*****5 STARS*****
Some books are slow and nuanced and they creep up on you as you read. A Different Blue is one of those books. It has a detailed plot and two extremely gripping main characters, but it's subtle in the way it slowly gets under your skin and changes the way you think as you read. Amy Harmon is one of those magically authors that write books you want to savor and roll around in. If you love teacher/student books, this will be a unique addition to your read pile.
Blue has not had an easy life. Her mom abandoned her when she was only two, leaving her to be raised by a drifter, who also leaves mysteriously when she is ten and is later found dead. Then she is raised by his sister who is not very maternal. At nineteen she is used to being abandoned and doesn't think she deserves any better. Blue is not a very likeable character as the book begins. She has a massive chip on her shoulder and is abrasive and hard to take.
Her senior year history teacher is young, attractive, confident and British. This is his first year teaching in America and the minute Blue walks through his classroom door he knows she is going to be trouble. Wilson sees something in Blue as that tells him there is much more to her than meets the surface. When she needs someone in her corner, he becomes her champion and support.
Wilson and Blue develop a lasting friendship (note that their relationship really takes off and evolves after she has graduated) and as Blue slowly works through the pain of not knowing her actual name or anything much about her past she begins to develop a confidence that adds to the strength she already has. She also develops feelings for Wilson that go beyond friendship, but she doesn't think a woman like her deserves an amazing man like him. She also needs his strength to help her get through the trails she faces as she works to become someone she can be proud of and worries about jeopardising that.
This was a beautifully written book that stays with you long after you finish reading. Blue and Wilson were realistic and captivating characters that you cry with and cheer for. Their relationship was slow building and achingly tender and I just ate it up. This was a unique take on the typical teacher/student romance and is a book I cannot recommend highly enough.
Reviewed by Rosemary Feil
Alternate cover edition of ISBN: 1482658143
Blue Echohawk doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know her real name or when she was born. Abandoned at two and raised by a drifter, she didn't attend school until she was ten years old. At nineteen, when most kids her age are attending college or moving on with life, she is just a senior in high school. With no mother, no father, no faith, and no future, Blue Echohawk is a difficult student, to say the least. Tough, hard and overtly sexy, she is the complete opposite of the young British teacher who decides he is up for the challenge, and takes the troublemaker under his wing.
This is the story of a nobody who becomes somebody. It is the story of an unlikely friendship, where hope fosters healing and redemption becomes love. But falling in love can be hard when you don't know who you are. Falling in love with someone who knows exactly who they are and exactly why they can't love you back might be impossible.
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2qoH7wT
Amazon USA: http://amzn.to/2qrtPeR
No comments:
Post a Comment