If you see my book collection, you’ll find plenty of YA,
fantasy, horror, suspense, sci-fi and graphic novels... so how did I come by a
romance novel called the Healing Heart? Well, life has its way of gravitating
people towards each other, be it in the physical world or the digital universe
we’re so fond of losing ourselves in.
Jennifer Howard is from West Virginia and loves books... one
of the easiest ways to connect with people online by the way. Might I add that
she would probably eat books if they provided any type of nutritional value
(her words on her author page). She’s also been a long time writer in the
making that only recently delved into the world of publishing with her first
book. Although a bit skittish of taking the leap to burrow into a romance
novel, I said what the hell, embraced that part of me that also owns
instructional books, self help books, motivation books, history and pscych
books and pretty much any random thing I can find and I purchased the Kindle
version for $0.99.
It was a great decision.
I’m not going to tell you your life will change after
reading the Healing Heart and I’m not even going to entertain the idea of
saying it’s the best thing you’ll read ever. I will however go out on a limb
and tell you it was a refreshing read that reflects Jennifer’s personality to a
T. It’s giddy, it’s fun, and it’s lighthearted. That’s a pretty odd way to
describe the book since the main character, Jamie, has had a rough patch to
rival most other rough patches you could hear about... and that’s just the
thing. This story is immediately relatable and her style honestly reads like a
very long email from one of those crazy friends you have that make you smile
every 1 or 2 sentences and the type that make your inbox a happier place.
Since I’m a fan of comparing dissimilar things to make a
point, I think I could compare Jennifer’s book with the movie Ponyo, by
director Hayao Miyazaki. Ponyo is a lighthearted affair of a movie and was
beautifully refreshing to me since it had no violence. The Healing Heart reminded
me of how I felt after leaving the theater that time because after this book I
was able to enjoy a slice of life without having the dystopian suffering I
commonly tread on.... and that’s one of the reasons why I wanted to dedicate a
Monday review to her book.
Another reason is that I actually read this book after
reading another indie book, one that won’t be getting a Monday review. I
mention this little tidbit because it shows that although thousands upon
thousands of people are publishing books daily, there are some great finds and
little nuggets to sink your eyes on and there are books that I won’t enjoy. I
will only post about the good ones because I’m a firm believer that if I don’t
like something, it doesn’t mean it has no merit, it just means I didn’t like
it.
A third reason why I read the book was Jennifer herself, and
I think that deserves special note. Interacting with her through Twitter, I’ve
been able to meet a kind, warm, earnest and silly person that is a treat to
just talk with. She’s just one of hundreds of people I’ve had the pleasure to
do this with and in the meantime, I was able to read something outside what I
thought was my comfort zone. That’s because apart from something to sell, she
has something to say... and I think that resonates with a lot of people.
So if you have a pint of Cherry García nearby and want to
dive into a fun little slice of life, it’ll just take a couple of clicks and
$0.99. Enjoy.
Peace, love and maki rolls.
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