Advanced Reading Copy
To Be Published: September 1st, 2013, Harlequin Enterprises Australia
My rating: 4 of 5⭐
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When Abbie seeks out Adam, almost five years after their short affair, she does so with lead in her shoes. They work for the same law offices, Abbie in Sydney, Adam in London and have a good friend and colleague in common. That's how they met back then, just after Adam's wife died and left him with an infant son. Now he is back in Australia, and she needs to finally let him know that he doesn't just have one son, he has another..........with her.
Adam is taken aback when he sees Abbie for the first time after all those years. He up and left her bed and Australia to go and take care of his then infant son who needed him, and never spoke to her again. When she insists on speaking with him and discovers that her son, is in fact his child, he is furious. Once he thinks things through, he decides the best thing to do is to have Abbie live in with him and the two boys, to allow him time together to know his younger son. And he will force her if he has to.
The boys, Pete and Henry, get along famously and thrive under the care of both parents. For Abbie and Adam it is an ongoing struggle. Abbie has always known that her feelings for Adam were strong and they are brought right up to the surface. Adam still struggles with feelings of guilt around the death of his wife, but also feelings of love for Abbie. Creating a family when there is still so much unresolved and unsaid, is not an easy road. Will they continue to slip into the old ruts of past hurts and wrongdoings or will they forge a new path forward to build a future with their sons?
******
Wow. If you want an emotionally slightly more challenging novel, I highly recommend this book.
When I read the book description, I knew this would be a story that would have an emotional impact, since it involves children, that will always do it for me. It is also one of the things I love about this book; the children are dealt with very sensitively. I'm not saying no mistakes are made, but the parents are human and obviously deeply love their kids, trying to always make decisions with the children foremost in their minds.
I empathize with both characters, although I have a harder time with Adam and the ability he has to suppress his feelings and slip on a mask. He can be cold and I find that scary.
Abbie is a little easier for me to relate to, a bit more emotion driven, I guess. Although I would never have kept a child from its father or vice versa. I do understand her fears around that, given her own history with un-reliability of men in her life.
What a complex situation, one that requires some creative thinking and most importantly commitment to the welfare of the children. I think that was accomplished in the end and ultimately both Adam and Abbie were willing to make sacrifices to that end.
Very well written, with a great 360 degree view of a difficult issue, allowing the reader to simply observe or form their own opinions and conclusions.
✨That was an intense, emotional and beautiful story.✨
**ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Harlequin Enterprises Australia in return for an honest review"
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