Temporary? Insanity

I wish I kept notes on how I met my blogging friends. After three years, I rarely have any idea when or how these friendships began. Such is the case with the ever lovely Annette Lyon. Did it begin with me reading her blog in a stalkerish fashion? Or did she chance upon a link to mine in the sidebar of one of our mutual friends? I remain uncertain, though the first option gets my vote. Still, I do recall that from the very beggining I was struck by her wit, her self-deprecating sense of humour, and her thought-provoking and informative blog posts.

I was hooked from day one.

So two years ago when I went to Utah for the first time, I naturally looked her up. Well, not so much her (stalkerish tendencies should be avoided, after all), as her books. Yep, I insisted on scouring the bookstore for books by the LDS authors I’d gotten to know a bit online. James Dashner, Julie Wright, Tristi Pinkston, Annette Lyon, and a few others. James and Annette were the only ones with books out at the time though and I eagerly grabbed up what I could find.

The day I first cracked the cover of Annette’s Spires of Stone, a fan was born.

Now, I have to point out here what a weird sensation it is to become a fan of someone you consider a friend. Very, very bizarre sensation. I’ll be meeting Annette in person for the first time next month and I don’t know what I’ll want to do more, give her a hug or ask for her autograph.

I’ve since read more of her work, and continue to be captivated by the stories she weaves. Historical fiction has never been my passion, and so it is all the more to her credit that I so thoroughly enjoy her work in that genre.

Tower of Strength is, in my opinion, the most compelling book Annette has ever written. The characterization is, perhaps, her greatest strength. The characters in this book come to life in a very profound way. I felt strong emotional reactions to their behaviour. Some I came to care about, one I seem to recall I even loathed a bit for a time. To create those sorts of feelings from mere ink and paper, letters and words, is truly a unique gift that Annette has gained mastery of.

As for the story. Wow. Wow wow wow. Never before have I seen a plotline with such potential for corniness (I mean this in a good way, honestly!), be guided and shaped into something entirely other. There is a sort of giddy delight that comes with thinking you know what is coming and being proven, continuously, wrong. This is another of Annette’s great strengths, and one that as an aspiring author, I hope to emulate one day.

Lastly, I have to offer my thanks to her for giving me the opportunity to read her work. There is something altogether magical in reading a book before it is published. I think it has to do with the feeling of “Neener neener neeeeeener, I got to read it fiiiiirst!” such an experience creates.

Five stars out of five. Ten out of ten. Both thumbs up. And my hearty recommendation that you buy your own copy. This is definitely one you’ll want to read more than once.