Still Life With Strings by L.H. Cosway on 3/24/2014
Pages: 280
Review Copy Provided By: Author
Goodreads
My name is Jade Lennon and I stand still for money.
The night I saw Shane Arthur watching me everything changed. A man in a suit always catches my eye, but it was the way he looked at me that was different. Like he knew me or something. He didn’t know me, especially not in my costume. My sobriety rests on staying away from men, but there was something about him that made me throw caution to the wind.
After all, I was never going to see him again, right?
Wrong.
Standing still isn’t the only way I make my money. I also bartend at a concert hall. Never in my wildest dreams did I think Shane was going to show up there. Not only that, but he’s the most recent addition to the orchestra. So now on a daily basis I have to resist one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever met and he plays the violin. For me that’s one hell of a deadly cocktail.
He wants me to teach him how to live. I’m not sure how much a twenty-six year old recovering alcoholic who works in a bar and moonlights as a living statue can teach a world class concert violinist, but I’m sure going to try.
Still Life with Strings is a story of music, art, sex, magical realism, and romance that you will never forget.
** Not suitable for readers under 18 years. Contains strong language and sex scenes. **
Jade, is a living statue performer and part-time bartender at a concert hall. She is also the guardian of two younger siblings. She is not only a recovering alcoholic but also recovering from bad relationships. She has sworn off both. She is lively and full of color.
Shane, a violin virtuoso, is trying to recover from a bad relationship as well, one that took a huge toll on his emotional well-being. He is shy and socially awkward.
The two first cross paths in the town square while Jade is “performing”. A one-night-stand ensues. Or so Jade thought. She soon becomes freaked out when at her job at the concert hall, she and Shane meet again. Jade’s intimacy fears keep her constantly pushing Shane away and making them maintain a “friends with benefits” relationship.
“I didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to stay platonic with a man I’m this strongly attracted to. There’s an underlying note of sex in everything we do.”
Both Jade and Shane are packed full of baggage and emotional issues and this is certainly evident in the way they proceed with their relationship. It progresses slowly on an emotional level, but quickly on the physical level. There is quite a lot of steam in this book, which I didn’t expect.
“I think it’s true what they say about the shy ones being the complete opposite in the bedroom. Turn off the lights and turn off the shyness.”
Jades vivid imagination is what Shane needs to help him LIVE life. Shane gives her consistency and loving. Something she has been without for a very long time. This begs the question, can men and women just be friends, and can a “casual affair” remain just that?
“How fortunate I was that our paths crossed. I’ve a feeling that this sad, lonely, lovely man in my life is going to change it irrevocably. Even if from now on I only ever get to observe him from afar, he will mark me somehow.”
Goodreads First Reads winner
About L.H. Cosway
L.H. Cosway has a BA in English Literature and Greek and Roman Civilisation, and an MA in Postcolonial Literature. She lives in Dublin city. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favorite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books.
She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories.
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