If You Keep Me by Ciara Knight

Title: If You Keep Me

Author: Ciara Knight

Release Date:  10th 2020

Length:  171  pages

Genre: Historical Romance

Publisher: Defy the Dark Publishing, LLC

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**** My Review ***

Each book is a separate world. There are thousands of worlds with different weights and effects. And every book has its uniqueness. But the best books are those that approach the story as a composition of pictures but shown through words.

If You Keep Me is one of those because as you turn the pages, the scenes somehow come alive before your eyes. You seem to be watching a high-quality movie that manages to touch you with its emotionality and post-war harshness.

Historical fiction is my favorite genre, and the World War II period is the period I read the most about. I also have to admit that it hurts every time I read a story where humanity is lost, moral principles disappear and cruelty culminates. My heart bleeds me every time I realize what a man is willing to do to a man in the name of some ultimate stupidity.

Yet, I choose to read such stories. And I read If You Keep Me by Ciara Knight. Much faster I thought. I shed genuine tears. I got angry and felt immense disappointment.

Victor and Rosie, are two victims of the war. Maybe not on the front lines, not even from bullets and torture. But still victims. Victims of the cruelty that separates them, of the memories that create a gap between them. From the inability to get over that threatens to destroy what little they have left. Yet,sincere love still hides in their hearts. But will they muster enough strength to face their demons and win?

This is my first time reading something from this author and I like her writing style. Appropriately complex and rich, with many finely embedded metaphors and detailed descriptions. Somehow as you turn the pages, the words manage to transport you into that created environment and you seem to be able to feel everything.

And every perfectly crafted scene is spiced with many emotions that touch you. Post-marriage problems, miscarriages, and traumas are carefully intertwined with love and hope in a story that will pull on your heartstrings until the very end.

Moreover, the overall story perfectly conveys the spirit of Christmas. Kindness, joy, generosity, and the need to belong are perfectly integrated into this whole story. The part with the orphans is perhaps the most effective in conveying the message that sometimes we should forget about our problems and focus on others who need us.

Equally important is the portrayal of the main and side characters. Rosie and Victor are complex characters, shown with all their demons and goodness. Characters that the reader can relate to and understand regardless of their sometimes incomprehensible choices.

If You Keep Me is a charming Christmas-themed story with relatable characters and a gripping storyline that will transport you into the post-WWII world, filled with destruction, loss, and hope for a better tomorrow.