Lydia Schoch

Title: Chasing June

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: May 30, 2016

Genres: Romance, Paranormal

Length: 29 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #7: What do we discover when we dig deep into our past?

Annie Ames returns to her childhood hometown to begin a project with her lifelong friend, Justin: a book documenting the romantic folklore surrounding the legend of Amos Hargrove, the town founder. But no one likes the fact that she’s rifling through old memories and a more than century-old legend. When Annie visits Mary, the town’s oldest resident, she opens an old trunk—and along with a treasured antique wedding shawl, discovers life-altering truths about her feelings for her closest friend…and about the legend of Amos Hargrove and his sweetheart, Finley.

Chasing June is part of Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include: Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, and Mayday Mayday Mayday. Subsequent releases include: A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning: Reference to a death from pleurisy.

Review:

Folklore is for everyone.

Some of the most memorable scenes in my opinion were the ones that explored how differently people in a small town behave when they’re around folks they’ve known for their entire lives versus a relative newcomer to the community. Even the main characters exhibited this change of emotions which I thought was interesting as they were otherwise pretty warm and friendly folks. As someone who moved to a rural community that was not particularly kind and accepting to outsiders when I was a kid, I always appreciate seeing this topic broached in fiction and wonder whether this will be of equal interest to people who have lived in small towns for their entire lives and have maybe never experienced this phenomenon.

I would have liked to see more time spent exploring who Finley was as a person. There were some tantalizing details mentioned, including a shawl she created, but given how important this character is to the Finding Finley series as a whole I was a little disappointed by how the instalment that was meant to dive more deeply into her life was written. While I expected something romantic and whimsical as usual, I was also hoping for at least a few anecdotes about what she was like when she was alive. Was her personality playful or serious? What was her favourite subject in school? How did she spend her free time as a child and young woman?  There was so much more they could have done with her, and I would have happily gone for a much higher rating if they did.

With that being said, this short story felt like the month of June in some lovely ways. Certain characters have just finished their studies and so have the summer before them to relax and shrug off the stress of writing papers and cramming for exams. The weather during this month of the year is beautiful in many places as well, including the town of Finley, and so everyone can spend plenty of time outside enjoying the flowers before the heat and humidity of the rest of the summer arrives. I haven’t read many authors who pay this much attention to how the seasons can affect the way their characters feel, so kudos to Ms. Schindler for including it.

Chasing June was lighthearted.