Member Reviews
“I’m here to save you”
Words, words, words…. Once again Mia Sheridan has completely amazed me with her words. More Than Words is Mia Sheridan at her finest. A story within a story. An emotional, magical journey. It is beautifully written, almost poetic. Flowing like a melody from page to page.
Fate brought Jessica (Jessie) Creswell to Callen Hayes when she was 11 years old. Although their lives were different economically, they both had a difficult home life. They became friends and at times each other’s refuge, sharing their secrets. They took comfort in each other and went on adventures to get away from their everyday situations. Jessie gave Callen the gift of music. Callen gave Jessie her first kiss. However, after that magical kiss, Callen never came back. Jessie returned to their “spot” repeatedly until one day she finally gave up.
“No one makes me feel like you, Princess Jessie. No one ever will.”
Ten years later, Callen is an award winning, successful composer – “the playboy of classical music,” often appearing in tabloids for his bad-boy ways. Jessie is living in Paris and on her way to accomplishing her dreams. But fate once again brings them together. Callen flees to Paris in an attempt to help his struggle with writer’s block. His next composition is overdue….
Jessie is intelligent, intuitive, kind, beautiful, and sweet. She is so protective of Callen. She is gentle and patient as she reaches into Callen’s soul and tries to sooth it. Callen has so much self-contempt, doubt, and sadness about him. His self-revelations and self-hatred were gut wrenching at times. Their chemistry together is beautiful. Although they are adults they still share the spirit of adventure. Fate plays a role in their lives over and over again.
As I said above, there is also a story within the story. No spoilers but I must say that I loved the way the “inner story” was told. It is obvious that there was a lot of time spent on research. The attention to detail did not go unnoticed as well. Mia Sheridan is known for her angst and love stories but this one struck my heart unlike the others. It is not a quick read. It is thoughtful and detailed. I took my time and savored each piece that I was given. And, I loved the epilogue!
“Sometimes the beginning of love is just a simple matter of proximity.”
Sandy’s 4.75 Blush Review
Mia Sheridan does it again. She’s given us another heartfelt, swoony, sexy and totally engrossing read with fully fleshed out but flawed characters in More Than Words. We even get a story within the story involving Joan of Arc. That’s right – Joan of Arc!
She had me at “I’m here to save you”. I can guarantee you, it’s not what you think.
Jessica Creswell comes from parents that do well financially so she has things. All the things. Except that her father can’t keep it in his pants and her mother wails about it, while tolerating it. They each move emotionally further and further away from their daughter while she loses herself in an imaginary world of fairy tales.
Callen Hayes is a lost boy with a father who becomes increasingly angry and abusive after his wife dies of an accidental drug overdose of prescription medication. Then one night, the princess rides in on her trusty steed and says to the boy in the abandoned train boxcar “I’m here to save you”. Or at least that’s how Jessica “saw” it in her imagination.
So begin their adventures. Flights of fancy, where these two souls become intertwined finding solace from their real day to day existence in books, music and each other’s imaginations. After one soul shattering kiss, Callen doesn’t come back, leaving behind nothing but a few musical notes on a scrap of paper. Jessica is heartbroken with no choice but to say goodbye to her only friend.
Ten years later their paths cross in Paris. These two are different people now. Right away you wonder whether they will recognize each other. Whether they are still broken. Whether love will find a way. The road to love is never smooth and without the necessary angst this book would get boring real fast. Thankfully that’s not the case here.
That’s it. I’m not telling you anything else. Not even going to explain the Joan of Arc thing. More than Words needs to be experienced without too much explanation. Take a seat, make yourself comfortable and get ready to fall in love! In love with Callen, Jessica and with their story. In love with how Mia Sheridan cast a spell with her words and hands your heart back to you in the most beautiful way.
I only started reading books by Mia Sheridan this past year or so and I have been loving what I have read so far.
Her stories are so emotional and they are so good that you don't want to put down her books.
I highly recommend this .
What drives my love for the worlds and characters Mia Sheridan crafts is the fact that there is a fairy tale feel to them…one that seems steadfast…determined to allow the heroes and the heroines to stand a fighting chance for their happily ever afters. Mind you, it is in no way easy, especially when years span where there is no interaction between the main characters, only the memories that they’ve held onto for that lengthy time frame. But regardless of the years lost…regardless of the heartbreak endured, it’s as if fate and Mia Sheridan herself refuse to allow the dreaming to end…refuse to allow a love rooted in so much good…a connection solidified when they were young to not have a second chance…another opportunity to revel in the shared feelings, to fight the inner demons that constantly torment them, and to let go of a past that has no place in the present and most definitely not in a hopeful future.
Callen Hayes and Jessica Creswell’s story begins when they are teenagers, finding refuge in one another despite Callen’s brokenness, but their bond is fractured for inexplicable reasons, forcing Jessica to find a way to move on…to exist without the other part other heart that left when Callen did and she hasn’t been able to get it back since.
But even though Princess Jessica couldn’t save Prince Callen or live their happily ever after due to the circumstances they found themselves in when they were young, destiny brings them back together and offers them an opportunity to not only make things right between them but also to fight against the mistakes, the secrets, and the lies that still surround them. And, just like the beast in Beauty and the Beast, Callen is a broody and broken hero - one who might seem too callous..too cynical…too aloof to win every reader over, but for the person who matters, Jessica, he’s everything she wants and needs, which means that their epic love story amidst the cultural and historical richness of the setting immerses readers into an angsty, emotional, and overwhelming tale of love, of loss, and of life’s beauty and pain.
I do have to admit that there were parts of More Than Words that felt a bit slow and made me feel slightly disconnected from the characters, but given the span of years that Jessica and Callen were apart and where their lives took them during that timeframe, I understand the importance of backstory and inner dialogue; I just would have liked it to seamlessly meld with what was occurring in the present.
More Than Words is the perfect title for Callen and Jessica’s story because that’s the kind of bond they formed when they were young - one that didn’t require words for them to understand one another and the significant impact they had on each other’s life, and then its meaning is brought into frame, once again, when they reconnect in France and find what they had to still be intact and as they work towards building something that will last forever, words aren’t necessarily needed because their hearts and souls seem to recognize one another and that’s not something that words can eloquently describe.
4.5 Poison Apples
Hello Ms. Sheridan. You can write lady. I feel so hard for this book. I cried many tears. Just a great broken love story that was put back together one piece at a time.
Wow.
I'm serious when I say... no one writes a book quite like Mia!
This book is brilliant, painful, filled with internal scars, drama, love, unique history and so much more!
Mia masters the ability to write beautiful men who have some serious issues... and make you swoon!
Trust me, you will fall in love with these characters. Want to smack them, swoon over them and keep reading until you find out what will happen next!!!
And that ending..... SIGH! I loved it so much.
5 "I'm here to save you" stars!!!!
“No one ever makes me feel like you princess Jessie, no one ever will’.
Most of All You is the most highly anticipated romance from Mia Sheridan and if you’re a fan of her previous work, then you’re expectations have to be extremely high. This author obviously knows what she’s doing when it comes to writing her stories, and even though she might seem to go the other direction with her storyline sometimes, she’s never far from trying to give her readers what they want and that is true romance.
With a prologue that set the stage for an unlikely friendship between two kids who came from different upbringings, I was on cloud nine with this introduction. I felt the uncertainty, the inevitable bond, and the looming heartbreak that was to come. Jessie and Callen were two kids who met by pure fate and from a moment of sadness, who over the next year will turn out to be each other’s saving grace. But sadly one day is going to hinder their relationship and in it’s wake, is going to be a ten year absence.
With years already in their rearview and having separate careers, fate has one again decided to intervene and reunite Jessie and Callen in the city of love. Now a famous music composer and French translator, these two childhood friends will meet again. But everything is not always as it seems and for Callen, his demons never quite left him the day he left his small town. Will these two reunion be a long awaited love story? Or will their own music be silenced before a note is ever played?
As I said previously, I really enjoyed the beginning of the story and I felt that I knew the direction it was heading. Sadly somewhere along the line, I lost interest and I was waiting for something MORE to happen. I needed to feel the heartbreak and the love between these two and all I got was a mild reaction. Now don’t get me wrong, I truly liked certain parts and I loved that this author chose Paris as her main setting, but I just wanted to feel more from these characters.
What didn’t work for me, I think others will relish in and if you’re a fan of this author, then this book will be it for you.
‘Sometimes the beginning of love is just a simple matter of proximity.’
This story is like a fairy tale but a modern day take on a prince finding his princess. Not all stories like this end in a happy ever after though and sometimes there is no castle in sight either.
Callen and Jessie met when they were pre-teens. She had very few friends and Callen seemed like he could do with one. And so begun a beautiful friendship between them. Each of them had their own troubles at home and they looked forward to the moments when they could forget about them. Jessie would read books to Callen, setting their imaginations wild. They shared all their secrets and dreams so it was only natural they would be each others first kiss. However, from that day on she never saw him again, until 10 years later when a chance meeting on the other side of the world would bring all those memories back for her.
Jessie is now living in the city she always dreamt to be in and working in the field she studied so hard to get into. She is intially shocked to see Callen and how much he has changed. He has grown into a handsome man but he is nothing like she remembered. She wonders what happened to him all those years ago that shaped him into the person he is now. When Jessie is sent on her first big job in the French countryside she is absolutely thrilled, this is what she studied so hard for and it is her biggest passion in life. She soon discovers that fate isn’t done playing games with her when she once again crosses paths with Callen. This time things go very differently.
‘Was it fate that pulled our strings, that led us to our destiny? And what happened when we didn’t follow the path we were meant for? What if we were too blind to see it?’
Callen is at the height of his career and is very widely regarded for his composition work. When Jessie seems to appear out of nowhere it’s like he is seeing an angel. His gorgeous childhood princess in the flesh. It’s been ten years since he left her and it feels like no time has passed at all. She still looks the same but she has transitioned from a young girl into a beautiful woman, one that he is finding hard to take his eyes off.
‘She was Jessie – Princess Jessie – pure and sweet and good. Even if the man I’d become didn’t have a valiant bone in his body, the boy she’d once known had, and I needed that small particle of me to take the lead.’
Both of them live very different lives now. Jessie had always wondered why he suddenly disappeared and as much as she would like answers, she is reluctant to even talk to him. There is something that draws her in though, that same look in his eyes when she first met him all those years ago is still there now. Like he needs a friend. He carries so much hurt and sorrow around with him and it still pains her to see him like this.
‘I understood my broken prince so well now. It had fallen into place. But none of what I felt mattered. What I knew, what I believed, didn’t make a whit of difference if he didn’t believe it himself.’
I really believe that your childhood experiences are weaved into the fabric of the adult you become. Jessie and Callen both ended up in their dream jobs but took vastly different journey to get there. There are secrets he hides and behaviour he is ashamed of but it is how he dealt with the the weight of his past that has affected him the most as he moves forward into the future.
'Right then I was just the same kid she’d come upon in the boxcar that day so long ago. Since then I’d hidden behind so many things, gotten lost in the lifestyle I’d chosen, felt like I was all smoke and mirrors for so long.’
This is a sweet story of childhood friends who one shared innocent dreams that morphs into second chance love perfection. Once again Mia completely pulled me in with her ability to capture emotions and feelings in such a way that I felt like I was right there watching it all happen in front of me.
Callen Hayes and Jessica Creswell are the characters at the heart of this second chance love story. Jessica introduces Callen to a love of music and he gives Jessica her first kiss but disappears from her young life very soon after. Years later he gains recognition as well know composer and bad boy who is still suffering from demons of the past and desperately needs inspiration to make his music. Both characters end up stumbling back together in France and this is where their second chance love story truly starts to develop and open up.
Mia Sheridan certainly knows how to layer a beautiful and emotional love story. At times there was perhaps a layer too many. The story is weaved with a historical aspect relating to Joan of Arc's era and the work of Jessica. She finds letters from that time and translates them, it is these letters/writings that are peppered through, 'More Than Words,' and depict another love story. In a way this was thoroughly fascinating but for my tastes maybe too detailed and took away from the main event. To me the main love story stood on its own merit and I simply wanted to bask in those feelings without distraction.
'More Than Words,' is a standalone story that is definitely a fine read for romance readers and fans of Mia Sheridan.
My 4.5+ star review is up on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2380146693. It will be posted on blog and social media on release date 6/12/18.. UPDATED LINKS 6/12/18.
4.5+ stars
"Live fiercely and without regret."
Mia Sheridan never fails to bring complex, well developed characters to life. This is no exception and she has weaved a story not only rich in their own personal history, but also past French history and intertwined them beautifully.
Jessie and Callen met as tweens. He was a lost, lonely, and broken boy with a bad home life. Her way to escape her own dysfunctional family was to immerse herself in fantasy stories and personal adventures. And she spent one summer reading to him and taking him along with her using their imagination. She also introduced him to music notes. She was his light and he was her everything. They shared their first kiss. And then he was just gone.
Many years later Jessie is just about to start her dream job in her chosen field. Callen is a well known composer with a bad reputation of women, boozing, and bad boy behavior. He has achieved success, but his demons are still chasing him and writer's block is paralyzing him. So he uses his vices to try to find solace and be able to work.
When their lives collide again, this time he is more clear headed and wants to pursue her. But she needs to focus on her work and his behavior is not something she can deal with. He is full of self loathing and does not feel worthy of a true relationship. And they are on borrowed time anyway. But the more time they spend together, the closer they get.
"Sometimes the beginning of love is just a simple matter of proximity."
Her positive attitude, acceptance, and challenge inspire him like no one else ever has. But he's a man with demons haunting him and can't block out the past words that hurt. And she has done her part several times to save him. But it's hard to save someone who does not feel like they are really worth saving.
This is a friends-to-lovers, second-chance romance that focuses on fate, trust, courage, gifts, forgiveness, hope, and true love. Since Jessie translates old manuscripts there is also an old story running parallel to the present one. I thought this was beautifully incorporated and I loved all of the messages embedded in this book.
I liked Jessie. She was sweet, sensitive, intuitive, and loving. She was more innocent and positive while he was brooding and full of self recrimination. At times I loved Callen and at other times wanted to shake him so hard or just give him a hug. But this really was largely his personal journey toward forgiveness, self acceptance, and healing. He has dark secrets that strongly affect him, and it is a painful process that will required being vulnerable, brave, and facing fears to even being to have a chance at moving on.
Will Callen find the courage to fight for himself so that he has a chance of fighting for and winning her?
This is a total stand alone story told in three distinct parts and dual points of view. But it also had transcripts from past letters woven in. It all was well organized and flowed seamlessly. The settings in France were vivid and rich in history. There were some side characters providing the characters with much needed support, and there were some causing drama as well. The main couple's issues were complicated and not easily resolved. It was sometimes raw, frustrating, and painful. But there was also friendship, joy, and a strong connection. The last part had my heart on high alert, and I could not wait to see how everything was going to end up.
There were so many layers weaving this gorgeous story together that all become evident as the story builds. I am left really appreciating how well the past and present aspects complimented each other and how unique it was.
I received this book for free from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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You can never go wrong with a Mia Sheridan book. I l have truly enjoyed reading every book of hers I have read and More Than Words is no exception.
Jessica Creswell met Callen Hayes when she was only eleven. Together they forged a strong connection she felt in her soul. They both shared troubled childhoods and found comfort in each other. Then one day he kissed her and then disappeared from her life. Callen Hayes is now a famous composer known as a bad boy who is adrift in life.
Then one night in France they meet again and feel an instant attraction. But now their lives are so different. Callen is now in a bad place and drowning in his sorrows and meaningless sex. Jessie is stronger, smarter and still caring, but can she let Callen in again?
Jessi and Callen’s journey was not easy and it broke my heart many times. But is was a romance filled with hope, second chances and new beginnings.
Happy reading!
“Sometimes the beginning of love is just a simple matter of proximity.”
My heart is full to the brim and bursting with love
after finishing More Than Words by Mia Sheridan. She never fails to deliver when it comes to swoony romances. I fell in love with this story already while reading the prologue! It was just filled with feels and emotions. I was captivated and intrigued.
“I’m here to save you.”
I could already sense that I was in for a story that would completely own my heart!!
Jessie and Callen meet as kids. Is it Kismet? Fate? Destiny? Serendipity? I’m not sure what to call it other than pure magic❤️. They are there for each other without even realizing the impact on each other's young lives as they form a fragile friendship. They separate and met again as adults. Callen a famous composer, a celebrity with a bad boy reputation. He fights his demons with booze and meaningless sex as fate once again delivers Jessie at his feet.
Jessie is sort of living her dream. Working towards her goals and lifelong dreams, till one night the boy from the boxcar appears in Paris.
She knows what he became, the fame, the money, the reckless lifestyle, the less than stellar reputation. But somewhere inside of him, she can still see that boy, the one she couldn’t forget.
“We had one chance, one life, and then it was gone. Live fiercely and without regret.”
They can’t stay away from each other and this beautiful story begins to unfold on the pages.
A story that is brilliantly sewn together piece by piece by the master storyteller that Mia Sheridan is. It’s intelligent and enchanting.
A vivid imaginary will take you to France on this journey of two beautiful, weathered souls as they heal and fall in love. More than Words is a story within a story with an uplifting and inspirational message. It’s about kindness, about fate. It’s a fairy tale filled with moments of perfection and beauty. It’s a story of a princess who loved fiercely and unconditionally. A story of a prince who fought his demons all his life. It’s a story of leaving behind your broken pieces and claiming the happiness you deserve.
mia sheridan writes romances that pack some real heavy emotional weight. you get your happy ending, and thank goodness because the characters are put through the wringer to earn it. but you are also left thoughtful, pensive, wistful after reading her books. personally, i enjoy the mix. i love a good fluffy romance, but i also love a heavier, angstier tale. more than words is more the latter.
callen and jess do not have an easy go of it. they met as children and jess loved him then, but callen had demons and secrets that kept him away. and when his musical career foundered and he re-encountered jess at a low point, he still had some tumbling to do before he was ready to pick things back up.
for this story to work, we need the glimpses of the past. we need to understand who callen was to jess, and why she loves him even when he's kind of a jerk. he comes around, and it's her love that gets him there. and so it's an earned happy ending. and sometimes when you earn it, it's the best happy ending of all.
**more than words will publish on june 12, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/grand central publishing (forever) in exchange for my honest review.
Struggled really bad with this book. I couldn’t get into the story, I had zero connection with the characters and the story fell flat for me.
I put this book down several time and picked it back up hoping it was my mood but it didn’t seem to improve for me.
More Than Words is a beautifully unique tale that only Mia Sheridan can write. She takes the second chance romance and runs with it while telling a story within a story. You just have to read it to realize what I'm talking about. I've got major wanderlust and need to start planning my trip to France asap!
I absolutely LOVED this book!!! the tie-in with Joan of Ark was so clever and so well done. and mia's prose is just truly a pleasure to read. I've recommended this book all over facebook!!
ARC from Netgalley
4.5 stars
I have to admit to being nervous picking up More Than Words. I’ve only read one Mia Sheridan book, and for me, it didn’t live up to the hype. From the very beginning, this book was everything I wanted my first read to be. This book was just so full of emotion; it was a hard won happily ever after that I was rooting for throughout the entire book. I did have a few issues with this book, so lets get them out of the way. First – I thought Callen’s promiscuity was laid on way too thick. A large chunk of the beginning of the book spent solidifying this, when really, any book I read with a male celebrity as the hero seems to have a revolving door on his bedroom; it’s not something I need a lot of time spent on. Second, Jessie was just a bit too naive to me, to the point where some of the things that came out of her mouth made me cringe. But really, in the grand scheme of this story, these are things that pale in comparison to what I loved. I adored this story from the very beginning when they met as children, and their subsequent interludes had me wanting so badly for them to find their way together, but Callen just couldn’t seem to get out of his own way. Even so, it wasn’t long before they were falling for each other, but nothing about this felt insta-. It was clear this event was years in the making. Jessie was so sweet and candid, and her easy way was just so foreign to Callen, who spent most of his life with people who were fake and could turn on someone on a dime. She herself had a past that left her quite scarred, but it’s not something she carries with her the way Callen carries his. Callen, even while private, seems to wear his scars while trying to drown them with booze and women. And there are times when Jessie struggles to see the boy who stole her heart when they were children.
There were parts of Jessie and Callen’s past that made reappearances and made for some very poignant moments, and I love that Callen was able to give parts of himself to Jessie that he couldn’t give to anyone else; she was the only person he could be himself with. I will say that while this was four and a half stars and I loved this book, this was a hard road to four and a half stars. For the first third of this book, it was a solid five star read. About two-thirds of the way through, it had slowed down enough to three, and at one point, Callen did something that made me so angry I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to forgive him. But by the end of the book, I was so in love with this couple that and as the story was woven together, it made me see the importance of all the parts of this story. Except maybe the whole thread of the Joan of Arc text that Jessie was translating. While I found it interesting, I’m not sure it was pertinent to the story, and it felt like an attempt to bring more substance to Jessie’s half of the story, but her good heart was enough for me.
More Than Words won me over and had me tearing up more than once. It was a rough ride for Jessie and Callen, but so worth it. If you’re a fan of Mia Sheridan or Contemporary Romance, this one is a must read.
This review was originally posted on Books & Beauty Are My Bag.
More Than Words is a childhood friends to lover romance that will make your heart soar and hurt it all at the same time. I'm going to be very honest here and I know that this isn't fair to the author. I actually really think this book could have spoken to me more than it did if I didn't just come off of one of the most emotional books I've ever read right before I started it. The writing is brilliant and the storytelling is flawless. I was connected to Jessie and Callen from the start. I honestly just think I was emotional spent. For that, I apologize dear Mia Sheridan and I will most definitely be going back and reading it again soon.
I think one of my favorite things about Jessie and Callen's story is from the moment they met, they accepted each other. They were each others rocks and watching that foundation build was beautiful. It only makes you fight harder with them later down the road.
I also really loved the historical part of it. With Jessie's job and the history that she becomes a part of. I sort of geeked out over it, which is saying a lot because I used to HATE history! Her passion made me passionate about it.
Oh..and can we talk about Callen's assistant. When she was checking his text messages for him and relaying things on, I was dying. Dying. She was so freaking hilarious.
If you are looking for a soulmate romance with two unique people who have been in love since they were children but overcome a lot to be together in the end, then this is the book for you. It will make you feel, so be prepared for that.
France.
Joan of Arc.
Tie of History & Present Day.
The Prince Needs Saving.
Childhood Lovers.
Second Chances.
These are the words that I would use to describe this book if it was being presented wrapped as a 'Blind Date with a Book'. I thoroughly enjoyed this childhood second chance lovers romance with a dash of historical elements throughout the story! And it takes place in FRANCE!!! Paris, France to be exact along with other areas in the region.
If you love a romance book with historical references, Parisian couture, and second chance 'fate' intervening you with WANT TO READ THIS BOOK!
How is it that More Than Words is the first novel that I've read by Mia Sheridan?! I probably be ashamed of myself but I'm really just excited because this means I have tons of her books to read.
I picked up this novel with the intention of reading a few pages, maybe a chapter, and then running a few errands and picking it back up. That did not happen. I started reading and then I couldn't stop. I was curious about the story of Jessie and Callen --from their first meeting to their fateful next-- and I found myself enamored by their story. I also liked the setting (I've always wanted to visit and now I'm yearning to visit Paris) and the various subplots (her job, his job, her family history, his family history). All in all, this novel was a really good read with some interesting sections on fate and dealing with love and loss that really resonated with me. I know that new and old fans alike will devour this novel and find themselves daydreaming about romantic French countryside locations.
4.5 Stars
A moving, heartbreaking and a sweet second chance story. More Than Words is a book that will have you reading non-stop. Jessie and Callen are two characters that will be in your thoughts for awhile.
When Jessie met Callen at a young age, they instantly became friends. There was something special about the troubled and broken boy. And when Callen disappears one day, Jessie is left wondering what every happened to that boy who gave her, her first kiss.
Years later, Callen Hayes has made a name for himself. A famous and bad boy composer. And when the girl who he met years ago and who unknowingly changed his life walks back in, changes it again forever.