Deja Vu by D.J. Starling -a Review
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Description:
“They each sense a powerful connection at their first meeting, but no one could have ever imagined the incredible scenario about to unfold, forever altering the lives of all involved. . . .” “DEANNA”
A new business venture takes priority over romance, yet she longs to meet her Mr Right. At the same time, she’s being haunted by a recurring nightmare, relentless in its tormenting attacks until desperation leads her to a dark and dangerous world. “JOSH”
At the pinnacle of a demanding career, with everything he worked for finally coming together, he begins to yearn for the serious relationship his cherished grandmother, ANNA, insists he needs. Neither could have ever suspected that a vintage keepsake would clear the path to true love. “FAITH”
Deanna’s closest friend, her greatest ally through the best and worst of times, she believes she could supply an antidote for the horrifying dreams that are threatening her friend’s well-being. If only Deanna would let her. “RIVKA and DAVID”
Fortified by young love, emboldened by circumstances, they stand strong against a ruthless enemy in a gruelling fight for their lives.
Review:
Wow !!! I loved it, I cried I cheered, and I wanted to slap our hero Josh. The way both of the main characters felt about each other, and they hadn’t even met in person, it was a glance, a chance encounter, and perhaps fate. It was breath stealing.
Deanna was an independent young woman, who suffers from terrible nightmares, her friend Faith wants her to try regression therapy, so see if a past life or trauma from her childhood is influencing her dreams.
Josh is an up and coming music promoter, he lives life in the fast lane, and has time for the ladies, but on his terms, and none have a part in his future.
Faith is Deanna’s friend and a therapist, she thinks that if she unlocks her friends past, then she can conquer her dreams.
Anna is Josh’s beloved grandmother, she brought him up, and as far as he is concerned, she is his number one lady, after each visit away, Josh comes home to his grandmother, (and we find out that reason at the end of the book)
So, Deanna and Josh have this instant connection, and once they meet for dinner, things progress at a fast rate, in at such a fast rate is scares Josh, and he uses excuses to leave Deanna’s home early. He has meetings away from home, so he uses this time to discover that maybe he doesn’t really know Deanna, so how can he be in love with her. So he has convinced himself that he was just on a high from grabbing a few contracts and getting some of his artists some concerts, and that he needed someone to share his good fortune. So he goes home and breaks Deanna’s heart !!
In the meantime poor Deanna has suffered from a few of her nightmares, so when Josh breaks up with her, her nightmares go into overdrive. Faith has managed to convince her that she really should try this therapy as nothing else is working. Now this is when it gets interesting. and for the first few pages, I got a little confused, but once I re- read it, I was raring to go.
Deanna is regressed into a past life, a life where she is a young Polish girl called Rivka. And she has a huge crush on a young man called David. He has known Rivka all her life as his best friend is her brother.
This is set before the occupation of Poland, and before the second world war. Both David and Rivka’s families are Jewish. And then Deanna goes into such a detailed account of Rivka’s life, that there is no way she could be making this up, and Faith is fascinated by this, she sets a tape into play and sets of a chain of events that will have you laughing and crying as Deanna tells Faith the love story of Rivka and David.
It is a very detailed and moving love story. It tells of two families torn apart by the occupation and war. WE all know how the Jewish people and Polish people were treated I that time, and the author handled it with all the love and care of a truly caring person. Nothing was out of context, everything was well researched. And I lived in those pages whilst reading them, I cried when their parents were murdered, I cried when they lost brothers, sisters were shipped abroad for their welfare. I cheered when they joined the resistance, and I cheered when David asked Rivka to be his bride. These two people deserved each other and all their happiness they could squeeze out of their life, as they didn’t know how long they would have each other. I didn’t like the ending of Rivka’s story, but I could see where the author was taking us.
So whilst Deanna was living in the past, Josh was grappling with his future, he thought that once he was away from Deanna that would be it, he would carry on his life as normal, and look back on it as a fun few weeks. But he couldn’t he began to realise that she meant more to him that that, he wanted her in his life, she enriched it as only a loved one could. Stumbling on the fact he LOVED her, he races over to tell her.
Deanna wants nothing to do with him, he hurt her, what if he did it again, her heart could bear it, so she shuts the door on Josh and the life he was offering. So this goes on for a little while, and it didn’t detract from the story, the author shows 2 love stories and how they are influencing the story. I am sure you can see who the young man Rivka fell in love with, and to who Deanna fell in love with, but reading the stories, it wasn’t apparent at first.
But I can see where the author was going with this, it tells of a love that transcends through time, it finds your soul mate and it will reunite you.
Does Rivka and David’s story have a happy ending ? I think so, in the end 😉 Do Deanna and Josh reunite ? And there are a few things in this book that make you cry, there are a few things that you don’t see coming, and there are a few things that I would love to discuss with the author 😉 (1) Is it just the main characters that are past lives ? or are there a few other characters that can be included ?
Reviewed by Julie B.
Copy provided by Author
D.J. Starling is a penname derived through a combination of a dream, an apparition, and fate. Instinct told Donna to embrace the moniker, and an author was born. Wisdom led her to recruit Marsha after they got acquainted in a writers’ workshop, and a productive partnership began.
An innate understanding of each other’s work enables us to rely on each other’s unique strengths, as well as distinctive personalities. We nurture our own ideas and brainstorm often, mining nuggets from our ramblings that we write and edit—together and separately.
Coincidentally, although it was long before we knew each other, we both attempted our first novels while in the 4th grade. Since then, we’ve both learned that two heads really are better than one as we blend our literary voices to bring intriguing characters to life in compelling stories.
D.J. Starling is offering an ecopy of DEJA VU to one lucky reader at The Reading Cafe.
1. Please register using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.
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3. Giveaway runs from August 31 to September3, 2013
4. Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY
