4 out of 4 stars
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YESTERDAY A Novel of Reincarnation by Samyann is a romance book about antique expert Amanda Parker, and Mounted Police Officer Mark Callahan.
Amanda and Mark meet when she saves him from being crushed by a derailed elevated train. She ends up injured from falling debris, and he takes her into an antique shop to avoid further injury. As she waivers in and out of consciousness she fixates on the tic toc of a grandfather clock at the antique store. Days after the accident, Amanda is still fixated on the grandfather clock and goes back to the antique store to purchase it. Surprisingly she runs into Mark just leaving the store as she walks in, and they make dinner plans for the next night. From the moment they meet, they both feel like they know each other, but they have never met before. They decide to consult with Amanda’s aunt Mary, an extremely successful psychologist, to try Past Life Therapy (PLT).
They try PLT with Amanda, and immediately she is taken back to Charleston, South Carolina in 1862. She is 5 year old Bonnie May Belle Lexington. Amanda’s PLT journey follows Bonnie, her father, cousin Jack, and slaves Ben and Magdalene as they travel from Charleston to Cleveland through the civil war lines.
The story seamlessly migrated back and forth between the present, and Amanda’s PLT sessions, making it easy to know which era you were reading about. She did an excellent job of describing not only what was going on, but describing it so well you felt you were actually in the wagon with Bonnie and Jack when the guns were firing. I felt like the author researched the civil war era, describing how to make Confederate Candles, Idiot’s Delight, and the hiding of the bells of Saint Michael’s Church.
I had never heard of Past Life Therapy before reading this book, but the author explained it very clearly through conversation between Mark and Mary, and also by example when Amanda was hypnotized back to the past. It was also interesting that Mary discussed details of what Amanda experienced as Bonnie after the session, and how the author showed what could happen if the post session discussion wasn’t completed.
I really liked all the characters in this book. I like Mark who knew what he wanted right away, and her aunt Mary was hilarious. However, I did get tired of the poor Amanda mantra throughout the book. It just made Amanda seem whiney. And who can afford a 3 day drinking binge right after they started a new job? I enjoyed the historical part of the book better than the present. Bonnie and Jack were a joy to read about, and I really liked their connection with slaves Ben and Magdalene, and later with Penelope and Margaret. The historical portion was dangerous, and more exciting.
I enjoyed reading YESTERDAY A Novel of Reincarnation by Samyann. The editing was excellent; I didn’t find any issues with grammar, spelling, typos or weird wording. I rate this story 4 out of 4 stars. I found the book interesting with the different eras of time, and I couldn’t stop reading it. This book would appeal to romance readers.
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Yesterday
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