What do readers think of Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto? Write your own review.

Quite a unique read. Here we have a not your normal historical, time-shifting, love story of a page-turner. Talk about a magic mystery tour. Max is a tour guide extraordinare. Not only is he irrestible to Shelley but he also makes the past seem to come alive. Although the writing is sometimes a bit thin, Sotto takes us along a memorable path of a story strewn with nuggets of wisdom about life and the death defying power of love. A must read for this summer!

I, too, am a fan of time travel, so was a little disapponted to discover this is the story of an immortal man. That aside, the author had an an interesting idea and with a little more effort to round out the characters and make time more linear, could have created a memorable book.

I was a little disappointed with this book. I found the story quite interesting, expecially the historic periods. Unfortunately I felt the writing was weak, particularly the dialogue of the characters. The story intrigued me enough that I kept reading to see how it would all be resolved. I think it is an ok book which could have been a great book with better writing.

I chose this book to review because I am a lover of time travel. This book, I discovered, was not about time travel, but about a man, an Immortal man, who has lived through time.

I enjoyed this book to a point. The story of Max and Shelley meeting was entertaining. I loved the bravery of the characters that signed up for Max's adventurous tour. What I didn't really enjoy about the book was the way it jumps into different time periods constantly. It was forever piling more & more characters and locations to the point that when I put the book down for a time, I would continuously have to regroup and figure out where I left off. This perhaps is not the fault of the book but of my own.

I applaud the author for what I think is a very original story. I believe that fantasy & romance readers will enjoy this book.

Before Ever After is a novel that appeals to readers on so many levels. The lover of suspense will find that turning the page adds to, rather than diminishes the mystery. Those who are intrigued by European history will find tidbits that will whet their interest even more. Those who like to dig deeper into a character's psyche will not come away empty-handed. In fact, it is a credit to the author that she has fleshed out the main characters to such an extent that the reader can truly understand what makes them tick. There is a bit of philosophical thought thrown in, too, that would make you re-think the concepts of time and "forever after."
All those layers have been built on this love story that is unlike any other I have ever read. And even if it were just the most basic of love stories, I would still have found so much pleasure reading it - because Samantha Sotto is a wordsmith who paints pictures with her words.

A neat blending of romance, thriller, and history into a fast-paced story that will keep the reader engrossed from the first page to the last. A well done first novel that makes for a fun summer read for both guys and gals.

Before Ever After is a good summer read. I found the structure a little distracting - too much quick shifting between time frames. The historical stories were the best part of the book. It almost seemed as though two different authors were writing the book, because the quality of the writing was so good in the stories of the historical adventures and somewhat stilted in the present times. Still it was an enjoyable and different historical romance novel.

Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto is full of interesting historical vignettes while telling the story of a romance. Although the idea of the book is quite interesting, I liked the story better than the writing. It is a quick read.