Friday, April 4, 2014

Book Review: White Horizon by Jan Ruth

Title: White Horizon
Author: Jan Ruth
Rating: 4/5
Book links: Amazon / Goodreads / iBook / Barnes & Noble
Author links: Website / Facebook / Goodreads

SYNOPSISA dramatic story of forgiveness, family and friendship; set in the Welsh Mountains of Snowdonia.


Three couples in crisis, multiple friendships under pressure.
On-off-on lovers Daniel and Tina return to their childhood town near Snowdonia. After twenty-five years together, they marry in typically chaotic fashion, witnessed by old friends, Victoria and Linda who become entangled in the drama, their own lives changing beyond recognition.
However, as all their marriages begin to splinter, and damaged Victoria begins an affair with Daniel, the secret illness that Tina has been hiding emerges. Victoria's crazed and violent ex-husband attempts to kill Daniel and nearly succeeds, in a fire that devastates the community. On the eve of their first wedding anniversary, Tina returns to face her husband, but is it to say goodbye forever, or to stay?
REVIEW: 
Three marriages, four friends. Each one learning about life, love, and who they are and want to be.
Victoria seems as if she has the perfect life, the perfect family, and the perfect marriage, when in reality she has the perfect facade. Finding the strength to stand up for herself, Victoria is led on a journey of self-discovery, happiness, love, and heartbreak.
Linda, at a loss after her husband leaves her for a teenage girl, is learning to stand on her own two feet again and figure out what comes next for her. 
Daniel and Tina, 25 years in the making have finally decided to tie the knot and commit to one another for life, but what happens when one of them gets news that affects the rest of their lives while the other battles their feelings for another all while trying to figure out how to get their partner back and what made them leave in the first place?
Jan Ruth has written a dramatic story that entwines the lives of three people all searching to find and reinvent themselves later on in life. Friendships are tested, love is tried, but in the end each one learns something new about themselves and their relationships.
The characters in this story are so real - they laugh, they cry, they are flawed and most importantly they make mistakes. 
My favorite character was Daniel. Caring, sweet, kind Daniel. Daniel makes mistakes, but in the end never falters in being there for his loved ones and caring for others. His love for Tina and the realization that he can never love another no matter how hard he tries is beautiful. 
Tina is my second favorite character. No matter how difficult, Tina tries to face her problems alone in order to spare Daniel the pain of watching her suffer. Finding strength that she never knew she had, she becomes the strongest of them all. 
Beautifully written, White Horizon is about second chances, love, friendship, and family. 

I definitely recommend this one to readers.
*Note: A complimentary copy of White Horizon was received from author Jan Ruth in exchange for an honest review.

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