Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: Of Sunlight and Stardust

AUTHOR: Riley Hart and Christina Lee

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 269 pages

RELEASE DATE: September 18, 2018

BLURB:

After the death of his wife, Tanner Rowe takes a step toward making her dying wish come true and buys the house with the dilapidated barn she’d been inexplicably drawn to in the picturesque Upper Peninsula. But after a year, he still can’t get past his grief long enough to make the repairs he’d promised.

Recently out of prison, Cole Lachlan has little to his name. Homeless, broke, and without many options as a felon, Cole heads to Red Bluff with hopes of a second chance. There he meets Tanner, whose loneliness mirrors his own, and soon Cole is trading room and board for rebuilding the burned-out barn on Tanner’s property that hasn’t been touched in seventy years.

Turns out, the barn holds more secrets than either of them could have imagined. After unearthing a hidden journal from 1948, Cole and Tanner spend their evenings poring over the pages, reading about a young man pining after his best friend. The deeper they delve into this forbidden affair from the past, the more Cole and Tanner’s own relationship shifts—from acquaintances to friends…to undeniable attraction.

But as they begin to deal with the newness of falling in love in the wake of Tanner’s loss and Cole’s past, they also become more determined to unravel the mystery of the young lovers who’ve captured their hearts, the rumors about the fire, and what really happened that fateful night.

REVIEW:

This book touched me so deeply that I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Tanner Rowe is going through the motions of looking like he is living. But he is actually just a shell, putting into place the promise he made his dead wife. She had always dreamed of them moving to to Red Bluff, on the upper Michigan peninsula, and living on the farm with the burned out barn. She dreamed that she would paint and while he would teach college on-line and craft his home brewed beer. It all sounded so mystical and wonderful until his world crashed around him, leaving him grieving for his only love and the life that has been ripped from him. Cole Lachlan has never had it easy, except for his grandfather’s love, he had nothing. Now he is fresh out of prison and his grandfather has passed away while he was incarcerated. While trying to find work to survive Tanner finds him homeless by the lake. After a lot of bartering and negotiations, Cole starts working on the old, burned out barn. Through this arrangement the men learn to talk with each other and a friendship starts to develop. But can these men learn to trust the other when they are so closed off? And will the diary Cole found in the barn be the key that can unlock their hearts?

I have struggled to get down my thoughts on this book, especially the parts with Tom and Charlie. My dad’s best friend growing up (born in the early 1920’s) was gay. He had always, since a young boy, knew who he really was. I had always known my “Uncle Don” liked boys not girls. It was always accepted and a part of our lives. However, I had been sheltered about what life was like for an openly gay man during those times. I would ask my Mom and Dad why he wasn’t married too? I didn’t understand that it wasn’t accepted in the world like it was in our family. When I read about the injustice that these men endured it broke my heart. That they weren’t allow the basic human right to love the person whom was their everything because it was an “abomination and a sin in the eyes of the righteous”. I am so thankful that my parents taught me, from the time I was very young, that just because a person wasn’t like you didn’t make them wrong. That you were to accept people as they are and love them equally. Yes, I was raised by some pretty remarkable parents!

I loved the parallel story lines of Tanner and Cole with Tom and Charlie…the “T & C’s”. And, even though I was right on a few of the things to come, I was also pleasantly taken completely by surprise on some of the events and people in this book. The authors kept me engaged and interested throughout the entire story. I became annoyed when “real life” was taking me away from my escape into their world. I especially looked forward to Tanner and Cole setting down to read another chapter in Tom’s journal in the evenings. I loved that their story opened the communication lines for Tanner to ask questions and investigate his new found feelings. It was the perfect catalyst for open and honest communication between the men. I also loved, that once Tanner decided to explore his feelings for Cole he wasn’t about to keep them a secret like Tom and Charlie were forced to do.

This book was captivating and insightful. It lead you through the journey of both Tanner and Cole as they attempted to rebuild their lives and move on to the next chapter in their lives. But the most important part, for me, was the way Tom and Charlie helped them to move past their hardships and to learn to live and love again. I can’t express strongly enough how touching this book was for me. I highly recommend this book and know that it will be one of my “Best of 2018” this year and I hope it is for you also.

RATING: 

BUY LINK:

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