Coffee2words

The other half of my heart is much like making a loaf of bread.

It requires attention, and time to formulate the finished product. The process is, at times, complex and the end result is delightful but somewhat expected.

Now I've finished with the similes, we can get into the review. The characters were very realistic. I quite liked the damaged quality of them all in the beginning, they felt like real people, but things got a little tedious about 60% through. I wanted to see more character development. It felt like it was all a little too slow.

The plot and character arcs were obvious from about 20% in. So if you like your books to be a bit mysterious you probably won't like this one. If you enjoy a quiet, sweet romp through a slightly romance-ish story with middle-aged protagonists then jump on board.

If you like horses this one is a story for you. In fact, this reminded me of a grown up version of the Saddle club books, aimed at adults but maintaining that horsey-focus which was a welcome change from the rather adult books I normally read. I enjoyed being immersed in the world of working on a horse farm and the way in which the romance blossomed. I feel the book was strongest in the opening chapters, but slowly things got a bit out of focus.

The overall feel of the book could have been emotional, and some of the other reviews are raving on about is as such, but I feel that the middle of the book disconnected me from the characters too much, and then the emotional turmoil I was meant to feel, just didn't happen. There's sad parts, sure, but they didn't pack the punch I think they were meant to.

Still, the book is a solidly written, the storyline is tried and true, and the characters are complex. It just wasn't spot on for me, hence the lower star rating. Still worth a read if you like horses or long winding plots with a middle-aged protagonist.

A few things I noticed:
7% - supresssing (delete third s)
10% - ...and she (delete she) hope that the world...
51% - ...towelling dressing gown aare(are) anything...


**Note: I was provided an electronic version of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**