Dear Grief Fairy,I’ve met a man who encompasses grief. Alexander Blayren, the brooding cellist.The man I crave. He’s rude, bold and brash, but I see what’s underneath. A man crying out. Surviving for the sake of his daughter. Just. Alexander didn’t believe you could survive grief. Loss had painted his life black, dimming the lights and quietening the music. But I didn’t agree.When I lost my … I didn’t agree.
When I lost my family, dance was my therapy. Movement, my recovery.
Could music be his?
Would his notes be a reprieve; the strings, his lifeline?
Or could his journey to survival begin with me?
Through the body he studies as I dance, my cries of pleasure under his fingertips, or his arousal at my willing restraint?
Grief Fairy, you understand me better than anyone. Can I relieve Alexander’s lament?
Yours,
Nat
more
Grief is the keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss. It is sharp sorrow. Anguish. Heartache. Woe. Misery. Natasha Bevan is a women who has experienced the sharp ache of loss. Her grief journey has been a difficult one, but dance has been the one thing in her life that helps soothe the ache, the deep feeling of loss and allows her for a brief time to feel free, happy. Alexander Blayren has also experienced incredible loss. His deep pain and grief are expressed through his music. His cello is his lifeline. When Nat decides to move back to her hometown to run a local dance studio, their lives become unexpectedly intertwined. Nat loves his music. It moves her and speaks to her soul. She is drawn to him in ways she shouldn’t be. Can she break through the dark, broody exterior of this broken man? Or will he keep her at arms length to protect his heart? Lament is an emotional, raw, read with some unexpected twists and turns. Great read.
This book was everything it was emotional without being a tearjerker it was beautifully written and story that will stay with me for a long time.
This story started with heartbreak and the sadness of losing loved ones but what this book does is show us the way for these two characters to try and bond with grief but also a little girl that is suffering as well.
Alex is a character that is the pure defintion of broody and someone who has his walls built up so high that the whole time I thought while reading this book was how was Nat going to break them down. I really loved Alex when you learn is story you can understand the reason he acts like it does, he was such an intense and brooding character but I loved the way the author wrote him.
Nat was. Avery strong character that had been through so much in life losing family members, being rejected time and time again for work that she absolutely loved and was just not giving a chance to prove how amazing she was a dancer. I really loved Nat I thought the way she went through life was really inspiring and took a lot from this character and this story.
This was just an amazing story and I loved everything about it, it had all the feels and a beautiful storyline and so many factors that I loved with the mystery to do with a tree, an amazing Grandma and a little girl who you couldn’t help but love. All the side characters plus the hero and heroine were perfectly written.
This is a story that has it all, single father, heartbreaking, story, gets you hooked from the first page, a real feel good story. If this sounds like something you like to read you won’t be disappotned
5 Stars for this book its a must read
I’m not even sure where to start. This book was so heartfelt and moving and haunting. Saying it was amazing doesn’t really seem like enough. You go through an array of emotions. I don’t typically read books that are this emotional. I wouldn’t really describe it as angsty. This is a little different than the other books by her. Music and dance play such an important role in the book that it’s almost like they’re secondary characters. I could hear the cello playing. I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review, and I can say that I definitely recommend it.
I absolutely adore this story. I personally have lost loved ones and I live with my own grief every single day. I feel that the author identified and showed that everyone deals with grief differently and I thought she wrote about something so personal….. beautifully. I certainly could relate to many scenes in the book and I know from reading Lynsey M Stewart’s other novels that she has a knack of writing the most amazing stories about real life situations…. this one being no different.
This incredible story will have you feeling every emotion possible as you turn the pages. It is a story of love and loss, heartache and joy and let’s not forget hope!
You will become captivated as you witness the characters deal with real life circumstances and will feel all the emotions that they are experiencing. The path that we follow through life is not necessarily the one that we would have chosen to, and I believe Nat and Alex’s journeys will stay with you for a long time to come.
What can I say about the characters? Let me talk about Nat first of all. You will know if you have read the synopsis that she has had to deal with grief but this happened at such an important time in a young lady’s life. I think she is wonderful – she has such a mature head on her shoulders and is strong, but she still has a need to protect herself from potential hurt and heartache. I felt her character sent me a powerful message as a reader – that there are ways of helping to cope with feelings such as grief in this instance, and that an individual just needs to find one that suits and helps them the most.
Alex – he’s stolen my heart. I’ve always believed that artists are complex in nature and can be highly sensitive. Here we have a man who is struggling to cope with his own grief as well as trying to be there for others. When I see someone so torn and lost, I have this need in me to help them… to make things better. I honestly wondered at times if Alex was the one who could never be saved. I hoped that Nat would be strong enough not only for herself, as she had to deal with her own personal and professional life struggles, but also to help Alex, because they both needed to overcome the issues they were facing by trying to be in a relationship together. You will find out if this happens when you read the book.
I can honestly say that you will find a place in your heart for the other characters in the story too. I would highlight the characters Sherrie and Elise in particular. All those connected to Alex and Nat have also been affected by losing loved ones and I feel all the supporting characters in the story do indeed add to it. If I say any more I risk going into spoiler territory and I won’t do that, so you will just have to trust me on this.
Lament is such a wonderful story and is a must read in my opinion. I am certain you will love it just as much as I do.
Art and beauty collide in such elegant, moving ways in this tale of grief and love.
I took a chance on a new author to me because it was impossible to resist a romance between a ballerina and a cellist. Music and dancing are muses I cannot deny when it comes to reading, so I plunged into this story of two people who have lost loved ones. Nat and Alex are in different stages of loss, which bonds them in unexpected, healing, emotional ways.
The soft, compassionate and insightful writing portrays both the pain and the anger at the injustice of death. It’s hard, yet enlightening to read.
I loved this book.
The characters are alive with grief, despair and loneliness, but also with hope, desire, humour and humanity.
The cello player is a dad to a sweet little girl full of questions. He is broody, handsome, struggling with his inability to cope and yet yearning to do well by his child.
The wonderful ballet dancer who challenges him with wit and warmth has grieved for her family for many years, though she stills has hurdles to overcome each day. The conversations between them are pure energy, as is the bubbling attraction that burns under their skin.
The stark emotions compete with the arousing passion these characters share. I was amazed by the beauty of the words as they paint a battle of accepting the past and embracing the chance to love again.
The plot blooms in many paths as the lovers deal with secrets, bereavement, betrayal and crushed hope. I loved Natasha’s grandmother, Mark and Lacey, the ballet studio, the old dog, a very special nook in the forest, and the poignant ending. It’s all beautiful and vibrantly told.
I’m not sure that I can write a review that could possibly do this book justice. I’ve never read a book that was so soulful…it makes me wonder if she’s experienced this kind of loss or this kind of grief because I’m not sure how anyone could write such a beautifully written story otherwise. Alex and Nat have both suffered loss but Alex can’t move past the grief…. not until Nat’s light begins to penetrate his walls. Honestly such a wonderful story of moving past grief and allowing yourself to love again.
Nat was the only survivor of a car crash that killed her mother and eight year old little sister. Having grown up dancing with a professional ballerina grandmother, Nat throws herself into her dancing to deal with her grief. After 10 years away, living in London as a professional dancer, she returns home to take over her grandmother’s dance studio when her grandmother’s health starts failing. She discovers the Grieving Tree, a town mystery, which becomes her obsession and changes her life in many ways.
This was a beautiful book. So many people dealing with profound loss: Nat of her mother and sister, Sherrie of her daughter and granddaughter, Eli of her mother, Alex of his wife, Nadia of her sister. Each deals with grief in their own way, for better or worse. The love that develops between Nat and Alex is profound. He is finally able to let himself experience life and love again after losing his wife, and Nat helps him to understand Eli’s feelings as she has also experienced the loss of a mother. This is not a light, easy read but it is profound and moving. Definitely worth reading a second time.
This was a beautiful story about two people who have suffered great losses and finding their way to each other. It was written so eloquently and full of steam and passion. The art of music and dance are both huge themes in this book, almost like their own characters. The grief and pain these characters felt were so raw and could be felt pouring off the pages. Even the happiness could be felt. This was my first book by Lynsey Stewart and I’ll be interested to find more of her work. It was truly a great experience reading this book.