Review: Team Jonah- all the time, all the way.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 27, 2013
When I first read Heather was going to write novellas in both Jonah and Kellan's POV, I was ecstatic! The Fate series is one of my all-time favorites, so getting inside my boys' heads is something I've been looking forward to! It's no secret that I love both Whitecomb brothers. I've said it before, Heather has created such an intricate love triangle that makes choosing a "team" rather impossible. However, from the get-go, my heart tugs a bit more towards Jonah- I felt so much for him in A Matter of Fate and I really just wanted to see him happy. (Granted, I definitely didn't want to see Kellan unhappy, either.) With that being said, after reading both A Matter of Fate and A Matter of Heart, these books have left me in a state of emotional turmoil. I honestly don't know that I've ever felt SO strongly about characters in a book and what happens to them.I LOVED reading Jonah's POV of some of the events that happened in the first book A Matter of Fate. I especially love that Heather didn't just retell the same story. We got to see the events leading up to the first time the twins met Chloe and we really get to see some of the secondary relationships in a new light.I knew that the twins and their father weren't close, but gosh. I had no idea just how strained of a relationship it really was. And it broke my heart. To blame your own sons for your wife's death? That's just reaching an all time low. Thankfully, Jonah and Kellan are close to their uncle, as well as their neighbor Astrid. Still, to have your own father resent you.... It takes a toll on the twins, whether they admit it or not. Astrid has always been there for the boys and seeing her interact with them is really heartwarming. Their uncle, Joey, was the one who would take the guys surfing, thus creating a love for the ocean. Surfing is an escape for both Jonah and Kellan, and I really liked seeing the role it played in this novella.Jonah has been dreaming about Chloe his whole life. Literally. From a young age, the two have been able to communicate via their dreams. He is in love with her and even though he is dating Callie, Chloe is never far from his mind. Finding out she actually exists for real and is his Connection (his soulmate), is a life-changing event for him. She is all he can think about and he will do whatever it takes to find her.I actually felt bad for Callie. She really was innocent in all of this and still gets hurt by Jonah. She is in love with him, and while he loves her- it doesn't come remotely close to what he feels for Chloe. Seeing Jonah give her a crap excuse for breaking up, I don't blame her for continuing to call him and then eventually show up to see him demanding the truth. I wanted to hate Callie- but that really wouldn't be fair. Jonah knew all along what starting a relationship with her would do- and he decided to go ahead anyway. He hated hurting her- she had been his best friend before they ever became more, and this was not how he wanted things to go down.After manipulating his father to move them across country to be closer to Chloe, Jonah couldn't be more ready to meet the girl of his dreams. However, things do not fall into place like he planned. Complications with his brother send Jonah spiraling back into his depression. Jonah and Kellan's relationship is probably the one that made my heart hurt the most. They have always shared everything with each other- being Emotionals, they can communicate without speaking, and as twins have that twin Connection that binds them together. However, Chloe is the one thing Jonah never shared with Kellan. He tried to tell him a few times when they were younger, but it wasn't taken seriously. Jonah could have avoided a lot of heartbreak, had he been honest with his twin up front.“When you fall in love with somebody, you shouldn’t have to share them and that feeling they inspire in you, not even with your twin brother.”However, Jonah wanted one thing to be his own. One thing he shouldn't have to share with anyone. Chloe is HIS dream. I can't imagine what it's like with them. Watching their relationship deteriorate tore at my heart because they are brothers and it's been them against the world for so long.Jonah is such a complex character who does not open up and wear his feelings on his sleeve. He is filled with so much self doubt and pain- and I just wanted him to be happy!Gah. My heart hurts again over-thinking and over-analyzing this. I mean it when I say I'm going to need to mentally and emotionally prepare for the third book in the series A Matter of Truth, releasing November 5th. Meanwhile- pick this series up if you haven't already. As much as Heather puts you through the emotional ringer, her writing is beautiful, expressive, and is able to make you connect with her characters on a level I think no other author has.