Review: A short story of love and loss and the potential to love again.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 06 26, 2012
Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: A short story of love and loss and the potential to love again.Opening Sentence: "Chase's back in town."The Review:A Forever Kind of Love is a short contemporary romance story.  It is all about the human heart and its infinite capacity for love, old and new.  It is about a man ready to claim the woman he has always loved, and finds out that she has moved on and married his best friend.  And most importantly, it is about second chances.Chase ran away from his hometown when he was 18 years-old; leaving his home, his father, and his girlfriend Zoe.  After a 15-year hiatus, Chase returns to the small town of Warren, looking for what he so casually threw away in his youth; a home.  Chase's character is complex.  Though he knows that Zoe is married and his main reason for coming home is gone, he still tries to make life in a small town work.  Chase feels like he lost his chance at love, yet despite that, he still tries to be a friend to both Zoe and her husband, Roger.  He is supportive and caring, even as he envies his friend's life.  And when Roger's illness threatens to do harm to the woman they both love, Chase steps up and helps keep them both stay safe.  I like his willingness to accept that the love he feels for Zoe may never be returned.  It's cool that he continues to care for her, even though she has made it very clear that her heart now belongs to her husband.Zoe has had rough times in her past.  He mother despises her and the one man she thought would always be there for her left.  In the aftermath, Zoe's acceptance of Roger's proposal turned out to be one of the best things to ever happen to her.  Love followed after a time and Zoe thought that that would be the end of it.  Not until Chase's return and the devastating news of her husband's health did she realize that not all things are as simple as she would have them.The idea of love is a complex one.  A person can love multiple people in many different ways.  When love is given a room is made inside the heart, whether or not they stay matters little; once touched, the heart remembers.  To say that you can only have one love in life is a fallacy.  Zoe loves her husband, but that does not negate the love she once cherished with Chase.  Roger loves his wife, but realizes that in order for Zoe to be happy, she has to keep living after he's gone; that includes loving someone else.  Chase has always loved Zoe but was willing to set aside his feelings for her happiness.This is a wonderful contemporary romance story.  The feelings it invokes are heartwarming laced with sadness and loss.  A Forever Kind of Love's theme is just that; love that lasts forever, whether the person is still here or not.FTC Advisory: The author provided me with a copy of A Forever Kind of Love.  No goody bags, sponsorships, "material connections," or bribes were exchanged for my review.  The only payments I receive are hugs and kisses from my little boys.