And They Had a Great Fall
Innate chemistry helps ferry a couple through their challenges in the exciting romance novel And They Had a Great Fall.
A guarded widow and a movie star keep their budding relationship a secret in Shelby Saville’s moving romance novel And They Had a Great Fall.
On a movie set in Copenhagen, Jake places a panicked call to his former fling, Kat, a businesswoman and single mother who’s gunning for a promotion. They had a brief relationship during COVID-19, but Kat hasn’t heard from Jake in a year. Yet when Jake begs Kat to fly across the world to him, she surprises herself by saying yes. For Kat, the trip is also an opportunity to stand out at the Copenhagen branch of her company.
Kat, ambitious and practical, goes above and beyond for her company and her daughter. Jake, at her opposite, struggles to connect to his acting work, even as he puts effort into perfecting his craft. Their personal struggles are compelling: Jake is forced to navigate megafame while Kat grieves her late husband and the stability that died with him.
Still, the couple’s relationship during the pandemic was sexual, not intimate, and the pull they feel toward each other is underexplained early on. And because both of their lives are so complicated, their relationship is beset by troubles. Kat misses a crisis at work; Jake is flippant about the inevitability of their relationship becoming public knowledge against Kat’s wishes. Such issues are handled with nuance, even as Kat and Jake make harmful decisions because of their flaws. Despite all they go through, it comes to seem they are the best versions of themselves together.
Several of the secondary characters add emotional depth to the tale, including Kat’s sweet five-year-old daughter and Jake’s warm director. Others, though—including the woman who plays Jake’s love interest in the movie he’s working on—are more archetypal, resulting in distractions from the story about Kat and Jake’s relationship. Still, the relationship builds at a steady pace during the two-week trip; Kat and Jake fall more in love. Their chemistry is immediate, and the evolution from a sexual to an emotional connection is satisfying. While Kat still struggles with her grief and Jake with his fame throughout, their growth together is positive.
In the resonant romance novel And They Had a Great Fall, career-focused individuals find solace with each other despite the obstacles in each of their lives.
Reviewed by
Leah Block
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
