A freak accident – a moment in time – and life changes forever.
Driving home from a concert one night, Jack McKenna, his girlfriend Ally and best friend Callum are high on an adrenaline rush. Then blinding headlights, a sickening crunch and suddenly their world is turned upside down. In the horrifying chaos that follows, Jack is forced to make a split-second decision with consequences he could never have foreseen.
Consumed with guilt, he takes the only option he believes is open to him: he disappears. Believing he is beyond forgiveness, from those he loves and from himself, he drops off the grid but the memories remain. He carves a new life for himself and his sporadic phone calls to his father become merely a tenuous thread to the man he used to be.
Four years later, a funeral signals a homecoming fraught with tension. Facing the consequences of his actions head-on, he struggles to change his future, even as his past continues to haunt him. During the painful journey of self-discovery that follows, he must learn that unless he breaks the cycle and stands his ground, he will be destined to repeat his mistakes.
Stay or go – there is no such thing as the easy way out.
Born in Opotiki, New Zealand, she is rather partial to dark chocolate and believes in the power of a good vanilla latte. She has a passion for the colour green (particularly in clothes and gemstones) and insists there is nothing sexier than a man in a kilt.
She believes in love at first sight, women’s intuition and following your heart.
She writes on her trusty laptop, predominantly late at night, when it’s quiet and interruptions are few. Most of all, she enjoys writing about human behaviour – love, loss, joy, grief, friendship and relationships in general. She loves to put normal, everyday people into situations that will test their boundaries. She is passionately curious about how we, as human beings, react when pushed to the edge.
After living in Scotland for five years, she has now settled back home in New Zealand, where she lives with her husband and two children.
Her debut novel, “Absolution”, was released on 29 October 2013. She is currently working on her next novel, “Between Before and After”.
Website: www.amandadick.com
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/amandadickauthor
Carla’s Review:
5 stars for Absolution by Amanda Dicks! This is easily one of the best
books that I have ever read! It will take you on a roller coaster ride of
emotions. So make sure you are strapped in tight and sit back and enjoy
the ride!
This book evoked a myriad of emotions within me. I felt the characters
heartbreak as well as their joy. This is a story of learning how to
forgive and moving on. The message of this story is simple-if we can’t let
go of our past mistakes and hurts, we can never move on to a happier and
brighter future.
I instantly fell in love with all of the characters in this book. Ally is
a remarkable young woman who has overcome her physical limitations and
learned how to find a new normal where her new life is concerned. While
Ally’s limitations are of the physical kind, Jack’s are mental. His
initial reaction to tragedy is to run as far away as he can. After four
miserable years alone, he finally returns home to face his demons head on.
He is consumed with guilt over the accident that left Ally changed
forever. He has to learn to forgive himself. Ally and Jack and their
small group of close knit friends chose to travel a path that leads to
acceptance, forgiveness, and second chances.
The story line of this book flowed well. I liked the way it alternated
between past and present because it gave the reader a lot of background
information on both the characters and the story line itself. I am simply
blown away that this is Amanda Dick’s first work! Talk about hitting a
home run your first time up to bat! This book is phenomenal, and I highly
recommend it!
*I was given a copy of this book as a gift from the author in exchange for
an honest review.
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