Book Review: Faithful by Alice Hoffman

Book Review: Faithful by Alice Hoffman

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Shelby Richmond is a hot mess. She was driving with her friend Helene, hit a patch of ice, and got into an accident. Shelby survived with minor injuries and Helene ends up comatose. Shelby’s life stalls. She attempts suicide, she cuts herself, and ends up in an institution. She even shaves her head as a way to act out from survivor’s guilt.

The book follows Shelby’s life as she finally rejoins the land of the living. She falls into a relationship with a boy named Ben. After getting a job she meets a woman named Maravelle and is soon enfolded in her family. Shelby learns about making new friends and about how those friends can become family. She learns that it’s sometimes okay to depend on other people to help you through difficult times.

I laughed and I cried while reading this book. Shelby is broken but you can see so much potential in her that you root for her to wake up and enjoy her life again. I found her to be very relatable. She adopts stray animals and takes them in and they help her heal and find something to be passionate about. Her addiction to Chinese food made me worry about her MSG intake.

The relationship she has with her mother is profound. Despite everything that has happened to her mother is her rock. She’s stern when she needs to be and gentle when she has to be and when Shelby just needs her to sit and just be there she does that as well. There was an extremely touching but fun scene between Shelby and her mom that still sticks with me. It made me want to hug my mom a little tighter.

The character of Maravelle was amazing. She sees the gentle and loving person that Shelby is deep down and in her own no-nonsense way helps to bring it out. Maravelle’s family is a cast of characters all their own but they also help Shelby grow in their own individual ways. The situations that her children get into are things I have seen teenagers get into in real life. The writing here was rich and believable.

Shelby also has an “Angel” whom was the person that pulled her from the wreckage of her accident. Angel mails her postcards over the years that encourage her to keep her life moving. Shelby begins to look forward to the messages. The identity of Angel is later revealed in the book. I wish that part had been explored a little bit more but I am still satisfied with what happened.

The pacing on this book was perfect. It didn’t drag along but didn’t skimp on details. The ending left me wanting a little more but not in a bad way. It left me wanting more in the way that a book is so good that you just want it to continue. I wanted to stay in Shelby’s world and see what happens next. Instead, I was left with the promise of her facing her future with a promise of greatness.

I LOVED this book. LOVED. Please give it a try and I promise that you will not regret it.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review.