Hi all,
I have just finished Mary Balogh's latest novel Remember Love, Ravenswood #1 and it was a very interesting story. I will try to keep my review of it brief, but I actually rather enjoyed the story, I would recommend it.
Thanks for reading.
I have just finished Mary Balogh's latest novel Remember Love, Ravenswood #1 and it was a very interesting story. I will try to keep my review of it brief, but I actually rather enjoyed the story, I would recommend it.
It's a brand new series, and it is the first book in it, but immediately you get to see Mary's style of writing in it. After spending time with Jennifer Ashley, I didn't realize how much I missed Balogh's pace and detail, even her tone and humor.
The book follows Devlin and Gwyneth, two individuals who were sure the other disliked them, but who realized they loved one another from day one. Upon finding this, they decide to give themselves a chance. The book opens up with a mini story that has a happy ending, but at the last minute, tragedy strikes and everything collapses.
It truly was remarkable how Mary did this, I knew something needed to happen, but I did not see it coming.
Devlin is the son of the Earl of Straton, someone who is apparently beloved in the town, generous, happy and kind, someone Devlin looked up to, he loved his wife, Devlin's mother, his wife loved him, there was happiness all around them. Their lives were described in idilic terms, there was happiness, there was generosity, community everything was good with the world. Even a potential love triangle was dealt in such good terms. I think Mary was angling for that "what could go wrong?" feeling.. and she did it splendidly.
Devlin was someone who was supremely dutiful and this is part of the issue or the catalyst that sets the entire story in motion. On the even of his proposal to Gwyneth, he discovers that his father has a mistress, and he had brought her over to his home. Devlin's anger over this created such as scandal that ended up in him being asked to leave.
He leaves, spends 6 years away from everyone, breaks his mother's heart, breaks Gwyneth's heart, destroys the illusion that he and his family lived in, uproots the community dynamics, it all descends quite rapidly into chaos. His father dies, and he returns home to take over the reins as the heir to the earldom.
Runs into Gwyneth, who couldn't love anyone else, he first attempts a practical marriage with her, and ends up melting into realizing that he loved her, he had never stopped loving her and they marry. This part of the story could have been explored a bit better, but what was in fact explored completely made up for it, the love story actually took a second place to it.
This novel speaks of duty, and most importantly truth. The value of truth, the potential for truth to destroy and devastate, but how necessary that is. Devlin was the only one, as he later found out, who had the courage to risk the stable illusion for the sake of truth. His father's sins were knows to many, but no one was willing to risk their comfortable life, Devlin did.
Truth, as it turns out, devastating as it is, is preferable to a comforting lie. But truth doesn't end there, Devlin taught everyone that truth was preferable, what Devlin himself had to learn was that truth was also healing. He had convinced that he was to blame for destroying the community he lived in, his family's happiness and his father's death, but when confronted with the truth, everyone was thankful he had done it.
He had spent years blaming himself for being so naive, so innocent, years hardening himself into someone who wasn't gullible, out of guilt. But the truth he had to accept is that it wasn't his innocence to blame, there was nothing wrong with wanting to believe the best in the people he loved, and holding them up to their own promises.
That he did hurt people, but everyone needed that hurt, to finally live in reality.
The other aspect of his own transformation, was when he finally decided to open his father's letters at the end, that was the other truth he had to accept. People are in a constant state of becoming, his father was flawed, selfish, inconsiderate and weak, but not evil.
Not everything was black and white. So Devlin went from one extreme to the other, to then come back and land in the middle, in balance between the innocence one needs to trust and love, and dream, and the hard and cold experience that makes one cautious.
In terms of personal work, what better way to understand the role of truth in one's life. The destroyer of illusion, the light that burns when unknown and suddenly presented, the source of pain and grief. But also, if one takes it further, it is the source of healing, of recognition, of growth.
I have spent quite sometime thinking that simply self bashing is enough of a source of truth, but that can become a morbid or masochistic tendency, and it's easy. It is a lot more complicated to see myself as someone who is capable of evil, selfishness and carelessness, yes, but who also has the ability for good, and creativity, but that is the truth.
We're not one dimensional beings, aspects of ourselves are, but as a whole, we're not. It is ultimately a choice of what do we do, which aspects do we keep? which do we dismiss? which do we repurpose? we are all, that someone in a constant state of becoming.
The book follows Devlin and Gwyneth, two individuals who were sure the other disliked them, but who realized they loved one another from day one. Upon finding this, they decide to give themselves a chance. The book opens up with a mini story that has a happy ending, but at the last minute, tragedy strikes and everything collapses.
It truly was remarkable how Mary did this, I knew something needed to happen, but I did not see it coming.
Devlin is the son of the Earl of Straton, someone who is apparently beloved in the town, generous, happy and kind, someone Devlin looked up to, he loved his wife, Devlin's mother, his wife loved him, there was happiness all around them. Their lives were described in idilic terms, there was happiness, there was generosity, community everything was good with the world. Even a potential love triangle was dealt in such good terms. I think Mary was angling for that "what could go wrong?" feeling.. and she did it splendidly.
Devlin was someone who was supremely dutiful and this is part of the issue or the catalyst that sets the entire story in motion. On the even of his proposal to Gwyneth, he discovers that his father has a mistress, and he had brought her over to his home. Devlin's anger over this created such as scandal that ended up in him being asked to leave.
He leaves, spends 6 years away from everyone, breaks his mother's heart, breaks Gwyneth's heart, destroys the illusion that he and his family lived in, uproots the community dynamics, it all descends quite rapidly into chaos. His father dies, and he returns home to take over the reins as the heir to the earldom.
Runs into Gwyneth, who couldn't love anyone else, he first attempts a practical marriage with her, and ends up melting into realizing that he loved her, he had never stopped loving her and they marry. This part of the story could have been explored a bit better, but what was in fact explored completely made up for it, the love story actually took a second place to it.
This novel speaks of duty, and most importantly truth. The value of truth, the potential for truth to destroy and devastate, but how necessary that is. Devlin was the only one, as he later found out, who had the courage to risk the stable illusion for the sake of truth. His father's sins were knows to many, but no one was willing to risk their comfortable life, Devlin did.
Truth, as it turns out, devastating as it is, is preferable to a comforting lie. But truth doesn't end there, Devlin taught everyone that truth was preferable, what Devlin himself had to learn was that truth was also healing. He had convinced that he was to blame for destroying the community he lived in, his family's happiness and his father's death, but when confronted with the truth, everyone was thankful he had done it.
He had spent years blaming himself for being so naive, so innocent, years hardening himself into someone who wasn't gullible, out of guilt. But the truth he had to accept is that it wasn't his innocence to blame, there was nothing wrong with wanting to believe the best in the people he loved, and holding them up to their own promises.
That he did hurt people, but everyone needed that hurt, to finally live in reality.
The other aspect of his own transformation, was when he finally decided to open his father's letters at the end, that was the other truth he had to accept. People are in a constant state of becoming, his father was flawed, selfish, inconsiderate and weak, but not evil.
Not everything was black and white. So Devlin went from one extreme to the other, to then come back and land in the middle, in balance between the innocence one needs to trust and love, and dream, and the hard and cold experience that makes one cautious.
In terms of personal work, what better way to understand the role of truth in one's life. The destroyer of illusion, the light that burns when unknown and suddenly presented, the source of pain and grief. But also, if one takes it further, it is the source of healing, of recognition, of growth.
I have spent quite sometime thinking that simply self bashing is enough of a source of truth, but that can become a morbid or masochistic tendency, and it's easy. It is a lot more complicated to see myself as someone who is capable of evil, selfishness and carelessness, yes, but who also has the ability for good, and creativity, but that is the truth.
We're not one dimensional beings, aspects of ourselves are, but as a whole, we're not. It is ultimately a choice of what do we do, which aspects do we keep? which do we dismiss? which do we repurpose? we are all, that someone in a constant state of becoming.
Thanks for reading.
) curse word from now on!
