rife with pain due to the fact the only thing that have in common is the murder of Warren McAllen; Hank's best friend and Alex's older brother. Alex holds a debilitating guilt that is breaking her more than helping her and her path of self-destruction collides with Hank's more often than not. Hank sees her as the little kid he's always known but also a woman. Alex seems to hate him and Hank keeps coming back. At first you can't tell if he's a masochist or if he really loves Alex. Or if Alex is just a selfish stone cold bitch or if she's almost damaged beyond repair.
As the story progresses, you see the complexity of the characters and your heart goes out to them. I still see Hank as the more sympathetic of the two, I have some issues with Alex that will be carried on to the next book, but you warm up to both of them and through them you see the harder heart of Harmony.
Tyler Wright's story is just so pathetic, heart-warming and brave that you have to read it. I think there's a soft spot for Mr. Wright in my heart.
Noah McAllen is a fresh voice and a boy on the verge of becoming a man. He and Reagan are both 16 and while Reagan has been hardened by life, Noah is open and warm. Perhaps if Reagan had been born in Harmony maybe this is what would've happened. Noah is tied to the land, like Hank and Ol' Jeremiah Truman and he wants nothing more to stay on his homestead and build it into a working ranch like Hank's. Like the Matheson's and the Trumans, the McAllen's are one of the three families that settled the town. Harmony was willed to the three families by Harmony Ely, a man waiting for his family to show.
Noah is also a cowboy. He's a rodeo man and he's not that great at first but he wants to get better. With his determination, it's easy to see how he brings out Reagan's warmer side. His ardent devotion to Reagan is cute but it's also a bit sad because well, while Reagan is the same age, she is mentally about twenty years older. We don't know too much about Reagan's past but the fact that she never wants to date and is scared, at first, that Noah will turn into a "werewolf" if they are alone at night, she's had some bad experiences.
Being so damn resilient and adorable, Noah respects the boundaries but also tries to help her conquer her fears.
I'm holding out for Noah and Reagan because he's just so damn adorable. Seriously, I would've loved a friend like him as a kid.
There is a mystery here, a crisis that brings people and the town together. In the end, the town triumphs (how could it not) and to be honest, the mystery is really only there to show how a town can be brought together.
All in all, this book has some issues but nothing that will stop you from reading. It's engrossing and engaging and if you're the sentimental type, you may even find your eyes leaking :D
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