WWW Wednesday (178)

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?

• What do you think you’ll read next?

          

01. Currently Reading:
Kasmah Forma by S. Vargus. Just beginning this story about a young girl, a dead boy, and a leader with the promise that Kasmah will continue to grow.

02. Recently Finished:
Sonnets by Charles Gerard Timm. A collection of sonnets that share a story of unrequited love.

03. Reading Next:
Heroes of Earth by Martin Berman-Gorvine. A group of teenagers must defend the world against an alien invasion.

Sonnets

The sonnet is the most useful and, arguably, the most-popular poetic form in English. Long-lived, brief, fashioned by rhyme, sharing private contemplation at its best. Here are thirty-three such momentary monuments.

**

Charles Gerard Timm shares an unrequited love story through sonnets in his book titled simply, Sonnets. In this collection of thirty-three poems, Timm takes a unique look at love -- one that is confined to the rules of the sonnet, a popular yet difficult poem construct. 

A sonnet has one main rule: there can only be fourteen lines and each line must have exactly ten syllables. This makes word usage and description a challenge, especially when you're trying to tell a story on top of it. Timm's focus and daring endeavor impressed me, to say the least. The story was even easy to understand. 

Sonnets focus is that of a man who falls in love with a woman during a dark time in his life. "The stage boards chilled me like a winter beach/ Of pricking winds and cutting shells and foam/ till tender... And then, one day, you strolled that gritty space/ In spots of light that gave the dark a chase..." (III). Happiness duly follows until he discovers that a romantic relationship with this woman is unattainable. "She's wedded, but labels love is blind,/ And love it is extinguishing my mind..." (IV). Happiness morphs to heartbreak but there is still a light in the darkness. "I saw her flanked by husband and by child... I pray now for their happiness, all three" (XIII).

Readers will enjoy this creative story as they witness the poet falling in love and struggling to accept the unrequited nature that sometimes accompanies that fickle emotion. I thoroughly enjoyed this inventive and unexpected storytelling endeavor. With each sonnet portraying a piece of the puzzle, when all combined a moment in this poet's world is exposed. In a word, it's touching. And I feel, now that I know the main story, I can reread and reexamine the sonnets individually and gain even more of a connection with this narrator. Bravo, Timm. 

Rating: 3/5

Teaser Tuesday (186)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers



Sonnets (VIII, 39% Kindle)
   - Charles Gerard Timm

What's left but acting as if all is right?
A made-up smile upon my staggered face,
A costume that my heart doth bare no trace,
So well disguised, my bows the cheers invite.

The Family Divided

One family, divided by death – and money

Andy Batiste, at loggerheads with his degenerate cousin, seeks to discover the truth of his family history. Why was his pregnant grandmother forced to flee to France? What really happened to her husband during the German Occupation, sixty years ago? Who accused Edmund, the elder son and Batiste heir, of being an informer? Was he really a traitor – and who murdered him?

With Edmund’s brother Harold now head of the family, enjoying the wealth which ought to have come to Andy’s father, the family is forever divided. Andy yearns to clear Edmund’s name and restore his father to his rightful inheritance.

Into the conflict comes Charlotte Townsend, newly divorced, lonely and struggling with writer’s block and the consuming threat of impending loss. She returns for healing at Guernsey's natural health centre, La Folie, and becomes involved in Andy’s family affairs.

Together they embark on a hunt for the truth…

*May Contain Spoilers*

Anne Allen writes of enchanting Guernsey in her fourth installment of the Guernsey novels, The Family Divided, making readers jealous with abundant love matches and mysteries. I've enjoyed the Guernsey novels from the beginning, and am still excited for each one. Anne Allen brings the reader into the circle of islanders, making them a part of the family, while introducing new characters to join the previous.

This time the focus is the wealthy, socialite, Charlotte Townsend, publisher and aspiring author. She was introduced briefly in the previous installment and has become a dear friend of Louisa, the third Guernsey girl. Charlotte is a character in motion. She's recently divorced and is still figuring out who she wants to be and where she wants to go in life. Charlotte is a little on the snooty side with her manor house and personal chef, but she has been known to have a carefree notion and dice a few vegetables. Readers will enjoy watching her wonder about starting over, stumble, and finally decide to leap. She's a loving character who tends to over worry a bit, though only about the serious things. She struggles to keep her head up when her mother's cancer returns and buries herself in research for a man she barely knows. Though that does change quite quickly. Head over heels, I believe. The reader will connect with Charlotte through her worries, her faith, and her openness while also enjoying the plot. 

The storyline follows Charlotte to Guernsey where Andy has made a life as an architect. Andy is a friend of Paul, who is still dating Louisa from book three. Charlotte meets Andy while having lunch with Louisa and offers to be his research assistant to an intriguing mystery going back sixty years. A mystery involving his father, murder, and a rather large inheritance. Though the mystery is the main focus of the characters, the characters are the main focus of the book. Charlotte is trying to uncover the truth of Andy's family while also trying to emotionally support her mother and decide what she wants for her future. Andy falls for Charlotte almost immediately, but feels he needs to hold back as they are from different social classes. Though once the mystery is solved, their relationship is the only thing left to figure out and Anne Allen does a nice job giving readers a happy ending with the promise of more.

Rating: 3.5/5 Cups