Today was one of those beautiful South Florida days…after doing a few household chores and hitting up my pal’s yard sale, I went outside with the dogs around noon and couldn’t believe what a beautiful day it was! The sun was shining, there were puffy white clouds (those little clouds bring down our temperature at least 10 degrees, I swear!) floating about and a gentle breeze.
Basically, mother nature was demanding that I spend the afternoon in the pool with a good book. Fortunately, I already had a brand new book sitting on my dresser. I received Stay by Allie Larkin
You know how sometimes you pick up a book and the snippets on the back flap make you want to dig right in? This was one of those books. It just seemed so sweet, silly and enjoyable.
I finished it in three hours. Now, that is not to say that it was a short book or anything like that – I am a bit of a speed reader, especially when I am really enjoying the book. The only breaks I took where to take bites of the egg salad sandwich my husband brought me and to flips sides on my pool float!
The story goes something like this: Savannah “Van” Leone is in love with her best friend from college. He marries her best friend, leaving her heartbroken. After serving as maid of honor on their wedding night, Van goes home to cry her eyes out, drink lots of vodka and watch a Rin Tin Tin marathon.
Really, who watches Rin Tin Tin? That right there shows you the emotional devastation this poor girl is experiencing.
So, Van is drunk, depressed, lonely and watching this wonderful show on TV…and buys a German Sheppard off the internet. This SO sounds like something I would do. Except mine would be another Sheltie, because let’s face it, Foxy the 100 Malamute is all the big dog I need right now!
When her “puppy” arrives, it’s gigantic. I mean, hello, it’s a German Sheppard. There are some cute moments as she falls in love with the dog and vice versa, but the real story is how she manages to wind her way through a strange love triangle, deal with her mother’s death and learn to stand up for herself…Joe, her puppy, serves as the catalyst for all of this.
I love the way Larkin writes this story. She makes Van seem so real, so genuine – she even gives Joe, the dog a character. Larkin knows how to pull at your heartstrings, how to paint a picture so that you really understand what she’s trying to portray – she makes her characters very real.
I’m not going to give away the ending, but I will tell you that I loved it. It was a fantastic read for a beautiful summer day!
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