Reviewed by Jess
TITLE: Rekindled Love
AUTHOR: Jodi Hutchins
PUBLISHER: JMS Books
LENGTH: 43 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 15, 2018
BLURB:
After landing her dream job in the heart of Seattle, Kelly Garner feels she’s finally found her spot in life … until a layoff renders her unemployed. With a monumental amount of student loan debt, Kelly is forced to act fast. Her mother offers to let her stay in her childhood room, and Kelly finds a job in her field with a remote option.
Everything seems to settle, until a familiar face ignites an old blaze of feelings within Kelly.
The object of her affection is her high school crush and estranged friend, Reese Garret. The strong ardor Kelly felt for her is still vivacious, and whenever she sees Reese, her heart nearly seizes. The two haven’t spoken in years and she still holds tight to the guilt surrounding the situation that ended their friendship.
Will Kelly let this guilt muddle the potential rekindling of their old romance?
REVIEW:
Sometimes, a short and sweet story is just what the doctor ordered. But when it brings on heavier themes like heartbreak, lost love, and teenage mistakes, you start craving a little more depth. There are some good moments between post-grads Kelly and Reese as they reconnect after five years apart, but in the end, they don’t make a lasting impression.
In some stories about reunited love, like Melissa Brayden’s Strawberry Summer, the present day and flashbacks blend seamlessly together, letting us get to know the characters in both past and future contexts. While this isn’t done poorly in this book, we just don’t get enough time to get invested in Kelly and Reese’s relationship. In a 43-page story, we have three flashbacks, and one of them involves cheating. The two women may have good chemistry, but we just never know them.
There are a few things I really liked, though. I like how both characters are finished with post-secondary school but still live at home and have good relationships with their families. It’s certainly realistic in this day and age! And I like their friend (and, in Reese’s case, ex-girlfriend) Mimi, who provides good representation of a bisexual woman who defies a lot of still-common stereotypes.
In the end, this a sweet story with a happy ending, but since it tries to tell too much in so few words, it’s ultimately forgettable.
RATING: 
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