BRIGHTEST LIGHT OF SUNSHINE

Twenty-two-year-old Grace Allen is in her final year as an English major in college when she walks into a tattoo shop in search of adornment for her ribs. Though she chickens out, she does meet Samuel Callaghan, known as Cal, the tattoo parlor owner and a caring, gentle giant who later intervenes when Grace is accosted by a sleazy guy at a party. Cal and Grace become friends, slowly unveiling their past trauma to each other and inserting themselves into each other’s lives. Four years earlier, Grace was assaulted, and she has been trying to rebuild and cope with her anxiety ever since. Cal grew up with an alcoholic mother and is now acting as a father figure for his little sister, Maddie. The author alternates narrative perspectives between Cal and Grace, exploring their emotions as they begin to feel more for each other than just friendship, making the story well paced and exciting. It’s an archetypical friends-to-lovers romance, but the familiarity of the trope does not mean Coney falls into cliche; instead, through misunderstandings and the complexities of human emotions, the story has the reader yearning for happiness for both of the main characters, who help each other to grow and change while gaining greater independence in their lives. In particular, Coney’s depiction of Grace’s growing confidence—gained through teaching ballet and writing her own children’s book for a college class—makes for a compelling journey, reassuring the character (and any reader who has experienced similar trauma) “that the soil [she has] been planted in is fertile enough to make [her] bloom under any circumstances.” This novel may be a romance at heart, but it is as much about moving on from adversity—without pretending it can be forgotten—as it is a love story.