Title: A Bell for Andy
Series: N/A
Author: GL Roberts
Genre: Fantasy/Spiritual
Length: Novel (214 pages)
Publisher: Seventh Window Publications (23 July 2014)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4Hearts
Blurb: Three men haunted by the same dreams discover that they also share a past that determines their fate, a love that rules their lives, and a curse that must be broken.
ISBN: 098960604X
Product Link(s): http://www.seventhwindow.com/paranormal/35-a-bell-for-andy-ebook-9780989606042.html
Reviewer: Prime
Review: I’m finding it difficult to conjure the words to describe this one. I’m torn in two. I loved the book – hell, I cried on public transport because of this book. Yet, at the same time, there are elements of this book which I found just a tad annoying. The premise of the book is great and how it turns out is certainly different to similar books I’ve read.
First off, though, I am going to put it out there: if you are looking for pure romance this is probably not your book. I think that is why part of why I was a bit disappointed. The blurb was vague (it’s one sentence!) and so where I expected more romance I got hints of connections instead. More to the point, this story is about 3 men connected by dreams, past lives and curses. Most of the story, though, is told from just the one character’s POV.
Regardless, let’s move on to the good stuff.
Steeped in Catholic tradition and set amongst the devoted Irish-Catholics of Boston, there are a lot of elements that have been brought together for this book. It is almost in two parts. The first part is of MCs Brian and Andy growing up. Brian is the character who tells the story for the majority of the book. Interesting but I have to admit that on occasion it did get tedious, especially when it came to the shared dreams.
Yes, each time the dreams were retold there was always a new subtle point added, but to be perfectly honest I don’t have the attention span to reread over something that is basically the same. The problem for me being that the stories lies within these subtle differences.
The second part of the story is Brian and Andy as adults and essentially this is where the story kicks into high gear. Up until this point it was a lot of telling and picking up all the little pieces. Now things are finally coming together. This is where Dr Mark Conno also enters the story.
I won’t go too much into the plot because I enjoyed all the little intricate points that made up the story. Although I have to admit I had it worked out, Brian is just so slow at putting the pieces together. There was an interesting twist for Andy’s character and the appearance of Mark half way through had me confused as to who Brian’s love interest was.
The story is called A Bell for Andy and it really isn’t until the last pages that you finally find out why the book is called what it is. There is a lot of Catholic dogma woven throughout the story. When the romance does come into the story, I’m not entirely sure how to take it.
The primary part of this story is the mystery surrounding shared dreams and coincidences that have brought the characters together at one point in another in their lives. So then when there is romance I felt a bit of spark but for the most part I was diverting me off the track of the mystery.
All in all, though this book has left me with mixed feelings, it is a great book. It is different to many books with a similar premise. I can’t really say it was fun because there was always the mystery, eating at my mind as I was trying to read it to finally find out what the hell was going on.
So I end on the note that this is a thoroughly enjoyable read. If you like a bit of mystery, a good old ghost story and reincarnation this is the book for you.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *