(Rachel Kane)
I was stumbling over this book when I actually had been searching for another one. But the cover caught me because I love romances where pets are included (if they are well treated and not harmed) and the plot sounded funny. So I decided to give it a try. I didn’t expect too much of it but I actually was in the mood for an easy going holiday-read with a simple HEA without hard feelings or problem dealing couples. And that’s exactly what the story was. The language is really easy and it’s not hard to follow the plot. You can easily read it on one afternoon or evening. There are also some laughs in the story and I have to admit that I actually liked the couple.
BUT there is a real huge BUT… I got somehow angry or frustrated already at the beginning… I know many of you would ask themselves now why I didn’t stop reading then… I simply liked the two main characters and although their sentences made me frustrated I developed negative feelings against the author who let the two men talk about a serious illness as if it were something disgusting or something you should be ashamed of. I too wouldn’t like anyone to tell about me that I’m suffering from a serious illness but not because I’d be afraid that people would laugh about it. I’d feel bad for all the people who really suffer from that disease and see me making it up just for being pitied or looking good in the show.
The second huge BUT is how the author describes a person who is obviously suffering from depressions. It’s like, I had them but I’m doing better now so don’t mind, everything is good now… The author obviously hasn’t done enough research on depression to realize that this is a very serious psychological condition that is unlikely to go away that easily.
So if you like easy going stories and don’t mind some statements which really could offend some people and give you the feeling that the author either doesn’t know which illnesses she talks about in the book or doesn’t give a shit about people who really suffer from these illnesses, then you should read this book. In my opinion you shouldn’t write about lupus or depression in such a flat, trivial way. (There is definitely no funny part about these illnesses and I don’t think that people would laugh about somebody suffering from them.)
-> If it wasn’t for the BUTs I’d given 5 stars for a good easy summer read instead of 2,75 stars