So Much More

So I was fortunate enough to read this book prior to release and I've been dying to be able to leave my review. I'm addicted to Kim Holden's writing because for me it's like she's standing next to me and telling me a story. It's just so real and captivating. If you're looking for a comparison to Bright Side, there is none. This book is so completely different and is worthy of creating a cult following on its own. So Much More is a story about love, hate, family, and overcoming adversity. It's about righting the wrongs, finding redemption, and dealing with the cards you've been dealt. This book will elicit so many emotions and at times will make you feel bipolar; you will want to laugh and cry all in the span of a paragraph. First of all, Seamus might be one of the most beloved male characters I've ever read. His love, sacrifices, and adoration for his children makes him the epitome of a hero. Then there is Miranda, the character everyone will love to hate. She's vile, coercive, conniving, and deceitful. As much as I hated her, she's an absolutely fascinating character. I think by the end most people will even find a soft spot for Miranda in their heart despite her duplicitous past. The secondary characters add depth and an emotional complexity to this beautifully written story. Have faith that this little blue covered book becomes So Much More.

I read this book as soon as it released but it's taken me this long to write a review because how do I voice what this book put me through. No, this isn't like Brightside so don't be scared but you do have all the feels. Its so well written you feel these characters emotions so vividly. You'll love Seamus and hate Miranda immediately but you'll feel these characters as they work thru this change in their lives. Faith is a strong presence and you can feel her hugs and if you've ever met Kim you can relate them to her because she gives the best hugs. You'll feel what you feel because of Kims amazing writing and Miranda's bad vibe will hurt and make you mad. I loved this book because of the wave of feeling I got from all the characters, not just the main ones. It wasn't all bad or good, it was very real, raw and honest, very relatable. This book is so totally worth your time!

Aching and sweet, a love story, a life story, that’s uniquely Holden in which I’m left with hopefulness that fills me.“People are what make life worth living. Sacrifice. Love. Compassion. It’s pretty god**** beautiful. Who knew?”Kim Holden never fails to turn my cynical heart to marshmallow. She never fails to inspire me, and she never fails to make me fall in love with her uniquely endearing characters. But, she did something new this time around; she did more. She made me love a character that I despised. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised; she’s got that magic.“The dark ugliness of hate peeks through the recesses and blots out the light of decency. I wonder how long it will be before I transform completely into my hate. I’m fighting it for my kids.”So Much More centers around three characters, Seamus, Miranda, and Faith. Seamus is a single dad raising his three children and they’re his whole heart. It’s clear that they’re his life and I absolutely adored this man. He may be my favorite Kim Holden hero yet. When we meet Seamus, he’s very much emotionally shattered after the end of his 12-year marriage. Family means everything to him, and his heart breaks when he learns the truth about the woman he pledged his life to.“I want to cling to his soft heart, but I don’t want his softness to seep into my hard heart. Because softness will get me nowhere.”Miranda is a despicable character and my hatred for her knew no bounds. She’s conniving, selfishly ambitious, and there were times when I questioned if she had a soul. She’s bad blood, and what she puts Seamus and his family through is unforgivable. Miranda made it hard for me to read this story sometimes, as I had to pause to catch my breath. But she does add a layer of realness and ugliness that gives depth to the story, and cuts through some of the overly sweet moments.“Your presence eases a tension inside me that I’ve carried all my life. You make me hurt less.”Faith is the hope of a future, and she meets Seamus at exactly the time he needs her to fuel that hope, and exactly the time that she needs him to ignite her own faith. Reminiscent of Kate from Bright Side (minus the tragic circumstances), Faith is beauty and positivity that my skeptical self would usually see as false, but Kim Holden makes me believe it. She always does.“You can’t miss what you never had right? That holds true for everything in my life, except one. Love. I miss it, even though we’ve never met.”So Much More is written in alternating moments from past to present in these three characters’ points of view, until they converge and Seamus, Miranda, and Faith are irrevocably intertwined in each other’s lives. Though sometimes the transition between POVs frustrated me, I loved how the story developed. Don’t be particular if you dislike love triangles, because this isn’t that. This is a romance, but it’s not what is important. This is a story about family, love in all its forms, second chances, and forgiveness.“Nothing, and no one, will destroy me.”Kim Holden showcases her best writing in this emotional tale, her words strong and meaningful. This story is so much more than what I was expecting. Honestly, I had no idea what to expect, since the synopsis barely hinted at the story, but this wasn’t it. I didn’t expect to feel such a range of emotions, most of them contradictory. I didn’t expect to feel such fire one moment, and then soothed the next. I didn’t expect my feelings to evolve so drastically that I went from loathing to compassion in the short span of a few hours. That’s not me; I’m unforgiving. But I experienced it all, and I won’t forget it. This is a good one, and I absolutely loved reading it. I definitely recommend that you read it too.“Life blooms in second chances.”

I am recommending this book despite the fact that I strongly disliked one of the protagonists, Miranda. The book was told for the most part in three POVs, Miranda, Seamus, and Hope. It was hard to see this book as a love story because there was so much hate and evilness from Miranda, but in the end it did show all different kinds of love, from family to marriage, to humanity (kindness of strangers). Without ruining the plot, just know that this book will make you think a lot of what would you do. I thought it took a lot for Seamus to show compassion, mercy, kindness, and forgiveness to Miranda after what she put him through during their marriage and divorce. He was definitely a better person then most people, me included. I often wondered if his actions would have been different if she was not the mother of his children. This was a very different second chance story from the norm. The book also touches on a lot of conversational topics including adultery, abortion, adoption, drug abuse, multiple sclerosis, divorce, and rape. If you are looking for a book to challenge your ideas of love and forgiveness, look no further.

More heart, more love, more emotion, more angst, more circumstance, more REAL than so many books & authors out there..... Bravo!!!

Kim Holden became my favorite author while I read Bright Side. She keeps her writing real, intriguing, with crafty plotting.

This women knows how to combine words, not just to make a beautiful story, but to take hold of you and immerse you right in to the middle of it."So much more...."

I so much more than LOVED this book. Seamus is a great character, and his ex-wife Miranda is just awful and manipulative!

This book was so inspiring. I loved Seamus. He and Miranda were a disaster waiting to happen. She was a manipulative person and thought of no one but herself.

I absolutely LOVED this!!! This story and its characters had so many layers that I was captivated and spellbound through the entire book!

Beautiful beautiful story. This story make you happy, makes you made mad and it makes you root for the underdog. This book is about Seamus and Miranda.

What an incredibly complex story with angst and an emotional rollercoaster for all of the characters. Somehow thru all the turmoil it has an amazing ending with epilogue!

This book had a little bit of everything you want in a book. I never got bored reading it. Characters were well written and the story was good.

Good book with great twists, keeps you reading to find out what's next. I would recommend this to anyone. The