Book Review: Everybody's Got a Story by Heather Wardell

Summary: 
Both personally and professionally, Alexa knows all too well the power of words. Two years after her boyfriend Christophe's vicious attack, she's still trying to see herself as more than simply 'his victim', still trying to figure out her own story.

After his trial, she moves from New York City to Toronto in an attempt to start over, but his words cling to her and even in a new country she can't see how to move into relationships with the new people in her life while hiding the secret of Christophe's worst offense.

She can't hide that secret from her coworker Jake, though, because the news buff has recognized her from the coverage of the assault and trial and knows every word she can't bring herself to say about her ordeal.

With Jake's help, can Alexa reclaim her story and her life?

Release Date: July 4, 2013
Age Group: Adult
Source: Review copy from author

Review:
I am a long-time fan of Heather Wardell's books.  I like her contemporary women's fiction for the easy-to-relate to characters, plot twists, unique premises, and love stories which hit just the right note.  I have yet to read one of Wardell's novels that hasn't left me with a smile on my face, and completely satisfied with the book. And Everybody's Got a Story was no exception.  I really loved this book!

This may be one of Wardell's darkest books, and it made the book very intense.  Alexa is recovering from a vicious assault from a previous boyfriend.  Alexa thought that she and Christophe would end up married; instead, he tortured her over the course of several days.  She was rescued and the book starts two years after the attack, with Christophe's trial.  

Alexa is left after the trial, trying to hide from the media attention, and trying to rebuild her life.  She recognizes that she's not really living life to the fullest, and bravely decides to move to Toronto, a city where she knows no one and can start over.  I loved that decision: Alexa is brave and doesn't lose her courage or herself in the wake of the attack.  
Alexa is a crime fiction editor, and her latest book hits a little too close to home.  She has to balance the thin line between fiction and her reality, and I loved the decision she made regarding being the editor for the book.  The scenes between Alexa and the author, Mike, were some of my favorite parts of the book.  I love reading about characters who like to read, and the fact that Alexa was an editor made Everybody's Got a Story even more interesting for me.

Wardell always does a great job setting the stage, and her secondary characters are consistently well-developed.  I really enjoyed the addition of Alexa's colleagues, as they were multidimensional characters with interesting histories.  I could never quite predict how they were going to act, and I loved that.

The love story was a little predictable, but I liked it nonetheless.  I love how the characters started as friends before starting a romantic relationship.  That always makes the love story better, in my opinion.  There were some definite plot twists throughout the book that kept me guessing as to what would happen next.  I love that! 

I was so happy with the conflict resolution.  I really could not have asked for anything better.  The ending was perfect, and I finished the book smiling and glad I'd read it.  And, as always, I am really looking forward to Wardell's next novel!


1 comment:

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