Hi Amethyst Angel🌸📝🪽
I am reviewing your short story, "Let It Grow" , as one of the judges for August's official contest, "Short Shots: Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering, and good luck!
This review is in affiliation with "WdC SuperPower Reviewers Group" . Please remember any views are purely my own, and any advice is given with the sole intention of being helpful.
My first thoughts: I really enjoyed this story. The whole time I was reading, I found myself wanting to shake Fiona and make her see how much Joseph loved her. I was glad she did see, in the end. I only hope it wasn't too late.
Plot: This is a love story set in 1792. Joseph and Fiona were once lovers (I think), but then Joseph went away to sea, Fiona felt abandoned and heartbroken that he was gone, and so when he returned, she didn't want to forgive him. She couldn't allow herself to be heartbroken again. Joseph, however, is secretly building a tropical garden with butterflies (Fiona's passion) and birds and lots of sweet smelling plants. The story ends with Fiona finally seeing the garden, and how much Joseph loves her. But this only happens because Joseph has the plague, and she rushes to his side. I was glad she went to him. The thing I wasn't sure about was why he had to have the plague. Like, in terms of the story. He doesn't die of it. We don't know whether he lives or dies, because you don't tell us. But, he didn't need to be ill for Fiona to go to him, for her to see the garden. She was intrigued by whatever Joseph was building, and she was going to see it as soon as she could. So, I'm just not sure giving Joseph the plague added anything to the story. At the same time, I did gasp when I read that the plague was ravaging the land. I was caught up in Fiona and Joseph's love story, so I wasn't expecting a major illness to come along. In that respect, I liked the addition of the plague. I guess, maybe, it would have felt more significant if we were to learn Joseph's fate at the end.
Characters: Joseph is a great character. He loves Fiona, and all he wants is to make her happy and to make up for breaking her heart when he went to sea. I was somewhat frustrated with him for not letting Fiona see the garden before it was finished, therefore, pushing her further away. Fiona, it took me a while to like her. She comes across as impatient and self-absorbed. As the story moves along, we learn how unhappy she has been since Joseph went to sea. But, again, is this a little selfish of her? He didn't go specifically to hurt her. He didn't stop loving her. Although, he could have communicated better when he returned, and spent time with her while building this secret garden separately.
Grammar: Just one suggestion. I have put them in this dropnote:
Grammar/Spelling/Typos ▼
"... turned to Paul, leaning on his shovel watching, and said ..." - I would put a comma after "shovel" because it is Paul who is watching, not the shovel.
What I liked: Your despriptions of the garden are wonderful. I felt I was actually in the middle of it as I read. The birds, plants and butterflies are all described vibrantly and colourfully. I could feel the warm and humid atmosphere, and it was like I was in a tropical house. I really enjoyed this. I also loved how Fiona came through for Joseph at the end. The book on the bedside table was a nice touch.
Suggestions: I did struggle a couple of ties with the long conversation between Fiona and Lovena. They spoke a lot of about the Royal Navy and things that happened before Joseph's deployment and after. This lost me a little because I didn't know anything about the events, and Fiona spoke as though I did. (If that makes sense.) Similarly, when Lovena first mentions Paul, I had no clue he was her husband. It kind of slotted into place when I did find this out. But, I did feel a bit like an outsider in their conversation.
I enjoyed reading your entry. Thanks, again, for entering.
Choconut
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