Tara just wants to be loved. But life makes other plans. Will she take another chance on her first love or realize that self-esteem comes from within? Looking back, Tara Carter wonders if what followed her first kiss was a warning of things to come. At the young age of ten, her heart broke when her best friend Trey moved 1,500 miles away. Crossing paths five years later, the two teens exchange beautiful letters that cement their love. They embark on an idealized relationship, despite trauma and heartbreak on both sides, only to be forced apart shortly after. Tara enters college and is forced to confront the ugly side of life, losing contact with her first love. As time marches on, she yearns to know what could have been… until fate presents her with one last opportunity twenty years later. Will she take it? If you like courageous women, raw emotions, and real-life issues, then you'll love Tasche Laine's slice of life tale—a moving fictional memoir based on a true story.
Author
Tasche Laine has worked as a journalist, teacher, and book editor. Her published works include book award winners CLOSURE and CHAMELEON, two short story anthologies: Winds of Winter and Wings of Prophecy, the young adult mystery series, CHRONICLES OF V, and the children’s book series, Lil Peter, she co-writes with her husband, Peter Valdez. Tasche grew up in a small town in Oregon, has lived all over the U.S., and currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and puppy, Story. She also visits family in southern California as often as possible. For more information, please visit her website at taschelaine.com. From the Author Closure is based on events from my life and has been fictionalized to protect the identities of the people involved, as well as for literary effect. Even though this story is deeply personal, it would not let me rest until I told it. I feel an obligation to tell it, to be a voice for those who feel silenced. My story addresses some difficult topics. It’s time to acknowledge the prevalence of these issues—the first step as a catalyst for change. I was inspired to speak out by Milck’s song, “Quiet.” I can’t keep quiet anymore. I hope that readers will see this book as more than just a story about two kids who fell in love. Because life is so much more complicated than that. Yes, there is a love story here, but it is also a life story. I was inspired to see it through to publication because I feel I have been given a second chance—I almost lost my voice to a thyroid tumor, and my life to kidney cancer—I survived both, and now I’m making a difference.
