Review: military romance
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 18, 2012
I am reviewing an ARC that the author sent me, so here goes:Evan and Claire are career army officers, Evan having graduated from West Point, Claire stepping from enlisted to officer via OCS(Officer Candidate School). Both are responsible, strong, concerned and ambitious--but while Evan is a by-the-book, rules are there for a reason, follow orders no matter what type, Claire is a seat-of-her-pants,sometimes wild card, the mission matters unless one of her people are in jeopardy, person.-And the clash is on-Getting ready to return to war, in the winter, with green soldiers coming into the ranks puts the pressure on both captains,some up-and-coming platoon leaders, and on those war-weary soldiers that are slowly coming apart at the seams.-Plus their superior officer is a brigadier general who Really doesn't like having his orders questioned--To top it all off, Evan and Claire begin to circle one another, suddenly becoming each others' primary target for lust, anger, stress,and long-standing personal issues . . .Everything resonates here for me in this story:the methods used by soldiers, in my case, sailors, to deal with the unrelenting stress of duty in wartime, such as alcohol, sex, exercise.the personality clashes between toe-the-line military, green recruits, and arrogant egos--present in both enlisted and officers . . .how people get thru each minute, each day, each hour during tours of duty . . .the revelation, in extreme circumstances, of shining character, heartfelt loyalty, and honorable sacrifice.In Jessica Scott's Until There Was You, this battle is fought in the hearts and minds of Evan, Claire, Sarah, Reza as they prepare to return to the continuing war in Iraq.It is a hard struggle, with heartbreak, drunken insensibility, and grief displayed as a small sample of the wounds carried by these conscientious, caring, driven people.Yet the tired burdens of suspicion and old guilt owned by both Claire and Evan gives way to new and frightening things: love, hope---and trust.This military romance is well-written, character-driven, and realistic--it honors those serving off the page, and it takes this reader back into a time when she was fresh out of boot camp, ready to serve her country wherever she was needed ...