By Way of Accident by Laura Miller

5 Sweet Stars

I loved By Way of Accident!!  The book and River Asher stole my heart away.  I knew from reading the synopsis that I just had to read this book and from the moment I picked up By Way of Accident I couldn’t put it down.  Laura Miller’s writing was beautiful, she really made me feel like I was right there with River throughout the entire books.

By Way of Accident is told from the point of view of River Asher.  The story starts out when River is only thirteen years old spending his summer helping his Grandfather bale hay on his farm.  After a long day of baling River finds his peace at the creek that runs behind his grandfather’s farm.  On one random day at the creek River meets Brooke Sommerfield.  River is intrigued by this girl he has never seen before; she is the most beautiful girl he has ever seen.  They both agree to meet at the creek the next day, River can’t wait to see Brooke again and spend more time with her.  Feelings for her start to swirl in him, but at the age of thirteen he doesn’t know what to make of them.  He just knows he wants to spend as much time with Brooke as he can.

River and Brooke continue to grow closer as they spend their summer together at the creek. Even at the age of thirteen they both start to realize that what they are feeling for each other is love.  I couldn’t keep the smile off my face during this time of their relationship.  River was such a sweet young boy.  He cared for Brooke and wasn’t afraid to show it.  Their relationship was so new and innocent you couldn’t help rooting for them to last.

Unfortunately, Brooke’s dad takes a job in a new state and they have to move.  River promises to visit Brooke as soon as he can and to write to her all the time. But as it does in real life, life gets in the way and things change that are out of their control.  River holds on to that summer with Brooke for as long as he can, but as River gets older he realizes it’s time to move on but the girl from the creek isn’t far from his mind, even after nine years have passed.

As I said before, I absolutely loved this story.  It was such a sweet story of first love, faith and second chances.  This was the first book I’ve read by Laura Miller and I doubt it will be my last.  Her writing style and storytelling had a way of making By Way of Accident feel so real to me.  I recommend this book to everyone, especially if you’re a hopeless romantic like myself.