Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Reviewer's Bookshelf: From the Start by Melissa Tagg


Book Summary (from Goodreads): 
Kate Walker used to believe in true love and happily ever after. While her own love life may have left her brokenhearted, it hasn't kept her from churning out made-for-TV romance movie screenplays...until a major career slump and a longing to do something meaningful send her running back to her hometown of Maple Valley. 

Permanently sidelined by an injury, former NFL quarterback Colton Greene is temporarily hiding out in a friend's hometown to avoid the media and the reminders of all he's lost. Maple Valley seems like the perfect place to learn how to adjust to normal life. The only trouble is he's never really done normal before.

While Kate plays things safe and Colton is all about big risks and grand gestures, they both get what it's like to desperately need direction in life. An unexpected project gives them both a chance to jumpstart their new lives, but old wounds and new dreams are hard to ignore. Starting over wasn't part of the plan, but could it be the best thing that's ever happened to them?

My thoughts...
Colton and Kate have both had traumatic experiences in their past.  Because of their experiences, both hold back when it comes to love and commitment.  Particularly romantic love, as both show an open heart to loving others who are like family.  When they happen to meet in Kate's hometown, this hesitation on both of their parts creates a nice romantic tension that continues to build throughout the novel.  I loved turning the pages to see what was going to happen next with their relationship and how they were going to respond to one another.

Both hero and heroine have a genuine desire to do what they think is right for them, career wise.  But there's  something missing for both of them.  What they're doing may have been right for a time, but a big part of their inner conflict is knowing what is right for them now.  Both of them go through this search to find themselves and who they really are, what God has gifted them with and how He wants to use them.  This struggle was not easy, as their pasts tangle up with their hopes for the future.  

This book was filled with a lot of heavy topics, ranging from child neglect, traumatic death, heartache, unmarried pregnancy, childhood cancer, and more.  I wouldn't necessarily characterize it as a lighthearted romance, but it did have some fun, lighthearted moments.  This novel is about a journey to heal, to love again, and to begin life anew.  With that, you can read the last page with a sense of hope and resolution.  

A few favorite quotes:
"It's okay to admit what you want. When you do, you might finally get brave enough to go after it." 

"Don't assume saying yes to one dream automatically means saying no to another."

**I received a free copy of this book from the publisher to give an unbiased review, which I did.**

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