Review: Satisfying and fast read
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 23, 2013
In a world fully immersed in the digital age, there is still the occasional news story or magazine article about individuals or school children becoming pen pals with soldiers. But in a time of instant gratification and finding your perfect match on an online dating site, is it possible for a soldier to fall in love with someone thousands of miles away through the simple act of regularly exchanging letters? You betcha!At 24, Bianca Gardiner finally decided to give up on her school girl crush. After all, Warrant Officer Caleb Sutten was ten years older than her, and his dedication to his sixteen-year army career just proved that the military was his first love. She'd kept her hopes alive for the last few years by writing Caleb a steady stream of friendly letters after he's complained to his sister Greta that he was lonely while going through a tough tour of duty in Afghanistan. But Bianca knew deep down that it was time to set aside her fixation and find a man who was interested in a relationship, so she started dating a young doctor who worked in the ward where she volunteered.Bianca's suspicions were suddenly aroused when Greta asked her to meet Caleb's flight at the airport and give him a ride to his new base housing. And what was with that very public smoking hot kiss Caleb gave her at the airport?Caleb had never really paid attention to his little sister's friend until he confided to Greta that he was having a tough time while stationed in Afghanistan. Greta thought news from home would cheer him and the letters he began receiving from Bianca soothed him, while piquing his interest in her. Before he knew it, he and Bianca were exchanging letters every week and he was requesting his sister send him photos of Bianca after Bianca refused to do so herself. The photo he received of Bianca posing on the hood of her car in a white bikini was all it took to whet his appetite, but every time he got leave to come home, Bianca avoided him and her letters soon dwindled to a trickle. On his upcoming leave, Caleb knew a series of bold moves that made his intentions clear would be needed if he was going to win Bianca away from the doctor who was pursuing her.In LETTERS TO HER SOLDIER, Hazel Gower explores the plausible idea of a soldier falling in love via the exchange of letters with a young woman who has loved him for a long time but has decided it's in her best interests to move on. Bianca has a few self-confidence issues due to a former boyfriend who put her down, so Caleb not only has to be dogged in his pursuit, but he must also overcome Bianca's minor self-esteem issues and her budding relationship with another man.Caleb moves a little too fast for Bianca and I could fully relate to Bianca's reaction, as I, too, felt he was rather quick to put the moves on the heroine when they'd had little face-to-face contact for several years.But, as this is a short story of 45 pages, the author did a good job of providing enough background on her hero and heroine to make this passionate tale workable, satisfying, and a fast read that's perfect for reading during a long lunch or as a yummy bedtime story.Heat Advisory: Mildly erotic sexual scenes are described with some use of explicit language that some may find objectionable.Reviewed by Angie Just Read...for TheRomanceReviews.com