Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: A Love Story 
SERIES: Stories #1
AUTHOR: Abrianna Denae
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 315 pages
RELEASE DATE: August 30, 2018
BLURB:
Jameson Harthon and Alexander Breneman fell in love at the age of fourteen. At the age of seventeen, they lost it all. Now, at twenty-seven, they’re prepared to live out their lives separate and alone—neither man having the courage to find love again.
When Alex and Jamie come face to face for the first time in ten years, all the pain and heartbreak comes rushing back to meet them.
The former friends struggle to find their footing. They love each other and have for years, but the paths they’ve taken haven’t been easy. Their only hope at healing comes with digging back into the past that left them both physically and mentally scarred.
As they relearn who they are together and apart, they discover that the perfect love story is sometimes one that is messy and flawed.
REVIEW:
Alex and Jamie came from differing backgrounds. Nevertheless, as children, they were inseparable. As teenagers, they loved each other but didn’t cross the friends’ line. As burgeoning adults, they confessed all. Then it went to hell. Both moved on yet kept a tie to the past. Ten years later they meet again. Unfortunately, the trauma of their pasts creates a mess to sort before they can move on.
When I picked this story to review, I had high hopes, and the opening chapters had me anchored to my seat.
The story is a good length novel told from the main characters pov’s. The chapters go back and forth between the present and past. The flashback chapters aren’t long and serve to fill in the blanks and explain the actions of the present. The general format being a present and past chapter from Jamie. Then a present and past chapter from Alex. Albeit, it changes as the story progresses. For the most part, this worked well, though unless one’s marbles are polished and caffeinated, there is the potential for confusion over who’s pov one is reading.
When the chaps meet again as adults, Jamie has a best friend Rhys who serves as the voice of reason and occasional kick in the butt man who helps to move the boys in the right direction. I have to admit, Rhys was my favourite character, and I wouldn’t mind reading more about his story – which is hinted at but never actually revealed. Maybe he will feature in a sequel.
As the blurb says – true love can be messy and flawed. This aspect is certainly born out in every arc of the tale. Pain and music help keep Alex centred, while Jamie has a few hang-ups of his own. Advancement would be made between the two. Then, it would all get shot to pieces with a statement akin to ‘we’ve made progress, and I don’t want to go backwards, but I still don’t know if we have a future?’ Frequently, what was given with one hand was taken away with the other. It was a process of push and pull. Angst junkies will love it; others may find it frustrating as hell. Personally, to begin with, I was there with baited breath hanging on to their every word. The dialogue is intense and pulled at my heartstrings. I love stories that give my emotions a workout. Unfortunately, I sometimes lost track of who was saying what, and while I understand that everyone has a process and there are usually bumps in the road; I felt the author eked out the ‘I love you, but I’m a mess, so I can’t be with you’ for too long. I have no idea how realistic or not their situation is, but for reading purposes, I found it too much, and I ended up losing some sympathy.
The arc I received was not the final version. Hence there remained grammatical errors, flurries of the word very, and some autonomous body parts. E.g. As my eyes roam over them – My tongue licks – My hand moved – I understand what is being said, but it makes the parts seem as though they have a brain of their own – a no-no to many publishers. Also, as accurate as the timeline probably was, there were occasions where chosen descriptors blurred my perception. E.g. the term months is technically more than one, but I immediately think of months as closer to three or four.
It takes a myriad of people to make the world an interesting place, with an equally diverse set of characteristics. Kudos to the author for venturing down a different road. Alex’s family are as far down the accepting and forgiving path as Jamie’s aren’t. It produced a fascinating dynamic of yin and yang. After the breakup; despite how badly Alex was hurt by Jamie’s actions, Alex’s family are forgiving, understanding and welcoming when he resurfaces. Their teachings also flow through to Alex. During his and Jamies ten-year gap, Alex has a relationship with Pierce. In one sentence, Alex lists the things he didn’t like about Pierce, and in the next coos about how he will always love him.
Overall, I found the story to be a mixed bag of brilliance intertwined with angst, frustration and some moments of Uhh. It has the potential to be a best seller, and it is clear the author has put a lot of heart into its writing. However, I feel this particular version was longer than it needed to be and would benefit from another edit.
RATING: 
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