Gus (Bright Side #2) by Kim Holden

Gus (Bright Side #2) by Kim Holden

Released May 19, 2015

Spoiler Free Review by Krystal

The journey that began in top-rated, best-selling Bright Side, continues ... 

"This is the story of Gus. 
Losing himself. 
Finding himself. 
And healing along the way. "

“ … but the honest-to-God truth is I don’t even know how to function anymore. Bright Side wasn’t only my best friend; she was like my other half ... the other half of my brain, the other half of my conscience, the other half of my sense of humor, the other half of my creativity, the other half of my heart. How do you go back to doing what you did before, when half of you is gone forever?” 

Kim Holdens, Bright Side, left me with UGLY tears..I wasn't sure how I would recover. I already had no clue that a book with a bright orange cover would even be interesting.  So afterwards, I just knew I had to hear Gus's story...this poor guy needed a happy ending. Gus has been my most anticipated read of 2015.

After the death of Bright Side, Gus is completely lost. His formula for coping: The combination of excessive alcohol and performing live. The combination of the two is only temporary, and its affecting not only him, but his band members as well. With a tour in full swing, Gus can't afford to walk around in a drunken stupor...everyone is mad that shows are being canceled. How long will this last? Will Gus be kicked off the tour and out the band? Does Gus really even care?

Welcome to Hitler's Hell... when in walks Gus's new PA... Scout MacKenzie. Tall, slim, scarred, and all-business, Scout is not at all impressed by Gus' "rock star cliche," and wants nothing more then to finish the job. Can she make it 9 weeks? Scout may be scars and tough on the outside, but on the inside, shes running away, looking for an escape. Between their sticky note exchange and occasional wink, squint & stare, Gus always seems to get an internal reaction out of Scout, one she tries to hide, but can't deny and when Gus anonymously helps facilitate an opportunity for Scout, she knows there is more then meets the eye with Gus. But she does not belong in his world. Whats the point in even trying to develop any sort of friendship at this point?

"There's something epic that happens every day if you look hard enough for it."

After tour, Scout lands the job as Aubrey Hawthornes (Ma) PA, but this means interacting with Gus on a daily basis.  For Gus, its a challenge, to break Scout out of her shell. Holden built a friendship between Gus and Scout. But what the two of them don''t realize is that it just might be the other that they need to heal.

"Some people wear their scars on the outside.  Others wear them on the inside. Same difference.  Your character, your heart, your essence, that's what's important, because that's the real you.  All the rest, our looks the material stuff?  It's just meaningless bullshit."

Kim is BRILLIANT. She was able to thoroughly evoke the emotions in me, and make me mourn the loss Bright Side all over. She went into great detail, the aftermath of Bright Sides loss had on Gus...how everything ultimately came back to her and the goodness she brought out in others. My heart broke over and over again for Gus. And I really wanted him to have a happy ending, Every interaction with another female character, I was hoping she was the one to pull him out of this funk...Scout totally caught me off guard. Gus is going to win your heart over, he is the entire package.

"Life ain't about coasting.  It's about pushin' the damn gas pedal all the way to the floor.  Same goes for fun and love, no coasting.  Pedal to the floor."

I totally bonded with every character, for each of them where very well developed, and had a story. Each of them were touched by Bright Side, and even though she was gone in body, she was still in their hearts. Someone once said, "To live in hearts we leave behind is to live forever." And Bright Side, she lived in everyone's hearts...Never once did you hear something negative about her.

 I look forward to the next book, because come on, we all know its coming with the way Gus ended. No there are no cliffhangers, no OMG ending. But I think another book is needed to give us the closure on not only Gus and Scout, but Keller, Aubrey (Ma), and the rest of the secondary characters! I can't wait to see whats in store for Keller ((wink wink Kim)).

Gus's story was every bit of heart breaking, inspirational, and transforming.This is a story about loss. Losing someone you love and losing yourself in the grief. It's about learning to adjust to that loss and finding yourself again. It's about hope, love and redemption. And in the end coming away from it better than you could have imagined. If you haven't read Bright Side yet, you MUST read it first!! Gus is not to be read as a standalone. This is definitely a 5 star MUST read series. If you don't like buying a book until its on sale...or you don't like buying a book over $2....Bright Side and Gus are both well worth more then the price!

Do epic.

Bright Side (Bright Side #1) Amazon ($2.99)

Gus (Bright Side #2) Amazon ($3.99)