Abby lives in an unhappy home in the Sierra Nevadas. As she is going home one day, she sees someone dump a bag; which has something moving; in to the lake. She is determined to find out what is in the bag and to rescue it from the water. This begins a tale of friendship with a lonely widower and the puppies. I loved this book and have recommended it to many friends. Catherine Ryan Hyde book will have space on my bookshelf!

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for my honest review.

Who can’t resist smiling at the cover of these sweet 7 puppies? Laying on the ground with these sweet puppies is sure to bring a little bit of happiness into your day. 13 year old Abby rescued 7 puppies

was provided an advance reader copy of Seven Perfect Things from NetGalley. Catharine Ryan Hyde consistently writes wonderful stories of connection, and Seven Perfect Things continues this pattern. The story revolves around Abby, a young girl who rescues a litter of puppies from drowning, and Elliott, a man who was recently widowed and owns the shed where Abby puts the puppies. Abby comes from an unhappy home due to her father's negative, cold, critical personality, and she receives much joy from the puppies as she cares for them. Elliott earns her trust as he helps care for the dogs. Abby is such a strong young girl, and she proves how steady and resourceful she is throughout the book. The book is a feel-good read that concludes in a very satisfactory ending. I highly recommend this book! It is scheduled to be released on May 4, 2021.

Trigger warning for animal abuse.
This book reminds me of a feel-good, slightly cheesy movie. All the main characters, except Stan, are likable which made me want to root for them and their story. There were a lot of good character arcs in this book which made it rewarding to read. It's such a fun cute read. It was my first of Catherine Ryan Hyde's books but I will read more of hers in the future.

Oh how I loved this book! This is a story of healing, rescue, and love. It is a story that grabs you and makes you not ever want to put the book down. I absolutely loved it!

Great story. A young girl rescues some puppies a man tosses into the river. She keeps them at an abandoned cabin. The owner of the cabin returns one day and attempts to help her. The girls father is very abusive to her and her mother. The owner of the cabin (whose wife just passed away) offers them help to get away from the father. Very heartwarming story. Kept me reading straight through almost nonstop. Love all the books by this author= all heartwarming stories!

Catherine Ryan Hyde does it again! Another beautiful, heartwarming read that captures your heart. Adorable puppies, an adorable young girl and a life saving mission kept me intrigued and turning the pages. Do not miss this one. Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the ARC

Catherine Ryan Hyde has a wonderful gift to write about ordinary people with circumstances which are far from ideal. Seven Perfect Things is a story about three people each hurting in some way from their own circumstances. Enter seven perfect things - a litter of puppies. This litter of puppies changes the lives of three people bringing them love, hope, and joy. Determination, courage, and loyal friends help the three people change their circumstances bringing love and joy back to each. A quick read, but satisfying to see both the bad and good in humanity and how even puppies can bring love and joy back to us.

How does Catherine Ryan Hyde always manage to write characters that burrow right into our hearts and souls? She has a gift and she uses it so very well.

This is another book that just gets you in the feels. Abby is such a wonderfully strong character, filled with the optimism of youth, yet old beyond her years. The heart she has is fantastic and her fight for these puppies, and for a change in her and her mother's lives is a sweet, realistic, and uplifting story just waiting for you to discover it.

Thank you to the author, Netgalley, and the publishers for providing an ARC at my request. All thoughts in this review are my own.

4 Enthusiastic Stars

“No, the really tough bit is when you find yourself dropped on the other side, and you have to find a way for your life to go forward from there.” ELLIOT from Seven Perfect Things

“I mean . . . you just make the best of happy while you’ve got it, right?” ABBY from Seven Perfect things

This book opens with 13 year old Abby happening upon a man dumping a “wriggling sack” into the river. Out of pure instinct, Abby dives in the cold water, determined to save whatever might be in that sack. Once she opens the sack, out come 7 adorable puppies. Of course now it’s obvious that this is going to be a good read because, I mean, there are multiple dogs involved! But back to the story, the reader learns that Abby has a good relationship with her Mom and a sad, almost non- existing relationship with her controlling and mentally abusive Dad.

Her story intertwines with Elliot, a 52 year old very recent and grief-stricken widower. As their relationship grows into a supportive and encouraging friendship, the puppies offer a welcome distraction from the stresses and relationships to each. Elliot – intuitive and insightful, offers Abby and her Mom the opportunity to consider a life they began to believe would never be possible. Abby and her Mom offer Elliot the opportunity to once again feel happy.

As the situation with Abby’s Dad becomes more dire, Abby and her Mom work together to find the courage to make life-altering decisions. Together they are determined to find a future where happiness and love are possible.

This is a heartwarming story of resilience, determination and hope. It is about finding joy, finding freedom and finding respect. It is about listening to your heart and being open to possibilities. The writing was well done and story was uplifting and full of hope. Plus, it included dogs, which is always a plus in my view. Recommended as a light and heartfelt read.

Elliotts wife is dying, Mary is in an emotionally abusive marriage and while Abby is walking home from school she sees a a man throw a bag into the river, a bag full of puppies. After Abby saves these seven perfect things she tries to bring them to the shelter, she learns that they will probably be put down so she leaves with them and brings them to an abandoned cabin, she makes them comfortable in the shed, feeds them and worries what she is going to do with them, All she knows is that she can’t part with them. Dragging a bag of dog food to feed the puppies she sees the cabin isn’t abandoned any more, she runs into Elliott who says she has to move the puppies, he gives her time to figure it out and gets attached to them as he helps Abby with the puppies he starts dealing with his grief and realizes it’s ok for him to have joy in his life despite his grief, her mother Mary finds out about the puppies and that her daughter was seen with a strange man and she goes to investigate, she finds Elliott and the puppies, as she gets to know Elliott and the puppies she realizes that she needs to escape life as her and Abby know it. This is the story of three people who need healing and to move forward in their life which happens with the help of seven perfect things!

SEVEN PERFECT THINGS by Catherine Ryan Hyde is a heartwarming and moving story of hope, love and unexpected friendships. It is told from the points of view of the three main characters, thirteen-year-old Abby Hubble, her mother, Mary and their neighbor in the Sierra Nevada foothills, Elliot Colvin. Abby’s father, Stan makes life miserable for her and her mother. He is cold and controlling and they live in constant fear of upsetting him. One day Abby witnesses a man throwing a sack of puppies into the river. Without hesitating, Abby dives in and saves them, but soon realizes she can never bring them home. She ends up leaving them in an abandoned cabin in the nearby woods until she can work out what to do. Elliot’s beloved wife has recently died and he is lost in his grief. He decides to go stay in his old hunting cabin for a while until he can cope with life and work again. When he arrives, he is surprised to find that his cabin has been robbed and in his empty shed are seven little puppies. Elliot and Abby meet when she comes back to take care of the puppies. Over the next several days, the two begin to develop a special relationship that makes them both feel better. Abby introduces Elliot to her mother, secretly wishing the three of them could be together away from her father. When Stan discovers Mary talking with Elliot, he relocates the family hundreds of miles away to punish them. But with them gone, what will happen to the puppies? Will Mary and Abby be forced to stay with Stan or can they find a way to escape? I just loved the sweet relationship between Abby and Elliot. Abby was such a brave and resourceful young girl. Her relationship with Mary was also beautifully portrayed. The puppies added the perfect element to tie the whole story together. SEVEN PERFECT THINGS is a warm and uplifting story filled with hope for new beginnings and the simple joys in life. I highly recommend it! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read an early copy.

This book will run you through every emotion there is, happiness, sadness, fear, excitement, love, grief, etc. There are characters you will love, characters you will hate, characters who will disgust you, and characters who will surprise you. You will be horrified by the things people do, and amazed.

In a lot of ways the book seems on the surface to simplify the facts of abuse and neglect and belittle the strength it takes to get oneself out of the situation like that. But in all fairness I think this book is geared more towards young adult readers, so I think that is probably a good thing to let young people know that you can get yourself out of a situation like that and it’s not nearly as difficult as some adults would have you believe. In a nutshell I think that message is what this book was really all about, young adults finding out that life is never as complicated as adults tend to make it out to be and rather than let fear paralyze you, you have to just go out there and get what you want. No, things won’t always work out perfectly, but doing something is usually better than doing nothing and sometimes trying is all that really matters.

I don’t normally like to read books that are so filled with emotion, but I’m glad I read this book. The main character, Abby, is an amazing girl, and her mom and Elliot are very touching characters. There are seven other characters who are also adorable!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Seven Perfect Things is a wonderfully heart-melting contemporary story set in rural Northern California, about how an abandoned litter of puppies changes the lives of three unhappy people. It’s not due out until May, but the joy of being up to date with all my review deadlines is that when I want to read a book I know will have a happy ending and no violent death, I can bump one up the queue! Catherine Ryan Hyde has perfected a formula to create beautiful stories that are all completely different despite incorporating the same elements each time - grief & loss, non-romantic love & friendship, usually animals, and always an unusually amazing young person. It’s rare for me not to give them 5 stars, and this one will not be the exception.

When lonely thirteen year old only child Abby witnesses a sack with something moving in it being thrown into a river, she doesn’t hesitate - she dives in and rescues seven little puppies from certain death. Unable to take them home to her unfeeling and controlling father Stan, and downtrodden mother Mary, and knowing if she takes them to the pound they’ll probably be put down, she hides them in an abandoned cabin in the foothills outside town. Elliott, who has recently lost his beloved wife, visits his old hunting cabin to find solace in tranquility, so is shocked to find seven wriggling pups and a feisty young teenager in his shed. Won over in spite of himself, he wants to help Abby, and her mother, but Stan is not going to let them walk away...

This book had me cheering, booing, holding my breath, and nearly crying happy tears at unexpected moments (Go Tippy!) In real life I’m not particularly into dogs or teenagers, but Abby’s courage, empathy and resilience won me over immediately, and had me wishing I too could lie on the ground and be swarmed by cute puppies. Luckily my cat-babies make good substitutes so I don’t do anything rash (much more time for reading with cats!) Elliott’s kindness and practicality was also immediately endearing. I took longer to warm to Mary, wondering how anyone would put up with a man like Stan for so long, but the more we are shown of their relationship, the more I understood. I also liked the various minor characters whose kindness help save Abby & Mary when everything seems hopeless. I would’ve liked to find out that a terrible things happened to the two awful characters (I’m including the anonymous puppy-abandoner: drowning would be too good for him) but CRH wisely leaves that to our imagination.

Recommended to anyone wanting a gentle pick me up read, I felt slightly bereft that it was over - then remembered that she has an extensive back-catalogue, with many more I’ve yet to read - and seems to publish a couple of books a year, so lots to look forward to!
Thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the ARC which allowed me to give an honest review. Seven Perfect Things is published on May the 4th (be with you...)

⭐⭐⭐ + Stars almost a 4 for me!
Went into this story because I am a Catherine Ryan Hyde fan! I didn’t know anything about
the story except one cannot help notice the adorable puppies on the cover!

Abby Hubbles lives with her parents in the foothills of Serra Nevada Mountains and has had a rough childhood as her father is very nasty.
One day as she is returning home from school, she witnesses someone throwing a bag from a nearby bridge into the river. She notices that the bag is moving. She is a strong swimmer on the school’s successful swim team so doesn’t hesitate and dives into the river (something dangerous and most won’t do). She is successful in getting the bag and when she investigates what is in it ~ finds she has rescuing a litter of puppies.
Now what to do with them?
She knows she cannot take them home as her father wouldn’t welcome seven puppies. She takes them to the animal shelter only discovers the shelter is very crowded ~ has many puppies. Turns out puppies are not easily adopted as most folks in the woods would rather adopt a dog that can take care of itself.
Abby fears the worst and decided to hide them.
In the meantime, Eliot Colvin is grieving over the death of his wife. He and his wife have a cabin in the woods but have not been there in three years. Since they had happy times there, he decided to return to the cabin.
He finds the lock on the door of his cabin is broken and many things have been taken. He has a storage shed so hurries to check it. Sure enough the lock is broken there as well and his snowmobile is gone bur on he discovers seven puppies.

Hmm I have told you a lot about this story ~ now you have to read and find out what happens not only to the puppies but Eliot, Abby etc.
If you are in the mood for a “feel good’ story, you are in for a treat!

Want to thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this early release granted to me for an honest professional review. Opinions expressed are my own.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for May 4, 2021

I enjoyed this story, as I have all of Catherine Ryan Hyde’s books that I have read. This story is heartfelt. However, it seemed drawn out to me, I look forward to reading more from this author.

Seven Perfect Things by C. Ryan Hyde, published by Lake Union Publishing, is an emotional read, sweet.
Abby Hubble is a 13 year old, and she grows up rather unhappy. When she finds a litter of puppies she knows she can't take them home. She brings them to a cabin in the woods and cares for them.
Elliot Colvin is a lonely man who's still grieving his wife. He finds a girl and puppies on his property and what do you think, both are kindred souls. They grow a relationship, but then when Abby has to move some decisions are to be made.
A story about joy and courage, 4 sweet stars.

In this sometimes heartbreaking book the author addresses both human and animal abuse. There are not any vivid scenes of either, but it is part of the book. The book is about love and second chances and how one can start over and move on to a better life. All the characters and the story line are realistic. I like the way the author presents this wonderful and sometimes distressing story so that you feel you can’t leave the book until the end. I have read 4 other books by Ms Hyde, and they are all excellent. I received an arc of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thirteen year old Abby witnesses someone toss a bundle into he river. Knowing she is a strong swimmer, Abby makes a decision to dive in and investigate. What she finds is duffel bag filled with seven puppies. Knowing she cannot take the puppies home she takes them to the local shelter. Unfortunately they have no rooms d will not be able to keep the puppies. Abby knows she cannot take them to o her home so she searches for a a place to keep the seven puppies. What she finds is a shed she thinks is abandoned. It is the perfect place to keep the puppies until she can find homes for them.

What Abby doesn’t know the property is not abandoned it belongs to a man named Nick, who recently became a widower, his beloved wife Pat died. While Abby cleans the shed and tries to care for seven puppies Nick is dealing with his grief.

In the meantime Abby’s home life is becoming chaotic. Her father, who is controlling and verbally abusive is making it harder to care for the puppies. Abby finally confides in her mother about the puppies. And the two of them make decisions which put them o a course forward..

Told from the point of view: Abby, Nick, and Mary it’s a story about self-discovery and finding your way no matter how old you are.Throughout the story these puppies were the glue that held Abby, Nick and Mary developedThis a a delightful story. The characters were well developed and relatable.

Thank you, NetGalley, Lake Union Publishers, for the ARC.

I loved this book so much! Catherine Ryan Hyde has a way of writing that just touches your soul. I loved all her characters and just felt so happy after reading this book!