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    Outside the Lines: A Novel
    Outside the Lines: A Novel
    Outside the Lines: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    Outside the Lines: A Novel

    Written by Amy Hatvany

    Narrated by Candace Thaxton and Corey Brill

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    A gripping novel about a woman who sets out to find the father who left her years ago, and ends up discovering herself.

    When Eden was ten years old she found her father, David, bleeding on the bathroom floor. The suicide attempt led to her parents’ divorce, and David all but vanished from Eden’s life. 

    Twenty years later, Eden runs a successful catering company and dreams of opening a restaurant. Since childhood, she has heard from her father only rarely, just enough to know that he’s been living on the streets and struggling with mental illness. But lately there has been no word at all. After a series of failed romantic relationships and a health scare from her mother, Eden decides it’s time to find her father, to forgive him at last, and move forward with her own life. Her search takes her to a downtown Seattle homeless shelter, and to Jack Baker, its handsome and charming director. Jack convinces Eden to volunteer her skills as a professional chef with the shelter. In return, he helps her in her quest. 

    As the connection between Eden and Jack grows stronger, and their investigation brings them closer to David, Eden must come to terms with her true emotions, the secrets her mother has kept from her, and the painful question of whether her father, after all these years, even wants to be found. The result is an emotionally rich and honest novel about making peace with the past—and embracing the future.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateDec 10, 2013
    ISBN9781442361904
    Author

    Amy Hatvany

    Amy Hatvany is the author of nine novels, including It Happens All the Time, Somewhere Out There, and A Casual Encounter. She lives in Seattle, Washington with her family.

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    Reviews for Outside the Lines

    4/5

    120 ratings13 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I enjoyed the love Eden had for her Dad. It did give an insight as to how devastating mental illness is.
    • 5/5
      Book Title: "Outside The Lines”Author: Amy HatvanyPublished By: Simon and SchusterAge Recommended: 17+Reviewed By: Kitty BullardRaven Rating: 5Review: This is one of the most emotional books I have ever read. At ten years of age little Eden finds her father on the floor of the bathroom after a botched suicide attempt. The scene will stay with her for years to come, but the healing that finally takes place is one of the most amazing and beautiful stories ever.Amy Hatvany has the ability to truly move her readers and I have become a big fan. This is a book you’ll want to read.
    • 3/5
      I was not really sure what I was expecting when I grabbed for Outside the Lines, but I previously read a book by the author and loved it.This is a really raw look at the relationship between a father and daughter and the impact mental illness can have on a family. This does deal with mental health, suicide, and some other series issues around mental health. I liked how the author really took the story to a dark place for David. However; the middle did get a little repetitive and I was ready for something else to happen.This jumps from the past and present of the family relationships. You get to see a glimpse of when Eden was a child and what happened with her father and his mental health needs. You also get his perspective while he was dealing with his demons. The third is the present where Eden is looking for her father after not seeing him since she was a child. There is also a romance for Eden but it is not at the forefront of the story. Yes, this was emotional but I was just waiting for that moment for it to blow me away. It never really happened. I was waiting for that moment where my stomach would drop and the tears would just come, and again it did not happen. It just was a little to flat in the end.Overall, it was ok.
    • 5/5
      I always love finding an author who writes the way this author does---and no wonder---she is good friends with other authors I like and they review each other's books. I found her when another author recommended her books.
    • 5/5
      This is my third book by Amy Hatvany, and each one of them is sooooo deserving of 5 stars . I am delighted I found this author through my reading of Sarah Pekkanen’s books (another one of my favorites)!

      I could not put “Outside the Lines” down- Amy did an outstanding job of capturing the experience of mental illness, with the alternating perspectives of David (father) and Eden (daughter), as well as moving back and forth in time. It gave much insight and depth to each of the characters, feelings, and emotions. Amy’s subject matter is so real with raw emotion--the family dynamics, making each of her books so unique.

      I could really sympathize with all the characters, and put in this situation, not sure how I would have reacted. Lydia did all she could do in protecting her daughter and at some point in time you become an enabler. In the end David did not enjoy being trapped and being on the streets, gave him the freedom.

      The character of Jack was amazing and the dynamics of his relationship with Eden, as well as her relationship with step brother and stepfather. In a way, I feel Jack could sympathize with David, as he too chose a path of freedom away from this own controlling father.
      I do believe highly talented creative artistic minds work differently, and they demand a lot of solitude in order to create their masterpieces; being drugged and hospitalized would take away that inspiration.

      The ending was brilliant and loved everything about this novel – it will bring tears. The love the author put into this book, the research, and her background working in shelters,--definitely reflected throughout. (I can just picture the Garden of Eden) and have a few of the cast members in mind for a possible movie!
    • 5/5
      Listening to OUTSIDE THE LINES stirred up all kinds of emotions in me. The story is about a woman's quest to find her father, missing from her life for 20 years. Eden was 10 when her parents divorced, her father David's suicide attempt was the last straw for her mother. David, a very talented artist, suffered from mental illness most of his adult life, and he was unwilling to stay on medication. After the divorce David disappeared from mainstream society, earning a few dollars for alcohol by sketching portraits of tourists and living on the streets.I enjoyed how the story was told from Eden's and David's POVs, and the time period alternates between 2010 and the late 1980s forward. It took several chapters for me to warm up to Eden and become invested in her quest. Just hearing about David's behavior and how it affected Eden made me angry. He was a man who did not want to be helped. As the story progressed, I began to understand and sympathize with Eden. I particularly loved seeing her relationship with Jack develop. Jack was the founder and director of Hope House, a homeless shelter in Seattle. (Eden described him as looking like Tom Cruise without the "crazed look" in his eyes. Ha ha.) Jack helped Eden see the situation with her father in a new and realistic light.Overall, I liked the audio performance by Candace Thaxton as Eden and Corey Brill as David. Both captured the temperament and emotions of their character very well. My only complaint was there was little or no variation in voices of the secondary characters, and sometimes it was hard to tell who was speaking.OUTSIDE THE LINES is a poignant story about love, trust, forgiveness, and acceptance. The bittersweet ending made me teary-eyed. Amy Hatvany is an amazing storyteller, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.Source: Review copy from publisher
    • 3/5
      Good but not great. Too happily-ever-after, but did have many more realistic components and could have been a lot worse! A somewhat romantic view of father-daughter relationships.
    • 4/5
      This is a novel about mental illness and the toll it takes on a family.it is told mostly by Eden the daughter and her father, David. It is very thought provoking and makes us think about how we treat those who are mentally unstable.
    • 5/5
      Book Title: "Outside The Lines”Author: Amy HatvanyPublished By: Simon and SchusterAge Recommended: 17+Reviewed By: Kitty BullardRaven Rating: 5Review: This is one of the most emotional books I have ever read. At ten years of age little Eden finds her father on the floor of the bathroom after a botched suicide attempt. The scene will stay with her for years to come, but the healing that finally takes place is one of the most amazing and beautiful stories ever.Amy Hatvany has the ability to truly move her readers and I have become a big fan. This is a book you’ll want to read.
    • 5/5
      I originally thought that this book was a biography. The characters were so realistic and the plot line was engaging and fascinating. The book jumps back in forth in time, following Eden when she was ten years old and was coping with her father's (David), growing mental illness. Twenty years later it shows Eden running a catering company with dreams of finding the father she hasn't heard from since a suicide attempt when she was almost eleven. As the story jumps back in time it also shows David's point of view as he deteriorates mentally, tries to hold himself together and ultimately fails. I couldn't put this book down. I was very invested in the characters and found myself rooting for Eden as she searched for her dad. Overall, I highly recommend this book.
    • 5/5
      Outside the Lines is a book that grabs the reader from page one. Early on I was invested in Eden and her search for her father. I wanted Eden to reconnect with David in order for her to heal from the void his absence had created. With each new clue to his whereabouts, I found myself filled with emotion: excited that she may see him again, but yet fearful that David's story may not have a happy ending.Hatvany tells the story of David and Eden in both their voices, which was the strength of the novel for me. Chapters alternate from the past to the present as David and Eden take turns narrating. Hatvany's transitions are so smooth, that I quickly adjusted and did not have to rely on the chapter headings to inform me if it was David or Eden, past or present. Reading David's struggles with staying on his medication and trying to live a "normal" life in his voice was refreshing. I don't think I would have been as captivated with him had I read about him from Eden's (or her mother's) perspective. Hatvany's talent lies within creating characters the reader cares about and keeps in her thoughts long after the book is put down. Eden is a complicated character. She's successful in her career, dreams about owning a restaurant, and has family and friends who care about her. But yet it's hard for her to truly love another man because of the unresolved issues she has with her father. She's dedicated to finding David, not only to see him again, but she also realizes it's necessary for her self-growth and to face the future that awaits her.Outside the Lines is a gripping novel about how mental illness not only impacts the individual with the diagnosis, but also the family. If you're looking for a story rich with family dynamics and likeable, flawed characters, you will not want to miss Outside the Lines. Highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      With it's intimate portrait of mental illness, Outside The Lines is a compelling and thought provoking novel. Eden was just ten when she last saw her father. Her childhood was marred by his strange behaviour as he battled an undiagnosed mental illness, refusing the medication that stabilised his mood but silenced his creative muse. Now in her thirties, triggered by her mothers bout with cancer, Eden is searching for her father, desperate to reconnect and determined to save him.Told in chapters that alternate between the present and mid 1980's, from both Eden's and David's perspective, Outside The Lines charts the development of David's illness and the impact it has had upon Eden.At ten Eden knew something was wrong with her father, he could be wildly exuberant, creating a beautiful garden with her, teaching her to cook and encouraging her to follow her dreams. Yet there were days when he would sink into despair, locking himself in his studio, drinking heavily and fighting with her mother. Hatvany captures the heartbreaking circumstances of Eden's early years, Eden's innocent optimism in the face of an illness that is destroying her family and her confusion at not being enough to save him from himself. As an adult the consequences of her relationship with her father is evident in many small ways, though most notably in her relationships with men. Now a successful chef who has made a life for herself, Eden is emotionally stuck, she has trust and intimacy issues and with a childlike naivety is convinced that if she can find her father she can rescue him from his demons, certain her mother simply gave up on him too easily. The search for David forces Eden to face painful truths about her father and his illness as she begins to piece together his life's experiences.It is with compassion that the author invites us into David's disturbed mind. Outwardly his behaviour offers little reason for us to like him but by making us privy to his internal struggles, David is immensely sympathetic. He knows that something isn't right, that he isn't right and genuinely regrets his impulsive behaviours, but he is unable to censor himself. Hatvany gives a voice to those mentally ill persons who are simply unable to comply with treatment, showing that it is perhaps less of a choice than might be expected. For David, medication is a form of torture and while he loves both Eden and his wife it is not enough to overcome his illness.It is David's battle with mental illness and the consequences for Eden in her relationships that is the feature of this novel but Hatvany also explores related issues like homelessness, psychiatric treatment and advocacy. Her research has obviously been meticulous and Hatvany isn't tempted to judge her characters for their perceived failures. She is compassionate and truthful in dealing with very difficult and complicated issues and is not tempted to prescribe solutions. Hatvany could have ended the novel in many ways but she chooses a path that I truly admired.I found Outside The Lines to be a novel that bravely challenges the idea of curable mental illness. It offers an unique perspective of what it means to be mentally ill and how the illness affects the family of the sufferer. A story that is sure to touch your heart, Outside The Lines is an extraordinary read.
    • 4/5
      Another emotionally wrought novel by Hatvany. Ten year old Eden watches her father give in to his mental illness, not willing to take the medications that make him feel drained and artistically incapable, he does the only think he thinks he can do to quiet the monsters. At the age of thirty, she tries to find the father she loved and thought abandoned her. Told in alternate voices, Eden's and her dad's, we trace this journey, also hearing in his own words how his illness made him unable to live in main stream society. Absolutely heartbreaking and wonderful all at the same time. Loved her last book, Best Kept Secret, and love this one too. ARC by NetGalley