Enjoyed this follow up. As I am interested in other characters hope there is a third

A very well written suspense/romance. Good plot and great characters.

This story just drew me in from the first few pages. I read it in just a few days, because every time I put it down I found myself picking it back up. I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next!

REVIEW

I would like to thank Lake Union Publishing, NetGalley, and Kerry Lonsdale for the ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of "Everything We Left Behind" by Kerry Lonsdale for my honest review. The genres for this book are General Fiction(Adult), Women's Fiction, Mystery, Suspense with a touch of Romance.

This is the sequel to "Everything We Keep". I like the way the author continues the story-line and plot. This story is narrated by the same man in two character roles,as James and Carlos. James was almost killed, and wakes up as Carlos. For 6 years James is in a fugue state. As Carlos, he has two sons, and a wife who died during the birth of his second son. Carlos becomes close and involved with his sister-in-law Nat. Carlos keeps a detailed journal of his life when he becomes aware that he was James. Never knowing when he will find James again, Carlos prepares his older son and gives him a box containing items to this. As Carlos finds himself becoming James again, there are many questions. Most importantly, James/Carlos worries for his two children and above all wants to keep them safe.

James family has secrets, betrayals, and major conflicts.Can James ever trust his family? Why was he almost killed? Why is everyone in that family trying to betray one another? As James surfaces with his identity crisis, he realizes that he and his children are in danger. Who can James trust? James is in search of answers.

Both James and Carlos love painting, and that is something his youngest son loves as well. The children are confused when James starts to find himself.

The author describes the characters as complicated and complex. I like that James/Carlos loves his boys and would do anything to keep them safe.

This book is fast-moving, full of adventure, full of suspense and mystery. I read this book in one sitting and couldn't put it down.

I enjoyed this intriguing and captivating novel and would recommend it highly. I look forward for Kerry Lonsdale's next book. Happy Reading!

Really liked this book. Liked the characters and story flow. Clever idea to use the one man's "two" perspectives. Entertaining and gripping read. Complex issue being one person with 2 identities. Author handled each well. The conflict with the other characters dealing with the "two" different personalities but one person was interesting to read. Would recommend. Voluntarily review from ARC from NetGalley.

This book had a bit of mystery but I didn't love Carlos or James. I do like that we had the point of view from both. I think that Everything We Keep needs to be read first for the reader to best understand the entire story. I connected better to Aimee in Everything we Keep so I liked that book better. I am glad I read this book, and appreciate the opportunity by NetGalley to read it before it is released.

Everything we Left Behind. Kerry Lonsdale.

A taut and complex tale of love, deceit and betrayal.

When James Donato wakes up he has no idea where he is or who the child on his bed is. He has lost the last six and a half years of his life during which he finds he was Carlos Domingues, father of two, widower and successful artist living in Mexico. He has no memory of his wife or of his successful career. He doesn’t remember his sister in law and lover, Natalya but he does remember Aimee his fiancé from another life. Aimee, still living in California and now married with a child of her own.

James must find out who he really is and how he has ended up living here in Mexico under a different identity. He must also find out where and who he wants to be. In order to do this he must delve into his past and try to remember what brought him to this point. Something he can’t quite grasp tugs at the back of his mind but as he tries to remember we see that he is not the only one who wants to know what he recalls of that fateful night when he was lost at sea, missing presumed dead.

In a journey fraught with deception and danger he searches for the truth about himself and about who he is and about who and what really matters to him. The only thing he is sure of in his fractured world is that he loves his sons and will do anything to protect and care for them.

This is a sophisticated and fast paced novel full of twists and turns. An unusual take on a dual narrative, it explores the conflicts and turmoils that have become James’s life since he emerged form the fugue. Who can he trust - his brother, his mother, Natalya who loves him? All of them say they want to help.

Lonsdale draws us effortlessly towards the gripping conclusion of a novel that is hard to put down. A must read.

I love that moment when you know you have an author in your life that will constantly deliver stories that you will read, sight unseen. I felt this way when I read EVERYTHING WE KEEP by Kerry Lonsdale last year. Then I read and fell in love with her characters in ALL THE BREAKING WAVES. Now, having finished an early copy of EVERTHING WE LEFT BEHIND, the deal is even more solidified. Where Everything We Keep was about finding a way to deal with the past from Aimee's point of view, Everything We Left Behind is about James' s story. The novel picks up where the first one ended and rotates each chapter being told from Carlos and James's point of view. To me, the theme of this book was about family. Not just discovering the secrets of the Donato's and that fateful night in Mexico, but also the relationships with James and Nat and his sons. I cannot imagine as a parent having lost the memory of my children's childhoods but love that one thing he knows in his heart is that he is a dad and he loves those boys. And Lonsdale captures that sentiment beautifully. I really enjoyed how the author captured the male perspective in this novel, focusing so much on James as a son, father, lover, and brother. This book has it all and I'm stoked to see what happens next in this story. I sure hope it's told from the Claire's point of view....

I received an advanced copy of this novel from the author and from Great Thoughts' Great Readers in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, wow, WOW! After I read Everything We Keep I couldn't stop talking about it. I was thrilled that Kerry Lonsdale was going to write a follow-up and could not wait to read it. I was given an ARC and can tell you that this one was totally worth the wait! I loved every chapter and was sucked into the story from the very first sentence.

So many emotions play out in this one. As a parent, my hear was breaking for Carlos' boys. I cannot imagine how hard this would be to live through. I wish we would have heard more from Amy (can I be hopeful to think we may in the future?).

Thank you for an awesome read!

What an intense thriller! One of those that are hard to put down! It is full twists, and turns......some quite disturbing. Others were thought provoking. Did not see that ending coming, but a couple of story lines just stopped.
Was that intentional on part of the author? Will there be a sequel coming?
Why did the psychic hand her business card to Aimee? Hope we get to find out.

I read the original book and loved, loved it and while this book was good, it was not as good as the original one. It jumped back and forth between two different time periods and the story of each person from those two periods and I really had to pay attention to whom was speaking from what time period to make sure I understood what was going on. I would have rather read a book that was linear, but this is how the author wrote it. All that being said, I enjoyed the rest of the story. The characters had depth and the author did a great job on those characters and making you like or dislike each one. I would read any book of Kerry's as she is a great writer.

Engaging story of a man, James, who can't remember who he is or anything about his life. A traumatic experience has put him in a fugue state where he's living as Carlos with a wife and two sons. This is the story of his journey back to himself - but when he becomes James again will he remember his sons, his wife, his life as Carlos? A very intricately written tale going back and forth from present day to the traumatic past. Introduction of a new character at the end foreshadows the next book. Although I didn't read the first book, [book:Everything We Keep|29639736], it was easy to jump into the story. I will most likely go back and read it... and certainly the next book.

My thanks to Kerry Lonsdale and Lake Union Publishing for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Finally, I was able to find out what happened to James Donato aka Carlos in Kerry Lonsdale's sequel of Everything We Keep. The first book ended with a twist that left you desperate for more. This definitely didn't disappoint! I fell in love with the characters even more, and the plot had me on an emotional roller coaster trying to figure out what was going to happen next with James and Natalya.

Now I have to wait again for the next book.

Amazing! Just the sequel I needed! Highly recommend!

Wow! What I love the most of this story is getting the inside view on how Carlos and James felt concerning the memories and the changes those memories would bring! Kerry Lonsdale does an excellent job of putting the emotional thrill and angst involving memory loss! Loss, love and finding family, it's all here among the waves and art of life!

I tried so hard to love this book as much as I enjoyed the first, Everything We Keep, but I just did not. While I appreciated the effort, it just felt forced, overly complicated and at times unrealistic. I just wanted to get to the end to find out what happened, yet I really didn't care how. It was fast paced, but the constant back and forth at times were confusing, even though I usually enjoy this style of storytelling. I feel bad, giving a negative review, but I just enjoyed the first book so much and what it created but then that all was lost.

* I received this book from the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review *

This is the sequel to Everything We Keep, which I had no idea was even coming. So, I was grateful to be able to read and review. In this book, we get to learn James's story. He has been in living in a fugue state for over six years in Mexico as Carlos with no memory of his former life as James Donato from the US in which he was to marry his childhood sweetheart. The chapters alternate between present day in James's life and in the past within Carlos's life. It is a confusing story because a man must find himself among six years of living a different life, acquiring two sons, losing a wife, falling in love with another woman as Carlos and then losing all that he had as James because his fiance had moved on. I found this novel to be compelling and even better than the first one. (YOU NEED TO READ THE FIRST BOOK BEFORE YOU PICK UP THIS ONE!) I loved the characters and felt that I really understood their feelings and hopes. Kerry Lonsdale ROCKS!

What a wonderful follow up to "Everything We Keep"!!!!

It was great to hear what happened with Carlos/James over the past few years. The story flowed nicely. Great character depth.

You find out what happened with Aimee after she returned from Mexico but ya not the sole focus. This book is about Carlos/James journey. You will not be disappointed!!

Kerry knocks it out of the park again!!!!!

Everything We Left Behind is the sequel to the book Everything We Keep, the book was just ok, I felt if you didn't read the first book you would've been lost.

I have so looked forward to reading Everything We Left Behind since finishing Everything We Keep, and it was such a good feeling to go on with the story of James Donato, Aimee and the continuing mystery of their lives. The anguishing struggle of James who is in a fugue state, who lives two lives, one as Carlos, an artist living in Mexico and in love with Natalya, and the knowledge that someday he would become James again is told in flashback chapters. The suspense is kept at a high level as each layer of drama are revealed. Carlos is afraid that when he finally becomes James he won't want his sons Julian and Marc who struggle to keep their Dad. His love and relationship with Amiee contiues to haunt him as does his fear of his brother Phil who tried to have him killed. The struggle to find out his true identity keeps James/Carlos living in fear, all bound up with lost memories of his childhood and his brothers. There is so much to this incredible story, feelings of lost love, and the longing for truth, the relationships that are not to be trusted, the hope that there will be reconciliation and forgiveness all make this amazing book one you don't want to miss