After the loss of his parents, Archer Hart is consumed by grief. Each day, he struggles his way through classes, parties, and trying to put on a good front for the sake of his best friend. But at night, he falls asleep to the sound of gunshots ringing in his ears.
Mallory is a man fighting a war of emotions all his own. When his son invites his best friend back home to Banff over a college break, he’s happy for the company.
Some time during the late-night talks, subtle smiles, and long, long silences, the two men begin to find solace in one another.
I didn’t really know what to expect with this story. I knew it was Summer’s and that was enough to make it a must read. I love it when you have that type of author/reader relationship, utmost confidence is they only way to describe it. Although this is quite different from most everything else on her bookshelf, Summer’s style was glaringly obvious. I think her most distinguishing trait is without a doubt, her characters. It doesn’t take more than a few chapters and I feel as though I’ve known them forever. Archer is distinctive for many reasons but even more so since the majority of the story is told from his perspective. And what a heartbreaking story he has to tell. Archer has experienced grief in supersized doses and has never recovered. He’s on autopilot, going through the motions to see his plan through. He’s not only numb but drowning in a pit of apathy and would have sunk if it wasn’t for his best friend. *sigh* Danny brings smiles and joy to the pages, I was instantly smitten. Then we meet Danny’s dad and I was done for. Mallory is everything that Archer needs and vice versa. But they have obstacles standing in their way. It could never work. Or could it?
We’re never too old to learn new things and often they force us to look in the mirror a little closer. Nash delivers a tale mixed with personal discovery, slow burn, healing hearts and a hearty age gap. The emotions will bite you! I believe the all-consuming sadness and depression Archer battles on a daily basis was portrayed vividly. He lost his entire family in a matter of hours; his parent’s death was followed by his only brother’s disownment. This left him shattered in a million pieces. Lost and broken, he decides to follow in his parent’s footsteps with the hopes he would have made them proud. Peace is almost completely foreign to him except when he’s at the range. It’s the only place he finds any comfort and shooting becomes his precious outlet. He briefly escapes his painful chains and is free. Then he becomes a victim of a hate crime that steals that from him too. Now his dream (or his dad’s dream) is hopeless. He has nothing left to hold onto. That is until Danny takes him to Canada and Mallory becomes the stoic nursemaid during his recovery. Mallory. Well, I think it’s time to take this to ‘what’s to love’……
Mallory has loved deeply and lost deeply. His wife brought him half a lifetime of bliss but now he’s alone and confident he will never love like that again. Then his son brings his best friend home for the holidays and something inside Mallory wakes up. Archer is enveloped in despair but Mallory feels a connection he can’t explain. But everything about his attraction to Archer is wrong. He’s a man, he’s far too young and he’s his son’s best friend. Talk about forbidden fruit! Yet when it’s just Mallory and Archer everything else melts away. They just see…each other. What they have begins with comfort, blossoms into friendship and then burns into passion. By this point, I was completely enthralled and you couldn’t pry my kindle from my hands. Their love affair is unhurried but far from boring. When Mallory takes over the microphone I wanted to scream at him. I was SO mad. But then…well, we see from his eyes why he thought he had to do what he did. And…I got it. Didn’t mean I had to like it, but I understood. I absolutely love it when a book is so powerful that I physically react to it. I felt their pain and I could taste their hope. It was impressive and might steal the number one spot in my Summer’s shelf.
A tsunami of feels. Depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of loved ones, hate crime, turning away from love….I’m talking the full spectrum of angst. However, it’s beautifully counterbalanced with love, hope, and healing. I hated the limitations Archer suffered after……but know he never would have passed any psych tests to secure a position with any department after the academy. That path was never meant for him.
This is a tragically beautiful tale that demonstrates loves knows no age, love knows no gender, and love can help heal any heart, but loving thyself comes first. If you are a Summer’s fan, you NEED this. If you are not a Summer’s fan (yet), you NEED this.
TITLE: Arrows Through Archer
AUTHOR: Nash Summers
PUBLISHER: self-pub
LENGTH: 309 pages
RELEASE DATE: June 12th, 2017
BUY LINKS: Amazon
