Amy Fleming's novel, A Little Irish Love Story, is anything but little (448 pages). The book description reads, "Set in post WWII Ireland, this retelling of the Biblical story of Ruth is an incredible love story . . . with a twist." First, I'd like to say that this one liner is very misleading. I decided to review this book (the publisher sent it to me free) based solely on this line, because I've always loved the story of Ruth and was curious how it might work in a different time. The following are my thoughts and they may contain some spoilers.
Up through Chapter 8 it is indeed a retelling of Ruth. I was slightly confused about some of the facts, namely that the mother-in-law, Sarah, has been absent for 50 years. If she had been married 50 years her sons should have been middle-aged when they died and they seemed to be in their twenties. But other than that, and some very noticeable grammatical errors it was an okay rendition of the story. I was certainly not in favor of having Henry, the Boaz-like character, being rather weak and a new Christian (I always read the story of Ruth with Boaz being a strong man of God from the get-go), but the author had her right to tell it that way if she wanted. That being said, if the novel had ended at Chapter 8 I wouldn't recommended it at all. Not that someone might enjoy it, but I absolutely struggled to keep reading.
From Chapter 9 it actually gets more interesting and better written. I wonder, even, if the first 8 chapters were added as an after thought. If I had thought the character personalities were the twist, I was dead wrong. What ensues is an incredibly dramatic and tragic tale of a young woman who gets kidnapped, drugged, loses her memories, and is taken advantage of for six months before being reunited with her husband whom she can't remember. It was dramatic and emotional and, believe it or not, I was engrossed. The content was rather mature and very psychotic (it's a story for adults). This other part of the story, which, essentially, is most of the book, has nothing to do with the Biblical story of Ruth.
Fleming weaves into her tale many hymns and scriptures. God provides an ever present hope to Anna (the Ruth-like character), even though Anna's life sucks. I mean, really, I would never want to trade places with her. If you want a quick read, this is not it. If you like suspense stories, you'll probably enjoy most of this book, as I did, but you may feel disappointed too. In my opinion, the book reads like a draft. It has the potential to be a great novel, but it sorely needs more work. If you want to give it a try, click here. Happy reading.
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