April's Book Club Discussion: His Heart to Reap by: Erin Lark

Hey everyone!  Welcome to this month's book club discussion.  The book this month was His Heart to Reap by: Erin Lark.  Before we get to my review, and before you leave a comment, please read the following guidelines:


PLEASE READ BEFORE LEAVING A REVIEW

Please leave your review in the comments section.  You may do this anonymously or provide your name/online handle.

Please refrain from bashing the author, even if you didn't like the book.  There are tactful ways to deliver your review without trashing someone.  It's okay if you weren't fond of the story.  I'm just asking that you have a point to why you didn't like it without swiping the author's face on the floor. You know what I mean?  Keep it clean boys and girls. ;)

We'll be rating the book on a five star scale, five being you loved it, one being you did not.  You can include your rating with your review.

If you have not read this book, please try not to skip down to the comments section.  This is your warning that there will most likely be spoilers.

If you have read this book and intend to leave a spoiler, please write SPOILER at the beginning of your review for the naughty ones who have not read this book.  ;)  I'm just kidding.  But no, seriously, label your review SPOILER.

When you're done with the discussion, please take the time to post your review on Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, or even at the main publishing site should they allow reviews.  This helps the author out by giving new readers a glimpse of what they're in for and boosts sales, not to mention leaves warm fuzzies for the author to see.  It will only take a minute to copy paste your comment from here to there.

The last thing I ask is that you guys suggest a book for next month along with your review.  I'm looking for books that have been published this year or will be out by the first week of April 2013.  All suggestions must be M/M. When I have enough suggestions, I'll post them in a poll next week.


Onto the main event...

Aiden has been deceased for three years, living in a parallel world to our own, known as limbo.  Forced to stay in limbo, because he can't seem to take care of his unfinished business and move on to heaven, he works as a reaper, helping others in limbo try to move on.  When his best friend and former crush, Brandon, appears in limbo after his sudden death, Aiden is faced with a huge obstacle.  Should he take Brandon on as a client, risking his feelings being exposed to the man he never told, and lose his job and memories in the process, or should he continue an existence of loneliness until his door to heaven comes?  Whenever that might be...

***Night's Review***

This was a good afternoon read that I tore through in a couple of hours.  It was light and sweet, but lacking in real romance or plot.  I thought Aiden was a bit flat in the personality department.  He was kind of a robot, really, and that may have just stemmed from his pseudo-psychiatrist role to the newly dead.  I understood that he'd loved Brandon for the better part of his life, but I didn't feel it.  And Brandon seemed to just waltz into limbo like he knew what was coming.  To me, Brandon stepped into his sexuality with Aiden pretty lightly.  If I just found out I was dead, and that I wanted to be with a guy for the first time as a man, that I loved him on top of it all...I think I'd be a bit more emotional than he was.  Sure, the sex was hot, but I didn't feel true chemistry between them.  Of course, this is just my opinion, and for the most part I thought they were cute together.

I know this is a novella, but I think it would have flourished as a novel.  The concept of death and the afterlife, with such a parallel world Mrs. Lark created, wasn't fully realized to me.  I didn't really feel a sense of authority from the head reaper either, only more of a rumor of his power.  I thought Miles, the head reaper, was going to play more of a role in the story, as the main plot source, because he was the one holding Aiden and Brandon's future in his hands, but he didn't.  I wanted a little more of a fight, I guess.  Maybe that's the action seeker in me. *shrug*  Still, the story just kind of drifted up until the last few pages with a quirky turn that led Miles to tell Aiden it was all going to be fine, that he and Brandon were meant to be together, and that Aiden was being promoted.

One part of this story I did enjoy was Aiden's interaction with his client, Emily.  I think she was the most emotional character out of the story, and it was the only time Aiden truly opened up to another person.  I did think it was weird he would reveal his innermost thoughts to her rather than Brandon, but still...it was nice to see another side of Aiden, other than his dominating work persona, slash, lonely moodiness.

I don't mean to cut this book down.  For what it was, the story was a cleanly written, easy going, friends to lovers tale. I only wish the reaper theme would have been amped up a little, as well as the romantic emotions.

All in all I give this book a 3 out of 5 stars, and hope for either an expanded version in the future, or perhaps an in-depth sequel.  

What did you guys think?

Love you all and have a great week!!  ~xX Night