brokenrecord 's review for:

Morning Glory by LaVyrle Spencer

2.0

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This book was so frustrating. Up until the point where Elly and Will confessed their feelings for one another and got together, I was really into this! It wasn't spectacular, but it was a solid like 3.5-4 stars for sure. I liked the dynamic between them a lot and Will's relationship with her kids and all that. It was enjoyable! But I lost all interest after they got together, and it felt like a chore to finish the book. It just felt like after they got together, the author didn't really know what to do with them, but felt like continuing the story for some reason anyways. The combo of

Spoiler

Will being drafted and being injured in combat and then coming back and being falsely accused for murdering Lula and Elly doubting his innocence and the trial was just way too much, and I didn't understand what the point of any of it was, and it just went on and on.

And sorry, I know it's realistic that Elly and Will wouldn't be educated or have much reason to write a lot, so it makes sense that there would be misspellings in their letters to one another, but man, it was so painful to have to read through them. I would've sacrificed the realism just to make the reading experience more bearable. And listen, normally I lose interest in romances after the couple gets together (I'm just a sucker for the build-up), but this was way more than that for me. It wasn't just that I was less invested, but that I didn't care about either character anymore or if they stayed together or not. Also, I know this was written in the 80s so I probably shouldn't have expected any better, but

Spoiler

OF COURSE the ~morally loose woman gets murdered. OF COURSE.

It's just frustrating because I felt like this book had such potential, but the 2nd half of the book was a huge chore, and I only finished it so I could complain about it.