After Her husband unexpectedly dies, Rocky flees to Peaks Island, off the coast of Maine and takes a job as an animal warden. One of her first "finds" is an injured lab, who she nurses back to health, as he nurses her back from the abyss. The tale includes neighbor Tess, teen anorexic girl Melissa and interweaves in the story of the lab's former owner Liz & what happened to her, as pieces of the tale are lost....and found. ( )

This was a really quick read–something great for the beach or an airplane. Between a flight from Minneapolis to Orlando and an hour and a half in a beach chair, I’d knocked this one out. That could be looked at one of two ways. On the bright side, it’s a quick story to understand and digest and something quickly consumable. However, if you’re looking for something with more meat, you might want to save this one for later.

What I loved about the book was that it did just pull me along with the light and quirky characters. Although, that is quite a juxtaposition with the severity of the situations dealt with in the book–losing your husband young and a young girl with anorexia. While the writing was light, I do feel like those two topics were appropriately dealt with in the narrative.

On the other hand, I’m not a large fan of drawing me into the story with a death. The death in this case really didn’t tie into the story except for the fact that it provided motivation for Rocky to go to the island. To that end, it felt almost out of place within this particular story. The real hook to the story within the book comes when the dog arrives with an arrow protruding from his side. To me, that would have been enough of an enticement to draw me forward into the story.

Reposted from my blog: https://susanstradiotto.com/2018/12/13/lost-found-by-jacueline-sheehan/
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I had a hard time relating to the "quirky" characters. I felt the author tried to hard to shock the reader and took away from the "realness" of the characters. The plot itself wasn't bad, but the author wrecked it with her need to make memorable characters. I would not have finished if it weren't for my Bookclub; however, I have to say that the ending moved very fast so that was fun. ( )

This book turned out to be so much more than I was expecting. For some reason, I thought it was going to be a light, fluffy, chick-lit read (which I love) but it proved to be much darker (in a good way). I loved the parts about synesthesia, which I find fascinating, and I thought the author did a really good job depicting the stages of grieving, including the occasional irrationality of a person (and an animal) facing a loss so deep they're not sure they'll ever return from it. Highly recommended. ( )

After her loss, Rocky is filled with grief and confusion. She needs to get away from her "life." She carves out a new life on Peak's Island off Maine. She slowly makes new friends and connections especially to Lloyd. These friends along with time help her manage the grief, find her vitality and regain her 'can-do' spirit and personality. She finds herself looking forward to life.

Positive, romantic and sweet read. ( )