Because I Loved You
A Novel
by Donnaldson Brown
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Pub Date Apr 04 2023 | Archive Date Jan 30 2023
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Description
When tragedy strikes Leni’s family, and Caleb’s brother returns from Vietnam angry and dangerous, the two grow closer and make a plan to leave and start a life together. Before they can go, though, Leni learns of something she fears will derail Caleb’s hard-earned shot at the future he wants. Choosing to keep what she’s learned secret, she sets them on sudden and separate paths.
New York City, 1986. Leni, now an artist and activist, and Caleb, now engaged and working on Wall Street, meet once again. Their old passion reignites. Can their love for one another overcome the choices made in the past? And when Leni’s secret—one that impacts not only Leni and Caleb but also four generations of Leni’s family—is finally revealed, will it be too late for them?
A Note From the Publisher
Advance Praise
"...BECAUSE I LOVE YOU is deeply affecting, swooningly romantic, hard as diamonds, too: dreams don't always add up, and trouble can sometimes be our friend."—Bill Roorbach, author of LUCKY TURTLE, LIFE AMONG GIANTS, and THE REMEDY FOR LOVE
“What I love most about Donaldson Brown's first novel isn't the tactile reality of places and times that she so sharply renders - the harsh beauty of East Texas, New York City in the simultaneous throes of guerilla art and AIDS and financial obscenity, the tender urgency of first love - but her ability to feel so deeply into her characters that even as they make shattering mistakes we can believe along with them that their actions are exactly what they need to do in the moment, just as they convince us of who they become in consequence. Brown is a writer with the deepest empathy for imperfect humanity, and her people and their lasting impact on each other is so knowable it makes you ache.”—Kate Moses, author of CAKEWALK: A MEMOIR and WINTERING: A NOVEL OF SYLVIA PLATH
“Equal parts Kent Haruf and Elizabeth Wetmore, BECAUSE I LOVED YOU embodies all of the expansiveness and intimacy of a contemporary Western page-turner, and more. Starting in a small town in East Texas and traveling to the East Coast, this vivid, riveting narrative will transport you and break your heart at same time. Readers will love Donnaldson Brown’s stunning debut.”—S. Kirk Walsh, author of THE ELEPHANT OF BELFAST
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781647422981 |
| PRICE | $18.95 (USD) |
| PAGES | 408 |
Featured Reviews
Sandie K, Reviewer
They met and fell in love in a small town in Texas. Leni is a tomboy, always on her beloved horse, not crazy about school except for art and determined to get out as soon as she can. Caleb is a typical Texas guy who works on his dad's ranch and plays football but there's something else he wants. He wants to go to college and study physics and make his life somewhere else. The two share a love of horses and soon are sure that there is nothing that can end their love.
But fate intervenes. Both have family issues and Leni goes first. She leaves behind nothing but a note but goes out of love for Caleb, knowing that he won't go to college as long as she is in the picture. Caleb can't believe she has gone but it is the spur he needs to go to Princeton where he has a scholarship.
Fourteen years later, both are living in New York. Leni is an artist while Caleb is in finance, working with his college roommate on property development. The two cross paths at a galley opening and suddenly nothing between matters. They get back together but once again, fate steps in and breaks them apart. Will they ever be able to fulfill their love?
This is a gorgeously written novel about young love and enduring love. Although I could have shaken both of them at times, their story is one I won't forget soon. Brown is able to recreate first love in a way that will take readers back to their own first loves and sympathize with the characters. This book is recommended for women's fiction readers.
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