Gus (Bright Side Book 2)

When author Colleen Hoover recommends a novel, I make a note of it. Not only is Hoover a gifted writer, but I respect her opinion when it comes to a book recommendation. The novel I’m referring to on this occasion is Bright Side by Kim Holden, and it apparently made a positive impression on her. It was impossible to ignore all of the positive feedback from readers who had already taken her recommendation to heart, so I decided to purchase and read Bright Side. Kim Holden's gripping and emotional story about Kate Sedgwick was heartbreaking, inspiring, and beautiful. Optimistic. Bright Side earned a 6-star rating from me and a rare spot on my list of all-time favorite novels. Because of my immense love for Bright Side, I have been looking forward to the day I could read Gus, the second novel of Holden’s Bright Side series. It’s a story about Kate Sedgwick’s lifelong best friend, Gus Hawthorne. Simply put, Gus found a way under my skin. This story grew on me, steamrolling into something just as special as Bright Side. Gus Hawthorne is the songwriter and lead singer for Rook. The novel sort of has a slow start, with Gus drowning in heartbreak and loss. His life is falling apart. While the band is touring Europe, Gus is doing his best to get through each day. In order to ensure the success of the U.S. tour, management decides to hire a personal assistant for Gus. Scout Mackenzie doesn’t know anything about Rook or its lead singer. She’s just running away from her problems when she accepts the position to be a personal assistant to Gustov Hawthorne. Scout has recently been in an abusive relationship. She could use the money, and she definitely needs some time away. Taking this position is perfect for her because Rook is beginning its tour of the United States, and she will be traveling with the band on the tour bus. Right from the beginning, Gus and Scout do not hit it off. They put up with each other because they have to. This may seem strange, but I love this aspect of Gus. I commend Kim Holden for going this route, although it might not be a popular choice. I believe both of these characters need time to heal – to get some perspective on the circumstances they have been through. I found it refreshing to read how a relationship develops between Gus and Scout. How they grow on each other. We see them become friends first, helping each other heal. Friends before lovers. One of my favorite things about Bright Side is the characters, most of them full of positive energy and charisma, so I was super excited to see Kim Holden revisit them in Gus. You should expect to spend plenty of time with the members of Rook – Gus, Franco, Robbie and Jamie. And Gus’s Ma? I just love her, and the close relationship they share. Ma is definitely my favorite secondary character, and she has a special role in this novel. The characters from Grant, Minnesota? Keller and Stella, Duncan and Shelly and many more are found in Gus. Kim Holden ties her characters from Bright Side and Gus together nicely. Gus is an emotional story. At times, the novel can be sad. I found myself in tears on several occasions, but Gus is also funny, hopeful and inspiring. I absolutely adored the many ways we visit Kate and Gracie throughout this story! The healing and love that flourishes between Gus and Scout is heartwarming and fulfilling, and they show growth as individuals. The author does a fantastic job of fully developing each main character. Bright Side and Gus. There is something very powerful about each of these stories. Maybe what I am feeling is the mood or tenor. I’m not sure, but whatever it is, I continue to feel it long after I have finished reading. Both novels are very special to me. Gus receives a 6-star rating, and I am including it on my list of 2015 favorite novels!

I am so glad that I stumbled upon this read! I read Bright Side last year and absolutely loved it, then immediately read All Of It, and one thing became abundantly clear; this author has a distinct style that engulfs the reader and weaves its way into your heart. It is a slow, meticulous, artfully crafted, and thoughtfully developed story. She builds a foundation, so that there is no mistaking that the characters are real and full of depth and as the reader, you can't wait to see what the future holds for them. So when I realized that Bright Side has a continuation, I got all giddy inside! We pick up right where we left off at the end of Bright Side, with Gus soon after Kate memorial, and after such a tremendous loss, it is understandable that he is not coping well. His musically career is really taking off, yet he can't find joy in his life, so he is coping through random hook-ups and alcohol. He is spiraling out of control, putting his band at risk, until the promotors feel that he needs as assistance to keep his life in order. Gus and Scout get off to a rocky start, and we get to experience the progression of their relationship, in that way that only Kim can do so well. I remember when I started Bright Side, it took me a minute to get used to the "diary" feel of the chapters, so with Gus, not only was I used to it, I really liked it. I truly, truly hope and pray that Kim is going to give us Keller's story, as he and Stella also deserve EPIC. Looking so forward to more work from Kim.

***SPOILERS AHEAD: If you haven’t read Bright Side yet (and why haven’t you? It’s AMAZING!) read further with caution – there are spoilers. Gus is a continuation of the most epic story and my Top Favorite Read of 2014! *** “There is something epic that happens every day if you look hard enough for it.” This is the epitome of Gus by, Kim Holden. We pick up right where we left off in Bright Side; one of THE most beautiful and gut wrenching stories I’ve ever experienced. The relationship between Gus & Katie is a thing of beauty – true love for one another and a friendship that requires zero work. These two, cut from the same cloth should be the goal of every friendship. Gus, now on tour with his band Rook is faced with the reality that he has to go on without his , Bright Side. Katie was more than just his friend – she was his first and only love. Gus loves fully – like every person should, with open uninhibited arms. He and Katie were soul mates, lovers and she pushed him to be the best person he could be. He’s just not sure how he’s supposed to go on stage every night and sing the songs she helped create. “Bright Side wasn’t only my best friend; she was like my other half… the other half of my brain, the other half of my conscience, the other half of my sense of humor, the other half of my creativity, the other half of my heart. How do you go back to doing what you did before, when half of you is gone forever?” When the pressures of rock stardom come knocking on his door things start to slowly unravel. But when the alcohol flows freely and girls are throwing themselves at you left and right, it’s inevitable that Gus finds himself over indulging; too much, too fast. Not only is Gus running away from the pressure of being on tour, and shouldering the success his managers are banking on – he’s also running away in an effort to cope with the giant gaping hole Katie’s death has left in his life. “I can’t stop thinking about her. Nothing specific, nothing I can visualize or recall. It’s just pain and emptiness. Darkness. The light, the bright light is gone.” When things start to really veer off track Gus starts to feel himself falling into the pit of cliche rock stars. The decisions is made and his manager hires him a personal assistant/babysitter named Scout. But when Scout moves onto the tour bus, Gus learns very fast that she’s not going to be batting her eye lashes at him, or swooning over the band. She barely utters two words to him. She’s there to do a job and could careless about what she assumes is just another spoiled, over indulgent rock star. She’s there to make sure Gus knows what state they’re in that day, if he looses his cell phone? She replaces it and leaves it on his bed without a word. Most of their conversations are back and forth on post-it-notes. Scout is getting ready to graduate from college – this job will afford her a paid adventure, a favor to her uncle and a much needed geography gap between she and her ex-boyfriend. Gus & Scout; what is there to say? They get off to a rocky start, but Gus being Gus? He’s all for a challenge – a challenge that will leave their lives to intertwine in the best possible ways. “I knew I wasn’t alone. I haven’t written like that since Bright Side was around. I always feel her in my heart these days, because that’s where she lives. I walk around with her inside me every day. And it doesn’t hurt anymore. But the presence I felt tonight wasn’t internal. It was physical. Tangible. Like someone was in the room with me, feeding me. Little did I know, she was just on the other side of the door. Filling my soul.” Gus absolutely melts me – any bitterness I have lingering in me about me – he melts right away, seriously. He has a heart the size of the state of California – always going above and beyond the call of duty for his friends and family. He’s Epic like that. This book is FULL of everything I adored about Gus in Bright Side and then some. I started Gus about a week into one the WORST reading slumps I’ve ever suffered since starting this blog two years ago. I didn’t read or pick up my Kindle for about 2 to 3 months. There was something seriously off – so I shelved it until my husband and I went on vacation for three weeks to visit his family & friends in Wales. This I’m hoping would rejuvenate my love for the written word, 10 hour plane rides – train rides – patio in the garden SCREAMING for me to lounge in all day with my Kindle – and I was right. I started Gus from the beginning again- sitting on the train on our way to Cardiff, I figured I would read it start to finish in the three hours it would take us to reach Cardiff, because I didn’t just read Bright Side, I practically devoured it in one sitting. I apologize to all the passengers on that rail car, as I started blubbering 5 pages in. Everything from Bright Side came flooding back and there were times I had to stop myself from full-on-sobbing. My husband giving me weird looks and shaking his head at me knows – this is what I do. Because one of my absolute favorite things in this world is reading a story that makes you feel. And that’s exactly what Gus did. I could give you a laundry list of emotions I felt while reading this story. I had tears streaming down my face from sadness, happiness and of course laughter. But I’m glad I shelved it when I did, so I could give it 100% of my full attention that it deserved. And it was sooooooooooooo worth the wait. You will fall in love all over again with Gus & Scout. Katie may be gone – but her spirit is VERY much intact – in every single page of this book.

This book mended my broken heart after Bright Side! Loved every bit of it! In love with Gus!

GUS (Bright Side, #2) by Kim Holden 5 stars!! “Grief. Anger. Grief. Anger. Grief...Anger.” After you have read something as perfect as Bright Side you are always going to be nervous reading the sequel, I mean, how can something so perfect ever be matched or even topped? Well, I needn’t have worried at all. As soon as GUS landed on my kindle I was all in from the first to last word. Kim Holden does Gus proud in this book and she has given us a story that was honest, real, emotional, intense and so heart-breakingly genuine that you just fell in love with these characters all over again. Kim Holden has once again touched my heart, I felt it all, the grief, the desolation, the turn around, that eureka moment and all the happy that follows. This book was perfectly balanced and I was so thankful that it rang true to life, losing someone that you are extremely close too is not something that you get over easily and it was never brushed aside, it was raw, but it was perfect. Gus as you could imagine really struggles in the beginning and this is where I felt Kim Holden really hit her stride. As I said above, I felt his pain, I felt his emotions, and I felt his devastation. Gus really struggles to find himself. Bright Side was his other half, his soul mate, how could someone possibly go on when one half of them is missing? I have to say I was really worried about Gus, I knew that this was going to hit him hard, but to see how vulnerable and broken he was, was soul crushing at times. I always knew that he would have to hit rock bottom before he could start his painful clamour to the surface and the way this book was written made that journey all the more honest, genuine and unequivocally believable. “Bright Side wasn’t only my best friend; she was like my other half...the other half of my brain, the other half of my conscience, the other half of my sense of humour, the other half of my creativity, the other half of my heart. How do you go back to doing what you did before, when half of you is gone forever.” Gus in the beginning was a shell of the man that we loved and knew, he couldn’t write, he couldn’t play, he just existed and even then that was up for debate at times. I wanted him to watch the DVD, I wanted him to see what and who he had become, Bright Side wouldn’t have wanted this, he needed to know, he needed to be told but he just wouldn’t listen. He needed to work through his pain and even Bright Side herself had anticipated it, it just went to show how bone deep their connection was, it was beautiful. Stunningly beautiful. “I don’t know to be Gus without her, dude. I’m effing lost as s***.” We finally get that little sliver of light in the form of Scout, I am not going to say too much about Scout but she was the wake-up call that Gus needed. He made her life hell, but she gave back as good as she got. The journey that these two went on was honest and real, no insta love, not even instant friendship but none the less a beautiful, sometimes hilarious read that will have your emotions all over the place. In the beginning these two were by no means perfect together, but they worked, they worked well, they were just what each other needed, they were there for each other, the right place at the right time. The way Kim Holden develops their relationship before your eyes was inspiring, that character connection resonates deep within and once again we have another character that you cannot help but love. “He doesn’t live life, he feels it. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen grief strangle him. And I’ve seen happiness make him glow with a brightness so intense it’s almost blinding. That’s what makes him so special. It’s not his talent or his looks. It’s how much he feels.” Once again though Bright Side is not forgotten, this book was a celebration of her life, how life became after Bright Side but no-one would ever forget, forever at the forefront of people’s thoughts and memories and forever uttering or thinking “what would Bright Side do”? Every time she was mentioned the tears came, I just couldn’t help it and my thoughts would wander back to that orange book that decimated me last year. It was great to catch up with all the characters, no-body was forgotten in this book, while this book is predominantly all about Gus, Gus’s journey would never be complete without his friends and they are all there as one big happy family, even Keller. This is what I loved, Kim Holden brought them all together, they were a unit, they may have lost the anchor that held them tethered together but those friendships were for life and life means life. This was one emotional journey, but it was a necessary evil, the good far outweighs the bad and the journey that Kim Holden takes you on to get there was well worth the tears and the tissues. You have to sit back and salute Kim Holden, the woman is a genius, Bright Side was EPIC, Gus was EPIC, this author is just EPIC. This woman knows how to nail character connection; she brings these people to life. She knows how to nail emotions, she makes me cry even when not intended but most of all you live and breathe it all and that is what I love in a book. I want it to be an experience and this is one experience I will never ever forget. I totally and utterly loved Bright Side but I can honestly say I loved Gus just as much. “Not good things...but epic things. And I’ve fallen in love with epic. It’s the only way to live.” Amazing job Kim Holden, you should be so proud, not only did you do Gus Hawthorne justice but us the reader too. You gave us a raw, emotional, yet uplifting story that will have mended many hearts. But I can’t reiterate enough how much I respect the honesty in this book, it made it for me. It was real, it was believable, dude...it was EPIC.

If you were a wreck like me after Bright Side and left wanting for more of Señor Gus Hawthorne, READ THIS! It’s heartbreaking, beautiful, laugh out loud funny and healing. Most of all, healing. Loved every page.

Foi lindo demais acompanhar a evolução do Gus de um luto profundo para uma felicidade plena. Tenho certeza que a Bright Side tá assoviando e batendo palmas lá em cima.

It's been a week since I finished this book and only now can I sort my brain and emotions out to write it down. So my heart was broken at the end of Bright Side and was still broken going into the story of Gus. But just with him, slowly but surely my heart started to mend in the most beautiful way. I loved everything about this story, from the first part of the book when we read about Gus's heart ache and what he went through to the middle of the book when we see him slowly start to mend himself with the help of our lovely Scout to then the most amazing ending I could think of. At first I will admit I was thinking hmm this book is a bit slow but it wasn't until I got to the ending that I got why! It would of been an injustice to Bright Side and all the light she was if Gus moved on within the blink of an eye! And we wouldn't of seen the relationship of Gus and Scout emerge without the healing time for both of them and that was truly beautiful and inspires me to love to the fullest just like they do. At first they were both broken, both grieving and not living life but with the friendship and support from one another their friendship blossoms to the strongest relationship I've read to date. Scout was perfect for Gus, I loved how he healed her and made her see the funny, smart and wonderful women she is. She never once was jealous she understood what Gus felt for Bright Side and that is what true love and respect is about. And Scout pulled Gus out from the darkness and accepted his feelings and history and loved him unconditionally. What had me smiling with tears in my eyes was everything about Gus and the way he remembers Bright Side, the way he loves his mum, the love that grows for Scout, the way this healing process occurred, EVERYTHING. He is a beautiful man and I felt the soul gripping emotions of him throughout this book and even writing this review. Kim Holden, I sing your praises on top of the world. You have brought two of the most heart wrenching, emotional and beautiful books into my life. And I thank you for that. You are remarkable ❤️