100 Days of Sunlight

by Abbie Emmons

[Sam@WLABB]

What a sweet and touching story!

Both Tessa and Weston had their lives turned upside down with unfortunate accidents, but each dealt with their situation in much different ways. Tessa was angry and chose to isolate herself, while Weston had decided to not let his disability limit him. When Weston learned of Tessa's situation, he wanted to be a positive force for her, and help her see that although she did lose her sight, she didn't lose everything.

Alright, I will admit, that Weston's motives weren't purely altruistic. He did really want to help Tessa, but he also wanted to be around someone, who saw beyond his disability. He was tired of being pitied, and wanted to be treated the same as everyone else. He found that with Tessa. And, although she didn't know it, Tessa had someone by her side, who could related to her situation. I saw this set up as a win-win for both characters, and thought Emmons did a beautiful job taking us on this journey.

Reading about Weston's accident and everything he did to regain as much of his life as he could made me really love him. His positivity and drive was moving, and I just found him to be a wonderful person. But, he was also very real. He made mistakes, he made bad choices, and he had to live with the repercussions. However, he was good friend, a fantastic big brother, and a loving son. All his good qualities outweighed his bad ones and endeared him to me.

I thought the structure of the book worked really well, too. There were five sections for the five senses, which alternated between Tessa and Westons points of view. I always like being in the characters' heads, and therefore, appreciated the dual POVs. But, I also liked the flashbacks. We slowly learned the full story behind Weston's amputation and recovery, and it helped me really understand Weston and his motivations.

I am a sucker for strong family ties, and Emmons gave us two incredible families in this story. Tessa was being raised by her grandparents, who were so loving and wonderful. Their affection for Tessa was apparent, but they were also very patient with her during this difficult time. They gave her space to come to terms with her situation, but also gently nudged her when necessary. And, Weston's family was really, really lovely. The bond between him and his brothers was something to envy. Their love was obvious in everything they did for each other, and I adored all the scenes they shared with each other.

Overall: This was a beautiful story of friendship, family, healing, acceptance, and facing adversity. It made me laugh and cry and smile and swoon, and it left me with a heart full of hope. What more could I ask for?

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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