4 out of 4 stars
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Yesterday: A Novel of Reincarnation by Samyann is a quirky romance with lots of intrigue from paranormal channels. This will appeal to an adult audience with a romantic side such as those that believe in love at first sight. It will also appeal to individuals that have an interest in past lives and fate. I don’t think it will appeal to those that like direct fact-driven stories.
A catastrophic elevated train derailment in downtown Chicago is the precipitating event as Amanda witnesses a young policeman thrown from his horse and buried under the rubble. She uses superhuman strength to pull him out and together they seek refuge in the Lexington Antique Shop until medical help arrives. The antique shop and, a grandfather clock become a central piece in the quest for truth. The young protagonists realize that they know each other, but have never met. It takes them on a journey through past lives and into complex lives that must be revisited to commit to modern life. The challenges and mystery of this journey are the cruces of the storyline.
Throughout the novel, the author uses italicized words to note the thoughts that the main characters are having about their paranormal experiences. Ordinarily, the use of italics might be an annoyance, but I like the juxtaposition of what they are saying and at the same time seeing what they are thinking. This becomes more evident as the story develops and more is explained through past life regressions. It is a literary device that keeps both worlds separate and made the timelines and events much easier to follow each thread through time. The italics are used further when Mary, the grandmother, and psychologist, is taking the characters through past life regressions. You can follow along with them as they walk in a different historical period.
The reference to common Chicago landmarks, such as The Navy Pier Ferris Wheel, created a realistic and familiar setting. Consequently, constant references to Oprah the cat kept the current day part of the novel firmly rooted in Chicago. The past life regressions seemed realistic and familiar as the historical research done by both the author and the characters added believability to a topic that evidence is not readily available. The author is intertwining your need to have faith in your trust from real life events and places. The author includes Author’s Notes, which detail the historical information within the text. These details make the story come alive. I like books that I learn about history. Grounding the novel events in history makes the whole story more plausible.
The historical figures and characterizations were very well developed and stayed within the historical context of the times. The past life characters of the novel were three dimensional and we got to know them and their motivations clearly. It cannot be said that we know the current characters set-in modern-day Chicago quite as clearly and they seemed more two dimensional. However, it didn’t bother me as I liked finding out about the current characters as extensions of their historical components. The concept of a show not tell is evident in the author’s writing style which added suspense. I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I very much liked the author’s character development through a historical methodology. The details of the objects were enriched in the story, especially the sounds of the grandfather clock and the movement of the cat. The colorful expression throughout the book kept my interest such as,
Overall, the interaction between the real and the unreal created a fascinating tension in the entire novel.“ As my godmother would say, good enough to walk a barbed wire fence with a wildcat under each arm.”
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Yesterday
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