"I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound and stab us." Franz Kafka
For any author who would like his/her book to be reviewed, contact me. Poetry books too are solicited for reviewing. However, there are some genres I tend to avoid. Feel free to ask me.
gautami.tripathy[at]gmail.com
I must mention here that I read at my own pace and depending on my mood. Don't ask me to hurry.
Title: A Note From An Old Acquaintance
Author: Bill Walker
ISBN: 978-1440133336
Publisher: iUniverse/2005)
Pages: 360 pages
Brian Weller is a tormented man. His three year old son is dead and his wife is in a coma due to an accident. He is a well known author but is now struggling with writer's block. One day he gets an email from Joanna, the woman he had fallen in love with 15 years back. He has mixed feelings about that. In the meantime, his wife passes away.
Brain decides to go to Boston for book signings as an excuse to see her. Joanna is an artist, is married and has a teenage son now. However, their feelings for each other has not changed much.
When they had first met, Joanna was engaged to a rich and powerful man, Erik Rudy. Eric does love her and cannot give her up. Brian is forced to make a choice and disappears from Joanna's life. And Joanna gets in touch with him after 15 years.
Walker has managed to create well etched characters. One can understand and feel for Brian, Joanna and Erik too. The strong love between Brian and Joanna sustains thorough all these years. The plot line is good too. Yet I found loose ends. Why did Joanna cheat on her fiance in the first place? They had been engaged for 6 years. And how did Brian meet his wife? Why did Joanna contact Brian after so many years? Erik might be arrogant but he loves Joanna, no matter what. He goes to any length to make her happy. He is not the abusive kind of husband. He is not the artistic kind but he is not an ogre either.
Despite those questions, the love story aspect appeals although the cheating part doesn't. The writing style is good as that holds interest throughout. I hope in his next book, Bill Walker puts more twists and turns.
Thanks to Tracee Gleichner for this copy for Pump Up Your Book Promotion
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gautami tripathy
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17:37
Labels: 2009 book reviews, 2009 love story, n titles, W authors
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8 comments:
I think I'm going to have to pass on this one. The story just isn't calling to me. And I'm not a big fan of infidelity, even in novels.
That sounds like quite a story. Who knows how they'd react in the same situation.
Sounds like it could be good, if done well. Not sure about all those loose ends though.
I think this sounds interesting. I like the cover of the book too!
While I might not agree with the characters' actions, the story sounds interesting. I'll keep it in mind.
--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric
I hope everyone will look beyond the obvious and give this story a try. It was very difficult writing it, in that I wanted all the characters to have dimension. That meant that even the antagonist, Erik, had to have a sympathetic side.
That aside, while I understand the comments with regard to infidelity, this is a story about a love triangle. In a story like that, someone has to lose.
Still, Brian and Joanna have one of those profound chemical moments when their eyes meet. If you've ever experienced this yourself, you'll know just how powerful those emotions can be. Add to this the fact that Brian and Joanna connect on so many other levels: intellectual, spiritual, creatively, etc., one has the ingredients that make for a timeless love.
That is what I am portraying in my novel. Is Joanna callously "cheating" on her fiance, Erik? Or is she helpless to resist a love so profound that it washes away all before it? You decide.
In any event, I want to thank Gautami for her review and for hosting me on this stop.
This sounds like a good love story. An interesting one. Good review :)
In some ways this one interests me, but in other ways, not so much :(
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