Elia, a lit student,
is infatuated with Cameron Beck's masterpiece, Secrets of Odysseus.
The book is a compilation of poems Beck wrote to his mysterious muse,
but no one knows who she is. Elia is determined to find out. She
desperately wants to know what love is and Cameron seems to have the
answer.
In a coffee house
one night before the end of term, she thinks she hears Beck read a
new poem. The poem is left behind when the poet vanishes. Elia
rescues it and now is determined to find Beck. The search leads her
to a remote Caribbean Island. The islanders have befriended Beck and
resent the stranger's intrusion, but she persists.
This love story is
told from several perspectives. Elia is the protagonist in the
present day, but we also see Cameron. In the past, we see him and his
lost love. Usually, I find stories told in two time periods
don't work well. However, in this case with the secret of lost love
as the thread holding the story together, it works well.
Elia is a
delightfully naive character. She is desperately searching for the
meaning of love, but she is also capable of determination to see her
adventure through to completion. Beck is a more nebulous character.
We glimpse his total infatuation with his lover, but in the present
day he is more subdued yet willing to part with his secret to the
right person.
The characters who
inhabit the island: Isabella, the island matriarch, Fatty, the
medical doctor with a drug habit, Paco, the cantina owner, and
Falcon, the pilot, are extremely well drawn. Each is unique and each
fits the setting perfectly. They were some of the best parts of the
book.
If you enjoy an
adventure wrapped in a romance, you'll enjoy this book.
I reviewed this book
for PR by the Book.
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