Thursday, Jun 25, 2009

Book Review: The Sinful Life of Lucy Burns by Elizabeth Leiknes

Author:       Elizabeth Leiknes

Publisher:    Bancroft Press

ISBN:          978-1-890862-62-6

Website:      http://www.elizabethleiknes.com/

Type:         Fiction:Novella

Pages:        167 Hardcover

Release:      June 15, 2009

Purchase:    $14.93 @ Amazon.com (HERE)

The Story

Lucy Burns has not exactly made the best decisions… in fact, she’s accidentally killed her sister’s cat and made a deal with the devil… both of which were completely unintentional yet creating lasting effects on her life.  No, it’s not such a great start to life, if you ask me!  Now Lucy’s reality is one that she never truly wanted in the first place and she would do almost anything to escape it.

Although Lucy is gorgeous, timeless, and powerful,  she wants for nothing other than a normal life with its normal flaws and pitfalls.  If she eats that entire chocolate cake, she wants it to reflect in her hips.   She wants to see those fine lines around her eyes and experience saggy boobs.  Lucy wants to find love and not just exist as a sex goddess.  She longs to see her family again.  And, I’m sure, Lucy would love to have a dog that eats bones and not people. 

When Lucy meets her musical idol, Teddy Nightingale, she learns that there is a loophole in her deal with the devil.  She can get out of this deal, after all.  But, the terms under which she has to get out of her contract are seemingly impossible… despite that, she’ll go to nearly any lengths to achieve her freedom.

The Review

Elizabth Leiknes blended chick lit and the supernatural into a spicy novella that was a fun little trist on a Sunday afternoon.  After a long nap and in a quiet house, I put on my favorite fuzzy socks and immersed myself into a crazy tale of the unbelievable.  I’ve wondered if I made a deal with the devil, sold my soul away for that greatness, what would it be that I would want for?  Would it be fame, riches, or physical perfection?  For Lucy, she was given the ability to be irresistible, brilliant, and gorgeous.  I’ll admit that sounds fun… for a day or two.  But, what this story reminded me is that my real life, flawed an all, is far greater than anything that I could wish or trade for.

That’s right… I’ll keep my poochy tummy, my adult acne, my argumentative kids, and my debt and live a life with purpose and with God guiding it.  There is great evil in our world and it often wins out over good.  People lie, steal, cheat, and murder… there is both an invisible and visible evil presence living and breathing amongst us.  Part of walking a spiritual and good life is avoiding that evil and living for the love inside you.  That’s what this tale reminded me, today.  The bad guys, they’ll get theirs and I’ll leave my justice up to God… he does a much greater job at it than I do.

What else did this sinful little novel bring me?  Simply, a fun little escape and a story in which I could do nothing but completely root for good over evil.  You know… like Star Wars or ET… a story where you get lost to the fight and are absorbed in the fiction of.

I’m a huge fan of the novella… this is the 3rd I’ve reviewed this year.  I just love getting a concisely written story that I can engulf in one reading.  The novella seems to bring across the message of the story across stronger and faster than that of the 400-pager.  Comparable… I think to a 30-minute show to a made-for-tv movie… if you know what I mean. 

I believe that Leiknes had a clever idea in creating Lucy Burns and her plight from the devil.  She’s, at heart, a good girl trapped in bad circumstances.  What could you not like about Lucy???  She’s just trying to be person she was born to be.

Elizabeth Leiknes and Lucy Burns get from me a rating, genre: Fiction:Novella, an 8 OUT OF 10.  If you are spending the day at the pool… grab this read and get lost for a couple of hours in a story of the believable, unbelievable! 

My heartfelt thanks to Harrison and Bancroft for this sinful read. 

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