Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Heroes for Ghosts

SERIES:  Love Across Time Book 1

AUTHOR:  Jackie North

NARRATOR:  Greg Boudreaux

PUBLISHER:  Self

LENGTH:  6 hrs and 38 mins

RELEASE DATE:  November 18, 2020

BLURB:

Soul mates across time. A sacrifice that could keep them apart forever.

In present day, near the village of Ornes, France, Devon works on his master’s thesis in history as he fantasizes about meeting a WWI American Doughboy.

In 1917, during the Battle of Ornes, Stanley is a young soldier facing the horrors of the battlefield.

Mourning the death of his friends from enemy fire, Stanley volunteers to bring the message for retreat so he can save everyone else in his battalion. While on his mission, mustard gas surrounds Stanley, and though he thinks he is dying, he finds himself in a peaceful green meadow where he literally trips over Devon.

Devon doesn’t believe Stanley is who he says he is, a soldier from WWI. But a powerful attraction grows between them, and if Stanley is truly a visitor from the past, then he is Devon’s dream come true. The problem is, Stanley’s soul wants to finish his mission, and time keeps yanking him back to relive his fateful last morning over and over, even as his heart and body long to stay with Devon.

Will Stanley have to choose between Devon and saving his battalion? Will time betray their love, leaving each alone?

A male/male time-travel romance, complete with hurt/comfort, French coffee, warm blankets, fireplace kisses, the angst of separation, and true love across time.

REVIEW:

Heroes for Ghosts immerses the reader in a world full of war from two vantage points, present and past.  This touching romance between a WWI American doughboy, Stanley, and a reclusive, WWI obsessed academic, Devon, seamlessly ties those two views, and people, together.  While WWI is the canvas, this is not a “love story”, meaning it’s not a story about WWI with Devon and Stanley’s relationship ancillary to the fictional account.  Rather, this is a true romance, beautifully written and tightly focused on Devon and Stanley’s love as the center of this story, with WWI providing the circumstance and connection between them.  This distinction makes a big difference in how the reader experiences this story.  

Heroes for Ghosts showcases a romance borne of love and sacrifice.  Stanley is that fresh faced, confident so-called “doughboy”, who heads off to war thinking he is accomplishing something crucially important.  We experience the heartbreaking reality of the futileness of this war through Stanley’s eyes.  Notwithstanding his disillusionment, Stanley is good and valiant to his core and wants his life to have meaning.  He does that through sacrificing his own life to save his friends and his battalion.  

Time, however, has more in store for Stanley.  His initial sacrifice is unsuccessful.  Upon dying without saving his battalion, Stanley is resurrected present day where he meets and falls in love with Devon.  But he feels the pull of unfinished business, a commitment unfulfilled.  So he sacrifices himself a second time, and then a third, as he enters this “Groundhog’s Day” time loop where he keeps trying to get it right, each time sacrificing himself in the war, and then sacrificing himself, and his found love with Devon, again in present day in order to go back to the war and fulfill his life’s purpose.

Stanley is the heart and soul of this story, and is the pivot point for everything that happens in it.  The reader acutely feels what Stanley does:  his commitment, his fear, his loneliness and his love.  The exceptional detail used to paint the scenes of war and of the aftermath and remembrance so many years later infuses Heroes for Ghosts with an authenticity that multiplies the emotional impact of Stanley’s sadness and sacrifice, as well as his journey to a HEA with Devon.  And if you were wondering, as in any true romance, there is indeed a HEA.  Stanley certainly deserves it as a reward for his altruistic spirit and bravery.  

Where I struggled a bit was with Devon.  There are very few characters in this book, and in the present day, Devon doesn’t see or interact with anyone (except a fleeting exchange with a car rental shop owner).  We are told Devon is trying to complete his master’s thesis, but he seems disillusioned about it and the direction it’s taken.  Yet at the same time, he is obsessed with the Battle of Ornes and the demise of the 44th Battalion, so much so that he’s holed up at the scene, surrounded by the stark white crosses and memorial marking the tragedy that befell those soldiers.  The self-isolation just didn’t feel realistic.  It just struck me as odd, particularly juxtaposed with the realism infused in the rest of the story. 

I also struggled to completely buy into the instalove between Devon and Stanley.  A niggling thought persisted in the back of my mind that Devon was so lonely and obsessed that he only fell for Stanley because of his obsession.  Stanley is, as Devon admits, his fantasy come to life.  Notwithstanding, their love for each other is evident and the world building, Stanley’s character, and the love he exudes will win you over.  You’ll embrace Devon and Stanley as a couple if for no other reason than Stanley deserves every happiness.

Greg Boudreaux’s narration augmented the impact of the story in all the right ways.  His narration has a smoothness and fluidity to it that wraps you in its thrall and carries you along.  He embodies Devon and Stanley with totally distinct voices completely apropos for their characters.  Stanley’s voice, in particular, has a raspy, almost strained quality to it that conveys his trauma and conflict.  He’s afraid but determined, sad but hopeful.  The voice Greg Boudreaux provides for Stanley hit all of those notes.  Honestly, I have no idea how he managed that feat.  

Add to that his remarkable skill in vocalizing the words on the page plus the description of how they are said plus the emotion behind them, all in a simultaneous delivery.  The pacing is spot on.  Diction, clear and concise.  His narration is consistently accessible to the listener.  When you listen to one of his audios, you’re hearing a consummate storyteller at work.  He embraces the flow of the story, allowing the characters to evolve and develop on their own.  Nothing is forced.  

Greg Boudreaux is one of my “phone book” narrators – the ones who could enrapture you reading the phone book, or a dictionary, etc.  That means he’s a one-click purchase.  Buy first, look at the story later.  If you do that here, you won’t be disappointed.  This is 5 star narration on display.  It’s paired with a terrific story, although the story, itself, falls a little shy of that 5 star bar.  My recommendation is that you read and listen to this story to get the optimal experience.  Trust me.  It will definitely be worth a listen.  Or two.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Audible

Amazon