Book Review: Anxious Hearts by Tucker Shaw
Anxious Hearts by Tucker Shaw. © 2010 Amulet Books. ISBN 978-0-8109-8718-0. Hardback. Young Adult/Romance. 272 pages. $16.95 US. Source: advance reading copy
Synopsis
Eva and Gabe explore the golden forest of their seaside Maine town, unknowingly tracing the footsteps of two teens, Evangeline and Gabriel, who once lived in the idyllic wooded village of Acadia more than one hundred years ago. On the day that Evangeline and Gabriel were be wed, their village was attacked and the two were separated. And now in the present, Gabe has mysteriously disappeared from Eva.
Review
I had high hopes from this book with its premise being woven around one of the world’s greatest poems (‘Evangeline’ by Longfellow), and it’s stunning cover (yeah, yeah I judge books by covers lol), but was sadly let down. Anxious Hearts is a story which follows the romance of two couples whom are two-hundred years apart, but yet resemble each other remarkably. It opens with Eva (present day) and follows with Gabriel (200 yrs in the past). This pattern of present day then 200 yrs before continues throughout the entire book, and while I completely understand why it was handled that way, it was rather annoying. If I sat the book down for the evening and picked it up the next day, I was having to give myself a refresher in order to remember what had been going on.
To be honest, I did find myself preferring the story of Evangeline and Gabriel to Eva and Gabe. None of the characters really have much depth to them, but it was much worse with Eva. It felt like she had the depth of a puddle. If the story had continued passed where it ended, I could see how Eva could have developed into a wonderful character. Unfortunately, Anxious Hearts did not allow for her to blossom. The romance between Eva and Gabe also bothered me, and at times I was having unwanted flashes of Edward and Bella. Blah.
Like me, a lot of adults read the YA genre and normally I don’t feel older than the material—there’s usually something I can relate to—but I really felt my 27 years while reading this. So, if you are looking for a fluffy, syrupy read then this is the book for you. For those who want more meat and less saccharine, I’d advise you to look elsewhere.
Rating: 2 apple orchards out of 5.
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