A Five-Minute Life

This book is, hands down, one of the most beautifully captivating stories I have ever read. Emma Scott has crafted a deeply moving story that goes above and beyond anything I have ever expected. Emma has poured her heart and soul into every layer of this story and I honestly do not have the words to properly express the stunning beauty she has created. This book is so incredibly unique, so deeply moving and brimming with a special kind of love that just feels you with absolute joy. This is beyond doubt one of the greatest books not only of 2019 but maybe ever.

From the beginning I was deeply entranced in the journey of each of these two characters, individually and as a couple. I cannot express how much Jimmy and Thea’s story moved me. There was some kind of desperate need inside of me, just willing for them to find some way to make it work. I went through so many emotions throughout this book, some joy, some devastation and I welcomed every single one because this book made me feel like nothing I have read before.

To say this book was amazing seems inadequate and would not do it justice. It was a unique and beautiful, raw and true. Jim and Thea not only touched my heart, they touched every fibre of my being. Every part of me was enraptured with every special moment they shared – the happy ones and the heartbreaking ones. And all the moments in between.

A Five Minute Life is so much more than a romantic love story between two people. It is a story of living your best life because no matter what happens, we never know how much time we have left in this world. It’s about love, trust and safety. It’s about promises, taking risks, loss and believing in your heart. It is an remarkably exceptional tale that touched me so deeply. This book is a treat for the imagination and the heart. Emma Scott has bestowed us with a very special gift. A book filled in abundance with its unique beauty and the true power of love. 5 incredible stars from me – and a huge personal thank you to Emma for writing a book that affected and touched me on so many different levels.

My mind is blown by the sheer epicness and utter perfection of this unique and unconventional love story. A Five Minute Life is a soul-stirring and magnificently inspiring tale about living life to the fullest, collecting precious memories and cherishing every moment with the people you love and care about. This book is the testament to Emma Scott’s exceptional talent and brilliant mind. This author is without a doubt in a class of her own. Her novels stand out from the rest – not only due to their strong storylines, well-defined characters and the beautiful, poignant writing but also because Emma always strives to give us readers something new and never seen before. She writes about imperfect people, underdogs, the ones who usually don’t get a voice in the book world but whose stories need to be told nonetheless. That’s what makes them so special.

Althea/Thea Hughes is a 23 year old resident of Blue Ridge Sanitarium with the second-worst documented case of amnesia in the world. Thea has only five minutes of consciousness before her memory is wiped clean and her brain resets. Her life was once vibrant and vivid like her paintings but now it’s just empty and quiet and on a constant loop. I can’t imagine how it must feel like to be the unwanted prisoner of your own mind unable to escape. Especially for a talented artist like Thea who used to express herself and her feelings through her art. She is indeed a remarkable, strong and extremely brave woman.

Jim Whelan has bounced around the foster care system since his birth living a life without love and affection and being mocked and bullied by others on a daily basis. But Jim has learned to fight back and to keep going on no matter what. He is 24 years old and an orderly at Blue Ridge Sanitarium where he meets an exceptional young woman, Thea, whose mere presence enriches his whole existence und fills the darkest recesses of his heart with light. Although Jimmy was dealt a poor set of cards he turned into a very decent, kind-hearted and caring person. I just wanted this incredible man to finally find happiness and love because nobody deserved it more than him.

I loved every single interaction and conversation between Thea and Jim. You could feel a spark between them from the very beginning, a deep understanding and instant connection. Thea was trapped inside her 5 minute life due to her brain damage while Jim’s own autopilot existence felt much like a prison too – one he made for himself.

Jimmy treated Thea with so much respect, gentleness and care. He wanted to protect her from the deafening silence of her mind, help her find her voice through art. Jimmy desperately wanted Thea to live and not just exist. While he was taking care of her she was breathing life into him again in return, loosening the schackles of his tragic past that were dragging Jimmy down and preventing him from reaching for his dreams.

I could gush about this fantastic story and wonderful characters for hours. This book is not merely a journey of the protagonists individually and as a couple but a revelation, a life lesson to be learned. That’s exactly what I appreciate so much about Emma’s work. Although she always makes me cry rivers of tears for her characters I wouldn’t want it any other way. Because as much as she tends to break my heart she always puts it back together again. I strongly encourage you to pick up A Five Minute Life and let this author take you on an emotional rollercoaster you soon won’t forget. Trust me, the ride will be worth it. 6 stars!

A Five Minute Life by Emma Scott is once in a lifetime experience. I can gurantee you have never read a book so tragic, so angsty, so beautiful and so enlightening. My chest is aching. My eyes are red and swollen from all the tears I shed for Thea and Jim. My emotions are in complete mess. But my heart is choked full with all the amazing and breathtaking reaction Emma Scott evoked in me.

I won’t talk about the story line. Because you need to get the full impact of this unique story. I am just amazed by the author’s masterful story telling and exquisite writing. She opened up the complex minds of the characters with her sharp poetic writing and dissected it till I had no choice but forget everything except the devastating emotions. I was holding my breath every time the story came to a precipice but nothing could prepare me for the free fall.

Thea is an amazing character. An artist, a prisoner in her mind’s nightmare, a heart full of vibrant love and compassion, a mind full of strength to fight back every time,a life of tragedy and hurt. She has own my heart with every single thought and action. I wanted to sit in a corner of my room and curse and cry and just do something everytime she had to go through something hellish. And my love for Jim knows no bound. This handsome man with a life time of bullying, neglect and hurt has so much to give back. His hope and fight for Thea changed everything. The journey they had together was out of the world extraordinary. I seriously have not cried this much while reading a book for a while. All the heartbreaks, all the setbacks, all the breakthroughs- my heart was shattered into a million tiny pieces and I almost wanted to stop. But I kept going and I am so thankful for my heart accomodating as the spectacular ending was so worth it.

Emma Scott made me face some serious dilemmas about life. She made me go through the ugly raw feelings. She pushed me to the extremes of my emotions till I was rewarded with the stunning and beguiling feelings. This is romance at it’s best. I will scream at you if I have to because this story should be read by every single reader.

Received ARC for Honest Review

5+ “Keep me safe. Keep me wild.” stars!

It’s no wonder why Emma Scott is my favorite author. She continues to wow me with every single word she writes and this story is no exception! A Five-Minute Life is original, unique, and captivating. It’s emotional, magical, and unputdownable. It’s everything I could ask for in a new adult romance and more, and I loved every single word of this spectacular love story.

Thea was an exceptionally talented artist who had her whole life in front of her when an accident took it all away. She now suffers from one of the worst traumatic brain injuries documented and lives in a five-minute loop. Every time she “resets” she loses her memories and her day starts over.

Jim gets a job as an orderly at the Blue Ridge Sanitarium and is surprised what he learns about the patients. He can’t fathom what they go through day in and day out with little hope for recovery. Then Jim meets Thea. Her light draws him in and makes his darkness fade a little bit. He can’t seem to get her out of his mind yet he knows he must becauseThea is a patient at the sanitarium and strictly off limits.

“Thea Hughes wasn’t recovering and wasn’t going to get better, and I had to adjust to that reality too. She was a resident of Blue Ridge Sanitarium. I was an orderly charged to take care of her, end of story.
End of our story.”

Only, that isn’t the end. Every interaction between Jim and Thea makes his feelings grow stronger even though she continues to forget. Except, she may not entirely forget everything. Little clues lead Jim to believe that perhaps Thea does remember things from their time together. When a new surgery is developed to help amnesia patients, there is hope that Thea will remember and Jim can finally explore the connection he knows they share.

Gah! This story!! It is breathtakingly beautiful and really hits you with the feels. It is brought to life through Thea and Jim, two multidimensional characters who are ingrained in my heart. Despite her traumatic brain injury, Thea’s character remained true. She is still kind and genuine and full of life. Jim has a dark past that haunts him but he does not let it ruin him. He is good, sincere, and has a huge, unselfish heart that shines through with his actions.

Thea and Jim are flawed and different but are perfect for each other. Their insecurities make them real and relatable and their hearts make them endearing. I enjoyed their wonderful banter and swooned with every sweet interaction. They are easy together and they form a bond that grows into a special relationship that no challenge can break down.

I loved that Jim was there for Thea even if it was easier to let her go. And Thea encouraged Jim when he needed it most even when the world was against him. That’s the thing about love though, you fight for it no matter what. Thea and Jim saved each other when neither knew they needed saving. Thea saw something special in Jim that no one saw before and Jim was there for Thea when she needed someone to believe in her. They ended up bringing one another back to life and they were everything to each other.

“She was all the light and color I could ever want.”

It’s impossible not to be fully invested in Thea and Jim’s love story. There is a heartbreaking reality that doesn’t fall in line with the love that Thea and Jim share. The loss that both Thea and Jim experience every five-minutes pulled at my heartstrings, and the hope they felt when they are given a chance is beautiful.

“I waited for the curtain of her mind to close and open again and we started over again. Actors in a movie, reading a script, but the cameras and crew were hidden from sight. The same words, take after take.
Every time, the confusion swept across her eyes, wiping everything away. Erasing our five minutes. Erasing who and what we were to each other.”

It’s an emotional ride that will bring on the tears and bring on the smiles. There is so much love though and it is real. I felt it, I believed it, and it was everything. There is beauty in their strength and hope. They are all in and it filled me with so much joy even as my heart broke.

The storyline is original, imaginative, well-developed, and wonderfully written. You don’t know where it will go or what will happen. It surprises you in the best possible way even when it is tragic. It breaks you and then puts you back together, and all the emotion, both good and bad, is worth it because this love story is epic and will forever be in my heart. I want to relive Thea and Jim’s story over and over again and experience their love as if it were the first time because A Five-Minute Life is just that good. It deserves all the stars! Easily a new top favorite of 2019, this is a must read!

I made it through the prologue without crying, so there’s that.

I haven’t been hit this hard by an Emma Scott book since Full Tilt & All In. Yes, every book I’ve read of hers has brought out the tears- okay, usually turning me into a sobbing, blubbering mess if we’re being honest. But A Five-Minute Life? This book reduced me to a literal puddle of tears. I have the trash can full of tissues to prove it, if you’d like to see.

Every time I crack open a new book by Ms. Scott, I like to think that I’m prepared for what’s to come. By this point, you’d expect me to be ready. But each and every time, I am so woefully ill-prepared that it’s laughable. And this book? This book took it to a whole new level.

Look, I’m an emotional reader. I’m an emotional person. I’m one of those people you see memes about, who cries at commercials. But believe me when I tell you, if you come out of this book unscathed, I’m pretty sure you not only have no heart, you have no soul. Jimmy and Thea, well it’s been awhile since 2 people have owned me like they do. I am overwhelmed with all my feelings for them, and for this book. Overwhelmed.

Now we get to the point in the review where I’m at a complete loss as to how to put into words everything I want to say about this book. With A Five-Minute Life Ms. Scott has written a story that’s so unique, so heartbreaking, so emotional, so utterly perfect in every way that it’s going to take me a long time to recover from all the feelings. Thea and Jimmy’s story stole my breath and owned my heart. I am so in love with these two people. I don’t want to call them characters, because they are real to me. Thea is the only bright, vibrant light Jimmy’s ever had. She’s open and vulnerable, living life to the fullest, even if it’s just five minutes at a time. Jimmy is the champion Thea didn’t know she needed. He’s so kind and caring, such a good man when he had every reason not to be. He sees Thea, sees what no one else is able, or even willing.
Together, these two were able to face everything the world had to throw at them, because they had each other.

…but I just watched her; drank her in because she was all the light and color I could ever want.

I’m not sure how Ms. Scott will ever be able to top this story, but I’ll be there for it, box of tissues in hand.

Excuse me now, I guess I haven’t used up all my tears.

I’m so filled with love after finishing A Five Minute Life. This story grabbed hold of me from page one and didn’t let go until the final page. Wow. Absolutely breathtaking and so beautiful in its storytelling, writing and portrayal of characters.
Jimmy and Thea are two extraordinary people who I’ve come to care deeply for while reading AFML. They display values I treasure in people. Their humanity, empathy and respect of and for others are what carries them through this story and life. Jimmy and Thea are warriors and never gives up no matter the struggle and obstacles life throws at them.
I have to be honest and say I struggled reading AFML but only because it was so damn good. I felt too much and it made me pause to think about this story and life in general.

The author excels in capturing the helplessness, the frustration and the feeling of being lost with an effortless ease. Jimmy and Thea had to go through these emotions and it was excruciating to be on the sideline with them.
Emma Scott has constructed this story with so many layers. Not only with the storytelling but also with the characters. Yes, Jimmy and Thea are incredible characters but so are the secondary ones as well. Especially Rita and Alonzo who become so much more than colleagues and caregivers to Jimmy and Thea.

A Five Minute Life is a story that I will remember and treasure. Especially for Jimmy and Thea. Their love story is unique and breathtakingly beautiful. It has to be experienced and felt.
You won’t regret it. Wow indeed!

5 Keep Me Safe Keep Me Wild Stars

HOLY CRAP ON A CRACKER!!!! Emma Scott has done it again, wrote magic on the page, and now expects perfection reviewed….how do you put into words, and give them the justice they deserve? I know I can’t, I will start off A Five-Minute Life deserves ALLLL the stars!!! This book has you feeling every emotion, it’s heartbreaking, it’s gut wrenching, you also feel deep anger for Jimmy, and the things he had to go through growing up living with a horrible woman, and you feel so bad for Thea, and you can’t imagine living in these 5 minute increments, not remembering anything. You see Thea was in a horrible car accident and while she survived and and her body recovered, her brain unfortunately took the brunt and as a result she has the second worst recorded case of amnesia. She is living in a facility, and that’s where she “meets” Jim. He gets a job there and there is an immediate connection, a force if you will, that keeps bringing them together….and then there’s Delia…..oh Delia!! She is Thea’s sister, and as much as I admire Delia for being there for Thea, I also wanted to smack the smugness, and the way she looked down her nose at Jimmy…ok, I’ve said enough, would I recommend this book? Oh you bet your ass I would!! Y’all need to read this book, It is that good!! Emma thank you so much for sharing your amazing gift with us, and look forward to the next shit kicking my heart will take from your words, I love you to the moon and back!!

“Dear God.”

Those were the first words I choked out when I came to The End. As in, Dear God, everything hurts. Dear God, readers are going to go bonkers for this. Dear God, she did it again. AGAIN. Every time Emma Scott releases a new book, I think, there’s no way she’ll come close to topping that last one, and yet, she always does. After fifteen books, you’d think I’d learn my lesson. And despite having written fifteen books, she manages to keep the storylines fresh and unique. Falling in love five minutes at a time? *mind blown* I saw Drew Barrymore do it in 50 First Dates and she had twenty-four hours at a time…and that was a comedy! Spoiler alert: Ms. Scott doesn’t write comedies. Let me rephrase that, Ms. Scott hasn’t written a comedy yet, but I wouldn’t put it past her.

If you’re an Emma Scott fan, you will no doubt LOVE A Five-Minute Life, and if you’re new to her, this is a great place to start.

It took me a couple of days to put my thoughts down and I still don’t think I’ll get across the uniqueness of this story. Ms. Scott writes with vibrant strokes. Her characters are quirky and fun yet serious and down to earth. She gives us a layer to build on, watch change and grow. For me, she always tells a story that I can get lost in for awhile and forget about everything else.

From the opening pages there’s so much emotion swirling around, I had to stop and take a few minutes to just breath it all in. It’s amazing how words on a page can do that, yet it’s exactly what happened.

I loved Jim Whelan from the start. Despite his circumstances he has a kind and gentle spirit. He’s shy and reserved, compassionate. Thea Hughes shined. She’s big and bold – unafraid. She’s also sweet and sensitive. She is more than her medical condition. Their imperfections, which aren’t imperfections at all, give them their uniqueness. Their encounters are life changing.

And then there are the tiny details – surroundings, location and secondary characters all play a vital role in the development of the story. And it’s not just a simple story. It’s a journey of two people, discovering themselves and each other, falling in love and living life to the fullest. It’s beautifully moving.

Inhale! Exhale!

If I take nothing else from this book, I take this.

Inhale! Exhale!

As always a beautiful book, a great storyline, fantastic (read; way beyond fantastic) characters, and emotions galore. Emma Scott never disappoints on these counts.

What she does in this book more so then ever, is give us repeated emotional punches to the gut.

I’m short on words for this review. I basically want to quote every other page from this gorgeous, heart wrenching, and gut twisting story.

Most of all I want to drop to the floor in relief that I got through it. Emma has had me in sobbing tears for the last hour and I need to pull myself together, sooo….

Inhale! Exhale!