Every Breath
By Nicholas Sparks
ISBN# 9781538728529
Author’s Website: http://nicholassparks.com/
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi
*Beware of possible spoilers*
Tru Walls has a lived a good honest life in Zimbabwe. He makes his living taking tourists on safaris through the bush of Africa to see the animals that live there. He has a son he adores and has even made peace and became friendly with his ex-wife. He never imagined leaving Africa, but then he received a letter and plane tickets from his biological father asking him to come to North Carolina to meet him. At first, he wasn’t sure if he should go, but he ultimately decided to go, if only to find out more about his mother who died in a fire when he was young.
Tru was a little disappointed when he arrived at his father’s beach house to discover his father wouldn’t be there for several days. However, Tru ended up meeting the woman staying in the cottage next door, Hope, and felt an instant connection.
Hope was staying at her parents’ cottage for the last time as they had decided to sell it. She was in town for her friend’s wedding while dealing with her own relationship problems. Instead of coming to North Carolina with her, her boyfriend decided to go with his friends to Vegas after the couple got into a huge argument.
While spending time with Tru she realized that he is exactly what she wants in a husband, and he’s the complete opposite of her boyfriend, Josh. Tru and Hope enjoyed every moment they had together, but like all fairy tales, their week together had to come to an end. Sacrifices and difficult choices had to be made that would change their lives forever.
“Meeting you and falling in love with you was an experience I would relive a thousand times in a thousand different lives, if I was ever given that chance.”
I truly loved the idea of this romance and how everything revolved around the magic of Kindred Spirit, a mailbox on Bird’s Island. I honestly don’t know why Sparks didn’t actually name this book Kindred Spirit since it was such an important part of the story. I did feel a little jipped when I read the author’s note at the end of the book and found out that Sparks was pulling our leg with his narrative at the beginning and ending of this novel. He made us think he created this story based on something he himself found at Kindred Spirit. I liked the belief that this story could be loosely based on real life, but apparently it was only a literary device he was using.
So back to the story. I really liked Tru. He was an honest hardworking man that would do anything for those few people he loved. I liked how sweet he was toward Hope… even though she was an idiot when it came to her care for her dog (who lets a dog that has repeatedly failed obedience school and doesn’t obey loose on the beach?) and later her care of Tru as well.
This book had a slow pace to it, the romance was non-existent and then boom they were instantly in love with each other.
However, I hated the choices that Hope made and felt she deserved to spend her life alone and childless. I think she should have known how her future was going to play out when she made the decision that she did based on what had happened already. I felt that Tru was the real victim in this story and I think he deserved better!
I usually love Sparks’s writing, but this one fell a bit short for me personally.
*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*
