Book Reviews

Book Blurb

When Matt’s Great-great-aunt Violet dies, she leaves him a precious gift: a photo album he loved as a child. Then Matt starts having dreams—very good dreams—about Joseph, one of the men in the pictures from the 1940s. One morning when Matt wakes up, the bruises are still there. Could there be more to Violet's present than he thought?

A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2012 Daily Dose package "Time Is Eternity".

 

Book Review

This is a story about lovers who would, under normal circumstances, never even meet. Separated by several decades in time, only the mysterious workings of an elderly aunt could possibly bring the two together. ‘Aunt Violet’s Present’ works both ways, I think, and it takes present-day Matt and historical-Joseph a while to figure it out.

Matt is an artist and lonely. His previous lover cheated on him, so he ends their relationship. Not that it’s easy. But when he ‘meets’ the man he’s watched in his elderly aunt’s photo album for years, his heart is ready for a new man. The dreams he has of Joseph seem more real than normal dreams, and so does Joseph. Matt slowly falls for the man who dies in the 1940s – which is both romantic and made me very nervous. This couldn’t possibly end well, could it?

Joseph, at least as seen through Matt’s eyes, is a bit of an enigma. He is very young, scared of having to go to war (who wouldn’t be?) and desperate to have one positive experience with another man. He thinks he has dreamed Matt up - which in a way is true - and soaks up every loving touch and word he can get.

The final scene is heart-wrenching. These two guys are clearly meant for each other, but their situation seems so hopeless. I had tears in my eyes. Thank God this is romance and I knew it had to end well, even if I couldn’t figure out how. Good old aunt Violet saves the day!

If you like deeply emotional stories about lovers in seemingly impossible situations, if a touch of temporal magic is something you don’t mind, and if two men meeting and falling in love across seventy years of temporal separation sounds interesting, you will probably like this short story. Personally? I liked it so much I am hoping for a sequel!

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Short Story, 47 pages/12879 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	01-June-2012
Price	$2.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/violets-present-by-kim-fielding-3457-b