Mediocre overall, with nothing that pulls you in and makes you want to keep reading. Not bad, just not great.

This book started out slow but as I got into it further it picked up. It was a sweet,sad story of love, loss & new love with a few bumps in the road. The characters were well written & well rounded with great ethics & morals. What starts out as a tragedy in the beginning ends up with new love dawning & the chance to start over with love found in a small town. The character of Ken was a proverbial knight in shining armour coming in to help the damsel Peggy & her young son Ned. This book truly ended up being a very wonderful light hearted read.

Great book about overcoming loss and healing while falling in love again.

I loved the idea behind this book. A man dies tragically leaving behind a family that loves him dearly. His wife, Peggy, is still young (early 30s) and his son, Ned, is only 8 years old. They are both completely heartbroken, but Peggy does her best to be everything Ned needs. She is forced to get a new job and attempt to be both mother and father to Ned. They struggle to move on, but eventually Ken enters the picture and both Peggy and Ned connect with him separately. Can he help them pick up the pieces and move on?

Seems like a book I would enjoy. However, it was an incredibly hard read for me. What should’ve taken a couple of days to read stretched out over about a week because I continually avoided reading it. My problem was with the writing. The characters didn’t sound at all like a 30 year old woman and a little boy. Both the dialogue and inner thoughts were poorly done. I knew I was in trouble from the beginning. In the first chapter, Peggy thinks, “I’ve loved Peter ever since we met in that accounting class in college. He was a successful CPA and his practice was beginning to take off. I am devastated, and our Ned is totally unhinged. Ned? Where is Ned? I better check on him.” I was willing to give this a pass, because we needed some backstory, but no one really thinks like that.

It, however, didn’t get better. In chapter 10, Ned thinks, “They tell me my eyes are as blue as the sky; but I’m sure there is sadness in them. I feel so lonely since Daddy died.” In chapter 17, Peggy says, “What I want to do with your lap is sit in it. Oh darn, there I go again putting my foot in my mouth. I’m going to hang up now. I’m too flustered to talk further.”

These are just a few examples. I could go on and on. Ken’s constant speeches and “profound” words of wisdom were just as unbelievable. In fact, by the end I was continually highlighting things that were completely unrealistic or poorly written. I had a really hard time connecting with the characters because they didn’t sound their age. Instead, I constantly thought about how they wouldn’t really say that, do that, think that, etc. I think the author is just too far removed from these characters to write them believably.

I also thought it was interesting that he seemed to use Hamilton, IL, without actually researching the area. Being incredibly familiar with this area, myself I thought I should warn you not to visit based on the descriptions given. Yes, Hamilton is a small town near Warsaw and Keokuk, but that is where the accuracy ends. For example, they are constantly sneaking off to Warsaw for dinner and a movie. Warsaw is so small there is no movie theater. There are also no new subdivisions being built in Hamilton and certainly no Hamilton University. I get that most people won’t be bothered by this, but for someone familiar with the area I couldn’t help but notice how inaccurate the setting was.

For me, this is a pass. Thank you, NetGalley, for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very good book. I always enjoy reading about kids in a relationship. I liked how he was helping with the kids before they even got involved. You do not have to forget your first love to be able to love again. Very good.