The beginning of the novel, an action scene where we're with Matthew as his helicopter is shot down, certainly drew me in. The next scene, where Poppy and Matthew meet, is cute. Their chemistry crackles. After that, most of the story is told rather than shown. As a reader, I look forward to falling in love with the characters, but when huge portions of their developing relationship are skipped, it's not easy to bond with them.

From a plot standpoint, it's a strong story. The idea of a peace-loving child of hippies and a war hero falling for one another promises a deep examination of values and a good, hard look at what makes people fall in love with one another. Unfortunately, much of that is glossed over. The sweet and erotic scenes showed the good times. But their differences come between them, and while their actions are understandable, I would have liked to witness the internal struggle of each character a little more.

At the end, I'm not sure if their differing values won't end up destroying their relationship. I believe they have genuine affection for one another, but I wasn't sold on the solidity of their relationship. Ms. Holcomb, slow down a bit, tweak the dialogue, add some narrative into the conversation scenes because the idea behind this story is beautiful.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Very sensual

Reviewer: Clare
July 28, 2011