2024 the best of me tears of joy edition review

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(as of Nov 30, 2024 23:25:11 UTC - Details)

This 20,000-word story is told in drabbles: each chapter consisting of only 100 words.

Sebastian Gilman meets a guy on a dance floor every Friday night. He knows nothing about him, not even his name, only to find one day this familiar stranger turns up on his building site and they need to work together.

Ryland Keller knows better than to get involved. Alone and half a country away from home, he revels in isolation until a handsome man in a gay bar turns his world upside down. Sebastian wants to help Ryland recover from a horrible past, but only if Ryland can let his guard down long enough to see that he can have the best of both worlds.

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B076C5YQT7
Publisher ‏ : ‎ BlueHeart Press (October 9, 2017)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 9, 2017
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1872 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 114 pages
Reviewer: Miriam
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Beautiful story!
Review: This story is beautiful and heartbreaking❤️ The writing style is different but it suits the story. Even though it’s short, I fell in love with the characters and their story made me cry❤️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Reviewer: Len Evans Jr
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: An Awesome Story of Love Overcoming All!
Review: Well this book was an pretty awesome read... for one thing I learned a new word... even if I'm still not quite sure what a drabble is! However I do know it must be something pretty incredible. Ryland and Sebastian are so well-written that I would almost swear they are real and Ms. Walker knows them... well umm, of course she knows them since she created them! She tells their story in a tender and intimate style that just brings them to life completely. She also does a wonderful job of weaving the supporting cast of characters in and around the two MCs until the story is complete and whole. This is my second book by this author and now I need to read everything else she has published because these first two were just pure joy to read!

Reviewer: Jess
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Short and Sweet
Review: My gosh, is there anything this woman writes that doesn't touch the heart?! Such a beautifully, short, and sweet story. Every time I read one of N.R. Walker's books, they make me cry, but they always end well! I've never really found an author that I genuinely liked all of their stories. So far, N.R. Walker is definitely that!

Reviewer: Ike Rose
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Can I give it more than 5 stars?
Review: Amazing and moving.I liked the first half of the book, but part 2 blew me away. Excellent writing, weill paced plot, adorable and relatable characters.

Reviewer: Lora905
Rating: 3.0 out of 5 stars
Title: The format affects the story, 3.5 stars
Review: I was already a fan of NR Walker's work and was intrigued to check out this new format of 100 word chapters. First off, the chapters aren't denoted in the usual way, i.e., Chap. 1, Chap. 2, etc. There's just a paragraph or 2 at the top of a page, a barrier line going across the middle, then another paragraph or 2 at the bottom. So you really have no idea how many chapters there are, just 3 "parts" to the book. Secondly, although readers are still able to get a good sense of who both Sebastian and Ryland are, this determined-to-be-shortened format keeps you from completely getting a sense of everyone and everything else around them. Outside of the 2 of them, nothing seems to be in-depth, which is a problem for me because I like details so I won't be left with questions. I didn't like that for the first however many chapters (just up until 7%) you don't know who's speaking because they don't yet know each others' name; I had assumed that because of the format the POVs were going back and forth. In reality, the book is entirely in Sebastian's POV until the 92% mark.Other than that, I really liked both MCs as a couple. I liked their relationship and both the physical and emotional aspects of it. I didn't quite feel as deep a bond as I'm sure the author wanted to convey - maybe because of the format? maybe because of how time passage was conveyed? - but I liked them together just the same. All in all, it wasn't a waste of time, but I feel it would have been much better off just being written straight out.

Reviewer: Belen
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Sweet
Review: Told in drabbles (100 word increments/chapters) the story is told mostly from Sebastian's first person, present tense POV, with a couple of drabbles from Ryland's POV later in the book.It was sweet, but not spectacularly well served by the short bursts of vignette storytelling.Ryland and Sebastian meet at a gay club in Seattle and dance with each other every Friday night. When they meet coincidentally outside of the club Ry makes it very clear he's not, and will not be, out. He has his reasons, and they're a real tearjerker.Seb, who's out to family and friends, but not at work either, slowly works to break down Ty's barriers.N.R. Walker has a gift of taking the everyday man with everyday situations and weaving these incredible stories of love and passion. Even in drips and drabs she manages to get across the romance, fear, pain, love, and acceptance, but IMO in this case it is dampened by each chapter/sections's brevity.While I'll admit I wish she'd rewrite it in a "'real' (properly structured) book" format, I think it was very cool of her to try something new, and, if nothing else, proves that Walker can tell a love story in any setting.

Reviewer: DaveHB0909
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Very real! Really!
Review: It’s real. Every word of it, every tear, every laugh, every everything. I know Ryland’s pain, I’ve been through it. I know what the wall is like that you build when someone devastates you. I know what it’s like to spend six months in hospital and not have a single family member visit. I know what it’s like to hear the words, “you’re dead to me. Never speak to me again.“So, Ms. Walker has given me hope that there is a Sebastian out there in this world for me as well. Someone who can tear down my wall one brick at a time. Someone who will hold me just for the sake of holding me so that I can remember what that feels like.This is one of the most beautiful little love stories I think I’ve ever read. It’s the perfect story that brings a tear to your eyes. Makes you chuckle when they do. And makes you literally laugh out loud over a delightful, kinda ditzy, over-zealous mother. I put my walls up too thick and too high. But someone like Sebastian could chip at it and prove to me that I’m not going to die alone.Ry’s first love left for reasons I won’t mention so as not to spoil anything for future readers. Mine left... after 22 years together, because he said he couldn’t deal with the unending cycle of illness. I had underwent chemotherapy and survived cancer... twice!!! But the chemo does a lot of damage. And there I was, with 21 different conditions I was seeing doctors for, being told to leave after 22 years. To navigate the morass that is disability. Trying to find a place for me and my service dog to live where there hadn’t been anyone murdered in the building. All without the help of any family because HE was my family! Yep. I know Ry’s pain.That’s why this novel hit me like a ton of bricks. Both painfully and hopefully!! Yet, more hopefully!!Brava Ms. Walker and thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. (And if you find a single “Sebastian” running around somewhere, send him my way would ya!?)

Reviewer: Anky
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Best of Both Worlds was a sweet, simple read with lovely characters. It was short, and written in a unique format that I enjoyed reading.

Reviewer: NK
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: So cool! I loved how out was written. The way it was broken up really added a punch to each piece. It was different and well written. The story was wonderful. I love that it wasn't a fluff piece but not too angsty or dark either.

Reviewer: Ana
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Sebastian e Ryland são fofos, de realidades diferentes, de famílias com difefrentes pontos de vista. Infelizmente a família de Ryland é cheia de preconceito e a de Seb é de amor e aceitação. A leitura é deliciosa, o que e como Seb consegue passar a o amor para Ry é lindo. Livro mais que recomendado.

Reviewer: Client Kindle
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Topissime cette courte histoire. J'ai passé un excellent moment à lire ce livre car cette histoire est une pure petite merveille.Sebastian est un homme magnifique et adorable, totalement prêt à montrer à Ryland qu'il peut être aimé !Cette relation se renforce avec le temps et devient leur monde à l'un comme à l'autre !!Je le recommande vivement !

Reviewer: ulla
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Sebastian kann den Freitag-Abend kaum erwarten: Seit Wochen denkt er an den gutaussehenden Fremden, mit dem er noch kein Wort gewechselt hat, der ihn aber jede Woche antanzt. Seine Überraschung ist groß, als sie sich plötzlich mitten in der Woche beim Job treffen …Warum diese Novelle von N.R. Walker „Best of Both Worlds“ heißt … hat sich mir bis zum Schluss entzogen. Vielleicht verstehe ich darunter einfach etwas anderes als die Autorin.Die Geschichte ist aber trotzdem wundervoll: Geschuldet der Drabble-Form darf man als Leser immer wieder winzige Augenblicke der Annäherung zwischen Sebstian – aus dessen Sicht die Story erzählt wird – und Ryland erleben. Ich meine wirklich „erleben“, man liest nicht nur, wie die beiden von Fremden zu Freunden und dann vielleicht auch mehr werden, man spürt es auch.Sebastian braucht eine Weile, bis sich Ryland ihm öffnet. Zu traumatisch war dessen Vergangenheit, zu groß ist die Angst, wieder von jedem, den er an sich heranlässt verraten und verletzt zu werden. Es ist unheimlich berührend, wie sich Ryland ganz langsam öffnet, Berührungen und schließlich auch emotionale Nähe zulässt. Doch schnell zeigt sich, dass seine psychischen Wunden noch lange nicht verheilt sind. Sein Vertrauen ist so gründlich zerstört worden, dass er einen weiten Weg gehen muss, um es wieder jemandem zu schenken.„Best of Both Worlds“ ist – bei allem Zucker – auf überraschende Weise ehrlich. Nicht jedes Outing verläuft positiv, nicht jede Familie ist offen für einen Sohn, der eben nicht den eigenen Vorstellungen verspricht. Die Kunst scheint zu sein, sich auf die guten Dinge im Leben zu konzentrieren, jede Sekunde auszukosten und jede Chance zu nutzen.Einige der Rezis hier kritisieren das Ende der Geschichte. Mir hat es gefallen. Das nach Rylands schrecklichen Erfahrungen in seiner alten Heimat in der neuen nun alles gut sein sollte, wäre toll - aber wahrscheinlich unrealistisch. N.R. Walker zeigt aber trotzdem, dass sich vieles zum Besseren wendet und die Toleranz wächst.Fazit: Wunderschön geschriebene und sehr berührende Love-Story. Von mir gibt es glatte 5 Sterne. Unbedingt lesen!!!