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Heather (The Circle of Friends #5)

by L. Diane Wolfe (Goodreads Author)

3.81 of 5 stars 3.81 · rating details · 16 ratings · 9 reviews

When confidence turns to frustration] A new beginning awaits Heather Jennings. The position at Clemson means she will finally realize her dream of coaching basketball. Heather is ready to focus on her duties, using sheer force if necessary to prove her independence. Sadly, her triumph is hampered as her father and greatest advocate lies dying of cancer. Battling her grief,...more

Paperback, 282 pages

Published March 16th 2010 by Dancing Lemur Press, LLC

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May 05, 2010 Books and Literature for Teens rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-ive-read-in-2010, friendship, published-2010, realistic-contemporary, romance, to-trade-swap

I can't quite pin-point my exact feelings about this book; possibly because it covered quite a bit of stuff on relationships. It's a touchy subject for everyone–teen and adults–and this book is a perfect example. Heather is a strong-headed girl who, at the beginning of the book, has a lot on her plate: a new job as a junior coach's assistant and a father who is diagnosed with cancer. With all this responsibility and adjustment starting, who would think Heather would get involved in a serious rel...more I can't quite pin-point my exact feelings about this book; possibly because it covered quite a bit of stuff on relationships. It's a touchy subject for everyone–teen and adults–and this book is a perfect example. Heather is a strong-headed girl who, at the beginning of the book, has a lot on her plate: a new job as a junior coach's assistant and a father who is diagnosed with cancer. With all this responsibility and adjustment starting, who would think Heather would get involved in a serious relationship with her best friend's brother, Mark. At first I couldn't stand Mark, I kept hoping Heather wouldn't fall for his somewhat-false interest in her; but she didn't. When they stared seeing each other more I began to feel like maybe they were meant for each other. After awhile though, Mark's true intentions were revealed and that really turned me off, especially when Heather didn't see it. I did enjoy reading the first half of the book, I just couldn't enjoy the rest because I don't care for Mark.
One other thing I must point is I think this book (or even this series) will appeal more to young adults that are older, maybe even in their college years. All of the characters are in their twenties and are married, except Heather. I don't mind this much, but I can't really relate with to them simply because I'm not married nor are my friends having babies.

Heather was an good read–still not liking Mark–but a heartwarming story overall. I didn't agree with how Heather and Mark took their relationship "to the next step", but I did appreciate the positive approach to marriage and friendship. It took some getting used to with the 3rd person narration, but smooth writing style all in all. Again, teens younger than 16 might not find this book very interesting, so I would only recommend to older teens.

|Age Group: YA, ages 16 - adult|Buy/Borrow? Borrow|
|Content: Sensuality and language|
|Part of a Series: Circle of Friends, Book 5|

Courtesy of Books and Literature for Teens (booksandliteratureforteens.blogspot.com)(less)

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Mar 24, 2010 Eleni ( La Femme Readers ) rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Circle of Friends - Book V: Heather is the first book I've read in this series. I didn't know what to expect but I very much enjoyed it. This book could be read as a standalone, I never once felt lost. Heather was quite a relatable character, I think a lot of readers will be able to connect with her. She was a hard-worker that never stopped reaching her goals. She succeeded in landing a dream job as an assistant basketball coach. However, her happiness was underlined with great sorrow for he...more

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Feb 03, 2010 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Heather Jennings has a goal. She's determined to coach college basketball, and after receiving her Masters at Duke, she lands a job as an assistant girl's coach at Clemson. This works out perfectly in her plans as it keeps her close to home. Her father has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and she wants to be nearby for her family.

It isn't until after she visits her married friends, Matt and Sarah, that she realizes that she is finally and truly over her...more Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Heather Jennings has a goal. She's determined to coach college basketball, and after receiving her Masters at Duke, she lands a job as an assistant girl's coach at Clemson. This works out perfectly in her plans as it keeps her close to home. Her father has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and she wants to be nearby for her family.

It isn't until after she visits her married friends, Matt and Sarah, that she realizes that she is finally and truly over her longtime crush on Matt. After seeing the two happily married with newborn twins, she knows she could never have made Matt truly happy.

Complaining about her junk heap of a car, Matt tells Heather to stop in at his family's car dealership and tell his brother, Mark, to give her a good deal. It's her hesitant trip in search of a new car that changes Heather's life.

Neither Mark nor Heather was searching for love, and little did they expect they'd find it in each other. Both headstrong and self-assured in their goals, the two come to realize that they're perfectly matched for each other. Mark struggles to trust Heather after learning of her previous crush on his brother and having a mom that walked out when he was a teenager. Heather has never had a relationship that has lasted very long. The two slowly come together and admit that they're meant for each other.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but something about HEATHER kept my attention far more than the other books that I've read in this series. I don't know if it was that Heather was a far more likeable character? Or if the author has developed in her writing since the beginning of the series? Or that the story takes place in a more confined time period unlike the others I've read? Or maybe it is just that Heather seems like a much more real person. Heather deals with real life and real situations. Anyone reading the novel can imagine themselves in her shoes.

Life isn't sugar-coated for Heather and she exists in the here and now dealing with grief, friendship, and a real, deepening love for someone else.(less)

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Feb 21, 2010 Peace Love and Reviews rated it 4 of 5 stars

Heather Jennings has always been goal orientated, driven, self confident and has proven herself responsible.
After graduating with Masters at Duke University, she immediately find her first coaching job as an assistant coach at Clemson University. It was what she always wanted But that personality is not without challenges. She still harbored the memory of his best friend marrying her roommate from college. Her father was terminally ill with Cancer and died a few months later. Her sister is havin...more

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Apr 13, 2010 Lenore Webb rated it 3 of 5 stars

"Heather" is about a young 20's woman who is making on her own. She has a new job as a Couch and also is enjoying her relationship with her boyfriend. But there are many conflicts that she has to deal with (as all of us do in life). With her father dealing with Cancer and then seeing that thoughts of suicide are entering into the life of a young woman, Heather has a lot on her hands. Top that with the up and down of her serious romantic relationship, there is plenty to keep a young woman in a to...more

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Mar 03, 2010 Debbie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I was a little leery of this fifth book as Heather was never one of my favorite characters. In fact, even in this book I disliked her personality and the way she treated her younger sister. Despite her sister being lazy I found Heather’s reactions to be disproportional and over blown. Still I found myself enjoying this book a lot. I enjoyed seeing the progression of her relationship with Matt’s older brother. Both their personalities were very strong and intriguing. Seeing how they adapted to ea...more

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Mar 19, 2010 Joanne rated it 4 of 5 stars

This series of books is considered to be part of the YA fiction genre, but they seem to reach into a place in my heart every time that I read one of them. I have only read a couple of YA fiction novels, not really sure if this is a genre that I want to continue with, but I know I can never go wrong with one of Wolfe's novels.

Although this story is about Heather, I believe that it is just as much about Mark and his problems and how they come together to work things out as a team. These two strong...more This series of books is considered to be part of the YA fiction genre, but they seem to reach into a place in my heart every time that I read one of them. I have only read a couple of YA fiction novels, not really sure if this is a genre that I want to continue with, but I know I can never go wrong with one of Wolfe's novels.

Although this story is about Heather, I believe that it is just as much about Mark and his problems and how they come together to work things out as a team. These two strong and independent people had to reach deep within their souls to realize that they had something special to offer to other people, rather than only selfishly considering their personal well being.

Heather has always had a strong relationship with both of her parents, but when her father becomes ill she thinks that she has to be the one to take care of everything for her mother. Since Heather lived in Clemson where she worked as an assistant basketball coach it became very frustrating for her to not be able to be there for her mother at all times. So she would find herself having feelings of anger towards her younger sister Dawn when Dawn would not step up to the plate and take on the responsibility that Heather could not fulfill when she wasn't around.

I found myself very upset with Heather's attitude toward Dawn throughout most of the book. As an older sibling that no longer lives at home, I think that you automatically expect the younger sibling to take on more responsibility without taking into account the fact that they are still young and everyone deals with grief differently. I finally let up on Heather about halfway through the book when I realized that I probably treated my younger sister in a similar manner years ago. As the book proceeds and they deal with their relationship issues, I found that I couldn't stop the tears from flowing.

Mark is another strong-willed individual that happens to be a workaholic so he never seems to have much extra time for leisure. From the moment that Heather walked into his office at the car lot that his father owns, that attitude slowly chips away. Mark also has a very strong anti-marriage attitude since his parents divorced when he was quite young, so the last thing that he expects is to fall in love with Heather. Since they both have very demanding work schedules and sometimes they can only see each other once a week, falling in love seems to be a very unlikely scenario so he considers their relationship to be a matter of convenience.

I loved watching Mark and Heather grow emotionally throughout this book. As they dealt with the problems that arose, they found that they could count on each other for strength rather than trying to go it alone. This book was full of surprises that will keep the reader engaged both mentally and emotionally. I also want to stress that just because this book is part of a series it really does stand alone quite well. I have only read one other book in the series and I had no problem becoming immersed into the pages. With themes of love, grief, and forgiveness I think that this book will be loved by not only young adults, but anyone looking for a touching story.
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Apr 04, 2010 Lori rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

From my blog:

This was my first book by author (and motivational speaker) L. Diane Wolfe. I have not read any of the previous books in this young adult series but Ms. Wolfe stressed that I could pick up Book V without a problem. And she was right.

While the main character in this book, Heather, was introduced in the earlier books (along with supporting characters we meet), enough background information and character descriptions are given so that this book can be a stand alone in and of itself.

In...more From my blog:

This was my first book by author (and motivational speaker) L. Diane Wolfe. I have not read any of the previous books in this young adult series but Ms. Wolfe stressed that I could pick up Book V without a problem. And she was right.

While the main character in this book, Heather, was introduced in the earlier books (along with supporting characters we meet), enough background information and character descriptions are given so that this book can be a stand alone in and of itself.

Interestingly enough, I wasn't sure that I liked Heather for the first third of even half of the book. I found her frustrating but she kept me interested and I never lost focus of the story. It came to me like a lightening bolt that Heather acted quickly, foolishly and without thinking at times because she was in her early to mid-twenties and she was very independent (or trying to be). In other words, very much like myself at that age. Once I was hit over the head with this literary 2x4, I understood Heather completely. She is definitely, to quote Ms. Wolfe, "ornery". She's argumentative and she's competitive. However, she is an excellent role model for teen girls who want to excel in sports and who strive to be independent.

Book V: Heather showcases just enough basketball (Heather's passion) to delight sports fans and athletes and yet not so much that sports novices would be overwhelmed or puzzled. I particularly enjoyed Heather's relationship with her parents, as it seemed very realistic and well written. In fact, I felt I would like her family if I met them and each member reminded me of my own family or a friend's family.

The cancer storyline is the "heavy" of the book but it's thoughtfully written, without unnecessary trauma.

The romantic portion of the story, with Heather most certainly meeting her match, is somewhat predictable to this mother of a teenager but I still appreciated watching her relationship with Mark progress and how both of them, not just Heather, made subtle and not so subtle changes in order to accomodate their growing feelings.

The strongest part of the book is Ms. Wolfe's ability to convey a message of strength and perseverance through her writing. Heather has many obstacles to overcome during the course of this book, ones that many of us face, and she tackles them and reacts in a fashion that is best described as brutally honest.

The message received from Book V: Heather is that life is going to throw you some curve balls and it sure isn't fair but you will emerge stronger and know yourself better.

I would recommend The Circle of Friends Book V: Heather to readers of all ages who want a good, strong story, with a positive role model, and who want to be encouraged and feel satisfied at the end of the book.
(less)

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Feb 09, 2010 Anne Miller rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

A good story that deals well with relationships, loss and love. I especially enjoyed how both Heather and Mark gained emotional maturity over the course of the story.

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Apr 20, 2013 Glendalys Hernandez rated it 3 of 5 stars

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Jan 27, 2012 Courtney rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Nov 12, 2010 Beverly McClure rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Mar 27, 2010 Stephanie (StephTheBookworm) rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Mar 04, 2010 ♫♥✿LovLivLife Reviews✿♥♫ (Chasity) marked it as to-read

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Feb 24, 2010 Chantele Sedgwick rated it 4 of 5 stars

Feb 07, 2010 L. Wolfe added it · (Review from the author)

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About L. Diane Wolfe

L. Diane Wolfe
Professional Speaker & Author
www.spunkonastick.net
www.thecircleoffriends.net
www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com

Known as “Spunk On A Stick”, L. Diane Wolfe conducts seminars on promoting, leadership and goal setting. Wolfe’s title, “Overcoming Obstacles With SPUNK! The Keys to Leadership & Goal-Setting”, ties all of her goal-setting and leadership seminar’s information toge...more

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Heather (The Circle of Friends #5)

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