Hi everyone! How is week four of 2020 treating you all? It’s been a very fast week for me, too many things to do and too little time. While working on drawings I completed an audiobook, named “every breath” by Nicholas spark. It was a good change of mood for drawing. A calm romantic, poetic book playing in background while peacefully completing a mandala was a soothing experience for sure. The combination worked but the book wasn’t my personal favorite. A little disclaimer, I don’t enjoy watching romantic movies or reading/ listening romantic novels. They are very predictable and at times seem repetitive. I decided to try reading a few more love stories to see if my taste has been changed, apparently it isn’t.

The book starts with a background story of the hero, a broken piece and then for some reasons he visits the city of the heroine, thousands of miles apart, who herself is another broken piece. The broken pieces meet, slowly fall in love (amm very slowly!), they can’t get married, move back to their lives. And then 20 something years later, they meet again and live together happily. That simple story was elaborated by the author, with so many adjectives and poetic stances. There’s nothing wrong with it, but then again there’s nothing unusual. It’s like every other romantic novel. Story though simple was engaging. It didn’t make me stop listening but it didn’t keep me awake at nights, too eager to know what will happen next. The African guide background made it a bit more interesting than all the England and America based novels. The safari parts were written with details, and it surely shows author’s own experiences.

More than half of the novel is based in North Carolina, like most of the Nicholas Sparks novels. The beaches, sunsets, rains, mysterious spots, secrets were also present like any other Nicholas Sparks novel. There’s a point in the novel, where the lead characters are on the beach and it starts raining, and it becomes crystal clear to any reader that they are going to kiss and then move back to home and have sex. But the audiobook took 25 minutes explaining that with so many tiny details with more than two adjectives per word. That’s the part I dread about romantic novels, unnecessary romantification of things.

The ending was written beautifully. Beginning and the end were most engaging parts. The book changes rhythms throughout and that keeps you reading more and more. The letters and dialogues are mesmerizing. The book gives you a calm and relaxing experience. It’s not necessarily the best story, but it gives you a warm feeling. The only reason I didn’t quit reading/ listening was this feeling. A feeling where you know everything will work out and eventually it would all be alright.

This book was a good change after all the philosophical and motivational books that I’ve been reading recently. It is a good book to read while traveling, when you just need a little something to read in between. It can be a good book to listen while doing chores, or some routine thing. This book doesn’t call for all your attention. This book can also be good to be read/ listened while laying in bed ill. It’s a easy, happy and light book, but it’s all we need sometimes. Would I read it again? No! But would I read this genre again? Maybe!

Hope you found something to relate to in this blog. Let me know how you find this book. Also drop down recommendations for more romantic novels. Have a wonderful week ahead. Happy reading!