All Our Beautiful Goodbyes by Julianne MacLean

 

My thoughts

I've read and honestly loved several of this author's books. Each is unique and held me captive throughout. This one is no different. This is a beautiful story filled with so many emotions. Love, betrayal, loss, new life, goodbyes, beginnings. Love lost and possibly found. So much emotion in this story set on and around Sable Island.

Emma was born and raised on Sable Island. She lost her mother when she was born. Her father raised her by himself and did a great job. He taught her so much and she's very smart. She wants nothing more than to go to college but her dad is not so keen on the idea. He doesn't want to let go. 

When Emma meets Oliver after his ship wrecks off the coast of Sable Island, she falls head over heels in love. But he has to leave and she's left humiliated and heartbroken. Why would he ever do that to her. Push her away. Act as though they never shared anything special. But that is exactly what he did. After all he was a married man. His wife was living a complete separate life with another man so it couldn't have been her. Could it?? 

Then Emma meets and falls for Logan. He came to Sable Island as a veterinarian to care for the horses. They fell in love and got married. Not long after she gave birth to a baby boy. Then things went so wrong for the couple. Logan had secrets he never divulged to his wife. They were in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Logan was arrested. Emma was devastated and returned to Sable Island. 

Her life was so complicated and then Oliver returned professing his undying love for her. They spent the day together and when he had to leave he promised to return at Christmas and they would announce their engagement. That was not to be... 

Emma went through so much because of these two men. She had to move on with her life. She had found herself pregnant again and went back to Halifax to her friend Ruth's. She gave birth to a baby girl, Rose, and already had a son, Matthew. She was destine to be alone it seems. She would not return to Sable Island but instead went on to school. She made a life. Then years later a car pulls up to her home....

This book is told beautifully. Yes it made me cry. A lot. Especially close to the end. This author takes you deep into the lives of Emma and her father. The horses on Sable Island. The loves Emma had and lost. It's one I highly recommend.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. 

About

From USA Today bestselling author Julianne MacLean comes an epic tale of unrequited love that is by turns breathtaking, heartbreaking—and utterly unforgettable.

1946: World War II is over, and Emma Clarkson is poised to take flight. With dreams of attending university, she’s ready to leave behind the wild beauty of Sable Island, the only home she’s ever known. But when a handsome British sea captain is rescued from a nearby shipwreck, her destiny is forever changed.

Emma falls deeply in love with Oliver Harris, but their romance is not meant to be. Oliver returns to the sea, while Emma vows to forget him and pursue her own ambitions. When a handsome veterinarian arrives on the island to study the wild horses, Emma finds love again, but soon discovers that all is not as it seems…

1995: Mourning the death of her beloved grandmother, Joanna Griffin is shocked to learn that her grandfather once loved a young woman named Emma, but lies, betrayals, and catastrophic events separated them forever. As Joanna crosses an ocean to solve the secrets of her grandfather’s past, she learns that love is a powerful force, even mightier than the passage of time…

A shining thread of hope illuminates this epic tale of lost love and fallen dreams, set in the remote splendor of Nova Scotia and spanning decades.