I really like the idea of reading this story, mostly because I was in the mood for something like this with young love and second chances (yes it sounds cheesy but I was in the mood for cheesy). I was really disappointed that this book didn't deliver on the scale I wanted. Ivy is the mother of a 15 month old daughter who is trying to get away from her abusive husband by leaving Alaska and going back to Utah to live with her parents. While there she meets up with old friends she lost contact with, mainly the boy she had a crush on, Archer.Ivy's character started out alright, but as the story progressed, she just annoyed me more and more. She claims to have been mean in high school, yet the only flash back we get shows her talking to Archer, and nothing about her then seemed mean. Another thing she fails to go into detail about us her husband. yes we get that he was mean and abusive, but the reader doesn't get too know the details of how they met in the first place, why she married him, or why he acts the way he does. When we get to the confrontational part with her and Vick, it happens because he convinces her that he has the divorce papers and she needs to come get them. I may not know much about restraining orders or divorce proceedings but when the two are being carried out simultaneously, I'm sure the court would have found a way for Ivy to get the papers without having to deal with Vick. The fact that she completely dismisses all rational thought just to get the papers from Vick just made me think of her as desperate after this point. That and the fact that she apparently never told her parents about the restraining order she has against Vick or anything about why they are really getting a divorce made me angry and irritable at her expense.Archer was a little better, but again, he really annoyed me towards the end.It like these characters had no sane thoughts going through their minds the last 20% of the book. I also didn't understand his love for Ivy. He says he had a crush on her in school, yet goes and makes a pact with his friends to not date her. Even when they meet up again, I failed to see the chemistry between them.I felt the story could have been better had there been more detailed descriptions of past events and characters. It felt rushed and the side characters were hard to keep track of because they kept flitting in and out of the story and no one was really distinguishable from the other, since they all had love for Ivy. One of my biggest pet peeves when reading this was the character POV changes that did not indicate whose character we were suppose to be following. It mostly occurred with the chapter breaks, but also within the chapters too. It always irritates me to read a paragraph, become confused with the dialogue, then have to go back and reread everything again because I just realized I was imagining the wrong character speaking the dialogue. The book had a nice start to it, but fell flat towards the end, and by 90% I just wanted it to be over so I could move on to the next book. There were parts I enjoyed in the beginning, but felt they couldn't make up for the parts of the book that didn't sit well with me. I loved this book! It pulled me right in from the beginning. The author has amazing story telling skills and I quickly came to care for Ivy and her daughter, and of course the darling German Shepherd, Sadi.Be warned,this is a tear-jerker. More than once I needed multiple tissues. The author has a knack for making you FEEL. You'll cheer Ivy on and be amazed by her inner strength. Be prepared to fall in love with Archer and the boys (and Gigi, too!) and hate Vick. Oh my, I really, really...ya. It's fine though, he's the bad guy. I won't give away the ending, but it's well wrapped up and will leave you very satisfied!Do I recommend? YES
