| Title | : | Loving From Afar (The Women of Independence, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 205 |
| Publication | : | First published June 17, 2013 |
| Awards | : | Kindle Book Award Romance (Semi-Finalist) (2014) |
Allison Ransome loses everything; everything except her love for Cole Slater, the young man she planned to marry after graduation.
Gutted by Allison’s perceived treachery, Cole moves on with his life. Ten years later, he returns home, telling himself he will avoid the woman who broke his heart.
But nothing goes as planned. Can Allison and Cole forget the past and come to terms with the events that tore them apart?
Loving From Afar (The Women of Independence, #1) Reviews
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216 pages
Book one in the Women of Independence series of three
Stand alone
Twelve years on Cole is returning to Independence because his father is terminally ill. There he struggles to connect with his past love Allison who broke his heart. -
I have been given the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book. I have to say, there serious subject matter in this book, not so much that someone would be offended. I'm telling you when you read this book, you need to grab a tissue. You know its a good book when you can actually feel the emotions of the characters and thats exactly how I felt. I felt the turmoil, sadness, love, friendship. This book has it all. Its a definite keeper, I couldn't put the book down. I"m telling you, you're going to love it. Now onto the summary. I don't want to give any spoilers, so I'm going to keep it short.
"What would you do if your perfect life was shattered by a series of uncontrollable events? Allison Ransome loses everything; everything except her love for Cole Slater, the young man she planned to marry after graduation. Gutted by Allison's perceived treachery, Cole moves on with his life. Ten years later, he returns home, telling himself he will avoid the woman who broke his heart, But nothing goes as planned. Can Allison and Cole forget the past and come to terms with the events that tore them apart?"
Allison is pulled from class and is sent to the principles office. Once she gets there her whole world is turned completely turned upside down. Even though she has to move 4 hours away, Allison and Cole will make things work. They call each other everyday and then one day the calls stop...... The rest I will let you read. Enjoy. Remember the tissue. -
I was really disappointed by the ending. There was absolutely no resolution, just a quick ending.
Also, the entire book followed the chronology, from the moment they met in high school all the way to when they reunite twelve years later. So the romance is basically right at the beginning and then the whole book is about their lives each during those twelve years. So yeah you can imagine how I was disappointed that the end was just them getting together and voilà! all problems resolved instantly....
So 3 stars, even though at first I thought it would be a 5 star novel!
Smut level: none -
A contemporary romance in which teens Allison and Cole have their love derailed when life gets in the way.
A series of setbacks put Allison and Cole at odds, and it will take a few years before they may have the chance to declare their love once again. Will pride and old hurts get in the way? Especially when they are separated by events, time, and distance?
A clean contemporary romance without strong language and graphic sex (and hardly any WTT trends).
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Loving From Afar
This was an emotional story. Things went wrong when Cole tried to protect a friend. He believed the wrong person about his girlfriend. And now over ten years later he is back to be with his father, who in the states of cancer. He sees her but is he willing to listen to her. Allison has her own demons to get rid of before she can heal from her abuse. Will he listen or is it truly to late? -
My kind of read! The traumatic journey the characters had to endure to earn their HEA tugged at my heartstrings.
What I liked.
The conflict. The turmoil. The continued pursuit of happiness and as a reader rooting for them to get it. I love reading books with lots of emotion and this book had the events that made it emotional.
The hero. He was kind, lovable, likable, tough, lived by his own rules and didn’t care what others thought. Defended the weak.
The heroine. She was sweet and innocent but what she had to endure and overcome changed her to a strong individual. She learned lessons the hard way and never once thought about giving up or complained.
What I didn’t like.
The head-hopping. Mostly from the secondary characters. I didn’t think there was a need to have scenes from the secondary characters. A simple “grandma frowned” could have replaced several paragraphs that were unnecessary.
Not enough character reaction when a dilemma was presented to them. This was my biggest issue with the book and why I took off a star. All the other reasons for not liking it were minor. I would have loved to have seen the characters struggling with their decisions, to think about the consequences, to know what the stakes would be if they chose the easy way or the right way. I wanted a deeper connection. Ms. Ingram told me their feelings, their emotions, instead of showing them to me. In one particular incident – a very heartbreaking one – the heroine “was shocked and vomited. She never felt so alone and scared.” She didn’t think about what it meant or what she was going to do. How her life would change. What her future held. She thought about retribution, but didn’t follow through and never thought about it again. It wasn’t realistic. It was a life-altering event for everyone around her not just the heroine. This one and a few other reactions could have been more emotional. I wanted to feel with the character. To be in her head. To cry with her. Merely stating the feeling robbed me of that. It was like watching a great movie with the sound off. I felt cheated.
It started with a prologue. *groan* Normally I despise prologues unless you grip me. This one did not. Nothing important happened. I didn’t care about the characters. It wasn’t until I was well into the book that I realized that the prologue was a pivotal moment in the story and I knew it was coming up and waited for it. But when it did, I had to go reread it again because it meant more if it was where it was meant to be in the story.
Overall, it was a really good read, just not great. But it definitely had the potential for it.
** I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ** -
This review was originally posted to
Jen in Bookland
I feel like I have been reading a lot of books recently that just don't engage me with the characters and their thoughts and feelings. Loving from Afar was one of these. There are lots of things that happen in this story, some of them really horrible, but the writing never made it seem like a big deal. Like they were issues, but the characters seemed to deal pretty well with everything and just...I never really got the super love between the main characters, the heartache, the emotions they felt. It just didn't pull me in like I would have liked. It still wasn't a terrible read, just not as good as it could have been.
Allison and Cole fall in love when they are young. Everything is great until Allison must move to another city with her sister. She is close, but not close enough to be able to visit often especially since Cole is trying to work and save money so they can start a life together once she is able to (she is still in school). Then Cole gets in a bit of trouble, and gets locked up. Allison writes to him every day, but he never replies. It is hard on her, but she has faith in them and is just waiting until they can be together again.
While he is away Allison tries making some new friends and has some truly horrible things happen to her. She deals with them and the consequences of what happens remarkably well. I will say I did not when I was in a situation sorta like hers. Not as many consequences and not everyone knew, but still. I don't really get some of her decisions she made after she has her life altered. She never even tells her best friend who conveniently goes out of town suddenly so Allison can do what she needs to without her knowing. It was just odd to me. Like you wouldn't turn to your bff when you have super horrible stuff happening? Then when things really fall apart she never really tries very hard to make things right. I am not sure why. Why just go with it and try once, and even then not really explain anything so it doesn't fix anything? It was odd.
Then you have some drama added in which really didn't do anything for the story. It was again stuff that didn't really make me feel the emotions that would make these events significant. Some of them I wasn't even sure why they were added in. Of course everything works out in the end in a very simple way that it wasn't quite believable. It was just seems like after so long it would take a little bit more to get back to where they were. Oh well. Not the best read, but not the worst either. -
Technically if there were half stars, I'd give this 3.5 stars.
Easy read, but I could see why it won't be everyone's cup of tea. There is romance, but because the book starts in the present, but jumps back many years and works back to the present, there isn't as much romance as I'd usually like to see in this type of novel. The ending, while happy and sweet, wrapped up rather abruptly...Fitting a little due to the way the story unfolds and *spoiler* them wanting to be together after all these years, but still a little abrupt.
I admired Allison's character, all that she went though, and her strength and courage to push onward and upward. Some slow moving parts as the book moved through her life, but not too bad. Cole, while loving him in the beginning, turns out to annoy me for the most part. I get his reasons for acting the way he did, and you wouldn't have a good portion of this novel if it weren't for his reactions keeping him and Allison apart, but some were still jerk moves--not reading her letters and not giving her a chance to explain? Realistic but frustrating nonetheless.
Overall enjoyable, just not for friends I know who love romance through and through.
Romance: clean -
My Thoughts
This is know the 5 book I have read from this amazing Author. Allison is a strong young woman. She over comes so much in her life. The one thing is was counting on to make her heart whole again never comes. Cole never asked the question he should have and Allison never tells him the truth. With mistakes made and 10 years later with one look at each other & the love is still their. Allison just needs to tell Cole the truth and see if they are truly soul mates. I recommend any book this Author has out and any future story she will share with us in the future. She truly has a gift.
Books I have read by this Author:
Listen To Your Heart
Fallen Angel
Full Circle
Fool e Once
See More Review at
www.shelligodinho.wordpresss.com -
This story has touched my inner most feelings today whilst reading it. It truly is one of those stories that you feel you want to bash someone's head together because of all that wasted time.
I thoroughly loved this book, I wish I could have read it sooner but as a reader and reviewer some books take its turn, and this was a delight to read. It was one of those stories that were it a film you would sit back after it ended and heave a nice sigh of satisfaction.
I was given this book by Mona Ingram in exchange for an honest review.
I would highly recommend this book to my friends and family and anyone that is thinking of purchasing this book. -
Allison and Cole plan to get married once they graduate...but when Allison moves away and Cole is arrested and sent to jail, their lives take different paths. Tragedy strikes Allison soon after, and her life is shattered. She loses everything...everything that is except for her unwavering love for Cole. I couldn’t put this book down once I started. The story was so tragic at times and so unfair, yet Allison grows and becomes an amazing woman. When the two characters meet 12 years later, you will be on the edge of your seat to see what happens. I thought this was an amazing story of love, tragedy, resilience and forgiveness.
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Loved loved loved this book. I've just spent my Saturday reading this story & enjoyed every minute of it.
This was one of them stories that grabbed you from the beginning & wouldn't let you go until you had finished it.
The characters were wonderful & the twists in the story was brilliant.
I highly recommend this book & it's definetly one I'd re read.
This is the first book I've read by this author & it certainly won't be the last.
Received from author in return for honest review. -
I really enjoyed this book. It's a very emotional love story that will touch your heart. I love the caring and loyalty between the friends and family.I read this book in one day because I didn't want to put it down. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.
Received from author in return for honest review. -
This is a story of basically miscommunication and people making assumptions without getting the facts.
I would have liked to see it edited to tighten up the story flow. At times it dragged, and I think a good editor could have improved that flow.
That said, I enjoyed it and I liked and cared about the characters. I will be looking to get Book 2 in this series. -
There’s a HEA but some mighty depressing and serious stuff happening before you get there.
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This review was originally posted at
https://bit.ly/3t8KchG.
Allison and Cole met for the first time at the tree lighting ceremony in their small town of Independence. From that moment on they were inseparable until almost a year later when things started to go wrong. First, tragedy struck with Allison causing her to have to move 4 hours away with her sister. Shortly after Cole was sent to jail with an 18 month sentence. Allison had been prepared to wait for him to find out what had happened, but when further pain is inflicted upon her which causes Cole to turn away there may be no hope for this couple.
Once upon a time not so very long ago I loved paranormal romances over everything else. Now, give me a contemporary romance any day. This book is sweet and a little heartbreaking. The things that happen in it are just a little too plausible and that is where the feels truly come in. I hated what Allison was going through as she was going through it, although her plight is not one that I can relate to. Cole is everything and more, although a little bit of listening never hurt anyone. Years of hurt could have been avoided, but I get it.
For once I don't feel like the characters were acting like children when they are adults who are almost 30. Frequently we see adults in contemporary romances have a childish attitude and it causes a sour spot in the story. When I am reading about adults I want them to act like adults, not like spoiled brats who need their way.
Cole is my favorite character in this story as he loves doing woodwork. Yes, there are a million reasons I could say, but that is my main one. My grandfather has done woodwork my entire life and even reading about someone loving something he does is amazing. He is my favorite person in the entire world and has described to me more than once the enjoyment he once got out of creating something with his hands and how much that he misses it now that Parkinson's disease has made that impossible.
This book is one I suggest reading for anyone with a love of small town romances. The ending is slightly rushed, but that is the only negative I have to say about this book. -
This is an outstanding story about Allison and Cole, they fell in love in High School and made plans to marry after graduation . Everyday life events gets in the way as it does after graduation. Young people are trying to find jobs, some leave home, some leave their home towns and friends get separated. Can Allison and Cole make a life together or go their separate ways.
This is about a young couple , their life in a small town and how unforeseen events change so many lives. I enjoyed this story and the adventures throughout. I read the entire book in one day and into the night. I had to read until the end, I couldn't put it down. This book touched my heart and emotions. It was fast paced and easy to read. Thank You, Mona Ingram for sharing this novel with us. -
Riveting Story
I read this one in one sitting. Things that weren't my cuppa - 1. I usually prefer zero cursing and there were a few mild ones here and there. 2. I usually opt for books without sex and though it wasn't graphic, it was there a few times.
Other than that, this book was pretty good. I liked the characters. They were relatable and well-crafted. The plot had me frustrated at points, but I was /invested/ in the drama written into the tale. I felt the ending was a bit rushed, like so much time was spent on a few things that could've been traded for time spent on the MCs rekindling that bond.
If you like a solid drama which plays out almost like a soap opera but better, you might want to try this one. -
I really enjoyed this book, I loved how it started off with Cole and Allison seeing each other again after so long and then going back in time to how they both met. Definitely a different spin on learning about the past. Some things were predictable but not in a bad way as I was able to guess before they happened and when it did it still floored me. I didn’t like one part of the book but that’s understandable as I don’t think anyone would. Must have been hard to write about. Overall a really sweet story and i am so glad they ended up together. It was about time!!!!!
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Currently free on Amazon 02/02/2023
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Loving-Afar-...
https://www.amazon.com/Loving-Afar-Wo... -
I could not get behind this book. I liked the idea of the book playing out like a flashback (it kind of reminded me of The Notebook). But I think the author just tried too hard to make it dramatic. I couldn't get invested in the characters or the plot. As cute as the premise was, it wasn't believable enough and felt more like it dragged on.
For a full review, check out my video.
https://youtu.be/hhOmK8bpseI -
Awww, I absolutely loved that book and really enjoyed it very much...
Lots of dramas in that book so, it was great! I think her and Cole are perfect each other..She gave her up for adoption to her sister whom called her Katie..I love how Katie grew up so fast in each story and sad for her to have a kidney disease but luckily, her Auntie Al was a match and she already feel much better..
Can’t wait to read the book series soon... -
Warmed my heart
I’m not that good at writing reviews because I don’t want to reveal too much of the story. This is the first book I’ve read written by Mona Ingram but will most certainly not be the last!
I’m a sucker for a good love story but sometimes they can become a bit predictable. This lovely story took some very interesting turns and I just fell in love with the characters. I read it in a day. Beautiful story that really warmed my heart. -
A New Favorite Author!
I am not a big fan of contemporary romances, but this book, Loving From Afar, blew me away! It is very well written with a tremendously wonderful storyline! I look forward to other books by Mona Ingram! -
It usually doesn't take me this long to finish a book. It seemed to have all the right elements for me, but I just couldn't get into it. I can't say I liked it, nor can I say I disliked it. When a book doesn't hold for me it drags on forever.
