THE TROUBLE WITH PAPER PLANES by AMANDA DICK

15 July, 2015

SYNOPSIS

I’ve always believed in what I can see, what I can hear and what I can touch. Surfing was my religion and destiny was just a fairy-tale. But one summer, over ten days during the hottest February on record, all that changed. I found hope – the kind of hope that sustains you, even when you don’t want to be sustained.

The night Emily disappeared, I was branded. She became the girl on the ‘missing’ posters, and I became the one trying to keep everyone from falling apart. I thought that somehow it would keep me from being devoured by the emptiness inside me. Five years later, I was beginning to appreciate how deluded I really was.

Then Maia showed up. New in town, with a past as mysterious as she was, she reminded me so much of Emily that I couldn’t stand to be anywhere near her. What I didn’t realise was that there were forces at play that neither of us could possibly understand.

It takes a determined soul to alter destiny. There is a loophole, a back door, and the events that unfolded during those ten days showed me how that loophole can change everything.

Do you believe in fate? If so, let me tell you my story. If not, what happened to me might change your mind.

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense/Women’s Fiction

♥ ♥ ♥

Reviewed by Jenny & Gitte

✯✯✯✯ 1/2 Stars

‘They say falling in love takes time, but I call bullshit on that. It takes guts. It can happen in a moment – a single heartbeat, even – but to hand someone the key to your happiness is the most courageous move you’ll every make. ‘

We had no idea what to expect from this story and we’re so glad we went in with no preconceived expectations because we were taken completely by surprise. What a searing, beautiful and thought provoking story this turned out to be. The synopsis pulled us in and the authors enthusiasm for her story made us want to dive in immediately. This is our first book by Amanda Dick and after experiencing her meaningful, heartfelt and powerful prose you can bet we’ll be picking up more of her work to devour!

The Trouble With Paper Planes was a slow building yet completely intriguing story. We were kept guessing as to the outcome and nothing could have prepared us for what eventuated or how deeply our emotions would be hit. We sobbed buckets as Heath’s character resonated deeply with us and this story struck a chord on so many levels.

‘My heart was a balloon, filled with all the love I had for her, the hope I had for us, and it was lifting my feet off the ground.’

The Trouble With Paper Planes is told primarily in Heath’s pov and it is through his words and his heart we gain a first-hand insight into the grief, loneliness and conflicted feelings Heath has experienced over the past five years following the disappearance of Emily, the love of his life. Heath lives with the constant fear that one day he may have to face the realisation that Emily may never return, but until the day he receives irrefutable proof to the contrary, Heath refuses to give up hope that Emily is alive and will one day return to him.

‘I was a black hole, a star frozen at the point of collapse. I couldn’t go back, yet I couldn’t seem to move on, either.’

Heath is knocked for six when a girl named Maia turns up at Emily’s Mum’s Café in search of work. Maia bears an uncanny physical resemblance to Emily in some ways yet is quite different to Emily in others. Heath is unnerved by her but can’t deny the intense and instant connection he feels towards Maia.

“We make sense, somehow. I don’t know how, but we do.”

As we said, we had no idea of the direction this story was headed and constantly flipped between believing and disbelieving but the one thing we never wavered on were the intense feelings we felt towards Heath. This man was so beautiful inside and out. Our hearts desperately needed Heath to move on and experience soul deep love once more.

There were a couple of times we felt the story did drag a little however when we came to the end and began discussing the events, we started to reflect on moments that at the time may have felt inconsequential yet became so poignant, moving, beautiful and meaningful to us both once we finished the story. And that aha moment in regards to the title? Well, that left us us breathless.

This did have an otherworldly feel to it so if you go into The Trouble With Paper Planes with an open mind and an open heart you’ll be rewarded with a beautifully written, deeply moving and unforgettable story that will seize your heart. We can’t stop thinking about this one and find ourselves constantly reliving the significant moments that will stay with us for a long time to come. Word of advice though: have some man-size tissues on hand because you’ll need them!

**Reviewed from an ARC copy provided by the author, with thanks**

♥ ♥ ♥

THE TROUBLE WITH PAPER PLANES by AMANDA DICK
Amazon us || Amazon uk

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