Review: "Where We Belong" by Eve Connell
Note: This ebook was provided by Patchwork Press Cooperative via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amelia Baide and Harry Jamieson have known each other since they were children, thanks to their mutual love for the water in general and competitive swimming specifically. There's always been chemistry and a spark in their friendship but neither did much about the mutual attraction. When they're both involved in an accident that prematurely ends Amelia's swimming career and has her not remembering certain details about the accident, they go their separate ways, only to find each other again six years later.
On the anniversary of the accident that took her life for several minutes and changed it ever since, Amelia Baide finds herself at odds, yet again, with her fiancé. She decides to leave, but after running out of gas, she finds herself at a swimming center where an old friend automatically assumes she's there to swim. Unexpectedly, another old friend, Harry Jamieson, arrives at the same place and though there's some awkwardness at first, the connection between them appears to have never dissipated.
Harry carries with him secrets regarding the night of the accident. He's not sure when and how to confess what he knows to Amelia but one thing he knows for sure is that he wants to help Amelia return to competitive swimming. He offers to help her out as her coach but refuses to get in the water with her, unable to tell her that his reasons are connected to what happened during the accident. Their renewed friendship finally becomes something more when Amelia ends her engagement.
Even as Amelia and Harry get ready for Amelia's swimming competitions, the past looms over them. When the truth regarding that night is exposed, Amelia's relationships with people she thought she could trust are changed. Harry's part before, during, and soon after the accident has them both putting the brakes on their budding love affair. Is Amelia ready to truly start living again and pursuing both the sport and the man that she's always loved? Is Harry ready to finally forgive himself for that night?
I quite liked Where We Belong, a second chance love story that centered on the lead characters love for swimming. I've been a swimmer almost all my life and even competed in my youth so I had a great appreciation for the way the sport wasn't just a mere backdrop in this book. Both the lead characters had their flaws but being able to witness their re-connection as the impetus to truly begin living their lives again was like a journey towards hope, forgiveness, and, ultimately, redemption.
If you're looking for a story that combines sports and romance but in equal measure, this is definitely one that you should seriously check out. I love being able to read stories that are original and presented in a mature and heartfelt manner and Where We Belong just happens to be one of those stories. Amelia and Harry's struggle to overcome the past and become the best versions of their present selves is inspiring and one that I encourage you to experience for yourselves. This gets 4.5 stars! ♥
Date read: 21 February 2015
Learn more about author Eve Connell here.
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