Thalia @ Pictures in the Words

I must preface this review by saying that, despite the three star rating, I don’t have any idea what I liked about this book. That is, I know what made me like this book, but I don’t know how to explain it except “that’s just the way I feel”. Which I know makes for a poor review explanation, but it’s all I can really offer.

That being said, I truly disliked the beginning of this novel. When I realized it was written in third person, present tense, I wanted to scream and run away, and to me, it just seemed to drag on forever. I thought it would hold a little more of my attention, especially considering that I’m a singer—not professionally, of course, but I know the ins and outs of choral music and what it takes to make good sounds, technically speaking. But nothing about this book intrigued either the musician or the fantasy buff in me.

However, a little more than halfway through, it did something extraordinary to the romantic in me.

This book is not a romance—not by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not about a teenage girl finding and falling in love with the guy of her dreams. It might have ended up being that way a little bit, but I clarify this because I don’t want to scare off anything who might be adamantly against books that star romance as their main feature. This book doesn’t do that, although it is, arguably, the one thing it actually did well. I fell in love with that part, and honestly, by the time I got to the end, I would have been more than willing to throw out a five star rating—but I needed to also take into consideration how I felt at the beginning of the book, and how I felt about everything else in the story—not just this one aspect, no matter how well it was executed. So I think three stars is fair, when I take in everything I feel. Hopefully I’ll be able to explain it all adequately!

An ARC of this book was provided by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

What I Liked: Spoilers!

• As I mentioned above, I’m not really sure how to explain my reasoning here. I love a well-done romance, and the one in this novel (though it wasn’t a main focus until the very end) was so perfect that sometimes it made me feel like my heart would burst at any second. Nathan just…something about him completely captivated me, and I could feel the pull of his character the same way Sing did. I’m not quite sure how it happened—I, also like Sing, didn’t like him much in the beginning, but as more and more of his character became revealed, everything opened up and you just couldn’t help but love him so much. Do you ever read about a certain couple’s relationship and you just care so much that it feels like someone is physically squeezing your heart? Nathan and Sing gave that to me, and it came in the most unexpected of places, nestled inside a book I had been barely tolerating. If Rule ever decides to write chick-lit, I swear I will pounce on it like water in the desert.

What I Didn’t Like:

• Unfortunately, almost everything else falls into this category. The writing itself was just…weird. I loathe third person, present tense—it’s unnatural, bizarre, and downright wrong to me. It is the epitome of everything I hate about writing style. Sections of the book centered on the mythical creature, the Felix, were fortunately written in past tense, but the present tense of the main narration bothered me to no end. And it wasn’t just that, considering I’ve learned to try and ignore those tickles of irritation, but the entire tone of the novel just felt…off. Disorganized, and not in an artistic way. None of it came together until the very end; and strangely, I can’t even credit the writing for the one thing I did like about the book. The romance wasn’t written well, it just…felt right. I’m not sure if that made sense, but I spent a vast majority of this book squinting at the pages, trying to figure out what exactly was so bothersome about it.

• That all being said, the plot felt a little all over the place. By the time I reached the end of the novel, I still couldn’t figure out what, exactly, the Felix was (a big cat who grants wishes? Is that it?) or why it was so important. The mythological ties were sloppy, at best, and while it did come together for the grand finale with Nathan and the maestro, George, I felt like it could have been done is a more clean and less confusing way. The Felix seemed terribly out of place in its own novel, and didn’t seem to convey a clear point as to why it was there at all (the obvious turning-Nathan-into-a-man-slash-brining-him-back-to-live-in-Sing’s-timeline thing aside).

Overall: Nothing about this book clicked for me except the relationship between Sing and Nathan—or, more specifically, Nathan’s character in general (because I really couldn’t care less about Sing). Once I reached the end, I was so giddy from the feeling of it that I wished, dearly, that I could have loved every bit of the read instead of having winced at most of it. I’m not quite sure if I’d recommend it, since my own feelings are so conflicted. I suppose if you don’t mind third person, present tense narration, you might as well give this one a go—that may have been what bothered me most about reading this, so I’ll leave you to your own devices. However, I can say with certainty that if you enjoy low-toned romances (or are a die hard romantic like me), you will definitely enjoy the one incredibly bright spot this particular book has to offer.

(http://thaliasbooks.tumblr.com/post/91971740577/strange-sweet-song-review)