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December Sunshine: Love in Java Series
Set in the magical land of Java, two souls are brought together by tradition and culture, but bound together by a profound love that has seen too many sorrows and felt too much pain.
When Guntoro's ex-wife returns, he is forced to relive the moments that led to the demise of their relationship. His first marriage was marred by constant abuse and he was forced to seek shelter at his grandparent's home.
Lucky for him, young Endang was there.
Although he was smitten with the compassionate fifteen-year-old girl, he understood the implications of making his feelings known and instead relished in their blossoming friendship.
Now, five years later, Endang is an adult woman and she shares her life with Guntoro. Their lives were seemingly perfect until the return of Guntoro's ex-wife threatens to shake the strong foundation of their relationship. Can true love prevail, despite her sudden reappearance in Guntoro's life?
When Guntoro's ex-wife returns, he is forced to relive the moments that led to the demise of their relationship. His first marriage was marred by constant abuse and he was forced to seek shelter at his grandparent's home.
Lucky for him, young Endang was there.
Although he was smitten with the compassionate fifteen-year-old girl, he understood the implications of making his feelings known and instead relished in their blossoming friendship.
Now, five years later, Endang is an adult woman and she shares her life with Guntoro. Their lives were seemingly perfect until the return of Guntoro's ex-wife threatens to shake the strong foundation of their relationship. Can true love prevail, despite her sudden reappearance in Guntoro's life?
228 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 6, 2015
1 person is currently reading
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 16, 2015
An enjoyable read with unexpected complications and dangers
December Sunshine takes place on the lovely island of Java in Indonesia. Part of the enjoyment of the story for me was learning about another culture and place. The main character Endang is a young woman in college. One of her college professors, Guntoro, is a relative as his grandparents adopted Endang when she was a child. He is fifteen years older than her and was divorced five years ago from a woman who was beautiful and rich, but insanely jealous. Endang and Guntoro have secret feeling for each other, but because of their age difference, they don’t reveal their feelings.
Instead Endang enjoys the life of a typical college student and has a boyfriend who she studies with. When Guntoro becomes afraid that he might lose her, he is forced to take drastic measures. Things become even more complicated when Guntoro’s x-wife shows up and Endang’s boyfriend discovers her with Guntoro.
The story is more than a love story for it explores the themes of love, jealousy, lose, rejection, and divorce.
December Sunshine takes place on the lovely island of Java in Indonesia. Part of the enjoyment of the story for me was learning about another culture and place. The main character Endang is a young woman in college. One of her college professors, Guntoro, is a relative as his grandparents adopted Endang when she was a child. He is fifteen years older than her and was divorced five years ago from a woman who was beautiful and rich, but insanely jealous. Endang and Guntoro have secret feeling for each other, but because of their age difference, they don’t reveal their feelings.
Instead Endang enjoys the life of a typical college student and has a boyfriend who she studies with. When Guntoro becomes afraid that he might lose her, he is forced to take drastic measures. Things become even more complicated when Guntoro’s x-wife shows up and Endang’s boyfriend discovers her with Guntoro.
The story is more than a love story for it explores the themes of love, jealousy, lose, rejection, and divorce.
January 25, 2015
Author Evida Suntoyo is a skilled storymaster. She has woven together this tale with such skill that I did not guess the twists and turns of the plot. A situation is presented near the beginning, and then she explains how it came about. The imagery was so realistic that today I am remembering scenes from the book and have to remind myself it was a book and not a movie. Although I have never been to Indonesia, the descriptions of places and people came to life in these pages
The story was sweet and bittersweet. Without giving anything away, I found myself very much liking some of the characters and hoping they would succeed in their dreams. Other characters were evil to the bone. Not knowing the culture of Indonesia, I do not know their customs but Suntoyo made them make sense. The decisions made and the actions taken do not seem out of place as described in this book.
It’s a romance, it’s a mystery story, but it’s entertaining through and through. Pick up this book and be whisked away to faraway lands for a time. You won’t regret it.
The story was sweet and bittersweet. Without giving anything away, I found myself very much liking some of the characters and hoping they would succeed in their dreams. Other characters were evil to the bone. Not knowing the culture of Indonesia, I do not know their customs but Suntoyo made them make sense. The decisions made and the actions taken do not seem out of place as described in this book.
It’s a romance, it’s a mystery story, but it’s entertaining through and through. Pick up this book and be whisked away to faraway lands for a time. You won’t regret it.
January 21, 2015
After reading December Sunshine, I've decided that author Evida Suntoyo has a lot of talent, and a market or readers who are just waiting for work like hers. I might be biased because I do read a lot of Historical Asian fiction. I LOVE the richness and elegance of the genre, and for me, Evida Suntoyo is an author who ADDS to the genre. Let me tell you why. One of my favorite books in this genre is Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (which I read so many times, the pages started sliding of). December Sunshine reminds me so much of that because of the nearly forbidden interest between the main character, Endang, and her much older college lecturer, named Guntoro. This story also takes place on the beautiful and mysterious island of Java, which made it even more intriguing for me. I love stories like this that take place in some exotic location you only dream of.
The fact that this Historical Fiction takes place in Java made me think of the book The Lover by late French writer, Marguerite Duras, which was set in the equally intriguing location of Saigon!
I found the characters Evida Suntoyo created to be very interesting. Especially the main character, Endang, and her female friend Riski. Other sympathetic characters like Endang's male friend Widodo really make this story so engaging!
December Sunshine is one of the best books I've read this year! A++
The fact that this Historical Fiction takes place in Java made me think of the book The Lover by late French writer, Marguerite Duras, which was set in the equally intriguing location of Saigon!
I found the characters Evida Suntoyo created to be very interesting. Especially the main character, Endang, and her female friend Riski. Other sympathetic characters like Endang's male friend Widodo really make this story so engaging!
December Sunshine is one of the best books I've read this year! A++
January 17, 2015
As a new author, Evida Suntoyo does a fantastic job of setting the mood for an explicit tone into historical fiction. The journey sets sail for a gorgeous back drop on the island of Java and depicts the story about a man called Guntoro and a much younger woman, Endang. They secretly fall in love with one another without revealing their true feelings for each other. He is, after all, 15 years older than her and his family adopted her when she was young so love from a distance seems to be imminent.
With many obstacles in their way, it seemed impossible for them to be together but just how far is Guntoro willing to go to be with her?
This is a love story that I'm sure many of us can relate too. A love story about Jealousy, rage, obsession, and rejection mixed in with a sordid society and impossible dreams - An unexpected roller coaster of challenges that drives its way through twisted emotional love. A story that over comes tragic realities through unforeseen circumstance. A powerful read.
With many obstacles in their way, it seemed impossible for them to be together but just how far is Guntoro willing to go to be with her?
This is a love story that I'm sure many of us can relate too. A love story about Jealousy, rage, obsession, and rejection mixed in with a sordid society and impossible dreams - An unexpected roller coaster of challenges that drives its way through twisted emotional love. A story that over comes tragic realities through unforeseen circumstance. A powerful read.
January 31, 2015
Wow! This is one of the most engaging romantic books I’ve read in a long time. And it's so different from the rest. In this fast-paced plot, the story takes you to the island of Java, Indonesia, where an older nephew feels for his aunt several years younger to him. As a lover of romantic novels, I enjoyed this greatly. As a culture vulture, who has dabbled with historical Asian fiction, I was fascinated, particularly with the sections on the lover’s visit to the Prambanan temple. As someone who knew nothing about Indonesian culture, this was mesmerizing and informative. I now have a new-found appreciation for the people and their culture, and it is rare that one novel could inspire one to gain a new understanding of something that has been around for centuries. A great read!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews