Suz @ Bookish Revelations
Written on Sep 22, 2014
Beautifully written, stunningly poignant and enchanting, [b:One Song Away|22398221|One Song Away|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1409705848s/22398221.jpg|41821093] will leave you breathless and aching for more in this lovely written southern romance full of swoon-worthy moments. Author [a:Molli Moran|7543317|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1387132308p2/7543317.jpg], has written a wonderfully mature and inspiring New Adult contemporary romance novel, that is full of healthy friendships, loyalty, and sizzling romance that will pull at your heart strings. It's such a fantastic grown-up story full of self-discovery, friendships, family, and love at the heart of everything. If these are the types of novels that you enjoy, then you'll definitely want to pick this one up and give it a read.
Sophie-Claire is a wonderfully feisty and fiercely independent heroine who is extremely likable and easy to connect with on an emotional level that makes her a well rounded character. Throughout the novel, you'll see her change and grow, as well as come to terms with who she is and where she belongs. She's fiercely supportive of her friends and family and will do anything to protect them at all costs. She keeps those she cares about close to her heart, which I find incredibly endearing. I loved getting to know her and becoming comfortable with such an inspirational character, that is incredibly strong and as positive as she is. We need more heroines like this in New Adult literature, that possess more of a positive outlook on life, healthy relationships, and friendship loyalty that you'll find in this beautifully written book. One of my favorite aspects of getting to watch Sophie-Claire grow, was when she was finally learning to become more comfortable with who she is and where belongs.
Then in walks Jake, I'm talking full all on handsome, swoon-worthy, moment as he crashes back into Sophie-Claire's life like a wrecking ball. This man is both a lot alluring and a little bit dangerous to Sophie Claire's heart and I got so much pleasure in reading how he manage to shake her world upside down and then calm her all in one go around. There's this sense of history and a possible future for these two brewing on the horizon and he sort of has this way of balancing her out and the way he supports her and her dreams is just absolutely amazing. He's strong and yet, he's such a gentle man at the same time. He doesn't take shit off anyone, but he also doesn't go out looking for trouble unless he has a good reason. (Re: scene One Song Away where he explains why he got his black eye and was in a bar fight to Sophie and it's because he was defending his family.)
And then there's Gideon, who I didn't really particularly care for in the beginning of the novel, but by the end of it I actually liked him and I was happy that he and Sophie-Claire were able to stay friends. I love it when author's include a character that isn't completely beyond the realm of redeeming. I really enjoyed that by the end of this book, Gideon was becoming the man that he should have been when he and Sophie-Claire was together - a good man.
The tug of war that's going on between Sophie-Claire's heart and head, when it comes to Jake is definitely one of the most interesting elements of the story for me. I enjoyed all of the flashbacks and how well they meshed with the present and that Sophie-Claire totally went in "balls to the wall" and she's pretty much all in, no matter the outcome. Brenna assuring her that Jake looks like a man in love, is definitely one of the highlights of Chapter 16 for me, because of the way that Sophie-Claire was able to just give herself over to him that way was pretty amazing and quite hot!
Sloane made me smile so much, I think my cheeks may have hurt a little bit, but that's ok. It's more than ok. I really love the friendship and the level of trust between her and Sophie. Everyone needs the kind of friend who will listen to you no matter what, but also knows when you need to just do things on your own in order to figure out who you will become. I was so impressed with the fact that there was an LGBTQ character included that was so well fleshed out and who wasn't afraid to be out living her life as loudly and proudly as Sloane did. I found myself wishing for her to find the love that she wanted and I hope that maybe, late down the line, the author might continue her story.
Sloane, Mina, and Brenna are pretty much amazing side characters, that goes without saying. I love how they all sort of rally around one another and support each other in anything. Even though Mina and Brenna haven't known Sophie or Sloane all that long, it's almost like they're the best friends ever - like they've known one another all of their lives and have just reconnected like old friends. I personally love Sophie-Claire's little sister, she's a wonderfully written and well developed character, that is also inspiring and adds her own unique depth and style to the story at hand. It's wonderful to read a book where there are positive characters, amazingly platonic friendships, and healthy relationships developed as well as broken characters who aren't past being redeemable in some ways.
The storyline in [b:One Song Away|22398221|One Song Away|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1409705848s/22398221.jpg|41821093] flows beautifully and possesses its own unique style and flair. It's almost like you're watching a movie come to life on the big screen. I happen to love the descriptions and imagery, that has this natural and uncanny way of bringing the characters and their surroundings to life in a vibrant and wonderful way that makes them incredibly enjoyable. They almost dance on the pages as you continue to read and follow them and the journey they take.
From the moment I started reading [b:One Song Away|22398221|One Song Away|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1409705848s/22398221.jpg|41821093], I absolutely didn't want to put it down for fear that I would miss out something else amazing. I wanted to keep reading right on through it, it is written in such a way that you can't help but get swept up in the past romance, the place Sophie finds herself in, and the guy that possibly holds the key to unlocking her future.
Note: You are now able to request a eGalley of [b:One Song Away|22398221|One Song Away|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1409705848s/22398221.jpg|41821093] by the lovely and talented [a:Molli Moran|7543317|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1387132308p2/7543317.jpg], on Netgalley, so don't miss out on the chance to read a beautifully written heart felt story and share your review on Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, etc.
Also if you haven't had the chance to read [a:Molli Moran|7543317|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1387132308p2/7543317.jpg]'s debut novel and the first installment of the The Walker Boys series, please check out [b:As You Turn Away|19399069|As You Turn Away (The Walker Boys #1)|Molli Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388855620s/19399069.jpg|27471331].