Suzy Approved Book Tours Review: Just One Look by Joanne Kukanza Easley

Title: Just One Look
Author: Joanne Kukanza Easley
Published by Black Rose Writing
Date Published: 24 June, 2021
Pages: 288
Genres: Women's Fiction
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Purchase: Amazon
Add To Goodreads
Rating:

In 1965 Chicago, thirteen-year-old Dani Marek declares she's in love, and you best believe it. This is no crush, and for six blissful years she fills her hope chest with linens, dinnerware, and dreams of an idyllic future with John. When he is killed in action in Viet Nam, Dani's world shatters. She launches a one-woman vendetta against the men she seeks out in Rush Street's singles bars. Her goal: break as many hearts as she can. Dani's ill-conceived vengeance leads her to a loveless marriage that ends in tragedy.

At twenty-four, she's left a widow with a baby, a small fortune, and a ghost-make that two.

Set in the turbulent Sixties and Seventies, Just One Look explores one woman's tumultuous journey through grief, denial, and letting go.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the Author/Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.

My Thoughts
As someone who often thinks she was born in the wrong era (I have a Hippy Soul!!!), I absolutely love reading books set in this time period. Easley has captured the essence of 1965 Chicago, a young romance, a war that threatens happiness, a grief so strong that it resonates to the reader and created a story that will leave her readers desperate for another amazingly chiseled novel. I was absolutely smitten with this novel!

I adored Dani and John’s characters. They took ‘just one look’ at each other and the rest was history……until the Vietnam War comes into play. Dani’s emotions flew off the page. I felt her pain, her grief, her love as if it was all my own. I love a novel that makes me feel that way!

If you want a 4 star novel that will have you up all night, look no further. This novel is a poignant look back on an era that is so different from the world we know today. I fell in love not just the characters, but the vivid descriptions of the town, the tragedies, the emotions, and the writing style.

This is a novel that is not light. This is a novel that will forever be with you. This is a novel of pain and heartache and second chances. It will take you on a wild ride and where it puts you down will leave you breathless. It’s an absolutely amazing novel and you shouldn’t pass it up!