Source: Purchased
“Life is the art of drawing without an eraser,” Jack said in a contemplative tone and broke the silence.
“Who said that?” Lindsey asked.
“You did.”
(from Love Locks)
Those who know me well know that Hallmark’s romance movies are my guilty pleasure. I can watch the Hallmark movie marathons all weekend, and I’ve seen some of the movies multiple times. They aren’t Oscar-worthy movies, but they are just the thing when I need to de-stress and enjoy something lighthearted and predictable. (Ask my husband, and he’ll tell you that if I’m cranky, he’ll turn on Hallmark and let me be. :D) So when I saw that Hallmark has its own publishing company, I thought I’d give one of the books a shot.
I chose Love Locks by Cory Martin because I had stumbled upon the movie and watched the last hour of it, enjoying the Paris setting and the theme of second chances. I was curious if a book based on the movie would measure up, especially since I normally watch movies based on books and not the other way around.
Love Locks follows Lindsey, who was an art student and painter in Paris when she fell in love with Jack, the son of a hotel owner. The couple planned to commemorate their love by attaching a lock to the Pont des Arts bridge, but after their lock accidentally falls into the river and Jack doesn’t follow her back to New York as planned, she gave up painting and moved on with her life.
Twenty years later, Lindsey is divorced, the owner of an art magazine, and the proud mother of Alexa, who is following in Lindsey’s footsteps by studying art at the Sorbonne with Lindsey’s mentor, Hugo. Accompanying Alexa to Paris to help get her settled stirs up memories of Jack, and with some meddling by Hugo, Lindsey and Jack are reunited. While Lindsey and Jack ease back into a friendship of sorts and attempt to come to terms with their past, Lindsey has some tough choices to make about her magazine and must learn to accept that her daughter is an adult and eager to fall in love and go out on her own.
What surprised me the most about Love Locks was the writing. Martin brings the story to life in a way that the movie does not, giving readers a glimpse into the characters’ thoughts and fleshing out the story. Having seen the movie, I could easily picture the story in my mind, but I would’ve enjoyed the book regardless. The epilogue was a nice touch, giving readers a chance to see what happens to the characters after the movie ended. And there is a recipe at the end as well, which is an added bonus.
Love Locks was just what you’d expect from a book based on a Hallmark movie: lighthearted, humorous, and romantic. The characters were believable and endearing, and I couldn’t help but feel for Lindsey as I prepare to send my own daughter off to college in a few months. I would definitely give another book from Hallmark Publishing a try, especially since having seen the movie didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the book at all.
I haven’t seen a Hallmark movie in a while but, like you, always enjoy them. I had no idea they’re publishing books now.
I was pleasantly surprised! It seems they are releasing new books frequently now. When I bought this one, the selection was limited.
I can do Hallmark. I’m forever recording movies from that channel. And lately, there has been a new film every Saturday night. Will have to check out your recommendation. A similar think happened to me when I saw the movie The Vow. I wanted to read the book and it was so much better plus it had pictures of the real couple. Thanks for the recommendation.
My pleasure! I hope you enjoy it!
Love Hallmark. I didn’t know they had their own publishing company. Wow! That is really branching out. This was a delightful review and I will need to check out this genre. I see Jen Red agrees that sometimes the book is better than the movie. I don’t think the movie industry has caught up with the genre yet and hopefully they will take notice and hire directors and producers that give more respect to the written work and not cut corners simply to mass produce something that is inferior to what the author intended. There is still a gap that needs to be bridged. Thanks for your thoughts.
Thanks, J.W. Hope you give it a try!
Aren’t books always better than the movie? I think so! This sounds like a good one.
Most of the time, yes!