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Second Hand Heart [Paperback]

Catherine Ryan Hyde
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
RRP: £6.99
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Book Description

16 Sep 2010

One girl: Vida is nineteen, very sick, and has spent her short life preparing for death. But a new chance brings its own story, because for Vida to live, someone had to die.

One man: Richard has just lost his beloved wife in a car accident. He hasn't even begun to address his grief, but feels compelled to meet the girl who inherited his wife's heart.

Someone else's heart: In hospital Vida sees Richard and immediately falls in love. Of course he dismisses her as a foolish child. But is she? Can two people be bound by a second hand heart?


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Second Hand Heart + When I Found You + Love In The Present Tense
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Product details

  • Paperback: 480 pages
  • Publisher: Black Swan (16 Sep 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0552776629
  • ISBN-13: 978-0552776622
  • Product Dimensions: 12.7 x 2.8 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 393,435 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Review

An extraordinary and unforgettable book - powerful, poignant and incredibly moving. I read the whole thing at a sitting, and absolutely loved it (SUSAN LEWIS )

Compelling new book (Woman's Own (****) )

...powerful emotions are aroused. A compelling, thoughtful read (Choice Magazine )

Book Description

Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, a piercing, emotionally charged novel from the bestselling author of Love in the Present Tense.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By E. Heckingbottom TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)
Nineteen year old Vida is dying. She desperately needs a new heart - but, when she receives it, she receives a lot more too. Can a transplanted organ bring memories with it? If not, why does she suddenly have feelings for the widower whose wife's heart she has received? Why does she know so much about hiking when, for all her life, she was barely well enough to walk from the car to school or to the house?

This intriguing book is written in the form of two diaries - those of Vida and of Richard, the widower whose wife's heart she received in the transplant - as well as emails between Richard, his mother-in-law, Vida and her mother. It follows their lives from the day of the transplant and onwards for several months. It touches on elements of life and death which are rarely, if ever discussed in a way that cannot be ignored. However, as the godmother of a child who will, in all probability, eventually need a heart transplant, it hit several poignant spots for me.

This is a book that should appeal to readers of Jodie Picoult as well as to those who enjoyed The Time Traveler's Wife
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Can a heart remember? 5 Aug 2010
By K. Wright VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
"Second Hand Heart" is a novel about 2 people and the bond they share over a heart. 19 year old Vida is waiting for a heart transplant. She is happy to hear the news that a heart has been found for her. However this means Richard has lost his wife in a car accident. After the transplant Vida meets Richard and immediatly feels an attraction. Richard begins to delve into scientific research on cellular memory. Can a heart really remember?

Catherine Ryan Hyde mixes scientific research, a road trip to the Grand Canyon and the bond between two strangers in an engaging and easy to read tale of love and living. I wanted to carry on reading to find out what happened to Vida and Richard and the ending was well thought out. This is highly recommended and I will be looking into more novels by the same author.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting premise, well written. 14 Mar 2011
By Bob's Mum TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)
Second Hand Heart is a diary style novel, written from mainly the views of Vida, the heart recipient, and Richard, the bereaved husband of the donor. It offers the interesting view of cellular memory, and portrays the story of Vida who now loves Richard though she knows not why. Vida's desire to live, parallels the previous life of Lorrie and her love for Richard, and the story weaves its way through grief, telepathy, love and co-incidence.

I enjoyed this book, though it did take me a little while to read it. I started and stopped a few times before finally doing it justice, and I'm glad I did. I'm not sure I hold absolute understanding of the premise behind Second Hand Heart, but I'd like to believe that love and the spirit of us does live on.

Well written, with beautiful description of land and geography, I'd reccomend this book. Fans of Jodi Picoult will like this one too.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Uplifting, questioning and relatable 16 Nov 2010
By R. WEST-SOLEY TOP 1000 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)
Catherine Ryan Hyde picks up a concept that has received some press in recent years - cell memory - and runs with it in a lovely tale which is tragic and uplifting in equal amounts, and explores some real questions that there just aren't any concrete answers to. What is good about the story is that it never quite tips over into the realm of the silly or the completely paranormal - it's sensitively and realistically woven into a very believable story of illness, recovery and personal growth, so even the realists out there can enjoy this without dismissing it as too far-fetched.

I thought the double diary format of this book made for a really engaging and personal style - especially as it puts you in the minds of two people with very different perspectives on life and death. They're not ideal characters, true - you can get quite frustrated with them - but who wants perfect, fairy-tale personalities? As such the central characters Vida and Richard are a very relatable pair of protagonists who most readers should enjoy getting to know.

A questioning, but frequently uplifting read.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars an entertaining unusual story 5 Jun 2010
By Mrs. A. Wright VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)
19 year old Vida Receives the heart from Lorrie who is killed in an accident. Lorrie's husband Richard agrees to meet Lorrie as he sees it as a connection to his dead wife. The story is about that connection. It is told in the first person by both Vida and Richard. They are both writing logs but it is not the log entries that tell the story but rather the thoughts of each as they write. An interesting technique and i enjoyed meandering through their thought processes before as Vida describes it they "get back on track" The characters of Vida who had a severely restricted childhood because of illness and imminent death then trauma of heart transplant and chance of life and Richard the grieving widower are well described and one can sense the vulnerability and need in both although for very different reasons. Abigail the over protective over anxious mother and Myra the concerned and grieving mother in law elicited a lot of sympathy from me. It was good to see the characters of Victor and Connie develop as the story progressed and Esther was so real to me I could actually see her. Heart transplants, the grieving process and the trauma of severe chronic illness are all portrayed in the book. Cellular memory is so well explained it is almost believable - could it be true? The book does not seek to inform but to entertain and it does that well. I would recommend it to any one who has a few hour to spend and I'm sure they will spend them pleasurably.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars a strange but touching story
Vida is 19 years old and all of her life has been waiting for a heart transplant.Her wait is over when a lady,Lorrie,dies and the husband,Richard,agrees to donate Lorries' heart to... Read more
Published 3 months ago by s
5.0 out of 5 stars very thought provoking story - excellent
Vida will die if she does not receive a heart transplant soon. She is top of the list for a heart, which she acknowledges is both good and bad. Read more
Published 5 months ago by SusieH
3.0 out of 5 stars A bit far fetched for me
Well i read 3 Catherine Ryan hyde books in a row and this one i enjoyed the least. The story had the easy natural flow of all her other books but i just found this one to be more... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Marie Judd
3.0 out of 5 stars The right ingredients but perhaps the wrong recipe?
Theoretically this is the kind of book I really enjoy: emotional challenges, difficult dilemmas and scenarios that you hope you never ever find yourself in. Read more
Published 22 months ago by D. Brown
3.0 out of 5 stars AN INTERESTING AND DIFFERENT FORMAT
I felt very ambivalent about this novel. At times I really got into it,but at times it was rather boring, and tedious, and like other reviewers I felt like giving up, but I did... Read more
Published 23 months ago by bibliophile
4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic concept but hard characters to relate to
I found the idea of this book fascinating, until this I had been unaware of the concept of cellular memory, but this book covered new ground and challenged the reader's beliefs. Read more
Published on 2 May 2011 by Dinah93
3.0 out of 5 stars A 'nice read'
I think I chose the above title with a sense of 'damning with faint praise' - it was an easy-going read, with enough interest to make me want to continue and find out what happened... Read more
Published on 22 Jan 2011 by Bibliophan
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting And Emotional
I wanted to like this book more and feel that I have been generous in giving four stars. The story is at times very sad and also very uplifting, both in the right amounts so it... Read more
Published on 13 Nov 2010 by A. Rose
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!
Second Hand Heart is a great read. The idea of amalgamating the journals of Vida and Richard works very well. The story keeps going at a good pace and keeps you interested. Read more
Published on 31 Oct 2010 by Mr. P. J. Cooper
3.0 out of 5 stars Could have been so much better
Picking up this book, I thought that it looked interesting and intriguing and I was looking forward to reading it. Read more
Published on 29 Oct 2010 by Amy
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