Wide Open Spaces by: Aurora Rose Reynolds (eARC review) some spoilers

Wide Open Spaces (Shooting Stars, #2)

Title: Wide Open Spaces
Series: Shooting Stars #2 (can be read as a standalone though)
Author: Aurora Rose Reynolds
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Indie
Release Date: Aug. 29th, 2016
My rating: 5 amazingly beautiful stars.

Synopsis

That moment your life changes.
That moment that changes your life.
That moment you love someone more than you love yourself.
That was the moment we gave our son up for adoption and the moment I was left bare. A wide-open space that would forever be empty.
There are moments that define you as a person, moments that prove just how strong you are, moments you push yourself to keep going forward when all you really want to do is give up. It was in one of those moments when I reached out and found him waiting for me.

When Shelby Calder left home fifteen years ago, she never planned on returning to the Alaskan town she left behind. But after the death of her grandfather and a bitter divorce, she hopes going home will be a fresh start for her and her ten-year-old son.

Zach Watters has made a lot of mistakes in his life. But when he sees Shelby Calder, looking more beautiful than ever, standing outside her childhood home, he promises himself that letting her go won’t be a mistake he ever makes again.

Some things never change and love is one of them.

My Review:

5 Stars!

*I received an ARC from the author through TRSOR PR in exchange for an honest review**

I loved this book!!! Wide Open Spaces is a beautifully heartwarming second chance romance with a wonderful family aspect.

The novel starts off with an angsty vibe. Shelby and Zach are both sixteen-year old’s and are forced with a tough decision. whether to give their baby up for adoption or not. They both decide that adoption is what would be best for their child. Shelby can’t handle the pain and sadness she feels so she decides to leave Alaska. Zach waits for Shelby to return only to come to terms with the fact that she isn’t coming back. So one night one a bender while high and drunk he sleeps with Tina and along the way gets her pregnant.

15 years later….

Shelby returns to Alaska newly divorced with a son (Hunter) by her side. After her Grandpa passes away she receives his house in the will. She is shocked to find her new neighbor to be the one and only Zach. Zach is also a divorcee who has full custody of his twins. (Aubrey and Steven). Their mother Tina isn’t in the picture all that much. She is what they call a weekend mom.

I loved Wide Open Spaces. I love novels that have a true family feel to them. You know what I’m talking about the heartwarming, cozy, safe feeling.

Shelby, I feel, had to fight more inner demons. I mean she is the one that blamed Zach from the start for the adoption, she’s the one that ran away instead of dealing with the problems at hand. But fate has a funny way of dealing with things. I loved Shelby and Aubrey’s relationship. Aubrey needed a motherly figure in her life. It was touching to witness the two’s interactions. Witnessing Shelby helping Aubrey gain her confidence back was a tear jerker for me and hit really close to home. I also was the girl with the baggy clothes until i had help reaking out of my shell. Ever little girl needs a motherly figure to help them develop and continue to grow their self-confidence.

I also really enjoyed the bond that Hunter and Steven share. I loved the brotherly feel that happened right off the bat.

This novel is full of family greatness. Shelby and Zach’s story is going to go down in history as one I will always remember and the one thing that helped with that is THE BEAR IN THE KITCHEN!!!! That was the most off the wall, out of this world passage I have ever read in a novel. I loved it!!!

I’ve had my fair share of bear scares (say that five times fast) in my life and I remember each and every one of them so when I read the chapter that had to do with a bear locked in Shelby’s house I literally couldn’t stop laughing.

This novel was amazing and if you are choosing not to read it do to the negativity that has been circling around on goodreads you are truly missing out. I’m saying this as a person that loves reading not as a book blogger not as someone that received an ARC…no I’m saying this as an avid book reader, Wide Open Spaces is worth the read. And that is all i’m going to say about that because personally the negativity doesn’t deserve the attention it is even getting. It’s sad how people have to put other peoples work down do to what they “ASSUME” is going to happen. You know what happens when you assume things right? Exactly.

Wide Open Spaces can be read as a standalone!

I highly recommend this novel to all!

*I’m going to do something new in this review that i have never done before. As we read we get an image of the characters in our head. Whether the character takes form of an actor or a singer or someone you know it happens to all of us. So i thought it would be fun to put together a collage of who i pictured while reading! I may do this for all the books i review not sure yet!*