It's Book Review Wednesday--coming to you on Friday (hehe). Today, a paranormal romance novel written by one Stephanie Comalander:

Mending the Heartbreak

Adeline Bruce is a small town girl with dreams that will take her to exotic foreign lands in search of human history and artifacts. She embarks on a journey to Scotland where she learns more of her heritage as a descendent of Robert the Bruce as well as an opportunity to study with world-famous archeologist Dr. Matthew MacStone. Hadrian Balliol is a mysterious native Scotsman who has a destiny to fulfill. A member of the House of Balliol, he seeks out certain artifacts that will unify Scotland and make his home country finally free from English rule. Join Hadrian and Adeline as their destinies intertwine on a journey of love, lust, danger, and mystery along the shores of Scotland.

My Review--3 Stars

This is the first book in a multiple-part series, published just a few months ago. From the moment I opened the book, I found a lot of spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes--the sort commonly found in self-published works. There were a few mix-ups with the Scottish brogue used in the book (for example, using "ken" as "can" rather than as "know"), which stood out to me very clearly. The chapters seemed to stop at some odd places, and the closing sentences were sometimes odd as well. (Example: "Still, he was a sweet, old man who reminded her of her favorite uncle, Randall who died in Desert Storm when she was younger." -- end of Chapter 2) Some of the expressions didn't make sense to me, and there were sentences like "gazed upon her countenance softly" or "cloaked her in his warm embrace" that irked me no end. It is definitely a book written for women by a woman! I found a bit too "Disney" for my tastes, and not always in the good way. It was almost like Beauty and the Beast set in Scotland, and the character was a sort of wishy-washy female--at one point, she even faints with all the bad news. The character reminded me way too much of the horrible female character Anastasia Steele from "50 Shades of Grey", which was surprising given how many strong female leads there are in fiction today. The book ABSOLUTELY failed the Bechdel test, and it has a very "fairy tale" feel to it. That being said, once I mentioned all of this to the author, she mentioned something that TOTALLY changed my opinion of it. Of course I can't spoil the book for you, but when the book is re-published in early 2015, the chapters she will add to the end will definitely change the rating of the book. The (soon to be added) ending will give you a reason why everything was written the way it was. But as it stands, I have to give the book a 3-star rating. With a professional editor going over it and catching the mistakes, it could be an enjoyable read!

Book Excerpt:

"The fire died out. Nothing but embers burned in the cold scottish read on hours as a frigid air drifted through the room from beneath the doors and through the thin window panes. The chill settled across the land like a deep, dense fog blanketing all of Scotland. Winter's chill was upon the land. Darkness was still draped across the sky, but colors announcing the rising sun were beginning to paint the sky. Adeline bolted upright in her bed, awakening from a deep slumber. She had a nightmare. Someone, or something, was chasing her. As she sat in her bed, she could feel her heart race. She struggled to control the pace of her breathing. Still, she felt the terror of her nightmare as if she were still being pursued by some manner of beast or demon. Just then, she heard pounding on her bedroom door."

About the Author

Stephanie Comalander, also publishing under S.C Hutchinson and S.C Randelle, has lived in Baldwin County, Alabama all of her life with the exception of a short time spent in the United States Army which a training injury caused her to join the civilian world again. She currently resides in Silverhill, Alabama with her family. While sitting at the kitchen table, a conversation between two old friends was taking place. The discussion was about writing stories. As the subject unfolded, one friend learned something about the other that no one had really known---she loved to write and had a penchant for telling a story. No longer would he let his friend sit idly by letting talents long ago laid to rest die out with time. He urged her to tell her stories. She attempted to argue, citing the fear of rejection was too great, but he would not have it. A negative response would not be accepted. Thus, Stephanie Comalander joined the ranks of many others in seeking to fulfill the love of writing and dreams once believed to be nothing more than a child's hopeful heart. As she put pen to paper, 'The Highland Stones Trilogy' was born. 'Mending the Heartbreak' was first to arrive being published originally in July of 2014 and later re-released in August followed by 'House of Bruce' in September. Soon, the final installment titled 'Heart of the Stones' will be born in winter of 2015. She will also soon have the first book of her juvenile fiction series released by Page Publishing titled 'Into the Darkness from the Light'.

Where to Find Her:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/stephcom8133 Twitter: @stephcom8133 Youtube: www.youtube.com/stephcom8133 Her Website: http://stephaniecomalande.wix.com/stephanie-comalander LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephcom8133 Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/stephcom8133 And the story itself: http://www.amazon.com/Mending-Heartbreak-Highland-Stones-Book-ebook/dp/B00N4GKZHU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410268559&sr=8-1&keywords=mending+the+heartbreak