Title: Healing
Author: Stevie Woods
Publisher: MLR Press
Length: 63 Pages
Category: Contemporary, Suspense/Thriller
At a Glance: All in all, this was an enjoyable little suspense novella with an intriguing political subplot. Even though it felt a little unfinished to me, I would still recommend if you’re looking for a quick read.
Reviewed By: Lindsey
Blurb: With Audin’s life in danger, Tener is willing to take the ultimate risk.
Two men, who were once best friends until they parted following a blazing row, meet up again by chance years later. Both men have experienced much during their years apart and life has tempered them.
Even though Tener is now a healer rather than the doctor he ought to have become, and Audin is an engineer working for an authoritarian government department, they discover they still have much in common. When Tener discovers Audin’s position has placed him at risk, they find themselves working together in the fight against a corrupt and increasingly dangerous government.
This title is a re-release.
Review: This story begins with Audin being injured at work and needing a healer. It just so happens the healer is his old friend Tener, whom he had regretted parting ways with. They ended their association over a decade prior, and not under the best circumstances. Their paths, much like their differing opinions that pushed them apart, took them to opposing factions—one working for a government and the other a part of the resistance against it. Happenstance reunites them, maturity and feelings that neither truly ever got over help them to see their past through different eyes and admit what neither could or would when they were younger.
As they begin to reveal what happened to them individually once they parted ways, Audin and Tener discover something that could change everything. And just when they have found one another, they now find themselves racing against the clock.
When reading shorter stories, I prefer the main characters to have a past, as it seems a little easier to reconnect rather than attempting to create a brand-new connection. Audin and Tener’s past and prior history, with a brief synopsis, helped this story to take off pretty quickly, without missing out on the chemistry between the two. Especially since their journey is filled with obstacles. The romance is there and tangible, and there are even a couple of steamy scenes thrown in along the way.
At sixty-three pages, this is a super short story, which I finished in less than a couple of hours. Despite its limited length, the plot is intricate as the MCs try to figure out what the government is doing, and has done, and just how they can stop it—as well as how far it reaches. There isn’t much time dedicated to giving dimension to some of the other players, but I didn’t feel like I missed out.
Though well done, for me the overall story felt more like an introduction which ended in more of an HFN rather than a fully complete HEA. There are a lot of unanswered questions about how far the government corruption reaches, outside of what they uncover. Audin and Tener are together, and for the time being they are safe, but there is still risk to them both as the full conspiracy was incomplete and there was no real resolution. Healing could easily be expanded upon and made into a full-length novel with a little more world building and exploring Audin’s father’s role in the government, as well as delving further into the corruption exposed and then the subsequent repercussions of that discovery.
All in all, this was an enjoyable little suspense novella with an intriguing political subplot. Even though it felt a little unfinished to me, I would still recommend if you’re looking for a quick read.
You can buy Healing here:
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