Before We Were Strangers (A Love Story)
by
Renee Carlino
~ 5 Stars ~
In all honestly I don’t think that I could encompass my feelings about this book in a standard review. Instead I decided to just write my feelings down in hopes that not only will you read them but that you will be inspired to purchase this magnificent piece of literature.
Like many I had seen the cover of the book all over Facebook and I thought to myself that looks like something I would like. Much to my surprise this book ended up being selected as a book club read. I thank each and every book club member who voted for this book as it took me places I never knew existed.
I am a character based reader. When an author presents a story that contains characters that I relate to it enhances my entire reading experience. When an author writes a story that settles so deeply within me that it consumes my thoughts throughout the day well I know I have hit gold.
Reading well it’s my thing. I become extremely invested in the books I read and for the record I read a lot. I can count on one hand the books that I have read that have touched me deeply, that I have connected to on such an intense level. Stories that captivate me as the world around me ceases to exist. Stories I want to live. Stories that contain characters so real I feel as if I know them. Stories that contain emotions with such depth. Emotions that transfer effortlessly from the pages of the book into my heart mind and soul. Stories that transport me into a world that I never knew existed and long to experience. Stories that I know I will read over and over throughout the years.
Before We Were Strangers is so much more than a love story. It is a story of friendships, family, life, misunderstandings, determination and everything in between. It passion, pure and raw. It is life, love, happiness and the feeling of being content and whole.
The story, characters, and emotions that fill the pages of this book are written with such tenderness, grace and ease. Eloquence would describe it best.
I laughed, sighed, and held my breath in anticipation. The feelings that surged through me while reading this story were vast. I felt happy, longing, love, trust and the shattering of my heart. I found myself laughing and a few pages later I was longing with fierce desperation. I rallied within my mind for these characters. I felt their grief, their desire, their disappointment, their surprise, their love, their intense passion and the fear that intermingled so beautifully.
This story lays out the many diverse aspects of friendship, family and love. It plays with your emotions and makes you wish that this was your life not a story created by someone’s incredible imagination.
Before We Were Strangers is a book that will stay with me forever. It is a story that touched something so deep within me I don’t have the words to adequately describe the feeling. It is one of two stories that I have read that I would love to live.
~ Purchase Before We Were Strangers ~
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