Allie and Bea: A Novel by Catherine Ryan Hyde ~ My Thoughts

Allie and Bea

Allie and Bea: A Novel by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Print and e-book, 352 pages
Published May 23rd 2017 by Lake Union Publishing

Bea has barely been scraping by since her husband died. After falling for a telephone scam, she loses everything and is forced to abandon her trailer. With only two-thirds of a tank in her old van, she heads toward the Pacific Ocean with her cat—on a mission to reclaim what’s rightfully hers, even if it means making others pay for what she lost.

When fifteen-year-old Allie’s parents are jailed for tax fraud, she’s sent to a group home. But when her life is threatened by another resident, she knows she has to get out. She escapes only to find she has nowhere to go—until fate throws Allie in Bea’s path.

Reluctant to trust each other, much less become friends, the two warily make their way up the Pacific Coast. Yet as their hearts open to friendship and love from the strangers they meet on their journey, they find the courage to forge their own unique family—and begin to see an imperfect world with new eyes.

My thoughts about Allie and Bea ~~ 

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First line—"For perhaps the twentieth time that morning, Bea narrowed her eyes at the checkbook sitting on her kitchen counter. 'Stop looking at me that way.' she told its blue vinyl cover. 

Allie and Bea is another remarkable story that captured my heart. As is always the case with Catherine's stories, the characters are endearing and unforgettable. Allie and Bea are two people who come together when the whole world seems to be against them. They truly are as different as night and day but they both end up needing the other one in her life.

Both are going through terrible times and they just can''t seem to get a break. As they come to know each other and as they learn to change, just a little bit, they start to discover what and who is important.

Allie and Bea is the latest, wonderful story from an amazing author and I highly recommend it to anyone with a heart. Prepare yourself for an emotional ride down a bumpy road, but know that it's a ride well worth taking. 

I received a copy of Allie and Bea from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. 

About the author

I'm the the author of 30 published and forthcoming books.

My newest releases are Ask Him Why, Worthy, The Language of Hoofbeats, Take Me With You , Where We Belong, Walk Me Home, Subway Dancer and Other Stories, When You Were Older, Don’t Let Me Go, When I Found You, Second Hand Heart, The Long, Steep Path: Everyday Inspiration From the Author of Pay It Forward, Always Chloe and Other Stories, and 365 Days of Gratitude: Photos from a Beautiful World.

Pay It Forward: Young Readers Edition, an age-appropriate edited edition of the original novel, was released by Simon & Schuster in August of ‘14. It is suitable for children as young as eight.

I have two forthcoming new novels due out in 2016 from Lake Union/Amazon Publishing, Leaving Blythe River and Say Goodbye For Now.

Other novels include Jumpstart the World, Becoming Chloe, Love in the Present Tense, The Year of My Miraculous Reappearance, Chasing Windmills, The Day I Killed James, and Diary of a Witness.

I am co-author, with publishing industry blogger Anne R. Allen, of How to be a Writer in the E-Age: a Self-Help Guide.—from Goodreads

Connect with Catherine

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