BOOK REVIEW and GIVEAWAY for Before Us by Jewel E Ann

BEFORE US

by JEWEL E ANN

I never saw him coming.

I didn’t know what would happen after my client found me sleeping in my car.

I’d been cleaning his house as his wife was dying.

I didn’t expect them to invite me to live with them.

I didn’t expect Suzie to become my lifeline—until she was gone.

I didn’t expect him to ask me to marry him when he found out I needed medical insurance.

I didn’t expect to fall in love with a grieving man.

There are so many reasons to keep my distance from Zach. Every tender moment secreted away.

When we’re not together, I miss the man I call husband.

Does he miss his wife? If so, which one?

ADD TO GOODREADS

"The EMOTIONS this book evoked are the exact kinds of emotions I want in every book. The heaviness, the angst, the anger and the love - it all lends power to Zach and Emersyn’s love story.” ~ The Book Bee

REVIEW: YEP, READ IT. NOW.

"Regret has a way of coming to the surface no matter how hard we try to drown in it."

FIRST: A message to Jewel E Ann — please don’t ever stop. Your angst is my favorite. Your comedy is my favorite. Your lighthearted silliness mixed with profound sadness is my favorite. You add angst, silliness, drama, and real life into all your books and I always jump at the chance to read something new from you. Your storytelling is my favorite...just, thank you.

NOW: I'll just pour my heart out here because this book affected me on many different levels, but the emotional one hit home more than I can probably explain. To be fair, I always sing her praises in every review because she is forever giving me circumstances to think through, emotions to wade through, comedy to laugh through....and true awkwardness in droves - so that won't change with this review. However, this one certainly hit a little close to home. 

JEA's degree of reality mixed within the pages of her stories baffles me. It truly boggles my mind. She always provides an amazing love story full of growth, true love, witty comebacks, and....well, truth. But she always infuses them with a heaping dose of reality - regardless if I want to accept it or not. This one was no different. The emotions I felt from this story were compounded by real life that this book mirrored for me - and it physically jolted my heart. I cried. I laughed through tears. I fell in love. I just…wow. Watching Zach work through his wife's death and all he did for her was very reminiscent to what I went through with my gramma and I didn't think those wounds were still so raw. Apparently they are. To say I cried is an understatement. Tears were rolling down my cheeks. 

But the story doesn't stop there...

The emotional upheaval the characters go through with all the variables of their situation just made it that much more gasp-inducing. More heartbreaking. The pain of goodbyes. The pleasure and heartache of reality smacking them in the face. The unbearable truth of….well, truth. The individual and collective journey of both Zach and Emersyn caused me to think about what-ifs of a very personal nature. How do you let go of something so symbolic…and be ok with it because you can’t change it? I mean, I read this with my heart in my lap - there was no coddling at that point.

"How do you redefine yourself when what felt like the most important part of you no longer exists?"

So many different avenues to explore with lingering questions about how you can possibly move on from losing a loved one, to losing a best friend - and them being one in the same. The exploration of those emotions, of those personal morals being questioned, was such a high and low throughout this entire book. So. Emotional. So. Amazing.

What’s right?
What’s wrong?
Who determines it?

So many questions and I love that she explored that avenue thoroughly with this emotional love quest. I had the heaviest of hearts. My heart is so heavy, but the pain went deeper than I ever imagined it would with this story. This is definitely not for the surface reader or the emotional lightweight because it will challenge you, but you have to read it.

I love that she makes me question the status quo. The norm. The emotional side to what some would simply call yes or no only questions/answers, but I'll tell you this. Her journey -  it’s never, ever easy…everrrrrr. It’s always that journey she gifts me with that sucks me in. Full story, no missing elements - nothing, and a rollercoaster of emotions to match. The many different nuances she hints to, the way she breaks down scenarios, she is a very gifted storyteller and a favorite of mine. Hands down. I happily, honestly, and emphatically recommend her all the time. 

Take it from me, you want to feel this book. I mean, you want to feel it. Darnit, I mean, READ IT. Yeah, feel it.

"Denial blurs good judgment almost as much as whisky."

~BEE

PURCHASE: AMAZON - Kindle Unlimited

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~MEET JEWEL E ANN~

Jewel is a free-spirited romance junkie with a quirky sense of humor.

With 10 years of flossing lectures under belt, she took early retirement from her dental hygiene career to stay home with her three awesome boys and manage the family business.

After her best friend of nearly 30 years suggested a few books from the contemporary Romance genre, Jewel was hooked. Devouring two and three books a week but still craving more, she decided to practice sustainable reading, AKA writing.

When she’s not donning her cape and saving the planet one tree a a time, she enjoys yoga with friends, good food with family, rock climbing with her kids, watching How I Met Your Mother reruns, and of course . . .heart-wrenching, tear-jerking, panty-scorching novels.

~CONNECT WITH JEWEL~

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