Perfect Strangers

Totally captivating! I literally finished this book in record time and found it very hard to even take a break. She tells it like it is, good and bad, and brings you on a journey that only a few could. Grab some tissues, but get ready for a few laughs also. And be totally ready to fall in love with Mike from afar. What a wonderful group of four these people are and what a blessing they seem to one another. Thank you for your sharing this with us.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect Strangers
Friendship, Strength, and Recovery After Boston’s Worst Day
by Roseann Sdoia
Perseus Books Group, PublicAffairs Books

PublicAffairs
Biographies & Memoirs
Pub Date 28 Mar 2017

Archive Date 28 Mar 2017
I am voluntarily reviewing a copy of Perfect Strangers through the publisher and Netgalley:
April.15.2013 lives were changed when a bomber let off a bomb during the Boston Marathon three people were killed and 264 were injured. This book doesn't only highlight that tragic day but the Friendships that were formed from it.
A tragic event like The bombing at the Boston Marathon in 2013.
A number of people lost limbs that day, forever altering their lives but as many victims there that day there were at least as many heros.
Perfect Stranger is Boston Marathon Bombing Survivor Roseann S do it's story, but it's not merely a story of tragedy, it's a story of triumph and friendship, of determination and hope.
I give Perfect Stranger five out of five stars.
Happy Reading

An amazing story of survival, bravery, determination and friendship. Roasann is caught up in the horrific Boston Marathon bombing. She is a survivor but with dramatic, life changing injuries. This story is not just about her recovery and amazing strength but also the wonderful people involved in saving her life. Four people who would not have met become the best and closest of friends with this shared experience. I loved this book. I finished in two days. A fascinating account of moving forward with the severe injuries of Roseann but also the post-traumatic stress of the heroes involved and their personal accounts. Thank you for the advanced review copy.

I received a free electronic copy of this memoir from Netgalley, Roseann Sdoia, and Perseus Books Group, PublicAffairs Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all, for sharing your hard work with me.

The Boston Marathon is a big deal. It is the oldest foot race in America, with a 120 year history, and in the 2013 race over 23,000 runners from around the world participated, and an estimated one million spectators lined the race route.

This is an intense read, very detailed and honest, by one of Boston's April 15, 2013 Marathon's 264 injured, one of the 16 who lost limbs from the two pressure cooker bombs planted in the last mile of the marathon. We see the tragedy from the eyes of Roseann Sdoia, one of the injured spectators, Officer Shana Cottone, a member of Boston's finest, Boston firefighter Mike Materia, and Northeastern University student Shores Salter, a young man who ran into the smoke. This is a tribute to the spirit of Americans everywhere who charge into danger to protect others.

But the most important points in this memoir are about healing, taking back your community, and getting through the fear. It's a really good read, a very positive how-to book on surviving and thriving despite terror. The 2016 marathon had 27,491 participants - 4,562 applicants had to be turned away as the field was capped at 30,000. Half a million street smart, savvy spectators lined the 26+ mile course, knowing what to look for, and how to be safe.

Very engaging and interesting read! I couldn’t put this one down and you won’t be able to, either.

This April marks the fourth anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing, and while we'll pause to remember those lost and injured, we’ll continue about our daily lives. As it seems with many tragedies, for those who are not directly affected, the memories of how we felt that day seem to fade with time. However, for survivors like Roseann Sdoia, who lost her right leg above the knee that day, they’ll forever be affected and forced to adjust to a new normal. In her first book, Perfect Strangers: Friendship, Strength, and Recovery After Boston’s Worst Day (PublicAffairs), Sdoia (and contributor Jennifer Jordan) documents how four perfect strangers were brought together by tragedy and how three of them—college student Shores Salter, Boston Police Office Shana Cottone, and Boston Firefighter Mike Materia—saved her life that day on Boylston Street. Sdoia paints a moving portrait of how close she came to losing her life and learning to carry on—and leave anger behind—after losing her leg. You may think you’ve heard this story already, but I promise you haven’t—at least not from Sdoia’s point of view, and definitely not with her humor and positive attitude despite being “blown up.” Readers also get a front-row seat as Sdoia and “her firefighter” Materia develop a romance, and how the four strangers became family, despite meeting under the worst of circumstances (Materia and Sdoia are now engaged). Perfect Strangers is about so much more than 4.15.13—it is about love, courage and friendship.