The Feather by Red Garnier
June 1, 2010
Erotic
Trade Paperback, 304 Pages
NAL Trade


Reviewed by Tori

Meredith has met the man of her dreams. She can barely survive the day knowing she will be in his arms that night. As their passion and desires grow, Meredith is transported in a dream back in time. Meredith and James knew each other in the past. Over and over they meet, fall in love, then betray each other. Can Meredith stop this cycle? Or will she once again lose the only man she has ever loved time and time again?

Meredith Sinclair has everything she ever wanted. A great life, fantastic job, and now James Hamilton. A god; he is the most beautiful man she has ever met. And the way he make her feel-her body weeps at the mere thought of his name. They are both lawyers who are involved in facilitating a merger between their companies. It is erotic foreplay for them to fight all day then love all night. She would do anything for him and to him. And will allow him to do anything to her. It has become an obsession for both of them.

When James asks her to submit to him she has no choice but to obey for it has always been her fantasy. She sends him a feather as a gift to use that she was compelled to buy. When he touches her with the feather she is transported back to Victorian times in a dream. Meredith and James knew each other. Him an Earl and she a prostitute; they embark on a wildly erotic and destructive affair. When James informs Meredith, in the past, that he has to marry for the sake of his birthright she is utterly destroyed. James forces Meredith back to the present with the help of a former girlfriend, Cordila.  An ex that Meredith identifies with as the one with whom she is always betrayed with. In that telling moment, Meredith feels that James once again will betray her and leaves him with no explanation. James is confused and heartbroken. When, in a fit of anger, he crushes the feather, he too is transported back to another time. As James watches himself and Meredith go through life over and over he realizes that they are old souls; doomed to love and lose.


The Feather is very dark.  Brimming with angst, disgust, despair. These two lovers doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over unless they can break they circle. James and Meredith are obsessed with each other to the point of no return. Their souls have loved each other though many lifetimes. Yet, it always ends the same.One of them betrays that love each time and one dies. Then it begins again. Each time they find each other again the emotions are a little stronger. Hate and love simmer below the surface, waiting to surface again.

When Meredith meets James she is completely bowled over. Not understanding the feelings she has towards him; all she knows is he is her breathe of life. She cannot survive without him. These feelings scare her to death. She is a submissive but James’s actions in their past lives together has left her feeling used and raw. She comes off a little unbalanced and childish. Rather then discussing any of this with James, she just assumes James will hurt her again and runs away.

James is little better. We got a bit of POVs from him and a more in depth look at his current life. His treatment of her as a submissive was a little raw. No rules or gentleness even though in his thinking, this is her first time. In past lives and this one he is very dominant. To him, true pleasure can only be achieved when it is no longer distinguishable from pain.But just like with Meredith; her treatment of him in their past lives leaves him angry and unfulfilled. They both walk a fine line around the abyss.

I liked the premise of the book and the beginning showed much promise. But I didn’t feel any connection between the protagonists beyond the sex and anger. The odd part is I really felt there were two people writing. The story told in the present is choppy and flat. But I felt it was suppose to be that way.

To Meredith and James there is nothing or nobody besides them. Everything else is a distraction. Life. Food. People. Nothing else exists in their world but them. Ms. Garnier lets you see two people completely stripped down to the basest of forms. But when you read about their past lives, the “dreams” are vivid and descriptive.  Intense word play and story building. Here you see a glimpse of the beginning. When love and romance was still dreamed and sought. I wanted much more then she gave from those stories.

This book was hard for me to read. I felt like I was reading from a schizophrenic’s POV. Abrupt scene jumping, ideas leading to dead ends, and conversations added without rhyme or reason. I think if Ms Garnier had written this in the first person it would have made more sense to me.The ending was a disappointment. After all the angst and despair in the beginning & it resolved itself without much fanfare. There was no redemption. No stunning revolutions. It was if a light bulb went off in their heads and they said, “Oh, this is what I need to do.” There was so much more to be had out of this story


Rating: 2.5/5

Recent Reviews:
Goodreads


Thanks Tori!