4 Stars
Publisher: Vesuvian Books
Date of publication: August 28th, 2018
Genre: Romance, Women’s Fiction
Where you can find Eight Goodbyes: Amazon | Barnes and Noble
Book synopsis (from Goodreads):
“One universe, nine planets, 204 countries, 809 islands, and 7 seas. And I had the privilege of meeting you.” – Unknown
When Tessa Talman meets Simon Fremont for the first time, not only is she attracted to him, she’s intrigued by how different their lives are. He’s a dedicated scientist, practical, pragmatic, and grounded—while she’s a head-in-the-clouds romance author. As their relationship grows, they agree to meet in places around the world, while continuing to live on opposite sides of the globe.
Though their feelings for each other deepen, their priorities remain the same. Simon is in a hurry to be financially sound and settle down, but Tessa is enjoying her freedom and newfound success. Neither is willing to give in, but as each goodbye gets harder, Tessa begins to wonder whether fame is the path to happiness, or if she has everything she needs in Simon.
Just as Tessa finds the courage to go after her own happily ever after, the unthinkable happens, separating them in ways they never imagined.
To move forward, she must let go of the past, and determine once and for all if love is truly more powerful than the pain of goodbye.
My review:
I was iffy for a while with Eight Goodbyes. I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not. The way it was written definitely added to my first feelings about it. Let me explain. The book is broken up into two halves. In each half, the book is further broken up into sections. Those sections are labeled “First Goodbye, Second Goodbye, and so on“. Within the section, the storyline goes between Tessa and Simon. Like I said, it was a bit confusing for me to read at first because (for example), Tessa’s part of the book would end and Simon’s would pick up. No letting me, the reader, know that there was going to be a switch. It just happened. To be honest, that is a huge pet peeve of mine in books. But, as the book went on, I started liking how the POV’s changed without notice. Which is the first and only time you will read me putting this down.
Eight Goodbyes is Tessa and Simon’s love story. Meeting on an airplane, Tessa and Simon enter a very unconventional relationship. For most of the first half of the book, Tessa is uncertain if she wants to be with Simon. Simon, however, is head over heels in love with Tessa and would do anything to be with her. Tessa soon realizes that Simon is hers and she is willing to have her happily ever after. But a tragedy separates them for 3 years. A chance phone call from Simon makes Tessa realize that some things are worth fighting for. Will she fight for her love? Or will she let it slip through her fingers?
I am going to be blunt here. I didn’t like Tessa for 90% of the book. Did I pity her? Yes, she had an awful backstory. But I didn’t like her. I thought the way that she treated Simon was horrible. Example: She invites him to Las Vegas. He shows and she blows him off to sleep with her male model. Then tries to rationalize it to Simon when he confronts her. This same pattern went on until Greece (minus the sleeping with her male model). I wanted to throttle her. Here Simon is, offering her his heart, and she is stomping all over it. But, the author did something that I didn’t expect. She made Tessa grow up in the 2nd half of the book. She was damaged but she was mature. There was a point where Tessa is looking at old pictures and realizes how immature she was. She also realizes how badly she treated Simon. By the end of the book, my dislike for her turned into respect. Not a lot of woman would stick around when Simon revealed certain things.
While I liked Simon, I thought he was a pushover in the first half of the book. There were points where I wanted to shake him and say “Dude, you had a nice girl in Maxine. Go back to her“. Instead, I had to read while he is being left out of important things that are going on in Tessa’s life. When Tessa agreed to marry him, I did wait for the other shoe to drop. Sadly, it did with horrible consequences. When he was reintroduced in the 2nd half of the book, I was shocked by what happened to him. I also felt bad for him when Tessa broke her “surprise” to him. I was expecting him to tell her to go take a hike after that. I know I would have.
The chemistry between Simon and Tessa was there. Even though Tessa was a jerk, it didn’t mean that they had sparks. They did. The chemistry was red hot. Sparks flew when they got together.
The sex scenes were perfect. They weren’t too explicit but were explicit enough to know what was going on. I wouldn’t describe them as red-hot but they were close.
The secondary characters were the backbone of this book. They added a depth to the storyline that wouldn’t have been there otherwise.
The second half of the book was a heart-tugger for sure. I have to hand it to the author, she knew how to turn a character around.
The end of the book made me cry. Not going to say why but it struck a nerve with me. I loved how all the secondary storylines were resolved and tied into the main storyline. I liked the little twist that she threw in at the beginning of the second half of the book. I wasn’t expecting it!!
What I liked about Eight Goodbyes:
A) Tessa at the end of the book
B) The chemistry between Simon and Tessa
C) Simon.
What I disliked about Eight Goodbyes:
A) The book was confusing to read at first
B) Tessa at the beginning of the book
C) Simon’s reaction to Tessa’s news.
I gave Eight Goodbyes a 4-star review. This was a good romance. The characters might not have been likable but the author showed that people could change. I did find the book confusing to read in the beginning. Also, Tessa was not a favorite of mine. But the book evened out and I ended up enjoying the book.
I gave Eight Goodbyes an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.
I would reread Eight Goodbyes. I would also recommend this book to family and friends.
I would like to thank Vesuvian Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Eight Goodbyes.
All opinions stated in this review of Eight Goodbyes are mine.
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**
Great review!!!
Thank you!!!