A Charm of Finches
Suanne Laqueur
Release Date: November 1, 2017
Synopsis
From the author of An Exaltation of Larks comes the long-awaited second book in the Venery series.
“I swear. Give me one more chance, and I will make the most of it.”
Ex-escort Javier Landes is asking for his third chance at love. The third time proves to be the charm when he meets an art therapist named Steffen Finch. What starts as casual deepens into a passionate relationship—everything Jav has ever wanted, and everything he fears losing.
Stef’s business card reads Curator & Sailor. His creativity and insightful nature have made him into a talented therapist, the one to call for tough cases. His professional success can’t conceal a deep need to connect with someone, but Javier Landes is the last person Stef expected.
Geronimo “Geno” Caan is Stef’s most challenging case. To cope with his ordeal, he’s allowed an alter-ego called Mos to make decisions, and now lives a double life within a web of lies. Under Stef’s navigation, Geno uses art to express what he can’t yet speak aloud. But as Geno’s attachment to Stef gradually extends to Jav, the boundaries between professional and personal begin to blur.
Over the course of a year, Jav, Stef and Geno form an unexpected and unconventional triangle, revealing how men make love in times of war and how love is a great wisdom made up of small understandings. A Charm of Finches is an epic tale of survival and secrets guaranteed to make you think and feel and remember.
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To be shipped after the November 1st release date
My Review:
“I swear. Give me one more chance and I will make the most of it.”
Reading this book made me a better person. I can’t find the right words to describe this magnificent story! I’m not eloquent enough. I want to be Suanne Laquer’s best friend. Read this book. It will change your life. Very few authors have a way with words like Suanne Laquer. She reaches in and grabs your heart and doesn’t let go.
“I think love is a big wisdom made up of small understandings.”
This book tells the interwoven tale of several main characters. Geno and Carlos were twins and enjoyed an unbreakable bond as many twins do. Fairly early on in the story, Geno is subject to the most awful kind of abuse which would have broken most people. And for a while, it seems as though Geno will never recover from his terrible ordeal. Geno copes with the agony of his assault by turning to an alter-ego that was based on his twin brother Carlos.
“Carlos was Los. Geronimo was Mos. Los and Mos lived in the starry world of Nos, Spanish for we. Nos rhymed with dos, Spanish for two.”
Geno was a gorgeous soul who was turned into an empty shell by acts of pure evil. I could not imagine how he would ever climb out of the black hole of despair that he was in. But this is ultimately a tale of hope and beauty, even though the author does not shy away from a difficult, agonizing and painful subject. My heart broke for Geno and his family.
Steffen Finch is an art therapist who seems to be the only person who can get through to Geno. At the same time, Stef and Javier Landes begin a relationship together that can only be described as pure bliss. And just in case you think this book is only filled with treacherous story lines and complete tragedy, it is not! Suanne Laquer is very funny and she works in many lighthearted moments. This book is very much like real life, mixing in the gritty moments with the funny ones.
“Hi,” Jav said.
“Hi. If I kiss you outside my mother’s bedroom, I’m going to need therapy.”
“How about the closet?”
And so, Stef, Javier and Geno’s stories slowly become intertwined as Stef begins to treat Geno with art therapy. We get to experience the healing process as well as the gorgeous blossoming relationship between Stef and Javier. Everything in this book unfolds with perfect timing, and nothing is ever rushed or forced. Even after finishing this book months ago, I still feel as though all of the characters were real. And that is quite a feat for an author to accomplish. At the risk of rambling on and on, I will also say that I highlighted huge portions of this book. And that I LOVED all of the supporting characters.
The chemistry between Stef and Jav was absolutely off the charts. They both had insecurities going into their relationship which made them both all the more believable. This felt like a genuine partnership. No insta-love, but instead a rich and nuanced passion for each other.
Tonight their bedroom overflowed with magnificent sex. Death by sex. Grandiose, over-the-top sex. They were making love like architects of the universe. Fucking like mathematicians. Multiplying, dividing, canceling each other out and starting from zero.”
I am simply in awe of Suanne Laquer. This book is breathtaking! Although it can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend you first read ‘An Exaltation of Larks’ – which is only 99 cents at the time of this review. If you only read a few books a year, make ‘A Charm of Finches’ one of them. Filled with rich imagery, passion and pure emotion, it is unforgettable.
“I want this feeling I have with him. When I’m around him I feel honest. I feel authentic. I feel myself and I see so clearly who I want to be and the life I want to lead. And the kind of person I want to have with me on the ride. A curator and sailor. A person who makes me feel like this. I want to be who I am when I’m with him.”
Author Bio
Suanne Laqueur
A former professional dancer and teacher, Suanne Laqueur has gone from choreographing music to choreographing words. Her goal is to create a new kind of emotionally-intelligent romance that appeals to the passions of all readers, crossing gender, age and genre.
Suanne Laqueur’sAn Exaltation of Larks won the Grand Prize in the 2017 Writer’s Digest Book Awards. Her debut novel The Man I Love and its follow-up, Give Me Your Answer True, won gold medals in the 2015 and 2016 Readers’ Favorite Book Awards. Both were finalists in the 2015 and 2016 Kindle Book Awards, and Laqueur was named a gold medal Debut Author with Feathered Quill Book Reviews.
Laqueur graduated from Alfred University with a double major in dance and theater, and taught at the Carol Bierman School of Ballet Arts in Croton-on-Hudson for ten years. An avid reader, cook and gardener, she started her blog EatsReadsThinks in 2010. She lives in Westchester County, New York with her husband and two children. Visit her at http://suannelaqueurwrites.com. All feels welcome. And she always has coffee.
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Ellen I just have to say your review is so awesome! I wish I had the ability to write a review like you do!
Thank you so much Loraine! ❤️