The Year I Almost Drowned by Shannon McCrimmon

Title: The Year I Almost Drowned
 
Author: Shannon McCrimmon

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published Date: December 6, 2012

Buy on Amazon: Paperback & Kindle

Author Website: http://shannonmccrimmon.com/books/
 

 

Synopsis:

In this continuation of "The Summer I Learned to Dive," nineteen-year old Finley “Finn” Hemmings is living in Graceville, South Carolina with her grandparents. She's getting to know the family that she was separated from for the last sixteen years. Finn and Jesse's relationship seems to be going strong until they're forced to deal with obstacles that throw them off-track. As Finn prepares to leave for college, she has to say goodbye to the town, her friends and family, and the way of life that she has grown to love.

 

My Thoughts:

I can happily report that Shannon McCrimmon has done it again.  The Year I Almost Drowned easily proves that McCrimmon is not a one hit wonder when it comes to writing novels.  I first heard of McCrimmon last summer when I read her debut book, The Summer I Learned to Dive (my review can be found at http://endlessdaysofbooks.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-summer-i-learned-to-dive-by-shannon.html.)  I was instantly enthralled with the characters in her book, particularly Finn and Jesse.  I found their budding romance to be realistic and natural.  However, my favorite character was Finn's sarcastic Grandfather.  Hard to get to know and rough around the edges, I instantly fell in love with his soft heart and many quips.  When I heard that there was a book number two in store for readers I was ecstatic.  I crossed my fingers that the second book about Finn and her journey would be just as terrific as The Summer I Learned to Dive.  I was NOT disappointed.

The Year I Almost Drowned picks up a little after the first book ends.  Finn decides to put off entering college for a little while in order to stay around Graceville to help her Grandfather at the dinner while he recovers from his heart attack.  However, Finn is anxious to leave all she loves behind as the ticking clock moves her closer to the day she must head off to college.  At the forefront of Finn's mind is her relationship with Jesse.  How does one have a successful long distance relationship?  Can one truly be a girlfriend to someone when you only see them a few times a year?  All of these questions and more inundate Finn's mind as she gets closer to the time she must leave.  Finn's hesitation does not go unnoticed by Jesse and she must face the consequences of her wavering heart.

I could tell that McCrimmon wrote The Year I Almost Drowned from her heart.  While there are funny and romantic scenes throughout, there are also poignant times that pulled my heartstrings.  I got so into The Year I Almost Drowned that I didn't realize I was crying until my 4 year old asked me what was wrong.  I quickly reassured her that everything was great, I was just reading a really good book that had some sad scenes.  She gave me a funny look and went back to coloring while I jumped back into McCrimmon's excellent story. 

I absoutely loved The Year I Almost Drowned just as much as I did The Summer I Learned to Dive.  The ending was fantastic and surprising, I definitely did not see McCrimmon wrapping up the book in the way that she did.  With that said, I think it ended perfectly!  I am hoping for a book #3, I would love to see more of Finn and Jesse as their life unfolds!  Fingers crossed!           

Shannon McCrimmon

The author has provided me with a complimentary copy of her book, The Year I Almost Drowned, for the purpose of review.