Bethany reviews ‘The Story Of Us’ by Barbara Elsborg. Self-published on October, 28th 2018, 435 pages.
Why I read this book: After reading the blurb I knew I wanted to learn more about these two.
NOTE: We were provided a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Two boys. One love. Ten summers.
Are you okay?
The first words Zed says to Caspian, and the first time someone has cared about the answer. On a hot summer’s day, the lives of two boys are changed forever. A rebel and a risk taker, Caspian doesn’t give a damn for the consequences. Studious and obedient, Zed is the good boy who is never good enough.
The two couldn’t be more different, but there’s one thing they share, a need to belong to someone who understands them, someone who cares. Their friendship goes deeper than either can possibly imagine. They’re young, in love, and planning their future when an act of betrayal tears them apart.
Fate deals its hand. Seasons pass. Zed’s words follow Caspian through pain, fear and into the darkest of places. Friendships can last a lifetime, even when the world conspires to crush them. But this is more than friendship. This is love and they’re not going to let it slip through their fingers.
Warning
The Story of Us is a tale of love and survival, and the triumph of good over evil against the odds. It’s a new adult contemporary romance that deals with family and social issues. There is violence and cruelty to children but not sexual assault. The story has sexual situations, dark elements and suspense. The events and locations are a mixture of real and fictional. The characters are fictional.
Wow. I am speechless. There are so many emotions I am feeling after finishing this book, I am not sure I can truly do this review justice, but I am going to try.
It has been a very long time since a book has had this much of an effect on me. It starts of with Caspian and Zed as boys, both sixteen who happen to run across each other. Both hiding that they like boys in the way they have been told they should like girls.
Ok let me start off with Zed, he is quiet and a rule follower. His father is Muslim and expects Zed and his brother to follow their faith to the tee. Being gay is out of the question and Zed knows his father would rather have a dead son than a gay one. Yes I do know that for some people their religion makes it very clear that being gay is forbidden, but as a mother I just can not fathom disowning, or worse wishing them dead, for who your child loves. But Zeds father, well I don’t think I ever really saw him as a human being. I can honestly say I hated him. All Zed is trying to do is keep under the radar until he is old enough to leave. But you know what they say about best laid plans.
Now Caspian, he is a totally different story. He just doesn’t care about rules. Yet when he meets Zed, he knew without a doubt that he belonged to Zed and Zed belonged to him. He would do anything to make Zed happy, too bad some of those things gets them both in trouble resulting in both sets of fathers forbidding them to see each other. Yea we all know that ALWAYS works out right? NO.
Not being able to take it anymore they decide to leave together, but fate sometimes is a cruel bitch. What happens next left my absolutely furious at Caspian’s father and brother. This is where I wanted to throw my kindle across the room with anger. I just couldn’t believe they were doing what they did, and I was so frustrated with Caspian for not saying something. Oh man my heart was breaking and I just didn’t know if my heart could take much more.
But I am so glad I did because what followed was sometimes very hard for the boys but little by little it starts getting better, and watching them grow together, and yes sometimes struggle was beautiful. I wish I could tell you about each part, each year, every little bit that I loved about this book, but it would be a very LONG review. Let me just tell you that this book was an emotion journey, not just for Caspian and Zed, but for me as the reader. The pain those two went through to get their HEA as well earned. I fell in love with not just these two but the people who supported them. Barbara has written a brilliant book and I highly suggest reading this one.
Barbara Elsborg lives in Kent in the South of England. She always wanted to be a spy, but having confessed to everyone without them even resorting to torture, she decided it was not for her. Vulcanology scorched her feet. A morbid fear of sharks put paid to marine biology. So instead, she spent several years successfully selling cyanide.
After dragging up two rotten, ungrateful children and frustrating her sexy, devoted, wonderful husband (who can now stop twisting her arm) she finally has time to conduct an affair with an electrifying plugged-in male, her laptop.
Her books feature quirky heroines and bad boys, and she hopes they are as much fun to read as they were to write.
Find Barbara here: Website
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