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wordsofclover 's review for:
Faithful
by Alice Hoffman
I received a free digital copy from the author/publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Shelby Richmond was only 17 years old when she skidded her car on ice and her best friend was left in a coma. Now Shelby is trying to deal with her guilt and shutting herself away from the world. Little by little, this story follows Shelby as she overcomes her remorse and learns to live again through moving to New York, getting a job, rescuing dogs and finding love.
I really loved this story. For most of the book I thought this would be a solid 4 stars for me but the more I read, the more the story and Shelby burrowed their way into my heart. Alice Hoffman has an amazing way of weaving a story that it takes a while for it to grab you, it’s really subtle and weaves its way around you until before you know it you’re hooked. This is the second book of Hoffman’s I’ve read and the second time her writing has done this to me. She is a magical writer.
I thought Shelby’s journey throughout this book was terrific. She is in such a dark place when we meet her and we really get to follow along with the ups and downs of her life as she begins to embrace life and finds the joys of living again. This story touches a lot on the concept of survivor’s guilt and Shelby believing she needed to be punished for driving the car and surviving the accident even though it was just an accident on a cold, icy night. Shelby really begins to find herself and goes through a lot of transitional periods both with herself and her appearance, studies and jobs as well as with her boyfriends and the people she surrounds herself with.
It wasn’t very difficult for me to love Shelby, especially when she began to rescue her dogs and what’s not to love about that.I love that rather than having a coming of age story about a 16 year old to a 21/22 year old. We’re getting someone at the age of about 18 and following her until she’s in her 30s or almost there. We see her mature into a grown woman and it’s really great and heartwarming to watch.
This book starts off really dark and there are triggers for self harm and sexual assault very early on in the book but little by little as Shelby’s heart lightens, the book gets nicer and nicer.
I really, really enjoyed my time reading this. Alice Hoffman did it again!
Shelby Richmond was only 17 years old when she skidded her car on ice and her best friend was left in a coma. Now Shelby is trying to deal with her guilt and shutting herself away from the world. Little by little, this story follows Shelby as she overcomes her remorse and learns to live again through moving to New York, getting a job, rescuing dogs and finding love.
I really loved this story. For most of the book I thought this would be a solid 4 stars for me but the more I read, the more the story and Shelby burrowed their way into my heart. Alice Hoffman has an amazing way of weaving a story that it takes a while for it to grab you, it’s really subtle and weaves its way around you until before you know it you’re hooked. This is the second book of Hoffman’s I’ve read and the second time her writing has done this to me. She is a magical writer.
I thought Shelby’s journey throughout this book was terrific. She is in such a dark place when we meet her and we really get to follow along with the ups and downs of her life as she begins to embrace life and finds the joys of living again. This story touches a lot on the concept of survivor’s guilt and Shelby believing she needed to be punished for driving the car and surviving the accident even though it was just an accident on a cold, icy night. Shelby really begins to find herself and goes through a lot of transitional periods both with herself and her appearance, studies and jobs as well as with her boyfriends and the people she surrounds herself with.
It wasn’t very difficult for me to love Shelby, especially when she began to rescue her dogs and what’s not to love about that.I love that rather than having a coming of age story about a 16 year old to a 21/22 year old. We’re getting someone at the age of about 18 and following her until she’s in her 30s or almost there. We see her mature into a grown woman and it’s really great and heartwarming to watch.
This book starts off really dark and there are triggers for self harm and sexual assault very early on in the book but little by little as Shelby’s heart lightens, the book gets nicer and nicer.
I really, really enjoyed my time reading this. Alice Hoffman did it again!