A splendid specimen of a man with an ability to charm the ladies, Luke Morgan enjoys a laid back lifestyle, working with his dad and brother operating Gulfside Snorkeling Excursions in Destin, Florida. But as Luke bends to repair a fuel leak on a boat one day, his life takes a drastic turn when the spark from his wrench triggers an explosion. Luke is badly injured, losing his eye and thumb, while severely burning his chest, face, and hand.
Some weeks later Luke remains utterly miserable as he continues his recovery in the home he shares with his dad and brother above their business. Feeling hopeless about it all, Luke has refused reconstructive surgery and discontinued physical therapy. He has one big case of self pity and, rightly or wrongly, treats everyone with hostility. When a young woman comes looking for the snorkeling shop and finds only Luke to direct the way, she sees a man rude beyond measure, but doesn’t seem to notice his injuries.
Abby Stanford is in recovery of another sort. On a husbandless honeymoon, she is trying to move on with her life after finding her fiancé in bed with another woman. Heartbroken, Abby is taking an extended break from her job as an occupational therapist and attempting to enjoy the very shore-side community she'd planned to visit with her husband.
Luke finds it difficult to even think about the changes he must make to accommodate his handicap. And he certainly doesn’t waste his time contemplating those changes when it comes to women because he’s certain none will ever look his way again. He just wants to hide, but his family won’t leave him alone nor will they respect his decision to discontinue physical therapy. In fact, they hire that woman as his private therapist without his consent and invite her to live with them.
Although I felt sympathy for Luke’s loss, I had difficulty understanding the extreme anger he directs to those around him. His non-stop bad mood and ill treatment of his family is tiring and made me wonder about the limits we place on our own bad behavior despite the horrible circumstances in which we find ourselves. The author also spends a significant amount of time throughout the book explaining just why Luke is so reluctant to love. It has to do with the hurt he suffered at the hands of the last woman he loved and trusted - his mother, at the age of eight - and it spelled contrived in great big letters.
Abby doesn’t believe she’s the right choice to oversee Luke’s rehabilitation, but reluctantly accepts the challenge. Initially, I saw Abby as a great heroine – truly kind and both vulnerable and assertive. But I soon began to regard her as more of an interfering amateur psychologist to the Morgan men as she goes about offering advice – requested or not. Then again, Abby is seen as the expert on just about anything and Luke’s family takes her sage words to heart. As a reader though, I felt uncomfortable with what appeared to be a constant invasion into the men’s private lives.
It can’t be forgotten, however, that Abby is in a rehabilitation of sorts as well and her steps to healing occupy a significant portion of the story. At times I found her resistance to any relationship aggravating, but I had to acknowledge that there was some wisdom to her hesitancy. Abby alternately seemed interested in both Luke and his brother which only spelled confusion for this reader who simply wanted the story to move forward. Manipulative is another descriptive word for Abby I scribbled on the pages of my review book a number of times. But, Luke takes her manipulation in stride - although I didn’t.
As I began reading this book, memories of Linda Howard’s Come Lie With Me came to mind, a comparison I think is inevitable for those who have read both books considering their similar setups. I recently reread the Howard book and thought it superior despite its dated writing (1984).
Healing Luke had a promising beginning - I really liked what I was reading. But manipulation, pop psychology, bitterness, and confusion soon filled the pages and an enjoyable read turned into a barely acceptable experience.
-- Lea Hensley
Order this book from Amazon Books
To comment about any of these reviews on our reviews forum
