From USA Today bestselling author Julianne MacLean comes the next instalment in her popular Color of Heaven series - a gripping, emotional tale about real life magic that touches us all during the holiday season…
Boston cop, Josh Wallace, is having the worst day of his life. First, he’s dumped by the woman he was about to propose to, then everything goes downhill from there when he is shot in the line of duty. While recovering in the hospital, he can’t seem to forget the woman he wanted to marry, nor can he make sense of the vivid images that flashed before his eyes when he was wounded on the job. Soon, everything he once believed about his life begins to shift when he meets Leah James, an enigmatic resident doctor who somehow holds the key to both his past and his future…
Julianne MacLean is a USA Today bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including the contemporary women’s fiction Color of Heaven Series. Readers have described her books as “breathtaking,” “soulful” and “uplifting.” MacLean is a four-time RITA finalist and has won numerous awards, including the Booksellers’ Best Award and a Reviewers’ Choice Award from Romantic Times. Her novels have sold millions of copies worldwide and have been published in over a dozen languages.
MacLean has a degree in English literature from the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and a degree in business administration from Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. She loves to travel and has lived in New Zealand, Canada, and England. MacLean currently resides on the east coast of Canada in a lakeside home with her husband and daughter.
The Color of the Season by Julianne MacLean is a 2014 publication. I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What a wonderful story this turned out to be. This is a beautiful and haunting love story that you simply must add to your holiday reading list.
Josh has a spate of bad luck when the woman he was in love with broke things off right as he was about to propose. Right on the heels of this development, Josh is shot in the line of duty. While on the operating table, Josh has an out of body experience as things were touch and go for a few tense moments. While recovering from that strange experience the most unlikely thing happened. He meets up with an old childhood friend, Leah James. As children Josh was best friends with Leah's brother, Riley, but due to circumstances beyond their control, they ended up losing touch over the years. When Leah tells him how Riley has had a rough go of things he tries to locate him again, for Leah's sake. This is when Josh realizes his life has a new purpose and direction and it's somehow connected to his old childhood friends and family.
Josh is a sweet man who gets a wake up call when he is shot and soon finds out all about the childhood friends he was once so close to and how their lives have developed over the years. He meets Holly, Riley's younger sister who was just a baby the last time he saw her. Together they forge a bond as they search for Riley and deal with their growing attraction to one another. All these events bring together two wonderful people and they each learn the path they were so sure of just a short time ago, was not the path they should be on. As a result big time changes start to take place, opening the door for new love, the healing of old wounds. The story deals with loss, family dynamics, forgiveness, and second changes, healing and hope. A truly riveting tale of how love can give us the strength and courage to put a stop to things which are wrong and start making them right again. Touching details add to the poignancy of the story and will have your swiping away a few tears here and there but the ending is so uplifting you will have a full heart by the time you finish the last page. Well done! 4.5 rounded to 5
I love this series of stories. Always feel-good with just a touch of magic and leave you feeling like you've had a nice, big hug.....highly recommended. We all need a nice story now and then and I need a break from my usual murder mystery diet !! Again, the characters cross over from prior stories but only very peripherally, so you don't need to have read all of them. I just prefer to keep a series in order and read them in that order myself. I liked Josh a great deal and especially the story behind how he first met Holly. That was very sweet indeed. I must admit I had a real sniffle when Riley was given some news at his reaction.... There were only a couple of mistakes. "All, hell" was written when I think he was meant to be saying "Awww, hell" and perhaps a copy editor just wrote it how they heard it....though you have to wonder why they'd do that !! We also had peddling and not pedalling (which I think I mentioned in a prior book in the set). So this is pretty good going. I did notice that Josh mentioned his mum being alone for the holidays but he'd already told us that she had remarried so that baffled me somewhat. I was also confused by a set of dreams Josh had as I didn't really understand the meaning behind those. However, they may be a part of the rolling background story and feature in further books to come.....if not then I AM totally confused !! I have the next one downloaded already and look forward to learning more about Riley and Lois and their personal story.
The Color Of The Season by Julianne MacLean is a bittersweet romantic novel which I loved. There are many themes including that of grief. "Maybe I'm floating in a sea of grief where I can't see the shore." Grief hurts. Grief is raw. There is the grief of a loved one's passing and the grief of missed opportunities. Life is so much more than we can see and feel. Sometimes things happen with no logical explanation. There is the theme of healing - actual and a healing from the past. Past events may haunt the present and future. "The future doesn't have to be dictated by the past." The past has gone. It cannot be altered but we can learn lessons as we move into the future. Love never dies. Love remains. Love lingers in a loved one's life. There is both family love and romantic love. Families are complicated affairs. Action we misinterpret as children can affect our lives forever. Anger, alcoholism and drugs have detrimental effects on all family members. It is never too late to repent, get help and have a fresh start. The novel is written in the first person from two different points of view. As such the reader becomes intimately acquainted with both characters. The Color Of The Season was a delightful book of love and loss and ties that forever bind. This book is book seven in the Color Of Heaven series but can be read as a stand-alone. It is also part of a box set called Christmas Miracles. I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.
Although I did enjoy this book, it wasn't my favorite of the series that I've read so far. Josh Wallace is a cop who gets dumped by his girlfriend (Carla from the previous book) and then gets shot and almost dies. While he's in the hospital he's visited by a psychiatry resident, a woman he grew up with and the sister of his childhood best friend. After he's released from the hospital he tries to get in touch with Leah, and things take a decided turn for the strange. He meets Holly, Leah's sister, who he met years ago when she was a newborn. The two work together to try to bring Holly's family back together. It was hard to trust Josh's feelings as it seemed like he jumped from person to person without much thought. And there is cheating in this book, which I was surprised about.
I'm sorry I am not impressed with this book or how it was even written. The author tried and I can say she writes better than I do. But I felt as if it was all surface and no depth to the characters or the plot. I don't think it would have made any difference if I had read other books in the series as it didn't feel like I was missing something that would have been explained in a previous book.
The Color of the Season (The Color of Heaven Series Book 7)
The love story of Josh and Holly. Josh and Riley were best friends until Riley' s father move the family away. Josh is now a Boston Police officer and while on duty he is short. He has a out of body experience and he see Leah, his of friend 's sister. She is a doctor and they talk about what has been happening with her family and his. She tell him that they have lost contact with Riley and want to know what happened to him. He find out and go to her home only to learn she did the night he was short. Can he help out this family back together?
This is part of The Color of Heaven series. They are more of the heartwarming romance novels than steamy bodice-rippers.
In this book, we meet Josh, a Boston police officer who has just had his girlfriend break up with him. She found someone else. While on patrol that night, he gets into a shootout with a drug dealer who carjacked a van. Josh nearly dies. He is rushed to the operating table, and begins to experience himself floating out of his body, watching his surgery. He flashes back to his childhood friends Riley and his sister Leah. He is also there when Riley's sister Holly is born. Then he comes back to reality--or is it?
I don't want to give too much else away, because of spoilers. The scenes in the operating room where Josh is floating above his body reminded me of Heaven Is For Real. I'm not familiar with near death experiences, but this sounds very real to me. The narration goes from Josh to Holly in the middle of the book, which at first I found disorienting, but then I got used to it. When it switched back to Josh at the end, I was somewhat prepared for it. It does raise the question, are near-death experiences real? If they are, why do we come back. Parts of this also reminded me of The Sixth Sense ("I see dead people.") She's writing a sequel to this book called The Color of Joy, to be published in February 2015. I look forward to it.
These books continue to amaze me. Fast paced, they always feature romance with a dollop of magic thrown in. So far the characters are loosely connected to a previous book and I’ve really enjoyed that aspect of these. There’s also a touch of fate added in each of these as well.
This one features Josh, the police officer from the previous book and the little sister of his best friend from childhood. It also has a horrible man who makes everyone fall into line with no fun involved ever. Just strict rules. I’m not going to say anything more due to spoilers.
Highly recommend this entire series to romance readers. Narration was 5 stars for me.
I'm giving up on this series. This is the second one I've read, and it was very similar to the first. The novelty of the first one kept my interest, but having read that, this one was just too predictable. And again every main character had to be "drop dead" gorgeous. Too much romance novel writing for my tastes.
this when it started out didn't have the feel of a holiday read....but it still got my attention from the start....by the end...it does have that wonderful feeling of your Christmas (magical) read...My heart went out to all the characters in the book....can't wait to read more from this Arthur....
Another brilliant book in this series. I don’t think I’ll ever tire of them. This book follows the story of Josh, the boyfriend of Carla in the last book. After a near death experience he is drawn towards someone from his past. Were they meant to meet for a reason? Read it and see!
I have really enjoyed this series, and the books make for quick reading. They are inspiring and hopeful, (but admittedly, a bit predictable). Also, the last couple have fallen short for me. The characters don't have a lot of depth and the storylines have seems rushed. In this particular edition of the series, Josh Wallace is shot in the line of duty. While emergency medical personnel are attending to him, he has an out-of-body, near-death experience. Upon awakening, he encounters a woman from his past who appears to have some influence on a potential, unplanned future. It was a sweet story, but very rushed. Relationships ended and began and became serious with unconvincing quickness, so I was not as invested in the characters, nor their moral dilemmas, as I would normally be. Still a quick and easy read, and I normally like Maclean's writing style. I don't think I've read a book of hers that I haven't enjoyed in some capacity. (Incidentally, books 1, 2, 3, and 5 have been really good.)
** Some Spoilers ** This book poses the question: what if one man's near death experience tangles with another person's near death experience while they are both in the ER? And that other person is an old friend from his childhood? And he recovers from his near death experience, returning to life, while she does not recover and she passes away? Ah, but it doesn't end there. Her ghosts then appears to him several times, but he doesn't know it's a ghost, he thinks she's alive, and she gives him information that sets into motion a series of events that changes not just his life but a number of other persons?
It was a fascination story, and I was hooked from the beginning. I have never read anything by this author before but I am sure I will read more of her books in the future. This book really had me guessing!
The first time I read this series I was confused and not very impressed. But after a few more books I am starting to understand the premise. I did enjoy this story more than the others that I read. Here is the story line...Josh has a bad breakup with Carla. (She has her own story.) After being shot he meets up with an old neighbor. She is now working at the hospital. But things get weird from here on out. This is a love story but just not in the way you would think. I don't want to tell any more but think of it more of outside help in getting two people together.
Sometimes I find a new author,to me,on line and like the story line description and just add it to my kindle. Well I could never have expected the absolutely wonderful story Me MacLean weaves in her book The color of the season.I was so drawn in by the story and wonderful characters I could not put it down. When I find a book that involves 2 am reading you know it has to be wonderful. How the characters are intertwined makes you feel you are in a dream or is it reality? Josh and Holly had me mesmerize wanting to know what would happen next. Now I have to go back and read the series from the beginning. Enjoy!
Solid 3.5 . Enjoyed Josh’s story, just missing the original characters, would enjoy an update on their lives.
“The important thing is to keep getting up each day knowing that everything can turn on a dime. For better or for worse. Sometimes bad things happen, and people will always make mistakes, but isn’t that how we learn and grow stronger? That’s why we need to treasure each moment of every day, learn how to accept and forgive, and never fear what might be over the horizon, even if it looks dark and cloudy. Because it just might turn out to be the best day of your life.”
A well-told story with various sub-plots relating to all family members. Reading the book club questions after reading the book is very helpful in putting all aspects of the book in perspective. I don’t believe a review should tell the story but should be the reader’s opinion about the story and my opinion is that this is a very touching story amidst the angst of family dynamics. I highly recommend this book.
Until they were about ten years old, Josh and Riley were best friends. Then Riley moved away and life changed. Many years later Josh was in an accident and was seen by Riley's sister Leah. After his release, Josh goes to Leak's and Riley 's family home. There he encounters Holly. This is book 7 in a series. It can be read as a stand alone story with a HEA ending. I enjoyed the story very much.
Josh, a cop was on the verge of proposing when he was told that his partner would be finding her joy elsewhere. Reeling, he gets grievously hurt while pursuing a carjacker. Coming out of a coma, he realises that he has had a near death experience. Thankfully, the psychiatric assessment is done by a childhood friend, Leah. But when all that he thought was the truth was nothing but, Josh's life takes a trajectory that he would never have imagined it would.
This is a thought provoking story. Josh has some puzzling experiences while recovering from surgery after being shot and almost dying. This leads to reconnecting with a family from his childhood but in a way he could never have imagined. I enjoyed this story with all the mystery and romance that was revealed.
I only gave this book 4 stars because the nightmare that he had more than once involving a baby was never explained. It seemed to have great importance each time that he woke up terrified, yet there as no clear connection in the story and we were left puzzled.
i really liked this story big time especially from Josh side of things and what a way to start the story. At first you think he will wind up with Leah but i was shocked at the turn of events with Holly. How life can really change for the better in the blink of an eye. Plus the James family at the end im really happy that things turned out the way that they did
I wasn’t sure I’d like this story. When it first started out, it was 1st person male pov (Josh), but I got hooked while I read. It did switch over to Holly's pov a little. This is a story of Josh's near death experience and where it changes his life. This turned out to be a quick easy read which I enjoyed.
The easiest rating I have given in a long time. If more than 5 star's were allowed it would be harder.This story has everything friendship , tears, action, tears, love, reconciliation , happy tears, love and marriage. It was very hard to put down. It seemed I had just started when I was over 1/2 way through.
These “The Color of…” books are always good enough to read on my iPad, since the purpose of digital books for me is to help me get to sleep. They’re not really good enough to recommend to anyone, unless that person isn’t much of a reader and doesn’t require anything too deep. Conflicts always get resolved, and the endings are always predictably happy.