A delightful, feel-good novel that offers a fresh take on modern love.
A supernatural matchmaker faces a series of troubles in Williams’ debut fantasy romance.
Emory has become bored with his work; although his role as Cupid comes with great responsibility, he finds himself becoming increasingly disillusioned with the messiness of human emotions. Before long, this results in an abuse of power, as Emory begins to shoot his arrows randomly, causing all sorts of mismatched relationships. His carelessness results in Blair, his favorite human, getting a broken heart, and to his astonishment, it seems as if she’s lost all hope of finding her true love. But the bad news doesn’t stop there; Emory has also been selected by “the Powers that Be” for an audit, which will evaluate his effectiveness as Cupid on Earth. Desperate to keep his job, Emory scrambles to fix Blair’s troubles—even if it means suppressing his own feelings for her. An unexpected turn of events then forces him to redefine his definitions of love and devotion. This witty, charming fantasy romance feels best suited to a younger adult audience, who will appreciate the book’s accurate portrayal of the dating scene. Emory’s sarcastic sense of humor and slight traces of pessimism are consistently amusing: “The last wedding he would ever attend in the Earth realm was going to be at a courthouse. On a Thursday. It was a fitting conclusion to his miserable career.” These human qualities are what make Emory such an engaging and relevant character despite his tendency for arrogance. Likewise, Blair’s tailspin into depression and loneliness feels authentic and unpretentious; after all, as everyone knows, there’s no quick fix for a broken heart. In the story, the color of a character’s aura indicates their readiness for love, and this device provides plenty of entertainment as Emory surveys his hunting grounds for suitable targets. Throughout, the plot zips along, providing intriguing developments with each new chapter.
A delightful, feel-good novel that offers a fresh take on modern love.Pub Date: Nov. 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-948051-41-5
Page Count: 396
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing
Review Posted Online: Feb. 4, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.
A violent surfacing of adolescence (which has little in common with Tarkington's earlier, broadly comic, Seventeen) has a compulsive impact.
"Nobody big except me" is the dream world of Holden Caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab English of the pre-collegiate. For Holden is now being bounced from fancy prep, and, after a vicious evening with hall- and roommates, heads for New York to try to keep his latest failure from his parents. He tries to have a wild evening (all he does is pay the check), is terrorized by the hotel elevator man and his on-call whore, has a date with a girl he likes—and hates, sees his 10 year old sister, Phoebe. He also visits a sympathetic English teacher after trying on a drunken session, and when he keeps his date with Phoebe, who turns up with her suitcase to join him on his flight, he heads home to a hospital siege. This is tender and true, and impossible, in its picture of the old hells of young boys, the lonesomeness and tentative attempts to be mature and secure, the awful block between youth and being grown-up, the fright and sickness that humans and their behavior cause the challenging, the dramatization of the big bang. It is a sorry little worm's view of the off-beat of adult pressure, of contemporary strictures and conformity, of sentiment….
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.Pub Date: June 15, 1951
ISBN: 0316769177
Page Count: -
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1951
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
APPRECIATIONS
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.
Sisters work together to solve a child-abandonment case.
Ellie and Julia Cates have never been close. Julia is shy and brainy; Ellie gets by on charm and looks. Their differences must be tossed aside when a traumatized young girl wanders in from the forest into their hometown in Washington. The sisters’ professional skills are put to the test. Julia is a world-renowned child psychologist who has lost her edge. She is reeling from a case that went publicly sour. Though she was cleared of all wrongdoing, Julia’s name was tarnished, forcing her to shutter her Beverly Hills practice. Ellie Barton is the local police chief in Rain Valley, who’s never faced a tougher case. This is her chance to prove she is more than just a fading homecoming queen, but a scarcity of clues and a reluctant victim make locating the girl’s parents nearly impossible. Ellie places an SOS call to her sister; she needs an expert to rehabilitate this wild-child who has been living outside of civilization for years. Confronted with her professional demons, Julia once again has the opportunity to display her talents and salvage her reputation. Hannah (The Things We Do for Love, 2004, etc.) is at her best when writing from the girl’s perspective. The feral wolf-child keeps the reader interested long after the other, transparent characters have grown tiresome. Hannah’s torturously over-written romance passages are stale, but there are surprises in store as the sisters set about unearthing Alice’s past and creating a home for her.
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-345-46752-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2005
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