Review: John's Love by J.J. Valentin

Blurb:
John’s LOVE is a surreal romantic fantasy about a man’s unconditional love for a woman he knows he’s destined to be with, even though, he can’t prove it…
It all begins when John hears Sarah’s loud and boisterous laugh as he walks passed her in the distance behind their High School. The sound of her laughter draws his eyes towards her, engulfing his heart with love, and flooding his mind with visions of their past lives and love in Heaven. At first, he fears his visions may be a delusion, possibly an early symptom of Schizophrenia, which is the disease that has burdened many of his family. But John’s instant love for Sarah is so strong he’d fight today’s laws of reality in good faith that destiny and true love exist. His soul remembers their past but knows nothing of their future…
He goes through many trials in his life trying to be with Sarah but his destiny is threatened when the greatest evil of all, Satan, manifest himself into the form of a human being and brings “Lucas” into Sarah’s life; captivating and blinding her very soul away from John.
The concept behind creating this book was to have all of the best parts of a Love story that everyone adores, yet, all the while still remaining original. This story has long distance hardships which you’ve seen in the Notebook, immediate enemies battling to win the heart of a woman (figuratively speaking) which you’ve seen in Twilight, unconditional love beyond this life which you’ve seen in What Dream’s May Come, along with fighting today’s modern ideology that what you see in front of you is all there is and all that ever will be. John’s LOVE has a religious undertone but don’t be mistaken…it has sex, drugs, alcohol, prostitution, the struggles of unconditional love, forgiveness and death all wrapped into one endearing story.


Review:
A tender story that will teach you a lesson in faith and love.

​

This short read was a very sweet love story. At the beginning, Valentin briefly mentioned a family history of schizophrenia and I thought he would elaborate but it wasn't mentioned again. I like the originality of the story, a soul mate theory with religious influences that has to encounter and overcome trials and tribulations in order to be together forever.

I, myself, would have loved to see a little more conflict buildup at the end. The ending seemed to go very fast but at the same time it was entertaining and kept me engaged. It would have been great to get a feel for what Sarah had to endure as a hooker. I wish I could have gotten a better idea of the internal struggle Sarah was going through. Valentin touched on it briefly here and there, but I think her internal struggle is really important to see...just as equally important as John's continued faith in God's plan.

Overall, a satisfying read. If you're in the mood for something sweet and tender, with a religious moral theme lurking in the background this book is for you!