I dived into 🎧︎Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover with the expectation of an emotional journey. It did not disappoint. In her latest novel, Hoover delivered a touching tale of love, loss, redemption and forgiveness.
🎧︎Reminders of Him introduces readers to Kenna Rowan, who spent five years in prison because of a tragic mistake. Because of the length of her sentence, she lost custody of her child. Now that she has served her time, Kenna returned to the town where she lost everything, hoping to reconnect with her daughter. She took a job earning less than minimum wage and lived in an apartment with no furniture. For the past five years she lived with the guilt of the events which changed her life and the lives of other forever. However, the one thing that has not changed was her desire to one day provide her daughter with the love and stability she never experienced growing up. Despite her willingness to do what it took to achieve her dream; she knew she would face obstacles.
However, as Alfred Lord Tennyson stated, "It's better to have tried and failed than to live life wondering what would've happened if I had tried."
On her first night back in town, she meets Ledger Ward. They had an instant attraction to each other. Then Kenna learns of his connection to her daughter and the tragic events of the past. Ledger, on learning her true identity.
I enjoyed getting to know Kenna. To me, she was the heartbeat of the story. Throughout the story, I wanted to hug her. She suffered so much and deserved happiness. Her loneliness, desperation and grief gripped the heart of the reader. She made a mistake and paid dearly for it. The story highlighted how mistakes of the past can destroy our future. It also shows how easy it is for persons to pass judgement without having the full picture.
Ledger was an interesting character. One moment he had me swooning, and another he made me want to slap him for his role in keeping Kenna away from her daughter. The deeper I went into the story, the more conflicted he became.
One would be hard pressed to blame the characters for their actions. Pain coupled with grief drove them, and their actions were befitting of the situation. I empathized with each of them and kept hoping for a solution to this complicated situation. In the end, love, compassion, and forgiveness prevailed.
If you are not afraid to shed a few tears, 🎧︎Reminders of Him will be make the perfect addition to your reading list.
Brittany Pressley and Ryan West narrated. I enjoyed listening to both narrators in the past and this time was no different. Brittany portrayed Kenna perfectly by bringing her pain, sorrow and hope to life. Ryan captured the essence of Ledger. They both brought life to the story and enhanced the listening experience.