Review: After Forever by Julie Johnstone

DISCLAIMER #1: This story is part of a collection of stories from a number of best selling authors. I have decided instead of reviewing them all at once which may be confusing to some of my readers, I am dedicating eight days to these amazing authors and their stories. 

From Goodreads.com: Widowed Lady Julianna Barrows never wants to fall in love again. But when the notorious former boxer Nash Overton hires her to transform him into a gentleman, Julianna quickly becomes the student, learning more about passion than she’s ever known, and more importantly, learning how to love again. 

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My Rating: 4 stars out of 5
     This was such a delightful story that I couldn't stop reading until I had finished it. The first in the Once Upon A True Love's Kiss collection, I feel that this story perfectly set the tone for the theme. 

      It is one thing to read a story where one of the main characters have lost their spouse, but it is a whole other thing when the grief of that loss is as palpable as the one the author expressed here. You couldn't help but sympathize with Julianna as you grasped the depth of her love for her husband - the main reason she was so adamant against re-marriage. On the flip side of that, you couldn't help but adore Nash. His obvious love for his daughter made him endearing right from the start, but the fact that he was willing to take things slowly with Julianna in order to win her over made him a winner in my book. 

     The characters were well developed, and the story-line captivated me from the start. And although it is technically considered a short story, I felt that the author told her story in such a way that I felt like there was a beginning, a middle and an end. It didn't have that rushed feel that so many other short stories tend to feel.

     I would love to read more by this author (especially if there will be more stories featuring these characters). 

DISCLAIMER #2: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own. 

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After Forever is available as part of the Once Upon a True Love's Kiss collection from Amazon.com