Review: On this winding road...
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 2, 2012
Jeremy Taylor once said, "Love is friendship set on fire." Nothing exemplifies this particular quote more than the characters of MJ Fredrick's ROAD SIGNS - Willow and Cameron. Best friends for years, each harbors the same secret - the feeling they have for each other goes beyond friendship. Obstacles litter their path to each other, not the least of which include fear, uncertainty, and significant others who aren't always what they seem.Going into ROAD SIGNS, I wasn't sure what to expect. A romance, of course, but what about it? The description of the novel makes it clear that there are complications along the road to love but would the destination be worth the journey?In short, yes.In a novel such as this - a best friends to lovers type of romance - it's easy for the characters to become annoying, for the reader to sigh and question, "Can they get together already?" Fredrick's writing, however, gives new meaning to the term a slow burn. That's what this novel is - a love that lights slowly and earnestly from both sides and it shows in the writing. Willow, normally a "think it out" type of girl suddenly finds herself making rash decisions, and it all boils down to the fact that she'd do anything for Cam, anything to make him happy. Though I felt a bit frustrated with her line of thinking a few times, I chalked it up more to the fact that I understood what she was feeling and I practically put myself in her shoes. In that case, I was more upset because why couldn't I have known better? Cam, stuck in a cautious life with a job he dislikes, has the opportunity of a lifetime but doesn't know if it's right. His uncertainty is a nice change from the men who always know what they want and who take what they want without consequences. What I truly loved about both characters was their realism. They are the people I know, my friends, the coworkers I see on a daily basis. They each have fears and dreams and it's not always easy to see the correct path.Is the story perfect? Well, it has a few clichés here and there, but I think everything works well in its place in the plot. From the beginning, I felt myself hoping Fredrick would allow the characters to come together. Throughout the road trip, there is one problem after another, so much so that it seems unbelievable - but what is a work of fiction if not for the ability to lose parts of reality. I know, I know - I just said I loved the realism of the characters but that doesn't mean I would love to see everything go wrong to find out what else may happen.The thing is - it's a fun, breezy, and sexy novel. The love scenes aren't pure erotica and there are moments of silliness to balance the angst that comes along with (potentially) unrequited love. While not perfect - one of the problems I had was the sudden shifting of perspective from Willow to Cam without preamble (though the entire novel is in third person POV) - ROAD SIGNS is a sweet romance that will have readers on one of two sides: the side where I'm happily placed hoping they'll get together and the side where there's no way these two should ever get together.In either case, the road trip will be worth the destination.Is it too soon to ask for a sequel?-- originally reviewed for Ordinary People, Extraordinary Works --