Someone Else's Love Story
By Joshilyn Jackson
William Morrow Paperbacks August 2014
352 pages
Received for review from TLC Book Tours and the publisher
Shandi Pierce is trying to juggle all of the pieces of her life - her precocious son Natty, her forever-warring divorced parents, and the last few classes to finish college. But everything comes to a grinding halt when she and Natty are caught up in a convenience store robbery. She is terrified for her life but she is more terrified for her young son. Suddenly, a handsome man steps between her son and the armed robber. William Ashe seems like a hero to Shandi, but he would never call himself that. William has demons of his own - it's been a year to the day when his whole world turned upside down. William puts himself in harm's way during the robbery not because he is brave, but because life has lost its appeal. The events of the robbery will bring Shandi and William together in unexpected ways and may just help them to deal with the tragedies of their pasts and find a way to confront their futures.
Jackson is adored as a writer because she writes Southern charm like no one's business. In Someone Else's Love Story, we immediately feel a sense of place because the heritage and mannerisms of her characters are as important to her as the author as they are to her characters. Jackson also seamlessly blends an easily readable story with tough issues. William is dealing with a terrible tragedy and wondering if he has anything left to live for. Shandi has also suffered trauma but she is dealing with it by pretending it never happened. The people who love them try to help them the best ways that they can, knowing that their best efforts may not be enough.
Those things aside, I read this book with an uncomfortable feeling in my gut and it took me a while to figure out the reason for that. Spoilers ahead in this paragraph! Shandi's brilliant and beloved son Natty is the result of a rape at a college party. She has not gone to therapy to work through this terrible event and Shandi's father allows his new wife to berate Shandi about being sexually promiscuous (among other things) even though he knows what really happened. Shandi goes so far as to tell herself that Natty was immaculately conceived in order to deny the truth to herself. As someone who has suffered greatly from unwanted attention, it confused and frustrated me as a reader when Shandi sets her sights on William. While he never does anything specifically to ask for her attention, she decides that this heroic man will be the love of her life and a daddy for her little boy. Shandi even sees the white band on his finger where a wedding ring resided until very recently and concludes that it is a wonderful idea to take advantage of a man who is grieving a lost relationship.
There are a lot of good reasons to read Someone Else's Love Story. It's easy to speed through and it is imbued with humor and Southern charm. While it is fun to read, the characters are dealing with big life issues like faith and forgiveness. I may have had some qualms with parts of the story, but I can understand why readers love Joshilyn Jackson and the characters and stories she creates.
Do you want to find out what other readers thought about Someone Else's Love Story? Visit the TLC Book Tour and find reviews from 15 other bloggers!
This one might be a difficult one for me to read because some of its themes overlap too closely with my work, but it sounds interesting (and there are times I want to read books that deal with these issues--just not right now). Sadly, Shandi's experience with her stepmother is a common experience for women who have been sexually victimized.
ReplyDeleteI can certainly understand sometimes wanting to relate to your work and sometimes wanting some distance!
DeleteI think the father made me even madder than the stepmother. She was not a very nice person, but she didn't know what had happened. He did and allowed her to continue being cruel.
I loved this book, much to my surprise, never having read Joshilyn Jackson before. Yeah, there definitely some dark elements to this one, but she handles them with such a light touch and easy style that it's deceptive. Check out the acknowledgements -- if they're the same as were in the hardcover edition, they're worth reading!
ReplyDeleteYes, deceptive is a great word for it. I will have to look and see if there are acknowledgments in my paperback copy.
DeleteI've had this on my kindle since it released, just never read yet--lost in the shuffle-- but your review is the first to mention some parts of the plot that made you uncomfortable. Yes, I read the spoiler and haven't read the book, sometimes I cheat that way...but I would still like to read it because I've heard glowing reviews about all her books. I guess this one is somewhat a departure from her average plots.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your honest opinion.
It's hard for me to tell since this is my first time reading one of her books. That's actually why I signed up for the tour - so many people love her books and I had never read one!
DeleteLet me know what you think when you finish it. I will be interested to know!
Oh my goodness, how does this book end?! From glancing at the cover, I was in no way expecting such dark themes.
ReplyDeleteIt has a happy ending but the cover certainly doesn't hint at everything that goes on before that!
DeleteWow, I am very interested in how things turn out for Shandi after all she's had to deal with!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour.
Thanks for having me! :)
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