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Cupid Falls #2
Just One Thing
“Sometimes, you find yourself inadvertently in the dark. But I’d discovered that if you stopped fighting against it and just stood still, sometimes something marvelous comes along.”
Artist Lexie McCain spends her days literally weaving the story of her life into a gorgeous tapestry. But on Monday nights, she walks to the Corner Bar, drinks a Killian’s, and answers the same question every week from Sam the bartender: “One thing?” She starts with her name, then her cottage, slowly moving on to the devastating tragedies that tore her life apart.
Sam Corner’s smile doesn’t seem to hide any pain. One night, Lexie turns the tables on him, asking Sam, “One thing?” To her surprise, Sam reveals his own tragic history. Together, Lexie and Sam learn that, with good beer and a trusted friend, sharing just “one thing” might lead to the one thing they both thought was lost forever: love.
From award-winning author Holly Jacobs comes the story of heartache, hope, and the power of sharing just one thing.
Artist Lexie McCain spends her days literally weaving the story of her life into a gorgeous tapestry. But on Monday nights, she walks to the Corner Bar, drinks a Killian’s, and answers the same question every week from Sam the bartender: “One thing?” She starts with her name, then her cottage, slowly moving on to the devastating tragedies that tore her life apart.
Sam Corner’s smile doesn’t seem to hide any pain. One night, Lexie turns the tables on him, asking Sam, “One thing?” To her surprise, Sam reveals his own tragic history. Together, Lexie and Sam learn that, with good beer and a trusted friend, sharing just “one thing” might lead to the one thing they both thought was lost forever: love.
From award-winning author Holly Jacobs comes the story of heartache, hope, and the power of sharing just one thing.
198 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2002
322 people are currently reading
1376 people want to read
About the author
Holly Jacobs
178 books281 followersHolly Jacobs leads a life full of romance and adventure. From skydiving to jet-setting around Europe, from snorkeling in coral reefs to writing while wearing beautiful silk peignoir sets and popping chocolate bonbons, Holly Jacobs leads a life that is the epitome of romance...
Well, my fictional life sounds more interesting, but not better than my real life. Really, I'm the happily married mother of four. I cook a lot, garden and weave baskets! I write for Montlake Romance and Harlequin. My books range from lighthearted comedies to more serious dramas...but at heart, they're all stories of love.
You can visit me at
http://www.HollyJacobs.com.
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/HollyJacobsA...
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/HollyJacobs1
PINTEREST: http://www.pinterest.com/hollyjacobs1/
I don't always set out to write a series of books, but seem to find myself gravitating to them. Because so many people have asked, I've posted lists of all my series in order at www.hollyjacobs.com/bookseries.html. I really try to make each story stand alone, but many of my readers enjoy reading the series in order. Hope this helps!
Thank you to everyone who's picked up a single book, or more of them. I'm so lucky to be surrounded by so much support!
Holly
Well, my fictional life sounds more interesting, but not better than my real life. Really, I'm the happily married mother of four. I cook a lot, garden and weave baskets! I write for Montlake Romance and Harlequin. My books range from lighthearted comedies to more serious dramas...but at heart, they're all stories of love.
You can visit me at
http://www.HollyJacobs.com.
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/HollyJacobsA...
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/HollyJacobs1
PINTEREST: http://www.pinterest.com/hollyjacobs1/
I don't always set out to write a series of books, but seem to find myself gravitating to them. Because so many people have asked, I've posted lists of all my series in order at www.hollyjacobs.com/bookseries.html. I really try to make each story stand alone, but many of my readers enjoy reading the series in order. Hope this helps!
Thank you to everyone who's picked up a single book, or more of them. I'm so lucky to be surrounded by so much support!
Holly
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 247 reviews
March 23, 2015
4 Bittersweet Stars!
Never expected the emotional journey that this book would take me on. When your heart has been shattered into a million pieces, instead of mending it all at once, it's easier to heal one piece at a time!
A heartbreaking, yet lovely sweet read! And yes, it ends on a good note!
About the audiobook...
Beautifully narrated by Laurel Merlington! I could feel Lexie's heartache, Sam's understanding, kindness, and his own pain, through her voice.
A Kindle Unlimited Read
May 30, 2014
Every monday night, Lexie walks into Sam's bar. She sits down and orders a beer. Every monday night, Sam puts a beer in front of her and asks, "Just one thing?"
As the weeks and months progress, her story unfolds through small glimpses of happy and sad moments, building to the tragedy that led her to be sitting on her own in a bar, drinking a single beer before trudging the two miles home.
Through the telling of her story, and listening to Sam's own story, she gradually finds healing and a redemption of a sort.
Just One Thing is by no means an easy book. It deals with difficult issues ... sadness, guilt and perhaps even loneliness. The book progresses at a measured pace with clues to what led Lexie to where she is given in stories from her life.
I'm honestly not even sure how to categorise it...I hesitate to call it romance even though it is being marketed as such. It's probably a little closer to women's fiction, but with some romantic elements. I don't think it's for everyone, but I do think it's very good and I loved it.
As the weeks and months progress, her story unfolds through small glimpses of happy and sad moments, building to the tragedy that led her to be sitting on her own in a bar, drinking a single beer before trudging the two miles home.
Through the telling of her story, and listening to Sam's own story, she gradually finds healing and a redemption of a sort.
Just One Thing is by no means an easy book. It deals with difficult issues ... sadness, guilt and perhaps even loneliness. The book progresses at a measured pace with clues to what led Lexie to where she is given in stories from her life.
I'm honestly not even sure how to categorise it...I hesitate to call it romance even though it is being marketed as such. It's probably a little closer to women's fiction, but with some romantic elements. I don't think it's for everyone, but I do think it's very good and I loved it.
June 14, 2014
A very sweet, simple, spiritual, and well-written story about love, life, and forgiveness that unfortunately did nothing for me.
May 27, 2014
ARC generously provided by publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Lexie leads a quite life, one in which she has cut herself off from most of the world. She didn't mean to it just happened. Then one Monday she wandered down to the bar a couple of miles from her house where she had a beer. AFter doing that every Monday for a few weeks, the bartender Sam, started to ask her "One Thing" in which Lexie had to share something about herself. Soon Lexie finds herself looking forward to Mondays and her visits become very therapeutic. Then one day Lexie turns the table on Sam and asks him for "One Thing". Through their Monday night question they get to know each other, and possibly begin to heal each other.
One thing I loved about this book is that Lexie is a grown woman. She has grown kids and we get to learn what her life was like. There is a reason Lexie is where is in her life and parts of it are sad and heart wrenching and others are funny and joyous. Sam has overcome his own demons and we get to see how his journey began and how he wound up in the bar. I loved learning about Lexie's family and what happens to all of them. Lexie is a strong woman who has been through a lot but she is learning to let go and start to live again, and thanks to Sam he is helping her let go but sharing her story.
You learn more about Lexie then Sam but it is heart warming and endearing to see all what Lexie has gone through and learning that just when you think life may be over, it may just be a new beginning.
Lexie leads a quite life, one in which she has cut herself off from most of the world. She didn't mean to it just happened. Then one Monday she wandered down to the bar a couple of miles from her house where she had a beer. AFter doing that every Monday for a few weeks, the bartender Sam, started to ask her "One Thing" in which Lexie had to share something about herself. Soon Lexie finds herself looking forward to Mondays and her visits become very therapeutic. Then one day Lexie turns the table on Sam and asks him for "One Thing". Through their Monday night question they get to know each other, and possibly begin to heal each other.
One thing I loved about this book is that Lexie is a grown woman. She has grown kids and we get to learn what her life was like. There is a reason Lexie is where is in her life and parts of it are sad and heart wrenching and others are funny and joyous. Sam has overcome his own demons and we get to see how his journey began and how he wound up in the bar. I loved learning about Lexie's family and what happens to all of them. Lexie is a strong woman who has been through a lot but she is learning to let go and start to live again, and thanks to Sam he is helping her let go but sharing her story.
You learn more about Lexie then Sam but it is heart warming and endearing to see all what Lexie has gone through and learning that just when you think life may be over, it may just be a new beginning.
Read
March 24, 2019DNF 15%. Turns out it's a Christian romance, which is not a genre I'm particularly interested in, although a few accidental reads in this genre were surprisingly enjoyable in the past. My main issues with this one:
1. Sounds like it's a very slow build up to the main relationship - widowed lonely, more mature heroine (grown up children) meets empathetic barman every Monday for her weekly drink and slow sharing of their tragic back stories, just one thing at a time each week. That makes for very slow therapeutic recounting of their individual pasts and eventual acceptance before they move on to build a new future together. That leaves very little time for them to actually get to the romance part between the protagonists.
2. The style is a bit strange - 1st person POV in the present and 3rd person when recounting the past.
3. The narrator, she's ruining it for me. I'm sorry, but she sounds so embittered and prim, which might be intentional, but it really made it hard for me to warm up to her character.
1. Sounds like it's a very slow build up to the main relationship - widowed lonely, more mature heroine (grown up children) meets empathetic barman every Monday for her weekly drink and slow sharing of their tragic back stories, just one thing at a time each week. That makes for very slow therapeutic recounting of their individual pasts and eventual acceptance before they move on to build a new future together. That leaves very little time for them to actually get to the romance part between the protagonists.
2. The style is a bit strange - 1st person POV in the present and 3rd person when recounting the past.
3. The narrator, she's ruining it for me. I'm sorry, but she sounds so embittered and prim, which might be intentional, but it really made it hard for me to warm up to her character.
January 28, 2015
Ms. Jacobs' writing is strong and sure and I enjoyed being inside the world she created with it. She knows how to make her characters both sympathetic and complex, and I was glued to the page to see how they were going to navigate their many troubles. And their troubles are legion indeed. I appreciated the gargantuan task Ms. Jacobs took on with her depiction of Lexie's grief. And I fell head over heels immediately for Lexie and Sam and their simple game in the bar each Monday. How could I not? That said. The grief and her inability to manage it (and her past) became so prolonged that it bled out to mar my enjoyment of the novel as a whole. The overdone sentimentality of the second half felt manipulative. And in the end I simply wanted it to be over and was loath to return. The balance had shifted so far it was impossible for me to get back to that place of thought and hope and meaning I so enjoyed in the first half of the book.
December 10, 2014
3.75 stars
May 12, 2015
I really loved Just One Thing, by Holly Jacobs. It’s the story of a woman who is reflecting back on her life in an attempt to heal and move on, and the man she meets who not only helps her but ends up needing to do the same thing. It has heart and soul and a beautiful emotional balance coupled with a gentle, apt conclusion.
I really loved Lexie. I loved seeing the bits of her life and reveling in the love she surrounded herself with. I don’t want to say that I loved seeing her hurt, but there was purpose and catharsis in it that brought comfort, perhaps even some familiarity. I loved Sam too. He was such a good listener, such a strong silent presence. I loved that he knew when to push and when to back off, that he wasn’t afraid to show his feelings. He brought a sense of true acceptance to the pages.
I loved the format of this book, namely Sam and Lexie’s game of “one thing,” where one or both of them would share something of their personal lives. There was never any judgement. And I thought the author brought a lovely emotional balance to the story in the way Sam and Lexie’s lives were unraveled to the reader.
The people Lexie loves were as important to the story as she was, and I fell for each and every one of them, faults and all. The story couldn’t have been told without Lee, Gracie, Conner, Connie, Marion and John. I loved that each one represented something important, that the author wasn’t afraid to break the reader’s heart just as easily as she could make us laugh or feel warm and fuzzy. The main characters talked at length about strength and courage, and each character exhibited those traits in their own way. Most of all, I loved how the characters fit together, not always in the same puzzle pattern, but together nonetheless.
There is true healing in these pages, an honest reflection by the characters as well as emotional headway and a sense of hope. And love. There is so much love between these pages. I would recommend this well paced, thoughtful, honest story to everyone.
I really loved Lexie. I loved seeing the bits of her life and reveling in the love she surrounded herself with. I don’t want to say that I loved seeing her hurt, but there was purpose and catharsis in it that brought comfort, perhaps even some familiarity. I loved Sam too. He was such a good listener, such a strong silent presence. I loved that he knew when to push and when to back off, that he wasn’t afraid to show his feelings. He brought a sense of true acceptance to the pages.
I loved the format of this book, namely Sam and Lexie’s game of “one thing,” where one or both of them would share something of their personal lives. There was never any judgement. And I thought the author brought a lovely emotional balance to the story in the way Sam and Lexie’s lives were unraveled to the reader.
The people Lexie loves were as important to the story as she was, and I fell for each and every one of them, faults and all. The story couldn’t have been told without Lee, Gracie, Conner, Connie, Marion and John. I loved that each one represented something important, that the author wasn’t afraid to break the reader’s heart just as easily as she could make us laugh or feel warm and fuzzy. The main characters talked at length about strength and courage, and each character exhibited those traits in their own way. Most of all, I loved how the characters fit together, not always in the same puzzle pattern, but together nonetheless.
There is true healing in these pages, an honest reflection by the characters as well as emotional headway and a sense of hope. And love. There is so much love between these pages. I would recommend this well paced, thoughtful, honest story to everyone.
August 17, 2014
I'm not a big book reviewer, but I feel the need to comment on this book. While I gave it three stars, it was more of a 2.5 for me. Some things I wish others had pointed out (and maybe people have and I missed it)--(1) The cover is very cute, but its not representative of the characters in this book, in my opinion. The heroine is older (two grown children), and she talks of having grey hairs. Maybe it's nit-picky, but I tend to choose books by the cover and am disappointed when they don't match (though I freely admit it could just be my interpretation of the characters and the cover). Any who, (2) this was more of a Christian romance than ordinary contemporary romance. I don't have a problem with characters having faith and discussing it, but I felt this was more than that. This heroine has had bad experiences in her life, and she talks about her anger with God, her reasons for ceasing to attend church, etc. I don't know. Having lost a person in my life, I related initially to her questioning reasons for the things that happen in life, bargaining with God, etc. But I felt like it went too far not to include it in the book's description. My two cents worth.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 5, 2017
Seriously, I actually quite enjoyed the book itself. But the narrator put me right off. Laural Merlington's voice is very much not my thing. It somehow encompasses the haughty wealthy woman providing instructions to her live-in maid about tasks the maid has performed a million times with the polar opposite timeworn 40-something sitting at the end of the bar, all spruced up and looking for the man she'll take home tonight.
There was simply no way I was going to make it through 5 hours of the narrator's voice, and went back to reading the ebook. Had I actually purchased the audiobook from Audible, I would have returned it. As it was, it came with the Kindle Unlimited borrow, so no harm, no foul. Other than being unable to get that voice out of my head, that is.
I need to find a way to review multiple editions of a book, because I do the ebook / audiobook thing a lot, and this isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened to me.
There was simply no way I was going to make it through 5 hours of the narrator's voice, and went back to reading the ebook. Had I actually purchased the audiobook from Audible, I would have returned it. As it was, it came with the Kindle Unlimited borrow, so no harm, no foul. Other than being unable to get that voice out of my head, that is.
I need to find a way to review multiple editions of a book, because I do the ebook / audiobook thing a lot, and this isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened to me.
April 1, 2017
Hit all the feelers!
November 27, 2014
Just One Thing is a book that slowly peels the layers behind a character to expose the one thing that keeps her from moving on.
At the beginning of the story, all we know is Lexie McCain, a middle-aged woman who is living alone in a cottage with a dog. She has suffered a loss of some type and we can guess what it is. But Lexie doesn't tell us much. Instead, we find out about her life through a series of "one things" that Sam Corner, the bartender at Corner's Bar asks her.
Week by week, Lexie weaves her story, both in her "one thing" with Sam, and in the panels of her tapestry. We uncover her life like an archaeologist uncovers the life of a relic long dead. In the middle of the story, Lexie turns the question on Sam and we find out he also has suffered trauma in the past.
Gradually, the two fall in love, although the pacing is always slow and meandering and not torrid or hot. It's as if these two mature individuals are content to let things take their time, patient enough to back off without demanding to know everything. Because both of them hide secret hurts, it works out for them.
I pretty much suspected the problem at the end, so it was no big secret reveal. What kept me interested was seeing Lexie come to grips with her perceived guilt, and the family, including Sam coming together to support her. The story is about crossing over, crossing lines, and moving forward.
At the end, we discover that even though Lexie told her story "one thing at a time," a person's life and legacy is not based on solely one thing they did, whether it was something at the end of their life, or something at the worst moment of their life, or even an achievement at the pinnacle of life. Instead, it is many, many things, and the totality of those things is much more than the sum of its parts.
A wonderful life lesson for letting go of hurts and grief and moving forward.
At the beginning of the story, all we know is Lexie McCain, a middle-aged woman who is living alone in a cottage with a dog. She has suffered a loss of some type and we can guess what it is. But Lexie doesn't tell us much. Instead, we find out about her life through a series of "one things" that Sam Corner, the bartender at Corner's Bar asks her.
Week by week, Lexie weaves her story, both in her "one thing" with Sam, and in the panels of her tapestry. We uncover her life like an archaeologist uncovers the life of a relic long dead. In the middle of the story, Lexie turns the question on Sam and we find out he also has suffered trauma in the past.
Gradually, the two fall in love, although the pacing is always slow and meandering and not torrid or hot. It's as if these two mature individuals are content to let things take their time, patient enough to back off without demanding to know everything. Because both of them hide secret hurts, it works out for them.
I pretty much suspected the problem at the end, so it was no big secret reveal. What kept me interested was seeing Lexie come to grips with her perceived guilt, and the family, including Sam coming together to support her. The story is about crossing over, crossing lines, and moving forward.
At the end, we discover that even though Lexie told her story "one thing at a time," a person's life and legacy is not based on solely one thing they did, whether it was something at the end of their life, or something at the worst moment of their life, or even an achievement at the pinnacle of life. Instead, it is many, many things, and the totality of those things is much more than the sum of its parts.
A wonderful life lesson for letting go of hurts and grief and moving forward.
May 21, 2014
Just One Thing by Holly Jacobs
B, Ember, no kink, contemp
Lexie has had a terribly tough adult life. Seriously. A really hard life. Just one thing after the other. As she struggles to come back from the last thing, she starts walking to the local bar each Monday, just for one drink. She slowly starts talking to the bartender Sam. Each week he asks her to tell him "just one thing" about herself. Through these small confessions, Sam and Lexie slowly start a relationship and start to heal.
This one is hard for me to review because it wasn't an easy romance (which are the romances I like to read). An easy romance where the hero and heroine meet and you know that it's going to be pretty easy going except for that one conflict that would be resolved in the last few chapters. No. This is a romance where you know instantly there is going to be drama. And a lot of it. And no shortage of tears.
This one centers around Lexie and as she slowly tells her "one things" to Sam you get to discover her journey to Sam. And just like Sam, you discover it one thing at a time. One tear-jerking thing at a time. Sam has a past that slowly comes out as well, but honestly it's Lexie's story that overshadows everything. Everything including the budding romance between Sam and Lexie.
It would be easy to say that I didn't like this one. It would be easy and wrong. This story sucked me in during the first chapter and wouldn't let me go until it was finished. The "one things" are written in flashbacks and I knew every time I picked it up I was going to be crying, but I had to get the next piece of the puzzle that is Lexie.
If you like your romances carefree and lighthearted this probably isn't one for you, but if you like Danielle Steel or similar authors, give this one a try.
B, Ember, no kink, contemp
Lexie has had a terribly tough adult life. Seriously. A really hard life. Just one thing after the other. As she struggles to come back from the last thing, she starts walking to the local bar each Monday, just for one drink. She slowly starts talking to the bartender Sam. Each week he asks her to tell him "just one thing" about herself. Through these small confessions, Sam and Lexie slowly start a relationship and start to heal.
This one is hard for me to review because it wasn't an easy romance (which are the romances I like to read). An easy romance where the hero and heroine meet and you know that it's going to be pretty easy going except for that one conflict that would be resolved in the last few chapters. No. This is a romance where you know instantly there is going to be drama. And a lot of it. And no shortage of tears.
This one centers around Lexie and as she slowly tells her "one things" to Sam you get to discover her journey to Sam. And just like Sam, you discover it one thing at a time. One tear-jerking thing at a time. Sam has a past that slowly comes out as well, but honestly it's Lexie's story that overshadows everything. Everything including the budding romance between Sam and Lexie.
It would be easy to say that I didn't like this one. It would be easy and wrong. This story sucked me in during the first chapter and wouldn't let me go until it was finished. The "one things" are written in flashbacks and I knew every time I picked it up I was going to be crying, but I had to get the next piece of the puzzle that is Lexie.
If you like your romances carefree and lighthearted this probably isn't one for you, but if you like Danielle Steel or similar authors, give this one a try.
June 12, 2014
A widow is wooed out of her melancholy by a war veteran bartender who only asks that she tell him "just one thing" when she stops by his bar every Monday.
Artist Lexie McCain's children are worried about her uncharacteristic funk after their father dies in an accident. Lexie has holed up in her studio away from town and friends which is very unusual. After they’ve harassed her sufficiently, Lexie agrees to walk into the nearby small town of Lapp Mill, Pennsylvania, at least once a week. She decides to go on non-busy Monday and makes her destination The Corner Bar, a low-key pub-like establishment where she has one beer and then walks home.
What she doesn't count on is proprietor Sam Corner who challenges her to tell him "just one thing" in exchange for her beer. Lexie agrees to play Sam's game and starts by telling him her name. What unfolds are memories based on the "one thing" Lexie and then Sam let escape from their lips including the painful deaths of Lexie's father, daughter, and finally husband and Sam's traumatic time in the service.
Lexie, who's been a good wife, mother, and art instructor, is floundering, but not morose to the point of being suicidal. In fact, she knows she's got to climb out of her current depression and as therapy starts weaving a tapestry depicting scenes from her life in it.
She's a strong, likeable character, a woman without pretensions and with a solid sense of self. Like most of us when a life-changing event happens, she realizes she needs to pick herself up, dust herself off, and forge on with life. But her husband's death has hit her harder then those of her beloved father and daughter.
Read the rest of my review at All About Romance: http://www.likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/boo...
Artist Lexie McCain's children are worried about her uncharacteristic funk after their father dies in an accident. Lexie has holed up in her studio away from town and friends which is very unusual. After they’ve harassed her sufficiently, Lexie agrees to walk into the nearby small town of Lapp Mill, Pennsylvania, at least once a week. She decides to go on non-busy Monday and makes her destination The Corner Bar, a low-key pub-like establishment where she has one beer and then walks home.
What she doesn't count on is proprietor Sam Corner who challenges her to tell him "just one thing" in exchange for her beer. Lexie agrees to play Sam's game and starts by telling him her name. What unfolds are memories based on the "one thing" Lexie and then Sam let escape from their lips including the painful deaths of Lexie's father, daughter, and finally husband and Sam's traumatic time in the service.
Lexie, who's been a good wife, mother, and art instructor, is floundering, but not morose to the point of being suicidal. In fact, she knows she's got to climb out of her current depression and as therapy starts weaving a tapestry depicting scenes from her life in it.
She's a strong, likeable character, a woman without pretensions and with a solid sense of self. Like most of us when a life-changing event happens, she realizes she needs to pick herself up, dust herself off, and forge on with life. But her husband's death has hit her harder then those of her beloved father and daughter.
Read the rest of my review at All About Romance: http://www.likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/boo...
December 24, 2016
The synopsis sounded promising and I had somewhat high expectations for this. It was clear from the very beginning that this wasn't going to be a happy read. It wasn't as good as I was hoping it to be either. It wasn't bad, some parts resonated with me but I found it a bit shallow in general. I didn't find it cathartic which I thought/hoped it would be. And while I liked Lexie and Sam, I wasn't rooting for them and didn't really feel the romance.
I had two things that bothered me. Firstly, this book was mostly written in italics. All the present moments were in italics, whereas the past events were written in normal text. And I found this highly distracting. I don't mind italics per se, but I've only seen it being used the otherway round, present in normal, past in italics. I had this mindset and I found it hard to focus on this book because of that. Secondly, this book has a clear religious undertone, which didn't appeal to me. I probably wouldn't have chosen this had I known the religious side of the story. It just isn't for me.
It was an okay read, but nothing special.
I had two things that bothered me. Firstly, this book was mostly written in italics. All the present moments were in italics, whereas the past events were written in normal text. And I found this highly distracting. I don't mind italics per se, but I've only seen it being used the otherway round, present in normal, past in italics. I had this mindset and I found it hard to focus on this book because of that. Secondly, this book has a clear religious undertone, which didn't appeal to me. I probably wouldn't have chosen this had I known the religious side of the story. It just isn't for me.
It was an okay read, but nothing special.
July 27, 2016
Healing from loss
This story is absolutely transformative to anyone dealing with monumental loss. I didn't know I needed to read this sort until I read it. It contains a few kinds of loss and gives a healthy perspective. Not only that, it helps you to see a way out, a way past, a way to be again.
This story is absolutely transformative to anyone dealing with monumental loss. I didn't know I needed to read this sort until I read it. It contains a few kinds of loss and gives a healthy perspective. Not only that, it helps you to see a way out, a way past, a way to be again.
June 28, 2014
Well, that was depressing.
August 8, 2015
a nice summer read.
January 21, 2025
I'm not a big book reviewer, but I feel the need to comment on this book. While I gave it three stars, it was more of a 2.5 for me. Some things I wish others had pointed out (and maybe people have and I missed it)--(1) The cover is very cute, but its not representative of the characters in this book, in my opinion. The heroine is older (two grown children), and she talks of having grey hairs. Maybe it's nit-picky, but I tend to choose books by the cover and am disappointed when they don't match (though I freely admit it could just be my interpretation of the characters and the cover). Any who, (2) this was more of a Christian romance than ordinary contemporary romance. I don't have a problem with characters having faith and discussing it, but I felt this was more than that. This heroine has had bad experiences in her life, and she talks about her anger with God, her reasons for ceasing to attend church, etc. I don't know. Having lost a person in my life, I related initially to her questioning reasons for the things that happen in life, bargaining with God, etc. But I felt like it went too far not to include it in the book's description. My two cents worth.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 9, 2017
Told in the first person (in the 'present') and the third person in the past, we follow the life of Lexie McCain.
Unlike the romance stories I've read, this story focuses more on healing and coming to terms with the events of the past, that has affected and changed Lexie in more than one way. While there is mild romance in here, I am very glad it didn't take up the entire story of "does he/she like me?", which tends to annoy me a lot.
As the story moves forward and we learn more about these events that have changed Lexie, I found myself in tears. This book as more realism to it, where I can guess that there are many unspoken people out there who have gone through very similar events, and this book only gives a glimpse of what they have been through their emotions and what they do to come to terms to heal.
Unlike the romance stories I've read, this story focuses more on healing and coming to terms with the events of the past, that has affected and changed Lexie in more than one way. While there is mild romance in here, I am very glad it didn't take up the entire story of "does he/she like me?", which tends to annoy me a lot.
As the story moves forward and we learn more about these events that have changed Lexie, I found myself in tears. This book as more realism to it, where I can guess that there are many unspoken people out there who have gone through very similar events, and this book only gives a glimpse of what they have been through their emotions and what they do to come to terms to heal.
May 12, 2017
This powerful story about rediscovery and healing follows a lonely widow who visits a local bar once a week just to get out of her cottage. Each week she has just one beer and has a conversation with the owner bartender who asked the same question each week. She is to tell him "just one thing". Soon she begins the same process with him. The premise of this story is that they come to know and love each other by sharing bits of their lives through a single memory linked comments shared during these weekly conversations. The stories of their lives are revealed through these flashbacks as they rediscover themselves in their present reality. A beautifully crafted, thoughtful story.
May 7, 2018
I really enjoyed this story about two lost souls trying to find their way in the world after tragic circumstances. I loved the premise that the author used to help these two heal. Lexie and Sam both have pasts they can't confront, yet together they find a way to mend each other and come back from these tragedies. Rather than sharing their entire lives all at once, the reader gets to hear one thing about each character. They share their "one thing" with the other every Monday at Sam's bar until everything has been revealed and they can finally begin to heal. Very neat story that will stick with me for a long time.
January 1, 2025
This has been sitting in my Kindle for a long time.
Only decided to start reading on 30/12, and I would have finished it on 31/12 had it not been for all the NYE get-together.
I was amazed at the emotional state I was in when I read the book. It made a difference, and I thought about my own ups and downs.
In the end, as what the author herself said, “a person’s life can’t be defined by one incident. We are the whole of our experiences. We are the warp, and life is the weft, going up and down around us, transforming us in its wake. Each new line adds to the whole . . . adds to our strength.”
Only decided to start reading on 30/12, and I would have finished it on 31/12 had it not been for all the NYE get-together.
I was amazed at the emotional state I was in when I read the book. It made a difference, and I thought about my own ups and downs.
In the end, as what the author herself said, “a person’s life can’t be defined by one incident. We are the whole of our experiences. We are the warp, and life is the weft, going up and down around us, transforming us in its wake. Each new line adds to the whole . . . adds to our strength.”
February 3, 2023
I admit, I love Holly Jacobs's writing. I have read nearly all of her books, and I have enjoyed them. However, this may be my very favorite. The story is told out-of-order, jumping from the present to the past, weaving a tapestry of love and loss and healing. Holly always writes relatable characters in realistic settings. This book is no exception. I highly recommend this moving and uplifting story.
February 16, 2023
I received this as a Goodreads First Read. My only complaint is the font used throughout the book. my eyes are old and italicized font os harder to read. The story itself was well done. Two people find themselves and overcome their past with a little help from each other. An over used plot idea but somehow different and beautifully done. You laugh and cry and want to hug your family members and fur kids close and be thankful for all the little moments.
November 5, 2016
A must read
Each page was like peeling off a layer and learning more about not only Lexi but Sam as well. When I wasn't reading I found myself thinking about what would happen next. The characters are real and you feel what they are going through. I'll definitely read this one again
Each page was like peeling off a layer and learning more about not only Lexi but Sam as well. When I wasn't reading I found myself thinking about what would happen next. The characters are real and you feel what they are going through. I'll definitely read this one again
July 9, 2017
Terrific
Wow. This is , of course, a romance. But more (much more) than that, it's a story of two damaged people finding their way through all the things that have made them who they are. I had to pause more than once to dry my eyes and blow my nose: the joys and pains that are the stories of Lexi and Sam have that much impact because the characters are so relatable.
Wow. This is , of course, a romance. But more (much more) than that, it's a story of two damaged people finding their way through all the things that have made them who they are. I had to pause more than once to dry my eyes and blow my nose: the joys and pains that are the stories of Lexi and Sam have that much impact because the characters are so relatable.
August 1, 2017
A good lesson for all who live life.
Having recently supported a daughter who has lost 2 dear friends to tragedy at ages 21 and 22, this gave me a way to see the pain and the beauty of their young lives ended too soon. The message is timeless and healing. Don't let one thing define you. Beautifully written with compassion and lack of judgement.
Having recently supported a daughter who has lost 2 dear friends to tragedy at ages 21 and 22, this gave me a way to see the pain and the beauty of their young lives ended too soon. The message is timeless and healing. Don't let one thing define you. Beautifully written with compassion and lack of judgement.
October 20, 2017
Sharing becomes caring
"Our imperfections define us as much as our strengths." This is the crux of Just One Thing. Holly Jacobs weaves a tale of two people who are brought into each other's life for a reason. I enjoyed the way the main characters revealed snippets of their lives before they met and in doing so laid the foundation for their future.
"Our imperfections define us as much as our strengths." This is the crux of Just One Thing. Holly Jacobs weaves a tale of two people who are brought into each other's life for a reason. I enjoyed the way the main characters revealed snippets of their lives before they met and in doing so laid the foundation for their future.
March 6, 2018
Wow,
This was a happen across the title in the deals is the day books on Amazon kindle, wasn’t sure I’d like it, but it was SO much food for thought... if you’ve not read this(or listen-as I have) it is very much worth the time-be prepared for a tear or 2 or 100-but it is a good tear....
This was a happen across the title in the deals is the day books on Amazon kindle, wasn’t sure I’d like it, but it was SO much food for thought... if you’ve not read this(or listen-as I have) it is very much worth the time-be prepared for a tear or 2 or 100-but it is a good tear....
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