by Bethany (link)
Genre het, romance, supernatural
Pairings Zac/OFC
Length 19 chapters
Status Completed
Let me begin this review by clearing up any possible confusion. I do have the same name as the author, and although we were good friends for a few years, I can assure you that we are not the same person. I honestly can’t recall if I read this story when she wrote it, but I do remember talking to her about it. In the years since then, it’s drawn some comparisons to Catapult, but I don’t really see the similarity.
Shades of Blue begins with a rather ominous foreword, explaining that the “dream” chapters (some are “dreams” and some are “realities”) were all inspired by real dreams Bethany had. Even if I hadn’t been friends with her during the time when those dreams plagued her, I think this opening would have still sent a shiver down my spine.
The first chapter is a little cheesy, but it is a dream, after all. Lydia and Zac meet and are immediately in love, despite it only being in her mind — or is it? All the dreams are a little cheesy, in fact, but I’ll allow them to be. Dreams are fantasies, after all, right? There’s always the lingering feeling that Lydia’s dreams are something more than that, though.
Eventually, of course, reality begins to seep in. The reality really isn’t any less cheesy than the dreams, though. It all happens pretty quickly and unrealistically, to be honest, but I suppose that’s sort of the point. The writing is strong and poignant, though. Even when the chapters are short, that shortness serves a purpose.
I don’t think it’s really a good comparison, though, to compare Shades of Blue to Catapult. For one, it’s much, much shorter, and there’s nothing anywhere near as tragic here. I had remembered it a little differently than how it actually was, which was really just a straight up romance with the added supernatural element of the dreams that just so happen to be real. It isn’t a bad story by any means, but don’t go into it expecting anything especially deep or lengthy that you can really sink your teeth into.
Review by Bethany (website)