Tragedy brought him home, but love made him stay.When his estranged wife, Jess, has a terrible accident leaving her lying in a coma, Clay Connors returns to his family to care for his two daughters. He has been separated from his family for nearly two years and his eldest daughter, Maddie, is resentful over his being absent. Sadly, his youngest daughter, Jilly, barely remembers him. Clay’s … Clay’s reasons for staying away now seem self-serving in the light of their family’s tragedy. The past washes over Clay as the memories of what led up to their separation envelope him and his future hangs in the balance over whether or not his wife will wake up. Can they be a family again, or is he too late?
One Wrong Turn is a story of time lost and redemption as Clay and his daughters struggle to reconnect and learn to trust again in the wake of a tragedy.
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What a story. This was a very touching and emotional book. It had me from the start and I could not put it down. A car accident that almost broke a family apart pulled them together. A family who love each other even more than they know.
Clay, a recovering alcoholic, came home as soon as he got word that his wife was in the hospital after a car wreck. She was in a coma. Clay and their daughters, Maddie and Jilly, would not give up hope that she would find her way back to them. Maddie had lots of anger for her dad and with good reason. But he was determined to win back her love and faith in him. Jilly, a carefree little girl who saw the best in their dad and never gave up hope that her mom would be ok and come back home.
This book was so good. It made me laugh, get angry and boy the tears. They just flowed. Especially toward the end. I can’t say why or I would give away some good parts of this book. Just read it. Trust me, it’s wonderful. A beautiful story that touched me deep down inside. I loved it and look forward to reading more by this author.
I had to give this one a 5 star rating for sure.
I recieved a copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. It was one touching story for sure.
Sometimes an author can take the simplest plot and it will pack an emotional punch that resonates with the reader to their core. You follow normal, flawed people and you cry, get mad, become disappointed, have empathy, have sympathy, laugh and feel joy. That was the journey I took with Deanna Lynn Sletten’s novel ONE WRONG TURN.
Jess Connors is renovating her grandparent’s old home into a B&B as she raises her two daughters, Madison “Maddie”, age twelve and Jilly, age seven. She has become a friend to many in the community over the last two years, but all it took was one wrong turn of her steering wheel as she was rushing to pick up her daughters after school to change all of their lives. Now Jess lies in the hospital in a coma.
Clay Connors has been estranged from his wife and daughters for two years until he receives the call notifying him of his wife’s accident. Clay is a talented studio and live musician, but he also let his alcohol addiction destroy his family and his own personal belief in himself. After this third try at rehab and AA, Clay knew it was his last chance to prove himself to Jess. He was afraid to join them at the B&B and lose them forever, so he kept convincing himself to put it off for another day. Now he has to earn the trust of his oldest daughter once again, reintroduce himself to his youngest and remain sober under this stress while reuniting his family and waiting for Jess to wake from her coma, if she does.
The author writes Clay and Jess’ meeting, courtship and family life up to their separation in flashbacks told by Clay interspersed throughout the story. Clay’s alcohol addiction is written with truth and empathy. All his fears and failings are exposed, along with his daily battle to remain sober. The interactions between Clay and Maddie are extremely emotional because she was so close to her father and yet she was too young to understand what addiction is and so she has a severe lack of trust and a huge feeling of abandonment in regards to her father. The author offsets the difficulties with her father, with the care and understanding she shows her younger sister. Jilly is lovable, happy child who is trying to deal with all that is happening.
This book has the story of a couple that has always loved each other, but addiction divides them. For me though, the main characters that I empathized with and cheered to a happy ending were Clay and his daughter, Maddie. The dialogue is realistic as well as the emotions. All of the secondary characters were perfectly placed to add to the story, but never took the main focus off of Clay, his sobriety and/or his daughters as they dealt with their family in crisis.
This book is an emotional roller coaster that is beautifully written. The strength, love, perseverance and forgiveness of the characters will stay with me long after I finish this review. I am looking forward to reading more of Ms. Sletten’s books in the future.
This was a very emotional read. It’s especially so for anyone who has someone close to them who is an alcoholic and has battled the demons that live in the bottle. Have tissues handy. The very apt ONE WRONG TURN title covers more than one aspect of the story. It covers the literal and figurative events that move us along.
Like all of Deanna’s books, this one is emotional romantic. I definitely recommend it!
3.5 stars
I always tend to one-click books if I read that there are children involved. I liked One Wrong Turn, even though Clay hadn’t been around for two years, I understood his reasoning for it. Did he made the right decision by staying away? Who knows! When his wife is in a car accident and is lying in a coma, he comes back to his family. His eldest daughter Maddie, who is twelve years old, holds a grudge and doesn’t want anything to do with him. She feels abandoned by him and makes sure to tell him that every step of the way. You can’t really blame the girl for feeling that way, especially when she was just ten years old and her daddy was her everything. His seven-year-old daughter Jilly, is very positive and has a big heart. She accepts him right away and opens her heart for him. He knows he was wrong to stay away from his family but was afraid that he would go back to drinking, disappointing and eventually lose his family for real this time.
His wife Jess is a very strong woman and loves his husband in despite of his drinking problem. She has his back but eventually has to put her daughters and herself first. The flashbacks were a very nice touch in seeing how Jess and Clay met, and how their relationship/marriage developed. The only reason for a 3.5 star is because I didn’t see enough development between the couple in present time. I liked the flashbacks, but I wanted to see Jess and Clay in a present time setting after his two year absence. I think if there was an extra chapter or two, this book would’ve been a 4 star for me.