Jesse hasn't overcome his grief but he's learned to live with it. How can he hope to build anything with his former best friend when he feels like all that's left of himself is broken pieces? But Parker sees that maybe they can fit their jagged pieces together and find a future together.
From the blurb:
Desperate to escape the pain of his brother’s death, Jesse Melnik ran—but he couldn’t outrun the grief, no matter how much distance he put between himself and his past. Now, after fifteen years of trying, he’s finally ready to face his hometown of Charlottetown again.
He expects the memories of his brother to hover in every corner of his family’s sailboat and whisper in every sea-tinged breeze.
What he doesn’t expect is Parker Willis, the best friend he left behind without a word the day he fled.
And he certainly doesn’t expect old feelings to resurface.
Parker’s been stuck in a rut since his father died three months ago. Every day is the same: try to keep his father’s dinner cruise business afloat so he can chip away at Dad’s debts, all while working a job that leaves him more frustrated than satisfied.
Then Parker’s routine shatters in the best way possible: Jesse Melnik returns to Prince Edward Island for the summer, all six feet three inches of gorgeous hockey player.
Now, that’s different.
Jesse kickstarts Parker’s heart.
Parker makes Jesse feel again.
And although both men are a little bit damaged from struggling down the broken path of loss, maybe—just maybe—if they can lean on each other, they’ll learn to move forward at last.
Content warnings: themes of grief, discussions of a parent’s death from cancer, descriptions/discussions of a sibling’s death by suicide.
SNik's review:
Standalone. Former best friends to lovers. Dual POV. Heed content warnings.
Professional hockey player Jesse hasn’t returned to his hometown since the death of his brother 15 years ago, running from his grief and leaving behind his best friend. Running his father’s business and dealing with his recent loss, Parker finds it easy to pick up his friendship with Jesse again, and realize that his long ago crush still remains.
Boy this story gives all the feels, overwhelming grief, a long held love that easily turns romantic, and the commitment to grab onto a newfound happiness and not let go. You don’t need to see Jesse’s redemption arc to know that he regrets parts of his past, and his journey to heal has been hard fought. Every moment Jesse and Parker are together is so full of emotion, I really appreciated their honest communication and ability to share their ups and downs. I enjoyed every part of this story, it was gut wrenching and so hopeful and of course filled with love and a slight touch of something mystical.
Angel's review:
This is an emotionally charged and gut wrenching story even if you haven't experienced the loss of a loved one. But when you have? It's so much more powerful because it's real and relatable in a deeply personal way. The way Amy wrote about the loss of both Mikey and Parker's dad was really respectful and beautiful. Loss is painful, and it changes you in ways your not prepared for, but there can still be beauty with the pain..There can still be happy moments alongside the sad ones, and that's exactly what Jesse learned throughout this wonderful story.
I've never been to Canada and I've never heard of Prince Edward Island before I read this book, but this story makes me want to visit the quaint village with a small town feel. The writing itself is immaculate; the characters are multi-faceted and are relatable, the pacing is sooo good, there's a nice slow burn that makes the moment when Jesse and Parker gets together more emotionally charged and profound, and the details regarding the scenery around these characters makes it easy to envision exactly where these two are spending the majority of their time.
The love story between Jesse and Parker isn't an insta-love or even insta-lust, their relationship is one that slowly but surely develops overtime, which I loved. I think with them reconnecting after not seeing or hearing from each other for years, it made sense for their story to be more of a slow burn. Then when you add in the fact that they are both trying to deal with the loss of loved ones that makes it a bit more complicated for the two of them.
I loved a lot about this book, the characters for starters, but I also loved how Amy made Mikey and Parker's dad big parts of this story even though they weren't alive, They were still there with these two every step of the way. And that, that was honestly so beautiful. The scene where Jesse says he's too broken to be with Parker made be BAWL my eyes out, but sweet Parker was there to reassure him that he's enough exactly as he is, and that he wants him broken parts and all.. That both of them are broken but can still be happy together, that there's still beauty to being broken, and that scene was such a pivotal moment between these two. (At least in my opinion.)
Amy, I just wanna say thank you for writing this book. It is a heavy story but it's also a very powerful one. Anyone who's experienced grief will be able to relate to Jesse and Parker's struggles, and those who feel they are too broken to love again, or to be loved, this book might help them look at things differently. Even those who haven't experienced grief themselves, I believe they'll still enjoy this book and perhaps if they themselves can't relate on a personal level, perhaps they'll think of someone they know who could. Thank you for writing a story where loss isn't just mentioned and then set aside, but rather it's a constant state of being, there's good days and bad, and they way you wrote Jesse and Parker's characters portrayed that beautifully.
Heather's Review:
Every time, Amy... every time... I think I've got my emotions under control and I can step away from the tissues... BAM... another hit of grief or pain... and I have to say that the first few made me set the book aside for a bit.. I wasn't in the right headspace to read such a gut wrenching and soul melting story, but I'm so glad I persevered for their HEA! For those of you reading my review to decide on whether or not to read this book, I say go for it, but be aware that these two men wear their grief almost as much as their love for each other. (PS not a book to read out in public - tuck yourself away with a blanket and a cup of hot tea...)
Walking on Broken Paths is currently available as an e-book
Comments
Post a Comment