Official Review: Guardian of Paradise by W.E. Lawrence
Posted: 20 Apr 2016, 20:24
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Guardian of Paradise" by W.E. Lawrence.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Guardian of Paradise, a historical romance novel written by W.E. Lawrence, is set on an isolated South Pacific island in 1888. The book contains romance, heart racing tension, beautifully written scenery, and true friendship that as a reader I enjoyed from the first page. The novel is written in third person and from two POVs: Kira Wall, a 26 year old resourceful woman who has lived on the island since her missionary parents were killed in a tsunami when she was 12 years old, and Trevor Marshall, a handsome British doctor and botanist who arrives on the merchant ship captained by Darcy Coleman.
The novel begins with a merchant ship arriving to the island to trade modern goods for local vegetation, but Kira instantly has an uneasy feeling about the merchants, especially Captain Coleman, due to what she learned from her parents and her past about how the outsiders treat the land and people: “My parents warned me of these kinds of people. I’ve seen for myself what they have done. I was young, but I saw the damage they cause.” Chief Ariki and his son, Kope, disregard her feelings after being won over by the overwhelming supplies and reassurances by the captain, forcing Kira to enlist her friend Malana (Kope’s wife and a loyal friend) to help her discover their plan before it is too late.
Kira decides the best way to uncover the true reason for the Captain being on their island is to be a guide to Trevor, but they both soon realize they have similarities in their love for nature and the people, and a friendship begins to bloom into something beyond Kira’s imagination. Though the relationship happens quickly, the chemistry between the two feels real and leaves the reader wanting more.
While the first 8 chapters are a bit slow and some remaining chapters did lag from time to time, the tension and excitement in the books increases quickly. Not only is Kira dealing with her feelings for Trevor, but she also has to navigate the ruthlessness of some of the merchants, earthquakes, explosions, and being looked down upon by those she considers family. Without giving away any spoilers, the novel’s speed quickly picks up and I was unable to put the novel down because I had to know what would happen next!
I would rate Guardian of Paradise 3 out of 4 stars. The detailed writing of scenes made me believe I was on the island with Kira, and the characters were easy to relate to from the very beginning. While the concept is different and the characters are well written, there were a few things that distracted the book from getting 4 stars. My first concern is that the dialogue can be difficult to follow sometimes between the natives and merchants. While English is not the native language for the natives, sometimes the way it is written distracts from the reading (i.e. aftor (after), tat (that), tey (they), ect.) and I found I was frustrated a lot by this. Another reason the novel is not given 4 stars is because some parts of the novel did read slowly for my taste and stumbled to maintain the momentum that the author is trying to present. Overall, there are few grammar and typo mistakes that I noted, which helps to keep the reader involved in the plot.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Guardian of Paradise and felt the book to be a good read for fans of romance and adventure, both of which I love. The relationships between the characters feels real and the depths of emotions create an atmosphere that readers can relate to, while the tension created continues to rise from the time the merchants come ashore. Readers who enjoy getting lost in books that take them to faraway places will also enjoy this book due to the detailed scenes and images the author provides.
******
Guardian of Paradise
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3 out of 4 stars
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Guardian of Paradise, a historical romance novel written by W.E. Lawrence, is set on an isolated South Pacific island in 1888. The book contains romance, heart racing tension, beautifully written scenery, and true friendship that as a reader I enjoyed from the first page. The novel is written in third person and from two POVs: Kira Wall, a 26 year old resourceful woman who has lived on the island since her missionary parents were killed in a tsunami when she was 12 years old, and Trevor Marshall, a handsome British doctor and botanist who arrives on the merchant ship captained by Darcy Coleman.
The novel begins with a merchant ship arriving to the island to trade modern goods for local vegetation, but Kira instantly has an uneasy feeling about the merchants, especially Captain Coleman, due to what she learned from her parents and her past about how the outsiders treat the land and people: “My parents warned me of these kinds of people. I’ve seen for myself what they have done. I was young, but I saw the damage they cause.” Chief Ariki and his son, Kope, disregard her feelings after being won over by the overwhelming supplies and reassurances by the captain, forcing Kira to enlist her friend Malana (Kope’s wife and a loyal friend) to help her discover their plan before it is too late.
Kira decides the best way to uncover the true reason for the Captain being on their island is to be a guide to Trevor, but they both soon realize they have similarities in their love for nature and the people, and a friendship begins to bloom into something beyond Kira’s imagination. Though the relationship happens quickly, the chemistry between the two feels real and leaves the reader wanting more.
While the first 8 chapters are a bit slow and some remaining chapters did lag from time to time, the tension and excitement in the books increases quickly. Not only is Kira dealing with her feelings for Trevor, but she also has to navigate the ruthlessness of some of the merchants, earthquakes, explosions, and being looked down upon by those she considers family. Without giving away any spoilers, the novel’s speed quickly picks up and I was unable to put the novel down because I had to know what would happen next!
I would rate Guardian of Paradise 3 out of 4 stars. The detailed writing of scenes made me believe I was on the island with Kira, and the characters were easy to relate to from the very beginning. While the concept is different and the characters are well written, there were a few things that distracted the book from getting 4 stars. My first concern is that the dialogue can be difficult to follow sometimes between the natives and merchants. While English is not the native language for the natives, sometimes the way it is written distracts from the reading (i.e. aftor (after), tat (that), tey (they), ect.) and I found I was frustrated a lot by this. Another reason the novel is not given 4 stars is because some parts of the novel did read slowly for my taste and stumbled to maintain the momentum that the author is trying to present. Overall, there are few grammar and typo mistakes that I noted, which helps to keep the reader involved in the plot.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Guardian of Paradise and felt the book to be a good read for fans of romance and adventure, both of which I love. The relationships between the characters feels real and the depths of emotions create an atmosphere that readers can relate to, while the tension created continues to rise from the time the merchants come ashore. Readers who enjoy getting lost in books that take them to faraway places will also enjoy this book due to the detailed scenes and images the author provides.
******
Guardian of Paradise
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like lmoses's review? Post a comment saying so!