Reading Challenges- Bareboot Bride

For this review, I chose Barefoot Bride by Jessica Hart.  This a first read by anything by this author.  I have another book to review, but need to do this one first since it is a library e-book & it is due back soon.  

I picked this book by the description.  I am so glad I did.  The book is about Alice Gunning.  Her life changes when her boyfriend leaves her, she is fired so she goes to visit her 2 friends, Beth & Roger, who lives St. Bonaventure, a tiny island in the Indian Ocean.  Back to making the right decision, Alice was asked by her old boyfriend, Will, to marry him on 3 different times.  She said no each time.  This decision came back to haunt her years later!

In the beginning of the book, I was a little confused about who I was & who Beth was, but I took some notes in the first couple pages to remind me who was who.  It reminded me of decisions that we make could come back to haunt us.  Did I make the correct decision doing A instead of B?  Have you ever made a decision that you wish you could change?

Spoiler Warning: If you have not read this book, stop!  Read the book before reading the rest of my review!! 

We learn in the couple pages into the book that Beth ran into Will, who was involved with  Alice years before.  We learned how this all played out in the lives of Will & Alice since Beth did not know (read the book to find out!).  Remember what Alice says to Beth "I'm only here for six weeks."   Alice is visiting because her boyfriend left her & he is marrying someone else.  Will is there because he took a "long-term environmental project" and he brought his family.  

Will met Nikki & married her.  "Nikki had been the first woman with the strength of personality to match Alice's, and Will had persuaded himself that she was capable of banishing Alice's ghost once and for all."  Do you think Will was just replacing Alice with Nikki to help him feel better about losing the love of his life?  Will went through a lot since he lost Alice.  He lost his wife, too.  She died in a car accident.  They had a daughter, Lily, together.  What kind of relationship did Will & his wife had?

Alice & Will ran into each other at a party at their friends' house.  They fought (not going to tell you why).  Alice eventually ran into Lily at the party & they hit it off.  Alice told Lily about when she was a little girl.  Alice said to Lily "I imagined that they (butterflies) were fairies in disguise.  At night I thought their beautiful wings would turn into silk robes and gorgeously coloured dresses."  I love how Alice told her about the insect noises that her dad told her about them having a party.  It helped her sleep at night.  

Will lost his babysitter because she ran off with a guy.  He needed someone quickly to watch Lily.  Guess who wanted to help him?  She loved spending time with Lily.  If you guessed Alice, then you are so RIGHT!!  What will happen between them?  Anything?  I am not going to go into details what happens.  It is so much better when you read this yourself!

What would I do if I got another chance to make a decision that I made years ago different?  Alice was given that chance.  Will fall back in love with her.  Alice loved him, too, but was afraid.  

I love the advice that Alice's parents tell her at the end of the book.  Alice is afraid, & does not know what to do when it comes to Will.  This is my favorite 2 quotes in the entire book.  Alice realized that she had good experiences growing up.  Living in different countries that most people would never see.  Her parents did that for her.  

Her mom said 'Alice, you can never be sure,' she had said. 'All you can do is trust each other and be true to each other and believe in each other.  Love isn't something that comes and goes.  It's something you have to make together, and if you both work at it, if you're kind and patient and prepared to compromise, if you can stay friends through thick and thin, then you can make it last, but you can't ever be sure of it.'  'Loving someone completely isn't easy,' her father had added.  'It's hard work, and you can decide it's easier never to try, but if you never do, you'll never be completely happy either. Yes, it's a risk committing yourself to loving someone for the rest of your life.  It's a leap in the desk, but it's a leap out of the dark, too, and if you don't take it you'll never know the joy and the wonder and the real security which is loving and being loved.'

I highly recommend this book.  It was a good read! 
Keep reading!
Melissa