Life isn’t a pony camp…

Synopsis

A Poignant and Humorous Journey of Self-discovery, Resilience, and Redemption

Once, Julie dreamed of a life filled with love and laughter. Now, in her mid-forties, she faces a starkly different reality. She’s single, lonely, and reeling from breaking her hard-earned sobriety in front of her family and friends.

Opting for self-recovery over romance, Julie dives into planning her best friend Kate’s wedding. However, sharing this task with the irritatingly cheerful best man, single dad Luke, proves to be an unexpected challenge.

As Luke’s persistent kindness chips away at her icy exterior, a friendship forms, stirring a longing she’d sworn to suppress. But with self-forgiveness as her biggest hurdle, and her past ready to sabotage her future, can Julie confront the shame and trauma that have darkened so much of her life and find the courage to love again? Or will her demons shatter both her and Luke’s hearts in the process?

Jamie Anderson, author of the hilarious and heartwarming Someone to Kiss, is back with another witty, acerbic, and relatable story. Love, Julie is a richly emotional tale of recovery, forgiveness, and romance that readers have praised for “nailing the humor and snarky nature of our generation.”

My review

Being in her mid – forties, it would be expected that Julie would have her life on track. But Julie’s life is everything except on track, she is single, lonely and because she thought she could manage, her sobriety ended badly on the worst possible day, the engagement party of her brother and best friend.
So to show her good intentions and her determination to succeed once again in her sobriety, she offers to plan Kate and Ben’s wedding.
But what she didn’t take in account is that now she has to work together with Mr. Positivo and best man Luke.
Slowly, Luke’s presence is having a positive effect on Julie, and they are becoming friends. But with Julie’s feelings progressing, is Julie herself ready to let go of her fears, doubts, and all her other demons that are chasing her?

This was not the kind of story I was expecting when I started with this book. But as it was something else, it doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy it. On the contrary, I just loved this book, even if it was the complete light-hearted book I had in mind.

It was too easy to blame Julie for mistakes, past and present ones. Of course, it’s a choice she makes, but in this book we see clearly what brings Julie to make those choices.
Julie has a problem with alcohol, a problem that has been there for years. Problems that turned her into a person she isn’t at heart. Problems that make the others around her think that Julie *is* the problem, and they only see Julie in that light, and not as the person she has been for the months that she has been sober.

I truly felt sorry for her, because not only is she a victim, but she also tries her best to get better. But that is always easier said than done, and as we can see with Julie, it’s also about finding what works for you. Because what has been working for others, doesn’t mean that it also has to work for you.

But at the same time, I also truly admired Julie. She knows that things have to change, and she is ready to show Kate and Ben that she can do it. She wants to prove that she can be a reliable person, someone that is trustworthy.
So even if it isn’t something that she is truly thrilled about, she wants to do something for the people she loves the most.

Julie and Luke couldn’t be more different from each other. Whenever Luke appears, I could feel his positivism spark from the pages. He sees the good in everything and everyone. And he believes in people. Even in a bad situation he sees something good, and he is the kind of person that doesn’t judge.

When Julie and Luke first meet, it isn’t in the best of circumstances, and I could for sure understand Julie’s reluctance to work together with him in planning the wedding.
Nevertheless, it was sweet to see how slowly Luke manages to break those high walls that Julie has built over time.
And it was great to see how Julie takes over his ‘Lukiness’! 😊

Of course Julie isn’t having a walk in the park, as there are still many hurdles to overcome. Past mistakes that resurface, dealing with the prejudice of people, but also Julie’s own fears and doubts holding her back, letting her make again some mistakes.

I have to say, as this book works with mails Julie is writing in the present and we are seeing what happened in the timespan of a year, the author made me think for the absolute worst.
On one hand I wanted to continue to read, but on the other hand, I didn’t want to face that heartbreak, not only Julie’s but mine too…

This was a courageous story, an inspiring one too. It shows us that everyone makes mistakes, for one reason or another. And even relapsing in old habits, it is a human thing.
But it’s also about the determination to make a change, to have redemption. We see a character  develop, mature, but also ready to fight her demons.
I found this a very realistic book, with many trails and errors, but also so many beautiful things that show you that a change can be made, with the right incentive and mainly the right people by your side.