by Shannon (link)
Genre het, romance
Pairings Isaac/OFC, Taylor/Natalie, Zac/Kate
Length 21 chapters and epilogue
Status Completed (sequel to Love Song)
When a story ends happily, I often wonder what the purpose of a sequel is. However, Shannon ended Love Song so shortly after Mary and Isaac’s reunion that she has plenty of room to develop their relationship (and her own writing ability) in More Than Anything.
The story takes place entirely on the tour Isaac had just invited Mary to join him on, and Shannon does a good job with the details of traveling around the world, although I wouldn’t have minded a few more location specific details. The details she does throw in seem accurate enough to me, although having never toured with a band, I’m willing to accept a lot of variation here.
More Than Anything largely revolves around Mary’s (and to a lesser extent Isaac’s) insecurities about their relationship. A few misunderstandings and misadventures cause Mary to question everything, which is just as grating for the other characters as it is for the reader. An uncharacteristically talkative Kate helps Mary to see the error of her ways, and is unfortunately the only Hanson to get much characterization at all (however inaccurate it may be). Taylor serves only as comic relief, which is needed at some times even though the story never gets that dramatic.
Once again, Shannon chooses to end the story right after Isaac and Mary’s problems are seemingly resolved. Of course, the third story she wrote a few chapters on would suggest those problems weren’t entirely resolved. Given how much her writing has improved over the course of these two stories, it’s a shame the third story never went anywhere.
Review by Bethany (website)