Some Love Lasts
A teenage romance once projected to last but a season deepens across the years in the warm romance novel Some Love Lasts.
In Tim Hunniecut’s sweet romance novel Some Love Lasts, a summer romance turns into an enduring relationship.
A handsome new neighbor, Matthew, piques the interest of fourteen-year-old Madi, who’s never been interested in the opposite sex before. Matthew, who’s training to be a lifeguard, also interests the girls who frequent his beach, but it’s Madi he chooses. Beyond their seasonal romance waits an inevitable separation, though.
Madi and Matthew’s relationship progresses with credulity-straining speed. They have few conversations as they get to know each other, and their initial mutual attraction seems to be based most on their looks. Madi spends a lot of time thinking about Matthew’s shoulders, and Matthew goes on tangents about Madi’s beautiful eyes. Later, they reconnect after years apart, and again first take notice of each other’s physical appearances. Once they become adults, though, they do have more conversations about their similar values and goals, suggesting that their relationship has continued to grow.
Still, the novel’s characterizations are cursory: Madi is described as shy and kind, and she likes books; Matthew is cast as heroic and good-hearted, and he enjoys swimming. Their personalities beyond these traits are kept vague, and their lack of flaws is cloying, even as others express easy, universal love for them. In addition, their thoughts and behaviors are sometimes incomprehensible: After someone close to her goes missing and is presumed dead, Madi still remains focused on her upcoming separation from Matthew and her appearance. Others seem to expect her to move on from the loss unscathed, too. Later, emotional consequences from the event are hinted at, but they are not sufficiently not fleshed out.
The novel moves at a smooth pace, uninterrupted by significant conflicts. Even the settings are glorified:
A mild cold front had swept the sky of clouds the day before, leaving it a perfect blue. The temperatures stayed in the seventies with low humidity. It was the kind of beautiful spring day that had brought millions to Florida.
The story’s picture-perfect progression leads to waning interest, though. Even the concerns surrounding Matthew’s career, which at one point verge on upsetting his life, are underexplored. And when conflict does arise at the novel’s end, it is treated only in brief, sans true gravitas.
Young love leads to a lifelong connection in the hopeful romance novel Some Love Lasts.
Reviewed by
Carolina Ciucci
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
