The Boy From the Woods - Jen Minkman

Book – The Boy From the Woods
Author – Jen Minkman
Publication Date – December 1, 2013
Type – Stand-Alone (but the end kinda teases us that there may be more)
Rating – 5 out of 5 Stars

ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis

Julia fell down on her knees next to his lifeless body, her heart filling with dread as she noticed the left side of his face was covered in blood. He had fallen off the motorbike, hitting his temple on a sharp-edged rock. His head injury looked really, really bad.

“Michael?” she whispered softly, putting a trembling hand on his forehead. “Can you hear me?”

Julia has been in love with Michael for years. He’s the hottest guy in school, and she can’t believe her luck when they finally hit it off during Senior Prom. Her dream doesn’t last, though: after a few dates, he callously dumps her out of the blue. Summer vacation starts with Julia feeling heart-broken and miserable.

But then she rescues Michael in the woods when he has a motorcycle accident in a heavy thunderstorm. From that point onward, her life is turned upside down. Michael has changed completely after the blow to the head that nearly killed him... and he wants her back. But why is he so different? And will she be able to trust him this time around?

Can the boy who broke your heart ever win it back again..?. . .

Review

Holy Shit Batman…..I don’t know what to even write since I’m still on my sobbing downer. This book affected me, I mean REALLY affected me. I don’t remember the last time I read such a beautiful love story between young adults that touched me as much as this story did. I was high and happy in love following right beside Julia and Michael and kept wondering and thinking it can’t continue like this – something has to happen.

Let me tell you – this isn’t your “cookie cutter” book – this is different. This is an “outside of the box” kinda of story that will have you guessing the whole time what is really going on? Is this a dream? Is this really going on? You find yourself transported into Austria and seeing Julia and Michael go through the process of falling deeply in love – you feel their love, you feel their pain, you feel their joy….all emotions are pulled into this book.

Damn…Ms. Minkman, you know how to really write a story that grabs you. This is the first book I read by this author and she now has a dedicated fan in her club!! I can’t say enough about this book.

But, please, please don’t make me cry like this again…it’s embarrassing at work. J

Julia has been in love with Michael through high school and finally right before graduation, he notices her and gets exactly what he wants from her. After that, he has no interest in pursuing anything more with her – until one day during a severe thunderstorm, Julia sees Michael in her woods right near her “Old Oak Tree”. Michael is sprawled on the ground and it seems he had an accident on his motorbike. Julia immediately tries to keep him awake and calls an ambulance –

Michael survives and doesn’t want anything else except for Julia now. Something is odd about Michael, he talks about himself in the third person – he professes his love for Julia – he isn’t the arrogant bastard that Julia and her friends remember. It’s hard at first for Julia to trust anything Michael says but slowly he breaks through her wall. Things are going great but still all along, Julia questions the strange actions from Michael, and then something terrible starts to happen with Michael and all Julia’s fears come back with a vengeance.

Will Julia be able to survive having her heart broken after experiencing a love so pure and profound?

Wrap-Up

I think even the hardest of hearts will find themselves sniffling by the end of this book. This is a definite read and even if YA is not up your alley…..check this book out – you never really even feel that this is a story of high school graduates!

This was my original post as soon as I finished the book......

OMG.....beautiful love story....tear-jerker.....no....take that back....a freaking sob feast..

I'm sitting in my cubby at work and you know when you try to hold it in and you kinda snort - kinda hiccup....yeah that's me.

So one of the girls in the office comes over and asks if I'm OK....well doesn't that just start the sobs while I'm stuttering about.....ttttrrrreeeeee - bwah haaaa.....I can't stop!

About this Author

Jen Minkman (1978) was born in Holland, in the town of Alphen aan den Rijn. When she was 19, she moved between The Hague, Salzburg (Austria), Brussels (Belgium) and Cambridge (UK) to complete her studies in intercultural communication. She is currently a teacher of English and Dutch at a secondary school in The Hague, Holland. She tries to read at least 100 books a year (and write a few, too!). She is a published author in her own country, and translates her own books from Dutch into English for self-publication.
In her spare time, she plays the piano, the guitar and the violin. For every novel she writes, she creates a soundtrack. 

'I have always been drawn to writing. My first book was a sci-fi novel at the age of eight, which I painstakingly typed out on my dad's typewriter and illustrated myself. Nowadays, I stick to poetry, paranormal romance, chicklit and/or fantasy. In my home country, I am the first-ever published writer of paranormal romance, and I will gradually make my books also available in English (seeing I have to re-write and translate the books myself, this will take some time!).

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