Date published: November 2011
ISBN: 9780425244487
Mass Market Paperback
Contemporary
Reviewed by Angie
Review Copy Provided by Publisher
Tyler Wright, the local funeral director in Harmony, Texas has led a life of loneliness, he is surrounded by the town who love him, yet the one woman he truly loves is just out of his grasp. Ronelle Logan is a young woman afraid of social interaction, her mother has her brainwashed into believing she is not worthy, and she has no idea who she really wants to become in life. Regean Truman showed up in Harmony, Texas when she was sixteen to become adopted by a man who calls himself her uncle. He has done right by her, but as he grows old, she finds herself lost knowing she is losing him and her best friend, a rodeo man who has lost his own dreams. Denver, who loves a woman who hides her heart after her first husband broke it, and more. These are just a few of the characters that make life in Harmony, never a dull moment.
Harmony, Texas on the outside seems like a small town filled with people who are just going on with their lives, living the day to day and waiting for happiness. Yet Jodi Thomas brings life to the town and tells the story of just a few residents and how life brings them together and shows them how to live again. This lovable cast of characters will tug at readers hearts. While each has a completely unique tale, each only wants to be loved for who they truly are. Tyler has been in love with Kate for years, yet she never lets anyone into her heart - the special forces agent, hides behind her career and never lets herself get too close, yet when faced with losing Tyler, she comes to realize she wants more, and comes home - to Harmony. Ronelle finds a crippled man on her route as a mail carrier who shows her that he can see past her self defenses and that she is a young woman, not her mother's toy to force to work, come home and be alone her entire life. As Ronelle comes out of her shell and discovers she is alive, the changes make for a story well worth telling. When Reagan brings her friend Noah, home after he is injured in a bull riding contest, she find the boy who saved her at sixteen, needs only to be loved to save himself.
The cast of characters in THE COMFORTS OF HOME are unique, broad and multi-dimensional. Each has a story to tell and Ms. Thomas is a story teller who can weave her tales in and out of each other without breaking pace, or confusing the reader. Each chapter glimpses into the lives of one set of characters, yet they come together beautifully to tell about a town, that while fictional could be any small Texas town. The stories begin as haunting tales of lives needing direction and come together in a way that left this reader smiling and heartbroken for the time lost. My favorite character came in a secondary later in the story, Autumn Smith shows up living in her car, just looking for a place to hide. Only in a small town could she find a place to work, live and hide - and friends who would take a bullet to make sure she stays safe from her ex, who wants her dead, or back in his life. She tugged at my heart and made me root for her to find love and peace in the small town that saved her life.
Beyond the cast of characters this novel has scenery that brings the small town into focus with clarity that fills readers with joy. While written with a slower flow, it is a book to be devoured. Each chapter draws the reader further and further into the lives in Harmony and makes it harder and harder to pull away. This is a story that should never end, but go and on and life moves on. I would love to learn more about Autumn, Ronelle and even Uncle Jeremiah as each make their way through life. Both Autumn and Ronelle have stories that are told, yet are left hanging as single woman in a book filled with romance, hopefully in the next story in the Harmony Novels, they come to life and find true love.
This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.
No comments:
Post a Comment