Review: A Lonely Sky, Linda Schmalz

At age nineteen, Julia Steele is in Germany on a two week school tour when her life changes forever. She meets British actor, Sam Lyons, who opens her eyes to the world and her heart to love. Eventually Julia must return home, but not without a promise to Sam--they will reunite again soon. Except Sam encounters blackmail and financial ruin at the hands of socialite Deirdre Lamont, and is forced to marry her. When Julia finds herself pregnant with Sam's child, and learns of his nuptials to another woman, Julia does the only thing she can. She marries her high school sweetheart, John Riley. Over the twenty-six year span of time, the lives of these four people intertwine, and define the sacrifice, love, and regret that paved their way.

This is a women's fiction with romantic elements. This story, I felt, was more moving than even the characters themselves. Full of bad decisions, desperation, and never without hope, these characters and the secondary ones paved the way to an unforgettable read. At times, I felt myself thinking some of the plot was unrealistic, but then again, how many mistakes have we all made in youth? In the name of love? The detailed setting was subtly descriptive, where I found myself in the pub, the house, the street... I don't want to issue a spoiler alert, so I'll just say the ending was particularly satisfying and humbling. In a way, they all wound up happy, or at least together in some measurable account, the way they should have. But poor, poor John. I want his happy ending.