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    The Life Intended
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    The Life Intended
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    The Life Intended
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Life Intended

    Written by Kristin Harmel

    Narrated by Liza Ross

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    After her husband's sudden death over ten years ago, Kate Waithman never expected to be lucky enough to find another love of her life. But now she's planning her second walk down the aisle to a perfectly nice man. So why isn't she more excited? When she starts seeing Patrick, her late husband, in her dreams, she begins to wonder if she's really ready to move on…
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW. F. Howes Ltd
    Release dateAug 6, 2015
    ISBN9781510003774
    Author

    Kristin Harmel

    Kristin Harmel is the New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen novels including The Forest of Vanishing Stars, The Book of Lost Names, The Room on Rue Amélie, and The Sweetness of Forgetting. She is published in more than thirty languages and is the cofounder and cohost of the popular web series, Friends & Fiction. She lives in Orlando, Florida.

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    Reviews for The Life Intended

    4/5

    62 ratings14 reviews

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    • 2/5
      I have listened other books from the same author and they have been good. This was one was bad.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful book, worth listening
      Wow

      Orna Cohen , Israel.
    • 4/5
      This is one of the few books I should have read and not listened audio version. I had a hard time getting into the book when the main character sounds like a sweet old lady. Halfway through the book I couldn't get Pat MacDougall's face out of my head?
    • 4/5
      4.5 stars.

      The Life Intended by Kristin Harmel is an incredibly poignant but ultimately uplifting novel of healing. In this thought-provoking and beautifully written story about love and loss, lead protagonist Kate Waithman rediscovers what matters most to her. Through a series of exceptionally vivid and moving dreams, Kate experiences the life she would have had if her husband had not passed away, but is it the life she was supposed to live?

      It has taken nearly twelve years, but Kate has finally moved on from the death of her husband, Patrick. She is engaged to Dan, a terrific man that her friends and family adore, and she has a fulfilling career as a music therapist. But her happiness is tempered by an unexpected medical diagnosis and she still deeply mourns Patrick's loss. On the night she accepts Dan's marriage proposal, Kate's dreams about Patrick begin and she is soon seeing her life from a different perspective.

      The first thing that Kate begins to question is her relationship with Dan. He is a wonderful man and everyone agrees he is perfect for her. But Kate soon learns they have some fundamental differences and that maybe they are just coasting along. Kate is content with Dan but is she willing to settle for happy enough?

      Another area of change in Kate's life begins with her enrollment in an American sign language class. A discussion with her instructor, Andrew Henson, leads to a volunteer opportunity that forces her to fully re-evaluate her future. It is Kate's friendship with Andrew that becomes the catalyst for many of the decisions she soon makes.

      The Life Intended by Kristin Harmel is a mystical and heartwarming novel of love, family and friendship. Although sometimes a little predictable, it is nonetheless a captivating and emotional journey that will resonate with readers who have struggled to move on after losing a loved one.
    • 4/5
      This book broke me. I started The Life Intended fully planning to finish it in one sitting. That didn't happen. Not because the book wasn't well written. It absolutely is. Not even because I couldn't love the characters or the story. Both of those items were instantly checked off my list after I'd finished the first chapter. No, this book took a long time for me to read because I couldn't stop crying. Every time I picked it up, and started to read, I'd start sobbing. I'm not talking teary-eyed, or even a few tears, I'm talking full out sobbing. Whew, kudos to Kristin Harmel.

      For me, any book that deals with the death of a loved one is tricky terrain. It has to be done with a certain finesse, and feel realistic at the same time. With Kate, Harmel brought to life a character that I could understand and easily follow. A woman who had found the most perfectly imperfect man. Who truly believed that she'd grow old with that man, and that they had all the time in the world together. Except, they didn't. Watching Kate try to deal with her loss, watching her realize all the times that she took for granted, it hit hard right at the center of my being. This book didn't just pull at my heartstrings. It all out gutted me.

      There are some beautiful messages in The Life Intended. Thoughts on living life, pursuing passions, and opening up your heart to the possibilities around you. Unlike most of the other "sliding doors" books that I've read, this one felt plausible. It felt like a story that I could get behind. Maybe it's just my sappy nature. Maybe it's because I know I've found my own perfectly imperfect man, and I'm realizing just how terrifying it would be to loose him, but I loved this.

      All I know is, I'm going to do my best not to let the little moments escape. Thanks for that Kristin Harmel :). I don't even mind that I needed a box of tissues to finish this book. It was worth it.
    • 4/5
      The book starts out slowly and builds. I do have to say that I pretty much knew early in that Dan and Kate were going to break up and that Andrew was a better fit for Kate than Dan was. Yet, there were a couple plot twists that I didn't see coming.The book focuses on a number of life questions. Doing what makes you happy. What makes a fulfilling relationship? Living in the present vs. living in the past vs. living in the future. When is it time to move on after a loss? Doing what makes you happy: There are times this is a good choice and times that it isn't so good. None of us can expect to be happy 100% of the time. We all have things that we have to do in life that aren't pleasant or don't make us happy. It's just a given of life. However, there are also times that we can apply this--I just don't think it can be the only way to live your life. However, in things like choosing a career or choosing who you will date--then yes, it might be fair to consider this question. Choosing a lifetime career of something you like to do has proven benefits. I'd also hate to see someone settle for marrying someone they didn't love just because they fear loneliness etc. (However, once you are married, life isn't all roses--and you can't bail out on your vows just because you aren't happy all the time--that question is something that needs to be considered before you propose or at the very least before you get married.)What makes a relationship fulfilling?: I think it's different for everyone. In this book, for Kate, it is being able to be herself, being able to share herself fully without fearing the other person will walk away or cut her out of his/her life. Kate wants to be able to share her thoughts, fears, dreams, wants, needs etc. with another person. She wants to be able to discuss, fight about, etc. things that matter to her rather than just avoiding sensitive topics all the time to avoid making waves.Living and when is it time to move on?: We are all shaped by our past. Kate's dreams show that. She sees how her life and work would be different if Patrick had lived. She sees how Andrew's life would have been different if his brother had lived. We make choices based on events that have happened. At the same time, it is important to be present in the time we are in. If we dwell too much on the past, we may miss something good that's right in front of us--something that I feel God has for us. Longing for the future can be as detrimental as living in the past. We can't change what's happened in the past, we can only move forward.It was interesting to see a bit how music therapy works and that it can be used even with the hard of hearing. It was also interesting to learn a bit about ASL. Though Kate first got interested in ASL because of Hannah in her dreams (and also incidentally in the hard of hearing being interested in music), Andrew is the one who connects the dots to Kate working with the hard of hearing children in foster care through St. Anne's.I am still unsure what to make of Kate's dreamworld where Patrick is alive and she is a mom to Hannah, a music therapist to adults only, and where Andrew is a chef rather than a social worker.If it had just been about how her life with Patrick might have played out if he hadn't died, I'd have thought it was her subconscious telling her that her relationship with Dan wasn't right for her--they didn't have the same communication as she and Patrick did where she felt she could be honest and herself. But the dreams are more than that. In the dreamworld, Joan has cancer (which proves to be true in real life also, though she only goes to get checked when Kate insists). And the dreamworld contains many details about Hannah that prove true in the end--so I'm left wondering . . . what's up with the dreams? Were they just coincidence or her subconscious sending her messages? Maybe but there seems to be more intended to it than that (see above comments). Were they from God? God can use dreams to send messages, though I'm not sure it's done as often now as it was during Biblical times (particularly Old Testament before the Holy Spirit). Though St. Anne's is Catholic, religious themes aren't mentioned much in the book, so while for me personally, I'd like to say God was preparing Kate's heart for what was coming, I'm not so sure that was what the author intended. Was it demon sent? Those against God can use dreams too. In this case, if that was it, it seemed to backfire on the demons unless their intent was to keep her from marrying Dan. Is it "the universe" (as the author of the book club questions seems to want to believe)? Hard for me to say as I don't believe in that. I'd much prefer to believe that God prepared Kate's heart for accepting a child not from her own womb and accepting illness in a loved family member. I would have given it 5 stars if it had more of a Christian overtone, and I don't often give 5 stars.
    • 5/5
      Plot in a Nutshell Kate, a young widow trying to move on ten years after her husbands death only to find herself blessed / tortured with hyper real dreams or visions of an alternative life where he is alive and well. Confused Kate partially turns away from the new life she is trying to build in favour of trying to follow the dream and in so doing learns a great deal and find a new future. Thoughts I really loved Kate as a main character – she felt very real to me from the get go. I also particularly enjoyed the number of strong relationships she has in her life – her best friend Gina is great and her sister, mother and mother in law also add great depth to the story and are nicely rounded without distracting from Kate and her journey. I am not always a great fan of the mystical and after a not great experience with “The Bookseller” earlier in the year was worried that I was not going to enjoy the dream sequences at all. I was however in for a pleasant surprise and thought they, and Kate’s confusion about what was happening but determination to try and explore were really well done. Her embarrassment at trying to explain to her loved ones and her subsequent concerns felt very realistic. The inclusion of a little deaf girl in her dreams led Kate to learn sign language and ultimately use her professional skills to help deaf children showed great character development. That this led so some well researched details about sign language, cochlear implants, and the foster care system also I think added greatly to my enjoyment.
    • 5/5
      First book read by this author -- awesome. Loved it.
    • 4/5
      The Life Intended by Kristin Harmel is a 2015 Gallery Books publication. I was provided a copy of this book as an XOXpert, the official street team of XOXO After Dark. I don’t know why, but sometimes I feel a vibe from a book, one that tells me to wait until I can give it my undivided attention and am able to slow down and relish every word, to savor it, without a looming deadline forcing me to read at a breakneck speed. So, although I have had a copy of this book on my shelf for a little while, I kept putting it aside, waiting for the right time to read it. When her husband, Patrick, dies, Kate’s world tilts on its axis, but in time she meets another guy, Dan, and attempts to settle back into life. She and Dan are engaged to be married, but Kate begins to have vivid dreams in which she shares a life with Patrick, the life she thought she would have before his death. It gets to a point where she wants to stay in this ‘altered state’, but these dreams also reveal some gaping holes in the life she’s living in reality. There are unresolved issues Kate never realized she had, secrets Patrick held, she didn’t know about, which cause Kate to take stock, to make changes, take risk, follow her heart, and come out on the other side a better, more confident, more complete person. But, her journey is an emotional tight wire, and just like in real life, it gets complicated. She has good times, but has to make very difficult choices and suffers deep disappointments. But at the end of the day, she is set upon the right path, the life she was intended to live. I am so glad I followed my instincts and chose a time to read this book when I wasn’t under so much pressure. This is a very imaginative storyline, with a kind of whimsical quality to it, but also with a slight edge. One thing that kept me turning pages was my love of all things mysterious. I just had to know what was going on, what would happen next, and soon found myself unable to tear myself away from the story. There are a few minor difficulties due to the bouncing back and forth between Kate’s dream state and reality. The switch could be jarring at times, and of course, I had some trouble connecting the various storylines, and keeping up the cast of characters, which is little larger than normal. But, these are issues are only slightly irritating and is most likely a problem unique to me. This is also one of those books that is hard to review, because to say too much, might give something away. While the book has some sad times, with a few teary eyes, and is certainly an emotional and poignant journey, there are also moments of intense frustration. But, have no fear, things turn out, well, as they were intended. While I couldn’t have possibly guessed at all the developments, I did pick up a clue along the way about which way the story was headed. However, for the most part, I was poised on the edge of seat from start to finish, and found the end result very satisfying, with a sweet moral about managing life’s curveballs, about accepting one’s fate, embracing it, and living it with gusto. 4 stars
    • 5/5
      The Life Intended is a book that I had a feeling would bring out all the emotions, and it did. This book is above and beyond what I expected.

      Kate is a character that wants to move forward but is terrified of forgetting her late husband. She feels guilty trying to be happy in life when her husband’s life was taken at such a young age. She pretty much goes through the motions, and lets other people kind of make her decisions for her. I’m not a big fan of her fiance. He has some really douchey moments. But I love that throughout this book Kate grows. She makes mistakes, and seems a little crazy sometimes when she starts having dreams about her late husband, Patrick, and the life they could have had together. She obsesses over it, but I think it’s vital in her learning to live again.

      There were so many moments when my heart broke for Kate. There are moments when those that are supposed to support her most give her the most grief over her choices. She learns so much about herself through the dreams she has, and I applaud her for sticking to her own happiness. There are so many people in the journey she takes that help her become the woman she is meant to be.

      Harmel’s writing is beautiful. You get swept away in her words, and find it hard to come back to reality while reading. I will definitely be reading more from this author, and this book is definitely among my top reads of the year.
    • 4/5
      The story follows Kate as she tries to put her life back together after the death of her husband. I found it to be an enjoyable, quick read. While it dealt with death, I didn't find it to be a depressing book. Instead I found it to be touching and heartwarming.
    • 4/5
      There's a bit of magical realism at play here, as the main character has dreams of her dead husband inexplicably alive and details which turn out to be true. And that is the crux of the novel - what is the "life intended?" Kate has dreams, but life has handed her something different - and she is who her life has made her - good and bad. The book ends with a lovely sense of completion, and while it may be the typical "happy ever after" kind of ending, the message along the way still resonates with truth.
    • 5/5
      Although I have never heard of Kristin Harmel before, I received her most recent novel The Life Intended for review and let me tell you, I am beyond thrilled that I read this book.A description of this book from Goodreads is as follows:In this richly told story where Sliding Doors meets P.S. I Love You, Kristin Harmel weaves a heart-wrenching tale that asks: what does it take to move forward in life without forgetting the past?After her husband's sudden death over ten years ago, Kate Waithman never expected to be lucky enough to find another love of her life. But now she's planning her second walk down the aisle to a perfectly nice man. So why isn't she more excited?At first, Kate blames her lack of sleep on stress. But when she starts seeing Patrick, her late husband, in her dreams, she begins to wonder if she's really ready to move on. Is Patrick trying to tell her something? Attempting to navigate between dreams and reality, Kate must uncover her husband's hidden message. Her quest leads her to a sign language class and into the New York City foster system, where she finds rewards greater than she could have imagined. What can I say about Kristin Harmel except the fact she is an amazing writer? It’s very rare I feel such a connection to a book, and this was one of them. The main character, Kate, does not have an easy life. She suffers much tragedy and sadness. There is nothing cliché in this book about loss, acceptance, and moving on. Harmel does a great job showing how messy life can be and how sometimes, no matter how much time has passed since a huge loss, you still cannot move on. This story is heart wrenching at times, especially for anyone who has lost someone or who has expected their life to be different than the one they have.The best part of this book, besides watching Kate’s journey into accepting her dreams as an alternate reality of what her life could have been and as a message from her late husband, was how much time and research Harmel put into making sure her description of the NY foster care system was authentic. I am a foster parent and writer myself and there’s nothing more I appreciate in an author than authenticity, and doing it in such a way so as to not sound boring or trite. She does a great job explaining the process in which we foster parents go through to get accepted into the system, the heartbreak of knowing kids need homes, and the reward that comes from helping children. I consider myself to be somewhat of a book snob (not in a bad way but in a way where I prefer to be moved or impacted by a book, not just read a book to waste time) and this book was beyond amazing. I loved this book so much I felt inclined to send Kristin an email yesterday, thanking her for taking the time to research and write in such a way that was authentic and real. To my surprise, she emailed me back right away! We exchanged a few emails and she is just as good of a person as she is a writer. She is a wonderful woman and writer and I am so happy this book was sent to me for review. I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads and I am very eager to read anything else she has written.
    • 4/5
      Source: ARC from Gallery Books via NetgalleyKate is married to the love of her life, Patrick, for only a short time before his sudden death changes her life forever. Fast forward twelve years and Kate is getting ready to marry Dan. She starts having these vivid dreams of Patrick and the life they could have had. They are so vivid that she thinks they are real. She struggles to find the meaning of these "dreams" and in so doing finds herself going down some roads she never would have found otherwise.Themes: Love, death and loss, family, being your true selfTopics of this book include death of a spouse, infertility, American Sign Language, special needs children, foster system and the Deaf community.Characters: The characters are well written and rounded out nicely. They felt like real people with some dimension. They each had distinctive personalities that felt genuine instead of stereotypical.POV: First person from Kate's point of view.Romance: Yes. Love is a big part of this book because the romance between Kate and Patrick is almost like a third person between Kate and Dan. This is not a hot and steamy romance. There are no explicit scenes. Instead, the romance is more about those day-to-day interactions that create intimacy between people.Insta-Love: No Love Triangle: NoCliffhanger: NoOverall: This book grabbed me right from the beginning. The first chapter is about Kate's last day with her husband and it was absolutely heartwrenching. It was very easy for me to put myself in Kate's shoes and feel what she was feeling. The love between them, the little things that made up all the moments of their lives together, her overwhelming grief and sense of loss, her guilt, and her denial. The rest of the book is set twelve years later as Kate has finally moved on to a new serious relationship. But has she really moved on?Ms. Hamel's writing is wonderful. The story flows well and she is able to evoke emotion without the book feeling too sappy. Kate's emotions are on full display for the reader in a very real way. Nothing feels forced or hokey. Through Kate's journey she comes to certain realizations about her life and decides to live the life that she was always intended to live. It may be different from what she expected and things may not always have worked out the way she hoped they would, but in the end, there's a reason for everything and all her heartache and struggles have led her to where she needs to be.This was a very sweet and heartwarming story. It's was a fairly quick read for me because I really wanted to read how things worked out for Kate. I definitely felt connected to her as a character even though I really don't have much in common with her personally and that just goes to show how good the writing is and how great the author is at evoking emotion. I definitely recommend this one.