In The Context of Love by Linda K Sienkiewicz: A Review

BOOK TITLE: In The Context Of Love

ISBN/ASIN: 978-1941523049 , B00ZRYEYN8

AUTHOR: Linda K. Sienkiewicz

GENRE: Women's fiction

NUMBER OF PAGES: 270

FORMAT: Digital (Kindle)

SERIES / STANDALONE: Standalone

HOW I GOT THIS BOOK: I thank Laura Fabiani of iRead Book Tours for this review copy

SUMMARY:

What makes us step back to examine the events and people that have shaped our lives? And what happens when what we discover leads to more questions?

Angelica Schirrick wonders how her life could have gotten so far off-track. With two children in tow, she begins a journey of self-discovery that leads her back home to Ohio. It pains her to remember the promise her future once held and the shattering revelations that derailed her life.

Can she face the failures and secrets of her past and move forward? Somehow she must learn to accept the violence of her beginning before she can be open to life, and a second chance at love.

FIRST IMPRESSION:

The cover of the story, a photograph of a girl in a frock standing on grass, allured me into reading the summary. When I picked this review copy, I guessed the tag of women's fiction drew me to it. The simple story of a woman who wonders about her life and the 'shattering revelations' part caught my attention. REVIEW:

Angelica is narrating the story. It sounds more like a letter she writes to her erstwhile boyfriend, a person who disappeared from her adoloscent life abruptly. But it does not begin like that. The story begins with Angelica taking her kids to see their father in prison, and has one of the best opening chapters ever in books I have read recently. The way she talked about her feelings right then made me connect with the narrator a bit, something I sadly lost as the novel progressed. The prose flowed smoothly, noticeably smooth enough to get my attention and appreciation.

The second chapter seemed to be an abrupt jump from her messed up adulthood to her adolescene where she falls in love with the gypsy boy Joe Valdez. The intense love comes to an abrupt end after his unexplained disappearance. Angelica struggles with an overprotective mother, choosing to hide details about her life rather than having to explain. She turns into a rebel, picking up random men and trying to overthrow the domination after she learns a shattering secret. She ends up with Gavin, a good for nothing bloke who beds random woman. A chance encounter with a sort of recklessness born out of rebellion rather than love, and she is bonded with him. She ends up marrying him. And subsequently, his shattering secret and subsequent incarceration makes her leave her life and go back to Ohio where her journey of self discovery starts and she gets a second chance at love. what happens next makes up the rest of the story

What struck me was how the characters were deeply etched, each having their own distinct shades, something that is really difficult to pull of in a novel written in one dimension. The language and prose follows a nice lilting tone. I liked the way the author takes the story forward, and how it is phrased. Even my hate towards the distasteful actions of the lead character are more of a reaction to her as a character rather than the narrative. Overall, a nicely written story that has a good prose, classic and smooth. I may not exactly like the direction the story took, but it sure attracted me in the way it was written.

WHAT I LIKED:

• Emotionally strong words - held a sway over readers in places
• The character sketches are deep, complex and portrayed many different shades
• The whole story flowed smoothly, without unnecessary jumps and glitches.

WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER:

• The format was confusing at places, not really hampering the progress of the story but seeming like a one dimensional view point at places
• I personally felt that the protagonist / narrator going for the bad boys is distasteful, but that is not a cause for complaint because it elicits stronger reactions from readers and of course, that is the character's success
• The drama and the heartache might not be some people's favorite.

VERDICT:

A good book that puts forward the story of a woman who gets a second chance.

RATING: 4.5/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Linda K. Sienkiewicz is a published poet and fiction writer, cynical optimist, fan of corgis, tea drinker, and wine lover from Michigan. Her poetry, short stories, and art have been published in more than fifty literary journals, including Prairie Schooner, Clackamas Literary Review, Spoon River, and Permafrost.

She received a poetry chapbook award from Bottom Dog Press, and an MFA from the University of Southern Maine. Linda lives with her husband in southeast Michigan, where they spoil their grandchildren and then send them back home.

EDITIONS AVAILABLE: Kindle, Paperback

PRICE $3.74 for Kindle, $13.87 for Paperback

BOOK LINKS: http://www.amazon.com/In-Context-Love-Linda-Sienkiewicz/dp/1941523048