suze_1624's review
3.0
a nice, sweet romance about young love broken apart by tradegy and then mending a few years later. I kept waiting for a big issue to arise or secret to be revealed but other than Pace and Jules needing to learn to talk to each other, it was an even paced walk to the altar.
jeanz's review
5.0
MY REVIEW
I was sent this book directly from the author in exchange for my honest opinion and review.
At first glance the cover is fairly plain and not greatly attractive. However when you read the book, the relevance of the cover becomes more apparent. the cover shows a once beautiful Victorian style house, surrounded by other style houses such as ranch style too. The once beautiful house belongs to Helen, the elderly aunt and former guardian of Julianna Markum. Julianna's parents died in an accident when she was still very young, so she lived with her Aunt Helen and her cousin Stacey. Obviously living under the same roof Stacey and Julianna grow up closer and more like sisters. Julianna has returned to her hometown as Aunt Helen is seriously ill. After leaving town years ago Julianna never returned so she has to face some animosity at first when she returns. Pace is unsure whether to be happy or angry to see her. You see the night she left Pace told Julianna something very important, so important it seriously hurt him when Julianna left telling no one why or where she was going.
Will they speak to each other, and sort out their past differences? Will Pace forgive Julianna for leaving? In fact will/can Stacey forgive Julianna for leaving? What will Aunt Helen say? Aunt Helen is so ill, will Julianna have the chance to explain everything and maybe even make amends?
This book, or rather short tale really, is so well written it flows and pulls you gently along with the story. Drawing you further and further into the characters lives and emotions until you couldn't put it down if you wanted to.
So did I enjoy this book? Yes I truly did. Would I recommend this book? Definitely, I already have to my mum, I just know she will love the story, the characters and the emotions. Would I read more by L.S. Murphy? I definitely intend too!
I was sent this book directly from the author in exchange for my honest opinion and review.
At first glance the cover is fairly plain and not greatly attractive. However when you read the book, the relevance of the cover becomes more apparent. the cover shows a once beautiful Victorian style house, surrounded by other style houses such as ranch style too. The once beautiful house belongs to Helen, the elderly aunt and former guardian of Julianna Markum. Julianna's parents died in an accident when she was still very young, so she lived with her Aunt Helen and her cousin Stacey. Obviously living under the same roof Stacey and Julianna grow up closer and more like sisters. Julianna has returned to her hometown as Aunt Helen is seriously ill. After leaving town years ago Julianna never returned so she has to face some animosity at first when she returns. Pace is unsure whether to be happy or angry to see her. You see the night she left Pace told Julianna something very important, so important it seriously hurt him when Julianna left telling no one why or where she was going.
Will they speak to each other, and sort out their past differences? Will Pace forgive Julianna for leaving? In fact will/can Stacey forgive Julianna for leaving? What will Aunt Helen say? Aunt Helen is so ill, will Julianna have the chance to explain everything and maybe even make amends?
This book, or rather short tale really, is so well written it flows and pulls you gently along with the story. Drawing you further and further into the characters lives and emotions until you couldn't put it down if you wanted to.
So did I enjoy this book? Yes I truly did. Would I recommend this book? Definitely, I already have to my mum, I just know she will love the story, the characters and the emotions. Would I read more by L.S. Murphy? I definitely intend too!
holliereadsbooks's review
4.0
This review was first posted on Music, Books and Tea
A Reason to Stay is a standalone contemporary novella, and it was one of the cutest romances I’ve read in a while! I read this novella in one very short sitting, and as soon as I finished the last sentence, I wanted to go back and read it all over again.
Julianna, our main character, is returning back to Hartfield, the town she ran away from eight years ago. Her Aunt Helen, the woman who raised her since her parents disappeared on their second honeymoon has fallen ill, and Julianna is back to help care for her. Because this is only a short novella, we don’t learn a lot about Julianna, only the backstory that is relevant to A Reason to Stay, which would normally annoy me, as I like to know the ins and outs of characters, but I was so invested in Julianna that it didn’t bother me. I was so pleased that she chose to do the right thing in the end, especially when it came to her aunt’s house. I knew right from the off what I wanted to happen, and I was so pleased that it did!
All the side characters were great too, I particularly loved Pace, Julianna’s best friend who she also abandoned eight years ago. I felt so sorry for him, as it was obvious that he loved Julianna, and wanted her to stay in Hartfield forever, but didn’t want to be waiting forever for her to settle down. I was pleased that he was able to get the closure he had been waiting for, all he wanted was to know why Julianna left like she did. He knew her reason for leaving and where she was going, he just needed to know why she had to leave by herself, instead of asking him to go with her. Julianna’s Aunt Helen was a great character, and although I understood why Julianna left Hartfield for Savannah, she really didn’t deserve to just be left like she was, especially after all Helen had done for Julianna. I was pleased that Julianna was able to make it right though, and that she felt she had her Aunt’s forgiveness, along with her cousin Stacey.
A Reason to Stay was an incredibly cute and quick read, with a romance and a happily ever after that left me feeling all fuzzy and warm inside, and I can only hope that we might be lucky enough to revisit Hartfield and its inhabitants! I will definitely be checking out more of LS Murphy’s work in the future, and if A Reason to Stay is anything to go by, I will be enjoying those immensely too!
A Reason to Stay is a standalone contemporary novella, and it was one of the cutest romances I’ve read in a while! I read this novella in one very short sitting, and as soon as I finished the last sentence, I wanted to go back and read it all over again.
Julianna, our main character, is returning back to Hartfield, the town she ran away from eight years ago. Her Aunt Helen, the woman who raised her since her parents disappeared on their second honeymoon has fallen ill, and Julianna is back to help care for her. Because this is only a short novella, we don’t learn a lot about Julianna, only the backstory that is relevant to A Reason to Stay, which would normally annoy me, as I like to know the ins and outs of characters, but I was so invested in Julianna that it didn’t bother me. I was so pleased that she chose to do the right thing in the end, especially when it came to her aunt’s house. I knew right from the off what I wanted to happen, and I was so pleased that it did!
All the side characters were great too, I particularly loved Pace, Julianna’s best friend who she also abandoned eight years ago. I felt so sorry for him, as it was obvious that he loved Julianna, and wanted her to stay in Hartfield forever, but didn’t want to be waiting forever for her to settle down. I was pleased that he was able to get the closure he had been waiting for, all he wanted was to know why Julianna left like she did. He knew her reason for leaving and where she was going, he just needed to know why she had to leave by herself, instead of asking him to go with her. Julianna’s Aunt Helen was a great character, and although I understood why Julianna left Hartfield for Savannah, she really didn’t deserve to just be left like she was, especially after all Helen had done for Julianna. I was pleased that Julianna was able to make it right though, and that she felt she had her Aunt’s forgiveness, along with her cousin Stacey.
A Reason to Stay was an incredibly cute and quick read, with a romance and a happily ever after that left me feeling all fuzzy and warm inside, and I can only hope that we might be lucky enough to revisit Hartfield and its inhabitants! I will definitely be checking out more of LS Murphy’s work in the future, and if A Reason to Stay is anything to go by, I will be enjoying those immensely too!
More...