Wander and Roam
Wander Series #1
Anna Kyss
Genre: New Adult
Publication Date: May 1, 2014

In the last year, Abby Bentley has failed out of college and lost her high school sweetheart. Unwilling to return home, Abby signs up to volunteer on an Australian farm, where she can hide away from her family and isolate to her heart’s desire. Best of all, no one will care about her past. Abby soon discovers she’ll be sharing most of her daylight hours–as well as a very small yurt–with the farm’s other volunteer: sexy, flirtatious Sage.

The more hours they spend together, the more conflicted Abby becomes. Torn between a growing attraction to Sage and faltering loyalty to her old boyfriend, Abby escapes to her refuge of writing letters she will never send. When Abby finally reveals her past, Sage’s secret about his future threatens their bond. With Abby running from her past and Sage trying to escape his future, can they build a relationship in the here and now?

 

Wander and Roam is a book that will steal your heart! This book begins with a very depressed and isolated Abby, a young woman who is grieving the loss of her first love. She has isolated herself in such a way that she has lost her friends, her family is losing patience and she is no longer allowed at her university. It takes a letter of dismissal from the dean to send her on a journey of healing and grieving that will forever change the path of her life. She decides to take a leap and get as far away from home as she can. She ends up volunteering on a farm in Australia, where she meets Sage, a handsome, flirtatious fellow worker, who shares his time and space with her. As their friendship deepens and their connection grows, Abby must choose what is in her future. She must let go of the past and take a breath of fresh air and head in the direction of her heart and life. As they grow deeper together, secrets are revealed and emotions run high. They must decide what they want from life and what they will do to have it.

Let me begin by saying that I had never heard of Anna Kyss until this books was available for me to read and review. It sounded like a fun story and I am so glad that I took that leap. This story was great! It was a story of healing and life. Abby is a strong young woman who has dealt with so much more than any 19 year old should ever have to deal with. She has isolated herself because of her grief. Her struggle with grief and loss is so well portrayed and written. It is not taken lightly yet not over dramatized. Instead, you feel Abby’s emotion and pain. As the reader you can understand the rut she finds herself in and her hesitation to move out of the rut and embrace life again. She is a brave woman. She may have been running from reality when she went to Australia, but she inadvertently took a step toward freedom from her past, being able to heal and remember the good and not the overwhelming bad. When she meets Sage, there is an instant chemistry that causes her some anxiety. Her confusion is well written. Many books will display this issue in a way that is full of such drama and angst, yet Abby is attempting to heal and validated in her emotions in an authentic way. She is able to take a step back and see what is happening, even when she is terrified of the end result. As Abby and Sage work side by side, their friendship and attraction grows. The story never seems rushed. Sage is patient and kind, someone willing to listen and embrace living in the now.

When they first made their agreement to only talk about the present and not the past or future, I was nervous about what Sage was omitting from his life. When he discovers about her past relationship with Robbie and what happened, I was terrified. As a reader you seem to know something is about to happen and then when it does, you still have the wind knocked out of you. That is how this felt. It was heart wrenching. And the ending… WOW, I was ready for hundreds of more pages in this book, yet Anna shows us what we need and then leaves us to wait for more. Well played.

Overall, this book is an incredible New Adult story about life and loss and the journey to finding yourself in the chaos. I am excited for the second book in the series! I cannot wait to see more of Abby and Sage, to see where their story leads! Make sure to check this book out and prepare for a sweet love story in the land down under.