Pocket, $6.99, ISBN 0-671-03534-7
Historical Fiction, 2002 (Reissue)
I have put off reading this book for a long time, because the title, Sentimental Journey, scares me. Knowing how romance authors sometime labor under this deluded belief that complete viscera and over-the-top sentimentality are good, I fear that this World War 2 romance will be a two-hour bulimia experience.
And while the author puts in some war scenes, more Gung-ho Charlie types than Private Ryan bitter realism, if you know what I mean, she also presents romances between the main couples in a very tired and formulaic manner. Therefore, instead of breaking any new grounds, this is just a “Gee, look, at least it’s set in WW2, wow” story. It’s quite sad when this is the sole reason to get excited over a story.
The cast? Let’s start with the men, they are more interesting. Lt Col JR Cassidy – super Gung Ho Charlie, yee-haw. Red Walker – your rough mechanic Luke Skywalker type that reveals the courage within (or something like that). George “Skip” Inskip – your rich dude who gets corrupted by war and is now a tortured fellow who, of course, will also find the courage within. Or something. They are pretty okay Gung Ho Charlie action figures. Sorry, but I’m kinda saturated by all these action bohunks at the moment. Maybe next time I’ll work up some enthusiasm for these stereotypes.
The heroines? Charlotte Morrisson. Pilot. Flies plane because Daddy taught her to. Fights because Daddy tells her it’s the right thing to do, or so Charlie here infers. Respects Daddy. A tomboy for Daddy. Daddy, Daddy, Daddy. Kitty Kincaid. Introductory scene pegs her down as a bimbo with less brain cells than a gerbil – damsel-in-distress alert. In war for Daddy. Does stupid things to clear Daddy’s name. Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.
Let’s just say I am not surprised that despite Ms Barnett’s claims that these chicks rock, she turns those supposedly kick-ass chicks into your usual weeping girlfriends late in the story, as Kitty and Charlie keep the home fires burning while their men wag their over-endowed penises at those evil Nazi scums. Oh yeah, one of the men “dies” in the climax, leaving his girlfriend to go “Nooooo!”. I get horrifying flashbacks of that really crap movie Pearl Harbor, you know, that one starring that pretty twig insect with that amazing make-up that just won’t get smudged by dust, dirt, and tears.
As a war drama, Sentimental Journey lacks the rush of adrenaline to be really engaging. As a romance, it’s a snooze with boring characters. I may like this story if the author has just concentrated on two main characters and develop their story and characters, instead of putting in an ensemble cast of one-dimensional cardboard and letting them run all over the place. As an epic story, well, it still follows too much of a “romance novel formula to make your book mediocre” to be actually memorable.
