Review: Four Seasons of Elation!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 16, 2013
Story 1: I Hate Valentine's Day. Now with this kind of title I bet you are thinking angry female and in some respects, you are correct but there is definitely more. This story tells the story of Katie and Tucker. Katie was in essence abandoned and left to fend for herself at an early age. Dumped into foster care she didn't wasn't raised in a loving, nurturing environment. And because she was smart she was advanced two years ahead in school. This is just ripe with disaster for Katie during her teenage years. It was appalling how bad she was treated. My heart hurt for her especially during her high school graduation. It would be a disservice of me to explain further about this particular story. You must experience her journey for yourself. Hopefully, you will see Katie's beauty both inside and out as I did.Story 2: Bunny Cakes and Frosted Chicks. This story is about Jazz and Riley. This story had me laughing and admiring Lisa's ability to brush on the subject of faith without being sanctimonious or holier than thou. You couldn't help but love Jazz from the very beginning. She is a self-proclaimed walking klutz. Her exact words are, "It's not so much that I'm klutzy. I'm just...adventurous!" How adorable is that. Now Riley comes from money and is expected to live his life a certain way - by his family's rules. I can relate to this because my family expected me to live a certain way as well. Maybe you can relate? Have you ever felt that your life had a different calling than the path that you were on? How many of us had the courage to go off-the-beaten path and taken the road less traveled? Riley's journey was an integral part of this story and Jazz's Faith in God helped Riley make his own decisions with his life. When Riley makes the tough decision to go against his family wishes he finds himself torn that he can't be accepted by his family but happy that he finds a surrogate in Jazz's family and Jazz's wholehearted acceptance of the man himself and not his families apparent wealth. Jazz made a particularly moving statement when she and Riley were discussing family, "My family accepts you, Riley, simply because I accept you." Wow! That's a testament to the strength of love Jazz is surrounded by. You could feel the struggle within Riley as he sits in church with Jazz. Riley is paying particular attention to the preacher during his sermon. The preacher quotes one of the Psalms, "Be still and know that I am God." And a million thoughts pound into Riley. I was extremely moved by this couple.Story 3:  A Ghost of Chance. This story is about Sam Maxwell and Sophie Taylor. And before I get into my review of this story I must say that Sam's sister Charlie and her friend Michelle are pieces of work! For my part, I wanted to intervene and give those two witches a piece of my mind and give them both a B**** slapping that would send them into the next county! It's too bad the ghost in the story were friendly. They could've been used to haunt and scare the beegeebies out of those hoe bags! Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know I'm digressing from the review but I had to get that off my chest. Now, where was I? Oh yes, this story is about Sam Maxwell local resident hottie and Sophie Taylor new business owner in town. She bought a house that happens to be haunted with well meaning ghosts who set their sights on the couple to bring them together. This was a really sweet love story. sophie's sister said it best when she was speaking to her sister, "I know you aren't looking for love, but who knows? Maybe love is looking for you." That say's it all!Story 4:  Reindeer Games. This story had me laughing. You have to read this simply for Callie! This story is about Callie and Luke. I love the name Luke. Every Luke I've ever known is muey caliente! YOoozer! The best part of this story is Callie! She had me laughing out loud. Her humor is very reminescent of Tina Fey! That's all I'll tell you about this one. You have to read it for yourself.All-in-all this anthology was a joy to read. I read everything from Paranormal, crime, contemporary romance, young adult, and so-forth. Many times the stories are heavily angsty and make your heart hurt but there are times when the heart needs a break. Take the time to read these stories and marvel at Lisa's ability to make you feel a plethora of emotions. Give it a shot, what do you have to lose?