Stolen ( This is one for my favorites list)

[image error]Stolen

By Jessica Titone

A Five Star Rating

 

Being a Ballroom Dance Instructor, I am really critical when it comes to stories that incorporate dance as a strong or main theme. I am happy to report that this book did not disappoint! This is a novel that starts out in London at the tail end of world war two. I certainly was not alive in this particular era but after reading this I feel like I have a good sense of what it must have been like to be a young girl going through what someone of the era and in that part of Europe must have gone through. The detail paid to the world building and the emotional reaction was hauntingly vivid. The author captured the cadence of British speech perfectly. I know that is a very bold statement for an American to make, but I feel qualified to make it because my mum is from New Zealand, born and raised. While there are distinct differences between how New Zealanders and the British speak the core and cadence is much the same in the way of terms and how they are used. Believe me when I say that this author nailed the execution to the wall.

It is not an easy feat to create a world around dance that can so completely suck a reader in. Usually there has to be a previous disposition that leans towards a fondness of the art to draw ones attention to want to read such a book in the first place. Understanding the world of dance can be difficult for someone who is not familiar with it. This is not the case with Stolen. You don’t know a thing about dance, that’s okay because things are explained in such a way that a preteen could follow it. The writing is clear and concise. I was absolutely delighted in the genre melding of this novel as well; there was sweet and innocent romance, historical ambience, adventure and my personal favorite fantasy. It starts with a contemporary feel, rises to a high fantasy plateau and then descends, somewhat heart wrenchingly, back to contemporary. This story embodies the love story you as the reader want to champion and fight for. I was worried toward the end that the female lead I fell flat on my face for would end up a spinster and never find happiness again, after all so much had gone so horribly wrong. It was a relief and a delight that even when seemingly all hope is lost the HEA we all crave in romance is indeed alive and well. I finished this book with a feeling of elation and complete contentment; a level of bliss I have not felt over a book in a very long time.

So to the author I say Thank you for sharing this story with the world. I would recommend this book to literally anyone who loves a good love story woven together with magic, culture and the not so distant past as a back drop.