The Willful

by Lauren Nicolle Taylor

[shannonmiz]

This novella was such a beautiful addition to The Woodlands series. I didn't know how to feel about Esther as the series wrapped up. I kind of felt for her, but I definitely didn't like her. But after reading her story, I couldn't help but feel an immense amount of empathy for her, and her situation.

Honestly, I related to Esther more than I'd like to admit. So many of her feelings I have felt. And Lauren Nicolle Taylor paints those flaws so beautifully that even if you don't identify with a lot of Esther's thoughts, you can still feel her pain and her strife.

While catching glimpses from different moments in her life, it was so easy to see and understand why she had made the choices she had in The Woodlands series. But the novella doesn't try to make her a heroine, or even a martyr, just to tell her story. It does so, eloquently.

*Copy provided for review.