Archer: Baby Boy.

This sweet boy who needs to be protected at all costs, and is so innocent, while also having all of his childhood and innocence stripped away from him at age 7. BABY BOY. I'm glad he didn't push Bree away like he did the rest of the town, but also how was he not concerned at all by this newcomer showing up and blatantly asking every one in town his story and life? No red flags there?

Highlights:
-The vulnerability. These two strangers essentially just open up to one another like it's no big deal and share their trauma's and horrible events they've endured. Seeing as sweet little Archer has never had any baseline of what's "societally acceptable" really helped I thought. He wasn't afraid of not being masculine enough, or worried that if he cried or showed pain he wouldn't be good.
-The signing to one another!! WE NEED MORE SIGN LANGUAGE IN BOOKS!! It was a very interesting "roadblock" that no one in this town has ever tried to get around in order to better understand this man. They just swept him under a rug and forgot about him, or tormented him for being different and unable to communicate in a way that was accessible to the town. Then Bree comes along and literally just sign's to him and treats him like a human being and not a broken, beaten puppy, and he opens up. It was heartbreaking that for 16 years no one gave a damn about him?? How is he not more fucked. Again, baby boy.
-

Spoiler

Archer going off to figure out his own shit, and not view himself with such a low esteem and low self worth lens. He needed to see something besides the tiny town he grew up in and the confinement of his uncle's land. I loved watching him come back all self assured and confident and SESSI!! You go order that meal, make a new friend. Fucked that he disappeared, but sometimes you have to avoid one thing in order to face something else you've been avoiding.

-That ending!

Spoiler

Him getting the town, and not being a grudge holder to all the people that weren't there for him ever?? They didn't deserve baby boy. I liked that Archer got a family, and that Bree and him got their version of a happily ever after after experiencing so much trauma in their lives. They both were alone when they found each other, and ended up with a family and they deserved that. I thought it fit what they wanted very well for an ending. Also the kids at the end taking their brother relationship seriously was awesome, and I would love to see that little family grow up, with all the signing and dogs running around.

Meh:
-Fucking Travis.

Spoiler

Didn't like him from the beginning, but the constant him being an asshole and doing some fuckery, and then Archie or Bree getting upset, got really old. When he went to go inform Archie from the goodness of his heart that her friends were in town, I was done with him. A grown man acting like a 13 year old jealous boy. He needed some better character development and growth arc in the book.

-Lovey dovey ooey gooey declarations of love...

Spoiler

don't get me wrong, I loved seeing and hearing all of the love that was developing and growing between the two of them. But there's only so much "I love you. I Bree you. ILU." That someone can take.

-Adding in conflicts just for fun?

Spoiler

It's a romance novel, we're here to see the romance, and having the same villains (Travis and his Momma) pulling similar bullshit over and over got repetitive. Also why the FUCK did they have to shoot Archer, make it seem like just after all this bullshit we've all been through he was dead, to surprise, he's in a coma and happy ever after?? My heart can't take being pulled around like that. I thought the almost murder was a little over the top. Again, we must protect baby boy at all costs.