BLOG TOUR - REVIEW & GIVEAWAY: Waiting for the Storm by Marie Landry

Waiting for the Storm by Marie Landry
Publication date: April 9th 2013
Genre: YA Contemporary
Buy Links: Amazon / B&N

Synopsis:

Charlotte O’Dell knows this summer is going to suck. Her beloved mother just died, her sister hates her, and her dad has completely checked out. Fulfilling her mother’s final wish, the family heads to Angel Island for the summer to stay in a beach house her mother once loved.

After a year of being shut away taking care of her mother, Charlotte is numb and practically afraid of her own shadow; she hopes going to the island will give her the time and space she needs to begin healing, and an opportunity to bring her family back together. When she meets her mysterious neighbor, Ezra, it doesn’t take long for Charlotte to confess the issues she’s developed. Ezra begins giving Charlotte assignments to get over her fears, and although she accepts his tasks, all she really wants is to be with him. When she’s with Ezra, she’s able to forget the hollow ache in her heart and the fact that her family is falling apart. But Ezra has secrets…

Can Charlotte pull what’s left of her family together, mend her broken heart, and allow herself to fall for Ezra? Or is it all just a storm waiting to happen?

Author Bio:

Marie Landry is the author of BLUE SKY DAYS (contemporary YA—January 2012), UNDRESSED (a collection of short erotic romance stories—October 2012), THE GAME CHANGER (chick lit—November 2012), and WAITING FOR THE STORM (contemporary YA—April 2013). Marie has always been a daydreamer; since early childhood, she’s had a passion for words and a desire to create imaginary worlds, so it only seemed natural for her to become a writer. She resides in Ontario, Canada, and most days you can find her writing, reading, blogging about writing and reading, listening to U2, or having grand adventures with her two precious nephews. For more on Marie and her books, please visit marielandry.blogspot.ca or check out her book blog Ramblings of a Daydreamer (sweetmarie-83.blogspot.ca).

Author Links: Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

My Thoughts:

I sighed quietly. "We take care of each other," I told him. I hoped the words rang truer for him than they did for me. "That's what you do when you love someone."

When you read a book by Marie Landry, you can rest assured that you are going to get a book that will bring forth a whole range of emotions. You are going to get a book that is so full of the realities of life. You are going to get a book that will have you falling in love. And you are going to get a book that will make you feel with your whole heart. 

Charlotte O'Dell has just lost her mother after a long battle with illness. Having been her main care giver, Charlotte wonders how her family are going to pull through their grief and pain. Her mother had a wish to return to Angel Island and stay at the beach house where she had so many wonderful memories, so that's where Charlotte, Ella and their father head to after the funeral. But instead of healing, the family seem to be drifting further apart. Will they ever feel like a family again?

This book is called Waiting for the Storm, but from the very first page Charlotte has been dealing with a storm. A storm of emotions. Grief over the death of her mother, a horrible distance and tension with her sister Ella, a disconnection with her father, the loss of friends who didn't know how to deal with what Charlotte and her family were going through and a fear of being lost and scared and not being able to find herself again.

Then Charlotte meets her neighbour Ezra and she finds herself opening up to him and confessing all her fears. He starts giving her little challenges that slowly help her overcome those fears. It feels good to have a friend again. But there's much more than friendship developing between them. His slightest touch sends tingles over her skin, and when he kisses her she really doesn't want it to end. But Ezra is hiding something. Will his secrets be what tears him and Charlotte apart?

He met my eyes briefly before pressing his lips back to mine, harder this time. Sweet and soft with a lick of heat, it was everything a first kiss should be.

I loved Charlotte and Ezra. Both as separate characters and as a couple. Charlotte had been so strong for everyone for so long. Finally, in Ezra she finds someone who is more than willing to be there for her to lean on. I absolutely loved Ezra for that. I loved him for giving her comfort and care. For wanting to protect her but also for encouraging her out of the dark times she'd endured. Their romance was loving and sweet. Yes, it all happened fairly quickly but it was 100% completely believable.

Charlotte's sister Ella was a character I did not like. She was snarky and rude and nasty. But boy if she didn't win me over by the end of the book. The progression and changing of the relationship between the sisters was one of the things that I loved most.

Charlotte's dad's grief was heartbreaking. It's hard enough when you lose a member of your family, but to lose your life partner is a grief that I can't imagine the pain of. 

Waiting for the Storm began as a story of loss, but turned into a story of hope. A story of coming out the other side. It's a story of love in many forms. Love between sisters, love between friends, the love of parents for their children and children for their parents. And even though Charlotte and Ella's mum has passed away right at the beginning of the book, she is such a huge part of this story. And it's a story of love between two people who find each other at just the right time in their lives.

If like me you are a lover of YA contemporary romance, then Waiting for the Storm is a must read for you. Reading this book would be the perfect way for you to spend a few hours this weekend!!

He looked at me - really looked at me, like he was seeing inside me, into my heart and mind and deeper.

4.5/5 Stars!!

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