Harvard

by Kirsten Pursell, Kirsten Pursell

Helena "Harvard" Schmitt could not leave her life on the mountain soon enough. A life of academic rigor at Harvard was made possible by her extraordinary athletic gift: running. Thor Himmel was the Harvard equivalent of a movie star: attractive, intelligent, and unattainable. As Helena and Thor run from their demons, their paths inevitably and abruptly cross far from where they ever imagined forcing them to confront the past that might destroy their future.

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Romance

212 pages, ebook

First published April 19, 2011

About the author

Kirsten Pursell is an award-winning American indie author. Her sixth novel, The Unabridged Life of Missy Kinkaid, will be published October 14, 2025. Her fifth novel, Finding Scarlet, was rereleased in May 2025from its original title of The Scarlet D (November 2024). It earned several awards.

Her fourth book, Long Enough to Love You, was released on 1/1/2023 and has earned several awards including:

Firebird Book Awards First Place: Fiction, Divorce Fiction, and Romance (2024)
The BookFest Second Place Award Contemporary Romance (Spring 2023)
A Literary Titan Gold Book Award Winner (2023)
Reader's Favorite 5 Stars (2023)
Book Excellence Winner - divorce fiction (2024)

Previous works include her memoir, On Becoming Me: Memoir of an 80's Teenager, released in 2021, and two additional novels: Harvard and Company Clown. Her books have been downloaded over 15,000 times since 2021. Her memoir was previously #1 on Amazon’s women’s biographies and memoirs and Company Clown was #1 in Satire Fiction.

Outside of writing, she is an avid swimmer who enjoys training and competing in open water and pool events near and far. She is fluent in German, loves to channel her inner mermaid through SCUBA adventures, and will travel just about anywhere given the opportunity. Time with her now adult children is her favorite (a nonfat latte a strong second). She lives in the San Diego beach community of Ocean Beach.

Reviews

[Bridget Ball · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helen “Harvard” Schmitt and Thor Himmel are running on similar paths in life, quite literally, and as fate would have it their paths are about to collide. The unexpected twist forces them to see the path behind them to reveal the path ahead.
Harvard is a story about Helena and how she deals with things once her father dies, causing her to be unexpectedly back at her childhood mountain home far from the original plans she had set out to do. Thor Himmel is a hot college professor, but when tragedy strikes he sets out on his journey whose path leads him directly to the mountain.
Kirsten Pursell tells an extraordinary tale of how two people deal with life's unexpected turns. I really enjoyed how each chapter was either told by “Harvard” or Thor so you got varying insights and perspectives driving the story forward. This book made me think of deep thoughts about fate and how detours in life are sometimes exactly what we need to direct us where we are meant to go.
I would recommend this book for fans of A Tale of Two Cities or Sleepless In Seattle. I think because of the two different perspectives this book would be ideal for a book club with men and women both participating. The theme of letting go and entering unexpected doors of opportunities will stay with you long after the back cover has been closed.

[Phyllis Krall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helena is an avid runner and the sport is what is responsible for her getting into Harvard. She lives alone with her father, on a mountain, helping him out in the restaurant he owns. Helena’s mother died in an accident when she was a small child. She has dreamed all her life about living in the city and leaving the mountain. Her time at Harvard comes to an end when her father dies unexpectedly and she must return home to run his restaurant.

Thor Hummel is a Professor at Harvard, when tragedy takes his family from him. He leaves the college and decides to travel, ending up at the mountaintop where Helena lives in California. The two meet one day when Helena is running and Thor is biking and they collide. They eventually become romantically involved and pursue their dreams together.

I received this book from Amazon and enjoyed reading it. The two characters narrated alternate chapters, and I was able to get inside their heads and know what they were thinking. It was a light easy read .

[Kimberly Desaulniers · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the first few chapters I really enjoyed the story. As I read on, especially the details of Helena’s father’s death, I felt that it became a bit ridiculous and unrealistic. From that point on the time line seemed off, everything tied together and all the characters seemed to conquer their demons and “start over” in the blink of an eye. The remarks that Thor hadn’t thought that he would “never find love again” didn’t fit the timeline…his wife and family and been brutally murdered in what only seemed to be maybe 3 months by the end of the story. The story itself was very good and had potential, I just didn’t care for the delivery. I did like the way the chapters alternated between Thor’s and Helena’s perspectives.

[Ilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first half more than the est of the book. I initially found the sadness of the stories inviting and was curious to find out where it was going. Later on some lines made it rather cliche and sappy, and I found it less interesting so didn't enjoy it as much.

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

Autobipgrahical?
Skim reading
No attachment to narrators

[Isabel Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good theme

Well in some chapters repeat the sequence, but has everything like mysterious,love,family, and the changes from the city's to the mountains .Recommended😄