Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Book Review: 'Casablanca My Heart' by Hannah Warren.






 MY Book Review: “Casablanca: My Heart” by Hannah Warren


Author Hannah Warren has written more than just a boy meets girl romance in this  novel. If you want simplistic writing with improbable situations then this is not for you ... this novel goes deeper and explores emotions further than that.


Casablanca My Heart doesn’t follow traditional clichéd storytelling, and that is a large part of its charm.


The author uses 1st person narrative to wonderful advantage here, giving insights into what motivates her characters on a deeply personal level.


Meet Heather Simpson, a well know romance writer who cherishes her privacy and is known better under her pen-name of Femmy Lovecraft.


Heather has suffered the loss of her beloved father, and her husband lay in a coma as a result of a car accident for which Heather blames herself. Her guilt is unrelenting. At the insistence of her dear friend the very likeable and straight forward Rita, Heather takes a cruise, a short trip to give her cheeks back their glow and her writing back its meaning.


She travels under her pen-name.


Enter Ghalib Tourniquet. A prince no less. His fascination with her is clear. The fact that he appears to know so much about her, including her real name, unsettles her more than a little, as does his masculine good looks and his appearance of warmth intermingled with sublime sophistication. Their attraction is immediate and intense.


The Prince takes her to his beautiful home in Casablanca.  The author has wonderful descriptive talent and she utilizes it so well that the reader is transported to Casablanca, we walk through the beauty of the place and can clearly visualize his beautiful home. 

The sexual tension between them is palpable and the ultimate release of that tension is well written in an erotic, sensual, and moving episode in the steam bath of his home.


This is not a jarring note, it captures the tension beautifully.


A sudden brush with ill health, and the tragic death of her husband have Heather returning home suddenly and with no further contact with Ghalib.


We are given deep insights into Ghalib’s lifestyle and his growth as a man in the period of years they are parted.


Heather, has a child, Lucy, as a result of her one passionate interlude with Ghalib. He knows nothing about the child.


His life has taken a different turn. We see into his recent past, and share his love for his beautiful child Cassia, by his first wife. 

We come to an understanding of the man further as we are permitted to see the misery he has created for himself and others by his lifestyle. Two marriages and two divorces leave him a changed and damaged man.


I have no wish to spoil this book for the reader.


Suffice it to say that the story is woven with a talented hand, the characters are crafted so well that they become important to the reader, we care what happens to them.


The resultant ending is…ahh…that would be telling!


I have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone that enjoys a well written story.


It travels beyond the romance genre, to become a memory of a book that will stay in the hearts and minds of its readers.

Purchase on Amazon 


6 comments:

  1. I first read this book some years ago, but it keeps its attraction for me, and I go back to it regularly. I love it! Great review of a great book.

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  2. Everything about this novel comes from the author's heart. I know the book very well. I love it and it is very dear to my own heart. I also love your review of it, Soooz. An excellent review which accurately captures the essence of the novel. I recommend it to everyone who loves a romantic novel - it is far more than a 'romance' - and to readers of both sexes who appreciate a real well-written book.

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  3. Oh, Soooz, my dear friend, thank you so much for this review. I will print it and frame it and hang it on my wall and whenever I doubt my capacities as a writer I will return to it. Thank you also Gerry and Sheila for the kind comments. xxx

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    1. Hannah, you are so very talented my dear friend. We all have doubts about our own talents as authors, it surprises the hell out of me sometimes, that the most talented amongst us seem to be the ones who doubt the most. I loved this novel, and will move on eagerly to read more of your work. xo Soooz

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  4. Gerry and Sheila thank you both so much for making the time to read and comment. Hannah is a multi-talented author and I am delighted to have had the joy of reading her work. xo Soooz

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