The Kissing Room [Paperback]

Cheryl Anne Gardner's passionate first novella, The Kissing Room, is a vivid and compelling tale of love, loss, and renewal. In 56 short pages, Gardner immerses the reader in hopelessness, destroys all sense of security, then delivers the reader into the comfort of redemption and release. There is an incredible amount of impact in this thin wisp of a book.

Gardner's protagonist Merle has been fortunate enough to experience the bliss of true love, to coexist with a soul lover, to feel that depth of emotion in her husband, Jon. When it's all ripped away from her, she falls into the escape of self mutilation. Her dirty little secret is that she allows herself to be payment for the debt her late husband owed. She resigns herself to a life of abuse and despair. She's not expecting it, but her savior is on the horizon in the form of a vagabond that wanders into the pub she has made a home. Is she ready to realize all that she deserves or is Jon's debt eternal?

Set primarily in an Irish pub, what is most intriguing about The Kissing Room is the lack of physical description of the setting, but the clarity with which the reader is able to absorb the surroundings. The setting is created through exploration of the camaraderie and fellowship felt in those that frequent the pub scene. It is interrupted with the darker side effects of alcohol and gambling.

I have the most difficult time reviewing Cheryl Anne Gardner's work because she's just too damned good. Her stories have the ability to move me to tears. Her words are penned so eloquently, that by the time I close the book, any attempt I make of writing something of my own reads like a child's book report. I flounder, procrastinate, type and delete because nothing I can come up with does justice to Gardner's writing. Her works demand an emotional response, causing the reader to observe the human condition honestly and in its rawest sense. An author that can create this much impact is a rarity, but Gardner has the ability to evoke such intense compassion that readers are left craving for more. One taste will create a lifelong fan of Cheryl Anne Gardner's work.

"The Kissing Room" is not a light, cheery romance for a Sunday afternoon; rather, it's a dark, disturbing story that threatens to repel the reader with its brutal honesty, yet compels him to read on, anxious for resolution. This fast-paced story is hardly a chronological one, beginning in the middle of the action, and then alternating between what happens next and what happened before. The story also fluctuates frequently between gentle, romantic, or bittersweet moments and truly ugly, stomach-churning scenes of violence and despair. I would add, however, that even the nastiest situations are not described graphically or in lengthy detail, though neither are they for the faint of heart.

"The Kissing Room" is told in the engaging, first person voice of Merle, a woman whose short life has already seen too much tragedy, making her wizened and weary beyond her years. While the reader may not agree with her choices or even understand her reasons for making them, it is impossible not to sympathize with this character and want to see her prevail. The character of Lain was less clear to me, and I wasn't always sure I liked him, but that did not seem important; I was rooting for Merle, and if he made her happy, that was all that mattered.

The Irish pub setting of the story is unique and authentic, with both the language and the details bringing it to life. I could always see and feel the story happening as though I was a participant, rather than some disconnected voyeur. The only time I felt thrown out of the story was when the point-of-view shifted from Merle to Lain for a brief passage near the end. I understand why the author did this, but for me, it broke the spell. Fortunately, I was so caught up in wanting to know what would happen, I just ignored it and went on.

I think I've made the point that The Kissing Room is not exactly a "beach read" with its violence and macabre themes, but I don't mean to imply that you will not enjoy it. I read the book nearly straight through, and only stopped because of an unavoidable interruption. I was annoyed to have to pause the action going on in my head, and went back to it as soon as I could—I just had to see how it would end. When it is all said and done, Cheryl Anne Gardner's "The Kissing room" is a deeply touching love story; you just won't know it til it's over.

The Kissing Room by Cheryl Anne Gardner

So what if The Kissing Room's star is a little "astray in the head"; Irish euphemisms only add to this stunning story's appeal. Set in a pub in Ireland, Meryl O'Byrne tends her deceased father's business with spit, grit and wit. Although she is haunted by the suicidal death of her beloved husband Jon, she muddles through with thoughts rampant and barely controlled as they gallop past her consciousness like wild horses. When Meryl meets an intriguing stranger named Lain, she slowly learns to release the past and begin anew--shrugging off her demons at the same time.

All of this makes her the most believable character I've read in a long time. Told in First Person, author Cheryl Anne Gardner expertly gives us a glimpse into the mind of a widow who sees and reacts to the world with her very last ounce of passion. The reader is invited onto a roller coaster ride of delicious descriptive settings and masterfully done character development.

Gardner is a superb storyteller and you won't regret giving her a try.

Ellen C Maze
Author of the bestselling unique vampire tale