Review ~ Somebody Like You by Beth Vogt

Book Blurb (from Goodreads)

Can a young widow find love again with her husband’s reflection?

Haley’s three-year marriage to Sam, an army medic, ends tragically when he’s killed in Afghanistan. Her attempts to create a new life for herself are ambushed when she arrives home one evening—and finds her husband waiting for her. Did the military make an unimaginable mistake when they told her Sam was killed?

Too late to make things right with his estranged twin brother, Stephen discovers Sam never told Haley about him. As Haley and Stephen navigate their fragile relation­ship, they are inexorably drawn to each other. How can they honor the memory of a man whose death brought them together—and whose ghost could drive them apart?

Somebody Like You is a beautifully rendered, affecting novel, reminding us that while we can’t change the past, we have the choice to change the future and start anew.

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My Review

Displaying  a mastery of writing skills, Beth Vogt has penned an astonishingly complex and emotional novel. Somebody Like You is a deeply moving story about a pregnant young widow whose husband Sam, after only three years being married, has been killed in Afghanistan. 

Haley, otherwise known as ‘Hal’, grew up having three older brothers that she had to keep up with or be left out. Over the years, she developed the persona of being ‘one of the guys’. That’s one of the traits that attracted Sam to her in the first place. He always said she was the perfect Army wife; he didn't have to worry about her while he was deployed (which was most of their marriage) because she was independent and strong. At her core, she wonders how she is going to manage everything without Sam; taking care of a new house and a baby. And then her world is rocked again. Is that her deceased husband back from the grave, standing on her front porch?

Stephen Ames has been estranged from his twin brother, Sam, for over a decade.  When he gets news that Sam has died, he is filled with remorse and wonders how will he reconcile now that his brother is gone. He decides to seek out Sam’s widow in hopes of learning about his brother’s life the past decade and somehow make amends. Stephen is the opposite of Sam in so many ways, except looks. In fact, they were mirror twins, so when he shows up on Haley’s doorstep, she thinks Sam survived after all. That scene in the book is one of the most touching and wrenching I believe I have read in a long while. Can you imagine someone that you thought was gone, reappearing?

Somebody Like You is a beautiful book, from the lovely cover to the words on the pages. While I felt the sadness and sorrow over Sam’s death, I enjoyed watching Haley and Stephen get to know one another. They had to let go of expectations of themselves and each other, much like we do in real life. And the scenes between Stephen and the baby are precious! He really is the best fictional uncle J

There’s such a great blend of faith, grief, humor and just plain fun in this story. I know it sounds kind of crazy. How can all those things go together? But they do, and quite perfectly at that.

I appreciate the author and Howard Books providing me a copy for review purposes. My honest opinion is all that was required. No monetary compensation has been received.

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About the Author

God’s best is often found behind the doors marked “Never.”

So many times I approached life with with a virtual roll of yellow duct tape emblazoned with the word NEVER. Over and over again I sealed off certain opportunities.

I would never marry a doctor or anyone in the military.

I would never have children.

I would never write fiction.

And don’t you know God stripped off the duct tape and walked me through each of those NEVER doors?

Have you ever marked a door NEVER … only to discover his best waited where you said you’d never go?

Following God through that door doesn’t mean we’re on “easy street,”‘even though we’re where he wants us to be.

Connect with Beth @ www.bethvogt.com