Review: A heart-wrenching tale of a damaged love
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 22, 2014
This author has the craft of writing firmly under her belt, her imagery is evocative and her word flow fluid.This book has all the trappings of greatness about it-- Firstly, there is the cunningly clever parallel between Hitler and his determination to cleanse the world of any human beings he considered imperfect, and the dilemma that main protagonists face in connection with the imperfection that raises itself in their lives-- to say more would be to put this review firmly in the nether land of 'A spoiler'... so I'll leave it there. Secondly, there is the plot; with all it's heart-wrenching, tear-jerking tragedy, and finally, the emotive exploration of the nature of true love. For its target audience, this novel may hit its mark.I was truly horrified and wholly taken by the authors presentation of the central tragedy, until that point I was not emotionally evolved with Lauren or her predicament involving her less than perfect husband. However, her turmoil and angst are sensitively and effectively explored, and in this area the tale is tightly woven and very well done. Nevertheless, once the story relocates to Lauren's home town, and introduces Ethan--the unbelievably gorgeous crush of her teenage dreams--the story, for me anyway, began to spiral into the unfortunate waters of didacticism. The author engages the reader in a host of situations, all of which seem to lather her own moral stance and life-view onto the reader--this is not necessarily a bad view I simply feel that the reader and the characters are not given a chance to drawn their own conclusions or make their own decisions. in the finale, Lauren--carrying all the baggage that she has acquired spiritually, mentally and physically makes a choice I could not reconcile with the character she had (or should have ) become. Nevertheless, this is a personal aside and I feel that most readers will adore this emotional roller coaster ride.