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Time Is Eternity
Violet's Present
When Matt’s Great-great-aunt Violet dies, she leaves him a precious a photo album he loved as a child. Then Matt starts having dreams—very good dreams—about Joseph, one of the men in the pictures from the 1940s. One morning when Matt wakes up, the bruises are still there. Could there be more to Violet’s present than he thought?A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2012 Daily Dose package "Time Is Eternity".
47 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 31, 2012
4 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Kim Fielding
175 books1,306 followersKim Fielding lives in Oregon and travels as often as she can manage. A professor by day, at night she rushes into a phone booth to change into her author costume (which involves comfy clothes instead of Spandex and is, sadly, lacking a cape). Her superpowers include the ability to write nearly anywhere, often while simultaneously doling out assistance to her family. Her favorite word to describe herself is "eclectic" and she finally got that seventh tattoo.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
March 21, 2015
~3.5~
I wanted a longer, more substantial ending, but this story will stay with me.
The desperate touches, the blurring of fantasy and reality, the priceless gift we can accept only if we want it enough . . .
Dreams are just a fragment of our reality.
No one makes me believe in magic and possibilities like Kim Fielding.
I wanted a longer, more substantial ending, but this story will stay with me.
The desperate touches, the blurring of fantasy and reality, the priceless gift we can accept only if we want it enough . . .
Dreams are just a fragment of our reality.
No one makes me believe in magic and possibilities like Kim Fielding.
December 29, 2018
4 Stars
This got me right in the feels - an impressive feat for a mere 47 page shorty.
This got me right in the feels - an impressive feat for a mere 47 page shorty.
December 15, 2014
This was such a heartwarming short story that I gobbled up in no time. I'm beginning to believe nobody can do a fantasy plot like Kim Fielding.
The characters we're so flawed and vulnerable that you can't help but root for them. My only complaint is that I wish it was longer ^_^
October 23, 2015
Sweet story about a man who suddenly finds himself in 1942 and meets his one great love there.
Nice, sweet, lovely HEA. A bit short to be really good.
Nice, sweet, lovely HEA. A bit short to be really good.
February 12, 2020
Just a lovely bit of a story about present-day Matt who has received an old picture album from his beloved deceased great-aunt Violet. As a kid, he used to took at the pictures, especially a young attractive man in a uniform - Joseph, Violet's cousin who died in WWII at age 21. On her deathbed, Violet sets something in motion that inexplicably binds these two young men together. Beautifully written! 4 stars.
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Visit my blog, Sinfully Good Gay Book Reviews
September 18, 2012
Mostly interesting until the end, and then it just completely fell flat for me. The explanation for how the two characters were able to meet and connect was far too thin for me, and the ending was ridiculous. I like fantasy, and time travel is one of my favorite guilty pleasures, but this one just didn't work for me.
August 5, 2012
Time travel stories are difficult for me, I just have to discard lots of logical thoughts and go with it.
But Ami's review made me decide to go for it, and I'm glad.
Matt lives in the here and now, but he's lonely, he inherits a photo album from his great Aunt Violet , a photo album that had a picture of a young man in it, that has always captured his interest.
Through very realistic dreams he meets Joseph, the man in the pictures and their last meeting on the battlefield had me sniffing, but also smiling, no worries!
A sweet story that could use a sequel! :)
But Ami's review made me decide to go for it, and I'm glad.
Matt lives in the here and now, but he's lonely, he inherits a photo album from his great Aunt Violet , a photo album that had a picture of a young man in it, that has always captured his interest.
Through very realistic dreams he meets Joseph, the man in the pictures and their last meeting on the battlefield had me sniffing, but also smiling, no worries!
A sweet story that could use a sequel! :)
August 16, 2012
3.5/5
Time travel! Well...it's more a dream travel.
I liked this story but it suffers from the short length, I think. There were a lot of loose ends at the end that took some of the enjoyment out of this one for me.
There's a sweet chemistry here between the characters that was the best part of this read for me. The time travel mechanics were glossed over just a bit too much, understandable given the length of the story but still I think it took away from the emotional impact to have so many questions still up in the air.
Time travel! Well...it's more a dream travel.
I liked this story but it suffers from the short length, I think. There were a lot of loose ends at the end that took some of the enjoyment out of this one for me.
There's a sweet chemistry here between the characters that was the best part of this read for me. The time travel mechanics were glossed over just a bit too much, understandable given the length of the story but still I think it took away from the emotional impact to have so many questions still up in the air.
October 22, 2015
This is a story about lovers who would, under normal circumstances, never even meet. Separated by several decades in time, only the mysterious workings of an elderly aunt might bring the two together. ‘Aunt Violet’s Present’ works both ways, I think, and it takes present-day Matt and historical-Joseph a while to figure it out.
Matt is an artist and lonely. His previous ,over cheated on him, so he ends it. Not that it’s easy. But when he ‘meets’ the man he’s watched in his elderly aunt’s photo album for years, his heart is ready for a new man. The dreams he has of Joseph seem more real than normal dreams, and so does Joseph. Matt slowly falls for the man who dies in the 1940s – which is both romantic and made me very nervous. This couldn’t possibly end well, could it?
Joseph, at least as seen through Matt’s eyes, is a bit of an enigma. He is very young, scared of having to go to war (who wouldn’t be?) and desperate to have one positive experience with another man. He thinks he has dreamed Matt up, and in a way that is true, and soaks up every loving touch and word he can get.
The final scene is heart-wrenching. These two guys are clearly meant for each other, but their situation seems so hopeless. I had tears in my eyes. Thank God this is romance and I knew it had to end well, even if I couldn’t figure out how. Good old aunt Violet. If you like deeply emotional stories about lovers in seemingly impossible situations, if a touch of temporal magic is something you don’t mind, and if two men meeting and falling in love across 70 years of temporal separation sounds interesting, you will probably like this short story. Personally? I liked it so much I am hoping for a sequel!
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Matt is an artist and lonely. His previous ,over cheated on him, so he ends it. Not that it’s easy. But when he ‘meets’ the man he’s watched in his elderly aunt’s photo album for years, his heart is ready for a new man. The dreams he has of Joseph seem more real than normal dreams, and so does Joseph. Matt slowly falls for the man who dies in the 1940s – which is both romantic and made me very nervous. This couldn’t possibly end well, could it?
Joseph, at least as seen through Matt’s eyes, is a bit of an enigma. He is very young, scared of having to go to war (who wouldn’t be?) and desperate to have one positive experience with another man. He thinks he has dreamed Matt up, and in a way that is true, and soaks up every loving touch and word he can get.
The final scene is heart-wrenching. These two guys are clearly meant for each other, but their situation seems so hopeless. I had tears in my eyes. Thank God this is romance and I knew it had to end well, even if I couldn’t figure out how. Good old aunt Violet. If you like deeply emotional stories about lovers in seemingly impossible situations, if a touch of temporal magic is something you don’t mind, and if two men meeting and falling in love across 70 years of temporal separation sounds interesting, you will probably like this short story. Personally? I liked it so much I am hoping for a sequel!
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
June 2, 2012
Review posted at Brief Encounters Reviews.
This is a pretty typical and run of the mill time travel story. While the characters aren't necessarily unoriginal archetypes, they're aren't quite fully developed either. Still, the strength of this story is in the settings -- first, rural Nebraska and second, the bombed cities of Europe and the beaches of Normandy.
The story is pretty straightforward. Matt is mourning the loss of his great great-aunt Violet, who was always a little mischievous and doted on him as a child. Before flying back to Oakland after the funeral in Omaha, his mother passes on the old photo album Violet left him, the one he used to pour through as a child. That night, as he gets drunk in his motel room and looks through the old pictures, he settles on the one that used to captivate him, a 19 year old boy with haunted eyes, posing in his army uniform a few weeks before deployment in WWII. That night, Matt dreams of the boy, meeting up in a diner with his aunt now young serving them breakfast as they got to know one another. Soon, through problems with the cheating ex he hasn't (until recently) been able to get over, and various continued dreams as the boy, now man turns darker from seeing death and war, the two slowly get to know one another -- all through Matt's dreams.
I suppose one of the strong points for me was the paranormal like twist to the time traveling. There isn't a time machine, or a specific cause and effect that brings the two together. Their meetings are hazy and unsure, especially afterwards when Matt wakes up again in his own time, over and over again. I liked that there were no complete answers, it left the story open to interpretation.
Also, as I said before, the settings really brought the characters to life, especially the decline of Joseph (the boy in the picture) each subsequent time they meet. From a shy and unsure boy among the cornfields to a hollowed out man with little left to fight for, all framed among hollowed out buildings with rubble crunching under his boots.
This isn't the best time travel story I've read, and the ending wasn't perfect and felt a bit out of sync with the rest of the story, but for the most part I liked it. B-
This is a pretty typical and run of the mill time travel story. While the characters aren't necessarily unoriginal archetypes, they're aren't quite fully developed either. Still, the strength of this story is in the settings -- first, rural Nebraska and second, the bombed cities of Europe and the beaches of Normandy.
The story is pretty straightforward. Matt is mourning the loss of his great great-aunt Violet, who was always a little mischievous and doted on him as a child. Before flying back to Oakland after the funeral in Omaha, his mother passes on the old photo album Violet left him, the one he used to pour through as a child. That night, as he gets drunk in his motel room and looks through the old pictures, he settles on the one that used to captivate him, a 19 year old boy with haunted eyes, posing in his army uniform a few weeks before deployment in WWII. That night, Matt dreams of the boy, meeting up in a diner with his aunt now young serving them breakfast as they got to know one another. Soon, through problems with the cheating ex he hasn't (until recently) been able to get over, and various continued dreams as the boy, now man turns darker from seeing death and war, the two slowly get to know one another -- all through Matt's dreams.
I suppose one of the strong points for me was the paranormal like twist to the time traveling. There isn't a time machine, or a specific cause and effect that brings the two together. Their meetings are hazy and unsure, especially afterwards when Matt wakes up again in his own time, over and over again. I liked that there were no complete answers, it left the story open to interpretation.
Also, as I said before, the settings really brought the characters to life, especially the decline of Joseph (the boy in the picture) each subsequent time they meet. From a shy and unsure boy among the cornfields to a hollowed out man with little left to fight for, all framed among hollowed out buildings with rubble crunching under his boots.
This isn't the best time travel story I've read, and the ending wasn't perfect and felt a bit out of sync with the rest of the story, but for the most part I liked it. B-
June 4, 2012
I absolutely loved this story!!
I really hope there is some kind of sequel in the future! Just lovely!!
I really hope there is some kind of sequel in the future! Just lovely!!
December 7, 2017
You better believe in magic, it feels wonderful.
Oh how I wish I'll have a dream like Matt and Joseph... :)
Oh how I wish I'll have a dream like Matt and Joseph... :)
June 12, 2024
As with a few of Kim's novellas this one is the beginnings of a great story, but alas is too short to fully realise it's potential.
Our characters are likable and dare I say it, even a bit swoon-worthy in this one. Matt is an everyday guy, a cartoon artist who's down on his romantic luck when he goes to support his mother at a family funeral. I'm sure we've all been there. The mother being a little over-zealous with the matchmaking and push for their child to be happy all mixed in with emotions of a recent family death.
Joseph is a bit less fully formed, but still intruiging. The physical transformation in this short novella was a bit of a punch in the feels.
Where things got interesting was the gift bestowed from Great-great Aunt Violet. An entertaining idea, even though it was handled in one of those ways that people always say to avoid in writing (dream scenes are a tough sell). This one went well, it was handled interestingly, tenderly and emotionally which added to my enjoyment of this novella.
I simply wanted more. It felt like just dipping your toe into the waters before you're whisked off again and didn't get to see how soothing they could be. I know Kim's writing is good, and if this story was novel length, whoa boy, we'd be in for a spicy, romantic ride. Please Kim, please, lengthen this one for those of us who are chomping at the bit for more from Matt and Joseph.
Our characters are likable and dare I say it, even a bit swoon-worthy in this one. Matt is an everyday guy, a cartoon artist who's down on his romantic luck when he goes to support his mother at a family funeral. I'm sure we've all been there. The mother being a little over-zealous with the matchmaking and push for their child to be happy all mixed in with emotions of a recent family death.
Joseph is a bit less fully formed, but still intruiging. The physical transformation in this short novella was a bit of a punch in the feels.
Where things got interesting was the gift bestowed from Great-great Aunt Violet. An entertaining idea, even though it was handled in one of those ways that people always say to avoid in writing (dream scenes are a tough sell). This one went well, it was handled interestingly, tenderly and emotionally which added to my enjoyment of this novella.
I simply wanted more. It felt like just dipping your toe into the waters before you're whisked off again and didn't get to see how soothing they could be. I know Kim's writing is good, and if this story was novel length, whoa boy, we'd be in for a spicy, romantic ride. Please Kim, please, lengthen this one for those of us who are chomping at the bit for more from Matt and Joseph.
April 6, 2025
Matt's elderly great aunt has passed and left him a present for him, her family photo album. As a kid, he loved to spend time paging through the photos, seeing faces of her family and friends. But there was one photo he returned to time and time again, that of Violet's distant cousin Joseph. Freshly dressed and ready in the photo, Joseph would die two years after that moment on a distant beach in World War II.
But in 2010, Matt begins dreaming of meeting Joseph in Omaha and in the middle of the battlefront. When he wakes up, he sees the bruises on his hips from their encounters and wonders if they're really just a dream... or something more?
This was a cute short story, though I wish there had been more depth to it.
3 stars
But in 2010, Matt begins dreaming of meeting Joseph in Omaha and in the middle of the battlefront. When he wakes up, he sees the bruises on his hips from their encounters and wonders if they're really just a dream... or something more?
This was a cute short story, though I wish there had been more depth to it.
3 stars
July 4, 2019
Love this short and warm story!
June 9, 2012
Reviewed for Hearts On Fire Reviews
Wow, this short story packed a big emotional punch. Matt lives in California but goes home to Omaha for the funeral of his great aunt Violet. He doesn't really want to be there but he wants to support his mom. Matt has been suffering over a break up with his boyfriend Brandon four months ago. Even though Matt was the one to break it off due to Brandon's cheating, Matt somehow can't seem to get over him. Matt's mom, and Violet for That matter, never thought Brandon was good enough for Matt. Matt goes to his hotel to brood.
Violet had left Matt her photo album, one he had looked at all through his childhood, listening to the stories of the long gone relatives who's pictures were preserved inside. One in particular always caught Matt's attention. It was of a young soldier, taken just before he went to war in 1942. The soldier was Joseph, a cousin of Vioilet's. He looks sad, with shadowed eyes. He was 19 in the picture and died two years later, alone in a medic tent at war. Matt's reaction to this picture was one of the first ways he realized he was gay. The book was the perfect legacy for him.
Alone in his hotel room, sad by Brandon and Violet, Matt falls asleep, and dreams of the sweet Joseph. In the dream, they are back in 1942, 40+ years before Matt was born, and Joseph is still at home, about to leave for war. He is shy and sweet and so beautiful. He appears to know he won't be coming back to Nebraska, and knows even if he does, he can never be true to himself. He will get married, work the farm and hide part of himself. He wants Matt to show him just this once what it's like. Matt, knowing the real Joseph did die without making it back home, aches for poor Joseph and wants him to be happy. It is sweet and romantic. There is a point, when Joseph asks Matt if he ever passes through again and Joseph isn't there, that Matt think of him. Even as a dream, just made me cry.
Matt's life in California goes on, and he dreams of Joseph again, this time in the war zone. It's a little more bittersweet this time, and shorter. While Violet shows up in the first dream, she is only talked about in the second one. Matt also comes face to face with Brandon in real life and has to deal with that.
I will admit to crying my head off during one point, Joseph is just so lovely and you think of him dying alone on a foreign beach. Brought to mind how many soldiers have been lost just that way. Then I went back and read it again.
This is a powerful story and I wish everyone who's lost could have Violet's Present.
Wow, this short story packed a big emotional punch. Matt lives in California but goes home to Omaha for the funeral of his great aunt Violet. He doesn't really want to be there but he wants to support his mom. Matt has been suffering over a break up with his boyfriend Brandon four months ago. Even though Matt was the one to break it off due to Brandon's cheating, Matt somehow can't seem to get over him. Matt's mom, and Violet for That matter, never thought Brandon was good enough for Matt. Matt goes to his hotel to brood.
Violet had left Matt her photo album, one he had looked at all through his childhood, listening to the stories of the long gone relatives who's pictures were preserved inside. One in particular always caught Matt's attention. It was of a young soldier, taken just before he went to war in 1942. The soldier was Joseph, a cousin of Vioilet's. He looks sad, with shadowed eyes. He was 19 in the picture and died two years later, alone in a medic tent at war. Matt's reaction to this picture was one of the first ways he realized he was gay. The book was the perfect legacy for him.
Alone in his hotel room, sad by Brandon and Violet, Matt falls asleep, and dreams of the sweet Joseph. In the dream, they are back in 1942, 40+ years before Matt was born, and Joseph is still at home, about to leave for war. He is shy and sweet and so beautiful. He appears to know he won't be coming back to Nebraska, and knows even if he does, he can never be true to himself. He will get married, work the farm and hide part of himself. He wants Matt to show him just this once what it's like. Matt, knowing the real Joseph did die without making it back home, aches for poor Joseph and wants him to be happy. It is sweet and romantic. There is a point, when Joseph asks Matt if he ever passes through again and Joseph isn't there, that Matt think of him. Even as a dream, just made me cry.
Matt's life in California goes on, and he dreams of Joseph again, this time in the war zone. It's a little more bittersweet this time, and shorter. While Violet shows up in the first dream, she is only talked about in the second one. Matt also comes face to face with Brandon in real life and has to deal with that.
I will admit to crying my head off during one point, Joseph is just so lovely and you think of him dying alone on a foreign beach. Brought to mind how many soldiers have been lost just that way. Then I went back and read it again.
This is a powerful story and I wish everyone who's lost could have Violet's Present.
June 2, 2012
Matt is a modern-day graphic artist. When his Great-Aunt Violet died, Matt gets her photo album. One of the photos in that album always seems to call to him. It's a photo of a 19-year-old soldier, Joseph, who is also a distant cousin of Violet, back in 1942. Joseph died in 1944 in Omaha Beach. Then after Matt owns the photo album, he starts to dream ...
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I like time-travel theme --- it gives a chance for hurt/comfort that I like in stories. Especially in story like this. The fact that Joseph lives in 1940's and Matt in this timeline adds that angst nuance.
I love how they get together in the dream -- Matt, a little older and Joseph, who is only 19 years old back 1942, trying to get his experience with a man. His life has tragic sense to it, because even if he survives the war, it's a different world for Joseph, and he might not be able to live a more free life as gay man.
I love how Matt determines to secure this present that Violet has given him. Yes, there IS a happy ending, so don't worry :)
It touches my heart beautifully -- one of those little gems within less than 50 pages.
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I like time-travel theme --- it gives a chance for hurt/comfort that I like in stories. Especially in story like this. The fact that Joseph lives in 1940's and Matt in this timeline adds that angst nuance.
I love how they get together in the dream -- Matt, a little older and Joseph, who is only 19 years old back 1942, trying to get his experience with a man. His life has tragic sense to it, because even if he survives the war, it's a different world for Joseph, and he might not be able to live a more free life as gay man.
I love how Matt determines to secure this present that Violet has given him. Yes, there IS a happy ending, so don't worry :)
It touches my heart beautifully -- one of those little gems within less than 50 pages.
July 13, 2013
Matt attends his great-aunt Violet’s funeral with his mother. After the funeral his mother gives him Violet’s photo album that he loved from childhood in Kim Fielding’s VIOLET’S PRESENT. Matt always looked at the photos of his ancestors and was fascinated by a cousin of Violet’s, Joseph who died in WWII. Matt returns home with the photo album and begins dreaming of Joseph.
VIOLET’S PRESENT is a poignant story of a young man who did not have the opportunity to live before being sent off to war. In Matt’s dreams they meet and share passion. I hoped that they would have a chance but I could not see how they could as the men were of different generations. What Kim Fielding gave me though was a magical story that gave me the ending for which I had hoped would happen. I loved the story and the characters. I feel blessed for the opportunity to have shared in their story.
VIOLET’S PRESENT is a poignant story of a young man who did not have the opportunity to live before being sent off to war. In Matt’s dreams they meet and share passion. I hoped that they would have a chance but I could not see how they could as the men were of different generations. What Kim Fielding gave me though was a magical story that gave me the ending for which I had hoped would happen. I loved the story and the characters. I feel blessed for the opportunity to have shared in their story.
September 20, 2015
I'm a sucker for doomed romance and you just can't get more doomed than being in love with a photo of a long dead ancestor.
This one was short and sweet. Lovely characters, lots of emotion, and very nice writing. The time warp stuff makes no damn sense if you are the type who wants things explained like its an episode of Star Trek... But actually I hate when time travel is "explained" because it NEVER makes sense. This way is so much better for me because my brain can just go, "Heh, its a miracle" and move on. I thought it was handled nicely.
Gotta say, wouldn't mind a book about good ol Aunt Violent. She was a hoot.
This one was short and sweet. Lovely characters, lots of emotion, and very nice writing. The time warp stuff makes no damn sense if you are the type who wants things explained like its an episode of Star Trek... But actually I hate when time travel is "explained" because it NEVER makes sense. This way is so much better for me because my brain can just go, "Heh, its a miracle" and move on. I thought it was handled nicely.
Gotta say, wouldn't mind a book about good ol Aunt Violent. She was a hoot.
July 5, 2012
Another fun read by Kim Fielding - the only thing I didn't like was that it was so short ;-)
Despite the shortness she creates a wonderfully vivid story, the characters and everything that happens seems to be so real, I could see them in my mind. And the steamy scenes didn't hurt either, not at all.
But what I probably liked most what that it ended kind of open, so much can still happen, it gives you a great starting point for your own imagination - not your typical 'happily ever after', but very intriguing
Despite the shortness she creates a wonderfully vivid story, the characters and everything that happens seems to be so real, I could see them in my mind. And the steamy scenes didn't hurt either, not at all.
But what I probably liked most what that it ended kind of open, so much can still happen, it gives you a great starting point for your own imagination - not your typical 'happily ever after', but very intriguing
April 18, 2013
It's not bad, rather sweet, etc.
I just would have liked more
I just would have liked more
July 22, 2012
This was a quite well developed story, especially given the length. The writing was quite vivid - especially the sequences involving pre-war Nebraska and WWII battlefields. We really only experience directly a young Violet through a dream since she has passed away before the story begins, but it's obvious that she really loved Joseph and Matt. This is the first story I've read by Kim Fielding and I look forward to reading more.
June 1, 2012
I enjoy time-travel stories, and this one really worked for me: a modern-day graphic artist and a young man enlisting as a World War Two soldier are brought together by ... a photo album?
Well-drawn characters, evocative settings, and a unique plot. An unusual love story that will certainly stay with me.
Well-drawn characters, evocative settings, and a unique plot. An unusual love story that will certainly stay with me.
September 26, 2013
I really liked the premise of it... instead of love coming out of a dream, it's walking into a dream. I got myself caught in the emotions and it felt real on that point. It is a nice time-traveling through other means story and it is also a nice story of love
June 8, 2012
This short story is truly unique and made huge impression on me. I was positive surprised and loved HEA for Matt and Joseph. Sure the end is partly magical and unrealistic, but heck I loved it. Great written story from Kim Fielding!
August 14, 2012
3.5 Stars
I really, really like this right up until the end when it lost me a bit. The characters are great and the realistic dreams and their settings worked wonderfully but I had waaaay too many questions left at the end.
I really, really like this right up until the end when it lost me a bit. The characters are great and the realistic dreams and their settings worked wonderfully but I had waaaay too many questions left at the end.
October 23, 2013
Well, this was more a novella than a book, just a handful of pages with a short but compelling story and intriguing characters. Some sex but nothing over the top. Very romantic and sweet. Entertaining enough.
June 8, 2012
2.75 stars
June 9, 2012
A very odd, but also interesting and sweet book
June 8, 2012
I loved this lovers through time story...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews