4 out of 4 stars
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Just the Beginning by Maria Goode takes readers on a journey of personal growth, love, tragedy, and perseverance. Lizzie Bryan, a young student teacher, encounters Rahul Chaudhary, a dentist visiting schools to share the importance of dental hygiene. Rahul immediately senses a strong attraction for the blonde and vivacious teacher. Sharing the day and lunch together, the two hit it off but go their separate ways. Rahul cannot shake the image of Lizzie from his mind and seeks her out at her weekend job at a local retail shop to ask her out. Pleased and surprised to see the dark and handsome dentist, Lizzie gladly accepts his invitation. Thus begins what Lizzie would discover is an unlikely and forbidden relationship, for Rahul is a Sikh.
Rahul’s parents are pressuring him to enter into an arranged marriage with a Sikh girl that they have chosen for him. Rahul only wants to marry for love. When he meets Lizzie, he willingly disobeys his parents’ wishes and journeys down the path of emotional and physical love that opens his mind, body, and heart to Lizzie whom he calls his “beautiful English rose.” A shared love of running, sensual attraction, and the ability to have fun together allow Rahul and Lizzie to build a life together. Readers follow the two lovers as their relationship grows and they face the hardships associated with their cultural differences and parental disapproval. Will the two lovers overcome the many obstacles that could stand in the way of their happily ever after?
Maria Goode builds an intricate cast of characters in Just the Beginning. Not only are the protagonists interesting and bold characters but also the supporting characters add layers of significance to this story. From Rahul’s Dentistry partner, Chris Johnson, to Lizzie’s best friend Lucy, the chemistry and deep friendships provide authentic and true to life relationships. Goode includes moments of humor, passion, suspense, and tenderness that the reader can enjoy. Both Lizzie’s and Rahul’s parents play key roles where the Bryan’s are accepting of Rahul and supportive of the couple while the Chaudhary’s support comes from Rahul’s mother only. She loves her son and sees that he genuinely loves Lizzie but his father cannot see past the cultural differences and disowns his son. Abandonment by his father angers and saddens Rahul and provides much of the conflict that the couple faces.
Being a romance fan, I enjoyed reading this story. The author developed a sweet and abiding love between Lizzie and Rahul with their love-making adding to the story without being graphic and raw. The thing I enjoyed most involved descriptions of the couple’s travels, the different settings the couple found themselves in, and the meals they prepared together. All these aspects of the story brought the couple to life for the reader. The thing I liked least about the story involved finding some of the language strange because the British author used slang terms and phrases like “bits and bobs” or “bubble and squeak.” Also, the spelling of many words jumped out as typos before I remembered the differences between American and British English. To me, the story seemed overly long and could have reached its climax and resolution in fewer pages. The author also did not provide as much background about the Sikh people as I would have liked.
Overall, I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. Love, conflict, complex relationships, and following characters’ personal growth always make for an intriguing read. I recommend this story to fans of romantic fiction or those who enjoy reading about others’ relationships.
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Just The Beginning
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