Review of A Very Long Engagement (2004) by Brent L — 28 Apr 2008

A fine mystery disguised as a wartime romance. Though the ending is somewhat unsatisfying, the intricacies of the tightly-woven plot keep this taut little mini-epic chugging away briskly without resorting to trickery.

I suppose the end, at least tonally, ties things up neatly. However, it seems to favor the kind of simplicity implicit in the love story--which is a bit confused as to what fiddle it wants to play here--over the more emotionally charged and challenging devices of the narrative, as the beautifully rendered combat sequences do.

Still, this is something beautiful to look at and admire, if not fall head-over-heals in love with.