Review: Decently written but forgettable!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 10 3, 2013
I'm not one to complain that a novella or short story is "too short." After all, limited length is what one expects from those formats, and I'm a big believer that 'trimming the literary fat' can make for a more engaging, tightly plotted and smoothly paced read. Restless readers like I am are far less likely to tire of a well-written, imagination-stimulating novella than those unnecessarily bloated 400+ page, "ugh, this AGAIN? We GET it already!" novels.The thing is, this story felt like it was lacking not just in length, but in substance. I didn't feel much of a connection with the characters or fully buy into their connection with each other. There are some novellas that sell me instantly on the H and h having a bond and soulmate-y chemistry---particularly if they knew each other before the novella begins. In this case, it felt more like two characters who were in lust rather than in anything close to love, which happens to be a pet peeve of mine!I couldn't rate it less than three stars because I love Carlyle's writing style, which is more 'literary' than one often finds in this genre without being the least bit stuffy or pretentious. I'm still eager to read more of Carlyle's work, but won't be revisiting this one again.