The Wright Brother (Wright Brothers, #1)

by Marie Hall

[Angie]

I was quite excited for The Wright Brother, because New Adult, deaf hero, years of longing! It totally sounded like my thing. Sadly, I couldn't stand Elisa, and the story felt so long and drawn out because it covers over 20 years! Elisa grew up next door to the Wright family, and the boys were like her brothers. She did get closest to Julian because he tended to stay back, so she stayed with him. Of course, that brotherly love had to evolve into something else over the years.

The Wright Brother and I got off to a rough start because of the structure of the story. I went in expecting a reunion and then the romance. Instead it starts when Elisa is a toddler and the Wright triplets were just born. Then there's a chapter when she's 7 and they're 5. Then it jumps to when she's 10, then when she's 18 and tells Julian that they can't happen. Finally, she's 19 and going off to college. I really could have done without all of this extensive back history. Sure, it shows us what things were like for them in the past, but simple flashbacks could have sufficed. Instead I was bored and waiting for the meat of the story to start. I did enjoy the college bits, but then it goes beyond college and I got bored again.

About Elisa being a year older than is typical when she goes to college: her parents held her back a grade! Not because she was failing or some other academic reason, but so her father "could concentrate on his training, without forcing her mother to stay home because of Elisa being in school (pg 16)." What does that even mean? How is keeping her back a grade changing the fact that she's already in school? I really do not understand this, but I think it was to close the gap between Eliza and Julian a bit. She may be three years older, but only two grades ahead, which makes it more acceptable? The age thing was brought up a lot, like it's the biggest deal in the universe. She's even called a pedophile at one point when she's 20 and he's 18.

It was also really hard for me to like Elisa. She's just so...I can't think of a word for her. But she was always so surprised by things Julian does because he's deaf and color blind, and not because she hadn't seen him for 9 years at one point. She doesn't understand why he wears band t-shirts because he can't hear the music. She's surprised (and embarrassed) when she learns that he can read lips. She's surprised that he's legally allowed to drive! And he wants to be an artist?! Gasp! Girl, get a clue! Being deaf and color blind doesn't make him some alien. He's still a person and is capable of things. All it means is that he can't hear or see certain colors. I got super annoyed with Elisa fast because of this. Of course, there's also her obsession with their ages, which she admits wouldn't be a problem if she were the younger one. Uh huh.

The Wright Brother was just kind of frustrating for me. It's never a good sign when you hate the main character. Although I did appreciate her going after her dream and not being held back by Julian. I absolutely hate when that happens in romances! Sure, that part of the story almost bored me to tears, but I'm still glad that Elisa went after what she wanted even if it didn't work out. I just wish this one had worked out for me.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.