When a surprise turns out to go a whole different way

Synopsis

Sometimes the best surprises reveal the most shocking secrets.

After three decades of marriage, Brenda Jones has decided to leave her husband, just as soon as they both return from a mystery trip with their daughter Zara. But she has no idea that Zara is flying them to Las Vegas to renew their vows.

Zara Jones has recreated almost every detail of her parent’s original wedding – now her only challenge is tracking down the two friends who were pictured with her mum and dad back in 1993.

Aiden Gregg is dealing with his own relationship woes when he receives an unexpected message from a complete stranger. WIth the help of Facebook, Zara has tracked him down and is asking if his parents are the other couple in the old photo? And if so, could he bring them to Vegas for a surprise reunion?

What Zara and Aiden don’t know is that thirty years ago, One Moment In Time changed everything.

Will rewinding the clock right the wrongs of the past?

Or are they all counting down to a rendezvous with disaster?

My review

Zara Jones has made it her mission to celebrate her parents’ thirtieth marriage anniversary by taking the whole family on a trip to Las Vegas. Not only is it Zara’s plan to recreate every detail of their wedding, but she also wants to track down the people pictured together with Brenda and  Colin in Vegas in 1993.
But tracking them down is harder as expected, that is until she finds online an Aidan Gregg, who could be the friends’ son.
However, even if Aidan is indeed Eileen and Gary’s son, he is having his own problems, as he has been jilted at his own wedding.
Perhaps a trip to Vegas with his parents will be the perfect distraction and even an opportunity to make his parents become at least nice again towards each other.
What Zara and Aidan don’t know though, is that thirty years ago, the four friends didn’t leave Las Vegas on good terms, as one moment changed their whole lives… 

Having read several books of this author, I knew I would be in a rollercoaster of a story. And I thought I was mentally prepared for all the twists and turns and shocking revelations.
Yet again, despite all my preparations, I wasn’t ready for the outcome of this book! And yes, I mean this in the best way possible! 

First of all, I found it so sweet of Zara and Millie, wanting to recreate their parents’ wedding, with every detail checked off.
It only shows what a close unit this family is, as they all would go lengths for each other. 

But I also liked how different each member of the family was. Especially when in Zara and Millie’s case it’s a case of being total opposites, COMPLETELY!
While the sisters obviously love each other, they couldn’t be more different, even at a frustrating level. And reading those irritating bits, had me in laughs! 

It’s clear from the start that things aren’t going that well between Brenda and Collin. I could understand that Brenda needed something more from her life with Collin. And it saddened me that for the sake of the girls (young women!) she never expressed it before.
But I also understood that she wanted to have this last trip before breaking the news to both Collin and their daughters. 

With this author, we know that we will get several separate stories, that are entwined, yet giving us the perfect opportunity to get in depth with each character.
So having Aidan having his own space in this book, gave us the chance to get to know him for real. 

And while I thought that his wedding cam rather quickly, I also liked how romantic he was. Because he truly believed he has found his perfect match. So yes, my heart broke for him when the bride didn’t show up…
On the other hand, it was sweet to see how his mother and his best friend would give him the consolation and time he needed. 

Even if the chances were a bit too good to be true, Zara finding Aidan over social media, I was very curious to see how the reunion would be. I was eager to discover what happened thirty years ago, to make these close friends part ways. 

Obviously the first meeting wasn’t a jolly affair, but did we truly expect that? Yet as a reader you could sense that some bridges weren’t burnt completely, and something was still fixable somehow. 

With every party in the same place, all the secrets of the past are being uncovered. And some came as a total surprise to me, while others didn’t completely shock me. But it only shows that one moment in a whole lifetime can change its entire course. If it’s for the better or for the worse, I leave that in between… 

But it’s also a fact that one moment thirty years ago, made it possible for our characters in the present to make some important realizations. Like the grass that isn’t always greener on the other side, or that people aren’t always who we think we are. But also that we may find people that may be our perfect match, even if there may be some hurdles that seem impossible to overcome. 

Shari Low wrote again a great story about how lives can take a different course, and even more than once. Filled with twists and turns, and even great cameo’s, I fond myself totally invested in this wonderful story!