OUR REVIEW:
Shel: Late Saturday night I shut down my kindle and was immediately surrounded by darkness and as I fumbled to put my kindle on my nightstand one word replayed over and over in my head: beautiful. This novel was beautiful and I honestly shouldn't be surprised but I kinda was, for two reasons. One being that I didn't know anything about this novel other than it was a take on an Austen novel and even though I'd heard it was a gut wrenching it wasn't immediately evident that Staci Hart was going to grab my heart in her fist and mangle it for many many pages--she gave me a few pages before she unleashed the beautiful grief in this novel. And two, this was such a different novel for Staci Hart--she's known for her romcom and I wondered if she could do something that wasn't all that funny. Well, she did. She really really really did. Court: There were still some funny parts, as well as some sad parts, and definitely some OH MY I MAY THROW THIS KINDLE parts...lol! Some characters really tried my patience! I think that everyone shouldn't be afraid of the heart wrenching parts because while they are very emotional...I wasn't afraid, and Staci holds our hand through the entire thing. The family in this book is so beautiful, and I could really stay on a journey with them for so many more pages. I really loved this book.
Shel: Not only did she gently throw me into a world of feels with Sophie and Rick and Wade, she completely won me over with her poetry and her references to and use of poems--they were perfectly placed and just heightened the emotional impact that much more. When I wasn't tearing up or begging Wade and Elliot to figure out their shit, I was trying to figure out a way to annihilate Mary and the rest of Elliot's godawful family. Those people were awful but as awful as they were, Elliot was amazing and wonderful and understanding and so much better of a human being than I could ever be. And then there was Wade. Wade was so beautifully broken and infuriating in his inability to figure it out but even still I loved him and how much he loved her. Court: I connected to much with Elliot - with things she went through, to always trying to be a better person to others than they might have been to you. It's one of those "don't mistake my kindness for weakness" stories, because Elliot is in no way weak, but others do take advantage of her and take her for granted. I really loved her journey to finding her way to assert herself, not that she had to, but that she did it still in a loving way and from a loving place. There is so much for these poor people to grieve, and rise out of the ashes for and really the prose is so great for this journey to take place.
Shel: And to add to all of the other things I loved, she placed this novel in the middle of the wasted words world and you all know how much I love that place and those characters. (And if you don't, read those books and join me on the bandwagon!) Court: OH YES! We get a teeny glimpse, and it was exciting. And now I was wracking my brain trying to place Elliot since it's been a little while!
Shel: I loved this novel and I even loved the heartbreak that it gave me--it was a good pain--and it made Elliot and Wade's HEA ending that much sweeter. As soon as this book is in paper back it's finding its way to my shelf because it's just that good. Court: I second that. I need it. It's a beautiful cover, and a fantastic book. i must have it.
Shel: So here I find myself, it's Saturday night. It's late and as I stop typing this review in a shroud of darkness, I know I'll find the lightness that A Thousand Letters left me with to be comforting. So I'll leave you with where I started...with beauty, which is exactly what this novel is--it's poetic and poetry filled and such a beautiful journey. Court: It really is. It's a living, breathing poem...and it really touched my heart in the best way and thank you Staci Hart for doing that. A year ago, and I wouldn't have touched this book with a ten foot pole, but now on my emotional journey through grief and I found that it was the right time for me - and I enjoyed every page.
Title: A Thousand Letters
Author: Staci Hart
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 9, 2017
Blurb
Sometimes your life is split by a single decision.
I’ve spent every day of the last seven years regretting mine: he left, and I didn’t follow. A thousand letters went unanswered, my words like petals in the wind, spinning away into nothing, taking me with them.
But now he’s back.
I barely recognize the man he’s become, but I can still see a glimmer of the boy who asked me to be his forever, the boy I walked away from when I was young and afraid.
Maybe if he’d come home under better circumstances, he could speak to me without anger in his voice. Maybe if I’d said yes all those years ago, he’d look at me without the weight of rejection in his eyes. Maybe if things were different, we would have had a chance.
One regretted decision sent him away. One painful journey bought him back to me. I only wish I could keep him.
*A contemporary romance inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion*
Author Bio
Staci has been a lot of things up to this point in her life: a graphic designer, an entrepreneur, a seamstress, a clothing and handbag designer, a waitress. Can't forget that. She's also been a mom, with three little girls who are sure to grow up to break a number of hearts. She's been a wife, even though she's certainly not the cleanest, or the best cook. She's also super, duper fun at a party, especially if she's been drinking whiskey. Her favorite word starts with f and ends with k.
From roots in Houston, to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she's not writing, she's sleeping, cleaning, or designing graphics.
From roots in Houston, to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she's not writing, she's sleeping, cleaning, or designing graphics.
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