Review by henna sonum rajpoot -- Breaking Sandcastles

henna sonum rajpoot · Post by **henna sonum rajpoot** » 18 Oct 2017, 11:05

[Following is a volunteer review of "Breaking Sandcastles" by Kirk Burris.]

4 out of 4 stars

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Breaking sandcastles by Kirk Burris is a romantic love story describing the life of two young and highly talented artists who are ambitious about their lives and careers while having a simultaneous quest for love. The story starts with an old woman reflecting trough the mirror of age and time about the extraordinary life she has lived so far and reveals itself in situational but interesting rounds of flashbacks. Marion Kelly, 28, was an aspiring art teacher at West port high school, USA who was interested in her career more than anything else in the world. Whereas, Jonathan Duquesne, 17, was an art student who possessed an extraordinary amount of talent and genius. Jonathan’s art skills were something that made him stand out from rest of the crowd in a more peculiar way. He could sketch out nearly everything with such a beauty and minute details that even abstract beauty appealed more than reality. Jonathan had an instant liking for her since the first time he saw her. She had always considered the work of Jonathan with high regard among all other students but had known her limits as a teacher and intended to maintain only a teacher- student bond with him.

However, their liking for each other grew with time and spiraled into a trust- worthy friendship. Meanwhile, there came a girl student named Bella Beaumont who was also in the same class as Jonathan and they both get involved with each other for a short period of time. She becomes a source of misunderstanding both for Marion and Jonathan and their trust collapses in a matter of minutes and their ways are parted. By stroke of luck they accidentally met again in Paris after four years. Their misunderstanding got clarified and Jonathan opened up his heart out to Marion but Marion again was reluctant to spring into relationship thinking they both shared an enormous age gap and their life directions were quite different. Marion had to leave Paris as she was somehow involved in a man named Rowan. But she could not resist the passion and emotions felt when she was with Jonathan and finally got back to him by breaking up with Rowan.

It became a turning point for both of them as they got romantically involved in each other and planned a short trip to Monte Carlo but fate again played games with them and this time they ran into Bella Beaumont again which brought insecurity and jealousy back into Marion’s life. This meeting ignited passion on part of Bella and one night after the party, Marion saw Bella kissing Jonathan and both of them getting close to each other. She tended to harbor insecure feelings towards Jonathan. Eventually, she broke up with Jonathan and aimed to pursue her career back in the United States. Before leaving, she decided to walk into her favorite church the very last time. Jonathan, on the other hand, after being utterly depressed for several weeks, also made plans for hanging out with his younger brother Dean and his dear friend Franchot. Fate took its toll and Jonathan once again bumped into Marion and finally they both decided to live with each other for the rest of their lives after realizing the weight of their true love and feelings.

The whole novel is an exciting read throughout its course and unravels many layers of human emotions. It would definitely appeal those readers who want to continue their journey towards life while being indecisive at the same time about which one to choose; love or career? So this novel seems to raise a contemporary issue which is faced by many people in today’s fast- paced and goal oriented lifestyle. It highlights the struggle and commitment of two people with their life, career and relationships and also touches upon the question popped up in most people’s mind when they care to see love only as an option which is often thrown out as a trash in order to balance their career. It would prove to be an elixir for those who believe in true love, universe’s conspiracy and destiny. Love seems to take lead in its war with career and the petty issues like age gap between two people which is often seen as a pretty serious conflict when it comes to building practical relationships.

The novel has many occasional jibes and humors which are so situational and comfortable to read. Dialogues are so real, well-planned and well-adjusted to the situations and even the thoughts and mental dialogues represented in italics convey strong feelings and emotional connections. This romantic tale harmonizes well with a reader’s feelings and gathers suspense at some occasions that leaves the reader craving for more. The novel has very rare typos which don’t seem to injure the quality of the material written. The writer has expressed himself very beautifully in this novel and it is obvious that he has proper command over the subject. In addition, description of each and every place mentioned in the story and scenic beauty is simply marvelous. Romance in the city of love and lights is Catchy.

To me, every bit of the novel was fascinating and enjoyable like a trip to fantasy land. However, very beginning of the novel was rather slightly boring and the author failed to catch a reader’s attention but its end could not have been more beautiful as opposed to conventional poetic justice in most of the stories. The story of murder and the tension between Bella and Marion were somehow little disturbing but they ,too, did not seem to affect the content, flow or continuity of the novel and in fact, added more to the thrill so as to make it look entirely real and solid.

Among many others, I fell in love with these lines ‘The sun is a star. The brightest in the sky. At least it was…..until I met you’. And ‘sandcastles aren’t meant to last forever. They’re here for a short time to be enjoyed, and then they rejoin the rest of the grains, becoming one with the beach again. If your brothers hadn’t broken your castle, then pretty soon, God would have. See how the ocean is slowly rising up the beach? In a few more minutes, the water would have washed down our castle anyway. Think of it as clearing away the old, and opening the door for something new. Something even better. You get to begin again’. So, this book clearly deserves 4 out of 4 stars and I strongly recommend this book to each and every person who has loved at any stage of his life to join Jonathan and Marion in their amazing venture to find meaning with love, life and career.

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Breaking Sandcastles
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Oulababe · Post by **Oulababe** » 18 Sep 2018, 16:14

Jonathan's Marion's and Bella's story is very cliche, I'd say since it's very predictable. Most novella stories are like that. You already state part of how it will end so I don't really feel a need to read the book. Thanks for your review!

henna sonum rajpoot · Post by **henna sonum rajpoot** » 27 Sep 2018, 12:48

Oulababe wrote: ↑18 Sep 2018, 16:14 Jonathan's Marion's and Bella's story is very cliche, I'd say since it's very predictable. Most novella stories are like that. You already state part of how it will end so I don't really feel a need to read the book. Thanks for your review!

Hi Oulababe,
I'm glad you liked the review but i'm disappointed a bit that you don't feel the need to give such a beautiful story a read! You can still enjoy the countless things that i haven't mentioned in my review but they definitely beautify the whole story. Reading a story about two lovebirds romancing in the city of love is more than just the snippet! You'd like the dialouges, chemistry and above all, the french finesè!

Marissa Michael · Post by **Marissa Michael** » 02 Oct 2018, 02:19

I enjoy reading love stories but when it involves a third party and either of the couples succumb to that third party's spell, I find that intolerable. Plus, I also not fond of the idea of getting back together with the ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend. I enjoy reading your review but not the storyline.

Espie · Post by **Espie** » 14 Oct 2018, 17:01

(L)ove or career?

Having a great career for the ones we love would always be ideal although such isn't always as easy to do as we would want things to be. Thank you for your descriptive review.

María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda · 25 Jan 2019, 19:30

The whole novel is an exciting read throughout its course and unravels many layers of human emotions. It would definitely appeal those readers who want to continue their journey towards life while being indecisive at the same time about which one to choose; love or career? So this novel seems to raise a contemporary issue which is faced by many people in today’s fast- paced and goal oriented lifestyle. It highlights the struggle and commitment of two people with their life, career and relationships and also touches upon the question popped up in most people’s mind when they care to see love only as an option which is often thrown out as a trash in order to balance their career.

This is, definitely, a very current issue for many people so I think the story is highly relatable. I enjoy humor, personal narratives, and well-constructed dialogues, so this book seems like the perfect fit for me. Thanks.

Post by **Kajori Sheryl Paul** » 30 Jan 2019, 06:46

Among many others, I fell in love with these lines ‘The sun is a star. The brightest in the sky. At least it was…..until I met you’. And ‘sandcastles aren’t meant to last forever. They’re here for a short time to be enjoyed, and then they rejoin the rest of the grains, becoming one with the beach again. If your brothers hadn’t broken your castle, then pretty soon, God would have. See how the ocean is slowly rising up the beach? In a few more minutes, the water would have washed down our castle anyway. Think of it as clearing away the old, and opening the door for something new. Something even better. You get to begin again’.

I think these lines are beautiful. Romance in the city of love sounds beautiful. However, the eventuality of love triangles puts me off a bit.

Thank you for the great review.

Connie Otwani · Post by **Connie Otwani** » 09 Feb 2019, 10:50

It would definitely appeal those readers who want to continue their journey towards life while being indecisive at the same time about which one to choose; love or career?

It's unfortunate that people still have to struggle with this. The two are not mutually exclusive, they should be able to be pursued at the same time. Thanks for the exciting review!