Thanks so much to NetGalley, Algonquin Books, and Caroline Leavitt for the opportunity to read her latest work and take part in her blog tour! 5 stars for a fabulous novel full of flawed characters, humanity, and life lessons.
Stella and Simon have been together for years, struggling to make ends meet, veering off in different directions as they age. Simon is still chasing the dream of his youth - to make it big with his band and get the fame he needs to prove his dad and himself wrong. Stella loved being a groupie and following Simon but now craves a more grown-up life. She's a nurse and dreams of marriage, babies, a home. Then a tragedy happens and Stella is left in a coma. Simon stays with her, missing his band's big chance at stardom. When Stella finally awakens, everything is different.
I loved this book for so many reasons; I feel like it would be a perfect book club selection because there is so much here to talk about. I loved the theme of perception/reality - how we perceive others' views of us transforms our own reality without us ever realizing it. And just life - no matter how strong love is, life changes all of us and we don't always move the same way. One character in this book said it was all about staying; others made new, brighter lives by leaving. All lives have tragedies - maybe not as huge as this but tragic nonetheless - and how we cope with them and either sink or swim defines us. But this book is also about second chances and how we can come to grips with our choices and make new, better ones.
Highly recommended - a book full of flawed characters and messy lives - just like our own. Beautifully written as always by Caroline Leavitt.
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