Official Review: The Lilac Hour by Ute Carbone

[BookWorm07]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Lilac Hour" by Ute Carbone.]

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Sometimes, a particular book or movie or even a song, can make us wish we were those characters or we were the ones living such a life. The Lilac Hour by Ute Carbone is one such book. It will make you want for such a love if you haven’t yet found it, or if you are lucky enough to have one, it make you cherish it more. Though it is only about thirty pages, the book had me in tears a little by the time I put it down.

The author writes about the love story of three women that is spell-bounding. Each word in the book seems carefully sculpted into its place, to form this beautiful story. Ute does not tell us a story; rather she paints a picture in our mind with her words.

The book is split into three parts; the Lilac Hour, Love letters and The Road Not Taken. The Lilac Hour is the story of an eighty year old Sara, whose husband, Zeke, had passed away a few years after their marriage. Yet her love for him was still ever so bright, just as it had been when he had been alive.

Love Letters is on Maggie, Sara’s daughter, whose life has turned into a mundane routine after forty years of marriage. But when she discovers the stack of old love letters her husband had once written to her, she wishes to regain the lost passion back in their lives.

Lastly, The Road not taken is about JoAnne, Sara’s granddaughter. JoAnne meets her ex-lover in a time when her life is rife with marital struggles. She takes a look into her past and wonders if she did marry the right man.

Even for a short story, the characters come across as complex individuals with suffering, self doubts and problems like any normal human. The writing is compelling; nowhere had the story seemed incomplete, given the size of the book, and as I said before, Ute’s description makes the town and the characters come to life in the readers mind.

My favorite part of the book was the endings of each of the women’s tales. They were sensible, sweet and heart wrenching at the same time. Those were the bits where you cry. This book is probably one of my favourite romance novellas henceforth. I could honestly not find any flaws despite rereading the whole thing.

I'd rate this book with a 4 out of 4 stars and cannot recommend it enough to just about anyone wanting a short and sweet read.

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[Ute Carbone]

Thank you so much for your kind words. You made my weekend (and it's only Thursday)

[BookWorm07]

You are very welcome.

[HoneyB]

Wonderful review, very enticing! I know it was posted months ago, but having recently read one of Ute's novellas myself, I was curious and now I want to read this trilogy!

[BookWorm07]

It's not a trilogy, but a collection of three short stories. Sorry, I should have made it clearer. Still, thanks for the lovely comment HoneyB. I'm sure you'll love this book too.

[bookowlie]

Great review! You make the stories sound so good that I want to read the book....right now! The Love Letters story sounds so realistic.

[BookWorm07]

My favourite of the the would definitely be The Lilac Hour, but I get what you mean. Love Letters is the story of so many people. Thanks for such a huge compliment Bookowlie.

[bookowlie]

I don't usually read romance novels. I find them a bit sappy and cutesy. Still, I will pick one up once in a while. I like the ones that are realistic.

[BookWorm07]

Completely agree with you. I don't read much of the genre myself. Its just too hard to find a good book among all the trashy ones.