The Yearning

by Kate Belle

“I want to reveal myself to you… I need your eyes to see, your hands to touch, your spirit to acknowledge that which I hold most deeply and secretly in my heart. My yearning for you.”

It’s 1978 in a country town and a dreamy fifteen year old girl’s world is turned upside down by the arrival of the substitute English teacher. Solomon Andrews is beautiful, inspiring and she wants him like nothing else she’s wanted in her short life.

Charismatic and unconventional, Solomon easily wins the hearts and minds of his third form English class. He notices the attention of one girl, his new neighbour, who has taken to watching him from her upstairs window. He assumes it a harmless teenage crush, until erotic love notes begin to arrive in his letterbox.

Solomon knows he must resist, but her sensual words stir him. He has longings of his own, although they have nothing to do with love, or so he believes. One afternoon, as he stands reading her latest offering in his driveway, she turns up unannounced. Each must make a choice, the consequences of which will haunt them until they meet again twenty years later.

Genres: Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Forbidden Love, Adult, Fiction, Australia

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2013

About the author

Kate is a multi-published author of dark, sensual love stories that will mess with your head. Her interests include talking to strangers, collecting unread books, and ranting about the world’s many injustices. She writes regularly about women, relationships, sexuality and books on her blog, The Ecstasy Files. She is also the creator of the Eros in Action writing sex workshop.
Kate lives, writes and loves in Melbourne with her small family and very annoying pets. The Yearning was released in 2013 to rave reviews. Being Jade is her second novel.
Blog/website: http://www.ecstasyfiles.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/katebelle.x
Twitter: @ecstasyfiles https://twitter.com/ecstasyfiles

Reviews

[JaHy☝Hold the Fairy Dust · Rating 5 out of 5]

**5 "Exactly what I was yearning for " STARS**

Many Some readers may disagree with my rating but I can live with that. I thoroughly enjoyed Kate Belle's pure, realistic and meaningful story.


I absolutely picked up this book because I love taboo reads but this tale doesn't revolve around a lust crazed teacher-student relationship. The heart of the story centers around human emotions and longing to be fulfilled both sexually and emotionally. Did I mention I LOVE Kate Belle's writing? She didn't try to paint a scene using ridiculous metaphors, which I never quite understand. Yes, it appears I lack an imagination.

.....instead Kate Belle uses powerful words to convey preciously how a character is feeling . Her execution is a thing of beauty.

Folks, if you are looking for "Alex what is Angst for 1000?" driven story, , riddled with unnecessary fillers and numerous "are they fucking or playing twister?" sex scenes, this book is NOT FOR YOU. Each character and event serves a purpose. The intimate moments between our young heroine & teacher are sensual as hell!!!.. No joke, I was squirming in my chair and shoving the book in my hubbies face telling him you have to read this **hint-hint**

Sorry, my review does not tell you much. It's been one of those weeks :-(
Will one of my brillant friends please love the story as much as I did and give this book a proper review?... Mine SUCKS!

For more Reviews, Free E-books and Giveaways

[Mish · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was 1979 in a small country town, when Solomon Andrew moves in next door to a shy and awkward 15-year-old girl (who’s name is unknown throughout the book, only at the end) and who also happens to be her new substitute teacher. According to the girl’s, he is beautiful, charming and has a lot of sex appeal in his tight, hipster hugging Jeans, and is also very hip and modern in his thinking and approach. Solomon knows the effect he has on the girls and tends to play up on the attention he receives. Meanwhile his unnamed neighbour seems to have this infatuation with Solomon; staring at him through her bedroom window for hours and writing him these anonymous, scented and erotic letters confessing her love. Solomon knows she is watching him and whom these letters are coming from, but assumes it’s only a teenage crush and will pass. But as these letters don’t stop. They continue to arrive, becoming bold and revealing her sexual desires and a yearning for him. It is taking all of Solomon self control not to succumb to temptation but he finds himself increasingly aroused by her words, until the yearning burns within him too. Then one day she turns up at his door and the passionate affair begins.

In the first half of the book the sex scenes were erotic and graphic, but I do feel that it was required. It enable us to get an in-depth understanding of the intensity of their relationship; their own reasoning for why they should/need be together, even thought they knew they were at a high risk of being discovered, and how the girls sexual awakening influenced her decision with future partners/relationships, long into her adulthood. I was really moved by the girls’ letters to Solomon, they were conveyed in a typical teenage way, pure and honest, comparing him to god and believing him to be her soul mate. But there was a hint of intelligence there too, in her poetic and sensual prose. Solomon on the other hand may be intellectually talented, free spirited, but in my opinion, a stupid man who doesn’t have any moral boundaries when it comes to the opposite sex, and that includes teenage girls. He has sexual urges that he can’t control - yet I’ve got to give him one thing, he is definitely not a selfish lover and certainly knows how to please a woman.

It was the second half of the book that had me pondering over the situation long into the night – and there were times I couldn’t sleep because of thoughts running through my mind. It was 20 years later and Solomon is no longer in the girls’ life, now a woman, but he’s not far from her everyday thoughts. She would continue to write these erotic notes in her diary about Solomon and finds herself unable to let the memories of their love making disappear from her mind. She’s unable to form a satisfying relationship as she finds herself comparing them to Solomon. Until she met Max…

I honestly thought Max was the one to get her out of this infatuation with Solomon. And there was hope at the beginning of their courtship where Max was loving, gentle and attentive to her needs and I do believe she fell in love with him. But the relationship went downhill and she had to resort to begging him to pay some attention to her in the bedroom. I felt crushed for her because I do believe she is trying to make an effort to move on from Solomon, and I don’t think its unreasonable to ask your partner what you want in the bedroom. But after so many rejections, it is humiliating. Max was capable, as there were signs from the beginning that he was, but he became is a moody, self-centered and selfish drunk that couldn’t be bothered. There were many factors that were wrong in this relationship but this what stood out for me.

I absolutely love every minute of this book. It was well thought out, it was a dark (just the way I like it) and so very well written. This is not an uncommon thing to happen, I know of 2 woman in my life that are going though a similar situation right now – holding on to the memory of their first love - and I’m sure there are many more.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1978 in a small country town a young girl's life is about to change when new English high school teacher moves next door to her. Gazing at him from her bedroom window she is instantly drawn to him. She may only be sixteen years old, but the sight of him starts to arouse feelings that she'd not felt before.

Solomon Andrews, is well aware that he is being watched by the girl next door and at first thinks nothing of it. He's use to this kind of attention and knows that she will become bored and find something else to occupy the hours in her day. But in fact it's quite the opposite and the girl gazes out her window every time she gets an opportunity and her feelings toward him start turning to desire. She imagines what it would feel like for him to touch her knowing of course this couldn't happen. She then start to write these thoughts and feelings down. She then starts to write him scented love letters which she places in his letter box. Solomon reads the letters, but at first he doesn't take much notice of them.

In time things change and Solomon finds himself being aroused by these letters. He knows how wrong it would be to act on his feelings, but before he knows it the two of them are in a sexual relationship. They both know this must be kept secret because if anyone was to find out there would be dire consequences for both of them. Solomon will show and teach the girl all about sex and she begins to have very deep feelings for him. Then one day someone discovers their secret and their lives will change forever.

It is not until later in the book that we find out that the girls name is Eve. Twenty five years later Eve is married to Max. Their marriage has had its fair share of problems. They have one child with another one on the way, but still their marriage is very rocky. Eve often wonders what Solomon would be like now after all these years. She wonders if he would be married and have children. She quite often finds herself thinking of him and the time they spent together when she was younger and still he stirs those feelings inside her like it was just yesterday. But when their paths cross again will those same feelings still be there?

I really enjoyed this book and yet when I first started I was a little unsure about it, but the further I got into it I just wanted to know how it was going to end. This is a beautifully written story which explores forbidden love and sexual desire.

[Jenn J McLeod · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first comment about The Yearning is this…

It’s a shame a novel like this has to be categorized erotic fiction(largely so a bookseller knows where to plonk it on a shelf—cyber or real). It’s a shame because there will be people who’ll have their perception skewed as a result of a generic genre label and miss out on a wonderful reading experience.

I loved everything about this story: the writing is evocative, the storyline compelling, the biblical references intriguing. The Yearning is a truly unique and superbly crafted novel and while the author leaves nothing to the imagination, she handles the most intimate scenes deftly, delivering a soft, flowing, sensual (and sensory) journey of a teenage girl’s sexual awakening. I initially worried about the basic premise (blurb)—small town schoolgirl and older, unconventional male teacher in the free and easy seventies. I also thought I knew how the story would pan out. (Pretty predictable stuff this erotic fiction, you know?)

Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! And all I can say (after scraping the egg off my face) is Wow! Wow! Wow!

Wow to the clever, clever plot that, despite the small format paperback of only 300-odd pages, packs a punch in so many ways. Wow to the hauntingly beautiful prose and description that will transport you to a different time and place (and if you are my age, to a few fond memories of that fun-loving decade). Wow to the complex characters, the divine descriptions of small town life, and the delicious metaphors that bring this story to life. The Yearning is a fully dimensional read with great characterisations, beautiful prose, a proper narrative arc and a well-developed theme. The erotic elements are integral and necessary to the story—hence the label!

So… not into erotic fiction? I didn’t think I was either. Still not sure I am. I just know I loved The Yearning and I am so glad I took the genre plunge.

If you don’t want to be like me—a fuddy-duddy—and should you choose to lose your erotic genre virginity and see what all the fuss is about, this is the book—although I fear this novel may have ruined me for any other!

[Beatrix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review posted on Way Too Hot Books.


Oh I quite liked this book, how best to summarize it? It’s haunting, beautiful, poetic, sensual and melancholic, all at the same time.

Book begins with Solomon Andrews moving into town, he’s a new teacher. A free spirit, enjoying casual sex and without ever having a serious relationship or intention of one. Main female character, whose name is not mentioned, starts looking him from her bedroom window and very soon she’s bewitched. Solomon is aware of her watching, and thinks it’s just a teenage crush, but after some months and she’s still not bored, letters start to arrive at his doorstep. And they’re his undoing. Beautiful, erotic letters that he can’t resist.

So he doesn’t. The two of them start a secret affair. she thinks of him as her god, she’s 16 and completely in love, whereas he enjoys her fresh skin and innocent youth and he’s giving her and education, a sexual education, teaching her all about pleasure and secrets of sexuality.

This first part of the book was quite interesting, we see her ignorance and innocence, she’s completely unaware of how he sees her, she’s childishly obsessed with him, thinking they’re soulmates, divine and meant to be.

Then comes the second part, some 20 years later. We’re following her story of unsuccessful relationships. She could never forget Solomon, to get over him, in her mind he always stayed a god, untouched, no one compared to him. Because the only way she connected with Solomon was through sex, she seeked that with other men too. But they couldn’t give her what he could, she’d always end up disappointed. She kept imagining, dreaming, contemplating, searching and waiting. Hoping for him to find her one day and proclaim his undying love for her.

All throughout the book MC is referred to as SHE, her name is omitted, in fact it is the last word in the book. It is a metaphor, of her trying to find, reclaim herself. After she’s married, with child, she indeed does meet Solomon again. And then she realized that what she wanted was a fantasy. How she spent all her life living with a memory.

The main reason I enjoyed this book is its writing style, so sensual and poetic. It’s a book about lust and love, about trying to find love through lust.

The only thing I liked a bit less is the MC, her blindness and inability to see the truth, all the while she’s so passive, quietly suffering and wasting her days. But I loved the ending, how the story came full circle, how she came to all the revelations by herself.
All in all, a wonderful read!

[Naksed · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Yearning is the story of a woman's inability to let go of the past, still yearning after the illicit affair she had with her high school English teacher when she was sixteen years old, long after she reached adulthood.

Solomon Andrews is, in 1978, when the story begins, the type of man that his high school students worship but that their parents call a "dirty hippie."

They looked at this apparition of a teacher, unlike any they'd seen before. They were used to old teachers, teachers who wore baggy trousers and horn-rimmed glasses and ties. He was young. He had long hair and a beard. His pants were tight.

The female character, who remains nameless until the conclusion of the book, is both his student and his next door neighbor. For months, she spies on him from her bedroom window, writing him increasingly erotic love letters that she drops off in his mailbox in little pink envelopes sprayed with cheap perfume.

"This passion consumes me," the note read. "It dissolves and embraces me. A flame grows inside me, it gently licks at my heart until I am warmed and swollen with desire. The God of Love moves through me when I think of you."

Solomon is well aware of his neighbor's infatuation, and he is half-amused, half-annoyed by it.

He was looking at her, at a shaft of slanting sunlight illuminating the rich auburn curls that surrounded a perfectly formed ear. Her skin had the sheen of white silk. It was almost translucent in the light. He was caught off guard as his breath hitched in his chest. Here, in this light, she looked beautiful.

In contrast to the way the female character is described throughout the book with awe and reverence (those long coltish legs and wild auburn hair, the gleam of her alabaster skin), the other women, particularly the ones involved with Solomon are completely and shamelessly skewered. One has "gunshot holes that passed for eyes." Another is a cynical bar pick up, "sitting alone drinking red wine and smoking menthols." Yet another woman is described as having probably ridden all the half-decent men in the town and now, in her early forties, had run out of options. The main female character may be older but she is still the immature teenager who is "slut-shaming" her rivals rather than being angry at the duplicitous man who took advantage of her youth.

When the shit hits the proverbial fan, Solomon predictably runs, leaving behind a teenaged girl consumed with an eternal yearning.

Twenty two years later, the female character is still in the throes of her single-minded obsession even though she has not seen or heard from Solomon in all these years, even after she reluctantly settles for marriage and kids. This part of the book for me was difficult to read. I just could not connect with the character, her actions and motivations. It was like she was stuck in the time warp of 1978 and could not move on. I guess I just don't understand that kind of self-destructive behavior and sick fixation. Still, the author did a great job of painting the struggles of a marriage where the two people let disappointments and unsatisfied yearnings fester into anger and resentment. If not exactly earth-shattering, the portrait of a crumbling marriage was well executed.

[Naya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot believe that this book has not had more attention!!

I found it hidden amongst the bottom shelves of my book store, completely in the wrong section mind you. But I couldn't go home without that stunning cover on my shelf so I just had to give it a go.

I went into it a bit skeptical, my last few experiences with books which centered upon student/teacher relationships left me more than a little disatisfied. But The Yearning pulled me out of my skepticism! The plot in itself presents itself in an atypical way.

Set in the seventies, the desired teacher is hip, worldly and completely copasetic! Solomon Andrews is everything that the girls in his class desire and admire. He is charming and unconventional and soon has his students wrapped around his fingers - including his sixteen year old next door neighbour.

As you continue with the story, you become fascinated by the young girls obsession with her teacher and by Solomon's seeming enjoyment that comes from knowing his young neighbor is spying on him. It sees this obsession turn into a spying game, and the young sixteen year old girl is sucked into his world quite literally from watching Solomon walk around naked - on purpose mind you - in his study. To watching him seducing a student during the middle of a tutoring session.

Each of the characters are so real and vivid that I could almost pull them from the pages themselves and have them stand in the middle of my room staring back at me. You not only experience and understand the affair from both sides, but you also see how this affects the rest of Eve's life. How one short lived affair had her in a constant yearning for more, leaving her completely disastisfied with the world around her.

IT IS NOT EROTICA. If you are looking for a novel full of plotless grunts and moans this is not it!! It is so much more than that. It is a coming of age story, it is about an obsessive love which is lost but never forgotten. It is about the hardships of marriage and about figuring out what love really means at its core.

I read this book in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down. It is such a heartbreaker. I often found myself wanting to reach out and help her because her life was anything but fulfilling. But the plots were so real, and the problems she encounters in her future relationship is so tangible and common that you find your heart just aching for her.

Please, please, please read this book. I promise you, you won't regret it. I cannot wait to read more from this author!!!

[Rosaline (Rosaline's Rolls & Scrolls) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, men of the 70s were very hairy!


I admit, I only picked this up because of that gorgeous cover. But can you blame me? Just look at that beauty!

Despite all its raving reviews, I didn’t think I would like this book. The blurb, although enticing, sounded like all the other books that drew me in with their promising words and gorgeous covers just to leave me unsatisfied and wanting more.
So I tuned down my expectations going in, thinking this would be another average read of perhaps 2 or 3 stars that would soon be forgotten, and gathering dust in the corner of my room.

But oh, was I wrong?!

This turned out to be a great tale of love, lust, and heartbreak that had me rooted to my seat, eager to finish. The author’s clever words pulled me deep into the pages of the book to another time and place, and into the head of a 16 year old teenage girl lusting after her young teacher.
It was not a story of forbidden romance and fairy tales, but of loss, growth, and redemption.

She is young, untested, and burning with desire. She is in love with the idea of love.
He is a broken soul, seeking refuge in the beds of lovers that never stay, yearning for more, but never finding it.

The story was beautiful and haunting. Swirling me in a world of choices and regrets. A life of living in a dream, and waiting for a fantasy. It was a better version of Love, Rosie. And I enjoyed it immensely.

I also really liked that we were never given a specific place or a name for their town. It gave me a feeling of boundlessness, as though it could have happened anywhere. It was very intriguing.

And even though the writing style is not one I usually prefer in my books, it fits the story beautifully. It is the kind of delicious prose that makes your own fingers ache to write in response. A few more books from Ms. Belle, and I’d turn into a poet in no time.

Overall, anyone looking for a steamy teacher/student romance full of forbidden drama (which is me half the time) is bound to be disappointed by this book. However, if you fancy yourself a timeless story of desire and heart ache, and a woman on the road to self discovery, you might just end up liking this book.

[Heather ~*dread mushrooms*~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been a while since I've read honest-to-goodness fiction-lit. I had to go all the way back to last year to find a book that isn't romance, horror, mystery, or YA. In the past two years, I've read only a handful, so I'm not sure exactly what that section of the bookstore is like these days.

I'd forgotten just how much of a downer fiction-lit can be.

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD

The first half of this book was utterly skeevy (I keep using that word, but it fits perfectly). A sixteen-year-old female student and a male teacher have an "affair." By all accounts she's willing, but I can't help but be uncomfortable. Especially when the story switches to his perspective, and we're treated to such lovely musings as this:

She had been delicious. Like a clean sheet of paper, she was spotless and fresh and ready to be written upon.

or

He primed her, prepared her, and enfolded her.

I think I just threw up a little in my mouth.

To be fair, all this makes sense at the end, when the teacher comes to realize he wanted her innocence because his own had been stolen from him at a young age. Her innocence enraptured him, but he ruined it. Although the "affair" came to an inevitable end, he'd already ruined her for the next eighteen years with his kindness and unsurpassed bedroom skills.

...
.....
........

When life finally brings them together again, she's already been through some really depressing shit, made all the more so by how realistic it was. The guy she marries has become verbally abusive and neglectful. The teacher turns out to be a selfish ass, and she finally hands it to him in a letter.

And then it's the end.

This is one of those books I couldn't quite bring myself to like despite the masterful writing. Yet because of how technically good it is, I can't rate it low (see Invisible by Paul Auster). So this book gets four stars even though it didn't make me feel good, it didn't open my eyes in any way, I didn't feel anything except mild disgust while reading it, and I will never read it again.

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 5 out of 5]

" I need your eyes to see, your hands to touch, your spirit to acknowledge that which I hold most deeply and secretly in my heart. My yearning for you."

A shy teenage girl writes scented letters of longing to her new high school English teacher and neighbour, the handsome and charming, Solomon Andrews. From her bedroom window she watches and hopes for him to notice her.
Solomon is flattered by his young student's attention, and though wary of another scandal, he finds himself unable to resist her passionate adoration.
While Solomon justifies their affair as his "ultimate and ecstatic gift" to her, the girl believes he is her soul mate, her one and only true love.
When they are discovered and separated she clings to the to the idea that she and Solomon are destined to be together. It is a belief that she cannot relinquish, and well into adulthood the yearning for him remains.

The plot of The Yearning extends beyond the scandalous affair between a teacher and a student, even beyond the a sensual coming of age story of an unnamed teenage girl in love with with a twenty something year old man. It is a compelling exploration of the nature of love, of lust, of longing and desire and how our early experiences with these emotions affect the way in which we resolve them as adults.

For the girl - now a woman, the affair leaves her endlessly searching for a lover able to stir the same feelings within her. It's an obsession that sabotages her relationships with other men, and even when she submits to Solomon's absence and marries Max, she is not free of their decades old connection. If she can't find some way to relinquish her teenage fantasy happiness will always elude her.
For Solomon, whose introduction to sex was divorced from love or even affection, the craving for attention, physical satisfaction and control of his emotions has him at the mercy of his libido. The value of an emotional connection, love if you will, escapes him not only in his relationship with the girl but in all his relationships to follow.

Belle's lyrical prose ensures The Yearning avoids becoming a tawdry, sensationalist tale of sexual exploitation. Both Eve and Solomon are able to give voice to the motivation behind their feelings and desires. The author captures the excitement and confusion of lust and love with raw honesty. Eve's letters and diary entries are the romantic, sensual ravings of a young girl in the throes of intense infatuation. Solomon's musings, though indisputably self serving, are thoughtfully revealing. It is important to know that the descriptions of various sexual unions are at times explicit but not without purpose.

Beautifully crafted, The Yearning is an evocative, sensual novel exploring the connection between love and desire.

[Clarissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Infatuated by her handsome new neighbor and English teacher (late twenties), this young girl of fifteen (name is not revealed until the end of book) begins to watch him almost religiously from her bedroom window, which looks directly into his study where he spends most of his time tutoring students and grading papers.

After writing him a series of anonymous letters filled with secret yearnings of desire and god-like admiration, an awakening blossoms within them both, and thus starts the tale of this forbidden affair of love and sexual exploration. But when they are discovered, the girl (now sixteen) is sent away to the city never to see or hear from Solomon again until 25 years later.

Can't really say much else without giving anything away but I found this book to be very riveting. Especially the first half. It was sordid yet real and I could not put it down. Doesn't exactly end with a HEA but I was satisfied with the ending, to a point. I would have liked for an epilogue, but that's purely for selfish reasons. When books don't end with a pretty little bow, I always wonder what became of those characters. However, to me that's the sign of a good story, not loose ends.

[Chanel · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yeah... kindly fuck off.

[Sandy Ⓢ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una historia particular, podría decirse que deferente a lo que he leído con respecto a la temática. Me encantó como la autora desarrolló la historia, como fueron las situaciones y cada detalle de ella.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

In 1978, in a small country town, a fifteen year old girl’s world is changed with the newly arrived substitute teacher. Solomon Andrews is inspiring, charismatic, charming and beautiful and she wanted him more than anything else in the world. While he was aware of this shy girl interests he thought it was a harmless high school girl crush; that was until the erotic love letters started coming. He knew he should resist but her sensual words stirred him. First love feels like a great love, a forbidden love.

Kate Belle’s The Yearning is not erotic fiction and it’s not really a romance; this is a book that is hard to put into a genre. Well, in a sense you could categorise this book as romance but it’s a dark romance, a one sided romance; I don’t think there is a genre called ‘disturbing obsessions’ or ‘infatuations’ so how can you put this into a genre? I know, I know, genres are annoying and we should get rid of them all, and just have fiction and non-fiction but as a quick way to identify books, I do like to label a book.

I went into this book thinking it sounded a little like Me and Mr. Booker by Cory Taylor but thought maybe there might be similarities to Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, The Reader by Bernhard Schlink (also books I’ve not read yet; An Education by Lynn Barber, What Was She Thinking? by Zoë Heller and Tampa by Alissa Nutting) but this book managed to surprise me in the direction Kate Belle took with The Yearning.

A rather daring novel, which I felt there was a sense of predictability within the plot; it was exquisite in parts but also awkwardly erotic and sexy in the approach. Fifteen year old Eve’s desires for her new next door neighbour Solomon Andrews starts off as a simple crush but as her obsession with the sexy teacher grows, so does the yearning till it reaches a dangerous level. To me I like to think this is a look at the intensity of a high school crush and the ignorance towards understanding what true love is; in high school you think every crush really is your soul mate.

Then you get the point of view from Solomon Andrews, who is not as despicable as Humbert Humbert; while he comes across as a hebephile, I get the feeling maybe he is just a pansexual and will take whatever he can get. Without going into much thought into the psyche of Solomon I will say he is weak and should know better, he lets his desire to get laid and the feeling of being desired get the better of him. Highlighting the dangers of giving into your desires and also the problems with falling for someone that is bound to break your heart and have a negative impact on your life.

This novel then takes a surprising turn, something similar to The Reader; it shoots forward twenty years. Now Eve’s is about to marry Max even though that yearning for Solomon has remained and her heart still belongs to him. This marriage is very problematic and she never tries; the relationship as husband and wife is a disaster, the sex is not satisfying, she pressures him into children and the list goes on and on. The downfall of the marriage and the link with her yearning for Solomon is clear to Eve from the start and soon became evident to Max as well.

Now I like uncomfortable novels and I really liked how Kate Belle approached The Yearning with the dark romance and desires. I also liked how she created Solomon as a character you end up having a love/hate relationship with, leaving the reader unsure how they should feel about him; obviously you are meant to hate him but you can’t help feeling other emotions towards him. This only get the book so far for me anyway; I got to about the middle of this book, when Max showed up before it went downhill. The first half was new, somewhat exciting and sexy in all its awkwardness but the second half was a real let down. Sure I like how her yearning for Solomon affected her future relationships but I got a sense that this has all be done before. It just felt so predictable and I was no longer surprised. Many people might be alright with this but for me it felt like the book started off strong and then hit a wall.

I liked elements of The Yearning and ended up hating others, so this leaves me a little confused with my overall opinion of the book as a whole. Much like the genre, I’m not sure just how to rate it, so I’m going to be neutral and give it two stars (note: on further reflection, I've dropped it to one). This book has gotten a lot of positive reviews, so I think this just shows how bitter and cynical I am to give this book a low rating. If this book sounds like it will interest you, check it out; don’t let me put you off.

This review originally appeared on my blog; http://literary-exploration.com/2013/...

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s 1978 and Solomon Andrews, a high school English teacher moves to a small country town to take up a new position and perhaps escape a whisper of scandal.

Living next door to him is one of his students, a shy fifteen year old girl who watches him from behind the windows of her house. This doesn’t bother Solomon – he’s used to the attention of teenage girls. He’s young, he has long hair, he dresses differently to the teachers they know and he teaches in a way that they’re not used to. At first the girl watching him is a source of amusement….but then the notes begin to arrive.

He knows they’re from her but he’s surprised that this shy girl can write with such unabashed passion and abandonment. Against his better judgement, he becomes interested, the sweet letters awakening in him a desire to have her. To open her up and get to know her and introduce her to the unknown pleasures she hints at in her letters. Solomon tries to resist her words – this is a complication he doesn’t need. He finds solace in the arms of other women, ones who are more experienced and know the game. But her words continue to stir him and their game of her watching him has stepped up a little as he begins to show her more and more of himself. One day when he’s reading her latest letter, he turns around and there she is.

Soloman’s decision will have not just a long term effect on the girl, as she seeks to negotiate this adult world that she is catapulted into, but also himself.

I have to admit, The Yearning took me by surprise. The student-teacher story line is something I always find fascinating (maybe because all of my teachers were so imminently unattractive and unlikable, I’m baffled) so I wasted no time requesting this one. I expected perhaps a YA type story due to the age of the teenage girl but The Yearning isn’t that. On one hand, it”s a sensual and very erotic story of a girl’s sexual awakening. She develops a crush on her teacher, a man of already questionable morals who has been forced to leave one teaching post after an incident with a teenage student. You can tell that Soloman does attempt to resist the passionate words of the letters but they excite something within him, perhaps the desire for more than just a simple sexual gratification, even if he doesn’t realise it. To be honest, his attempts are not very good… he strikes me as an inherently selfish person, even as he is generous in bed and in his teachings of the ways of passion with his student. I don’t say love, because Soloman doesn’t give her much in the way of that, even though she falls so desperately in love with him. She’s not worldly, she’s quite sheltered in her small country town, not many friends, very little experience with boys. It was inevitable that she would fall in love with Soloman, just as to me, it was inevitable the way their affair/relationship would go. Generous with his body but not with his feelings, feelings that he perhaps doesn’t even recognise in himself. For a large portion of the book, I wasn’t very sure what to feel about Soloman. He gave his student something that at first glance was wrong – sleazy and secretive, taking advantage when he was in a position of power. However that pales in comparison to the fact that the gave her something she would search fruitlessly, endlessly for, years afterwards. She could never reproduce those feelings, find that generosity in another partner.

However ultimately, my feelings for Soloman came to be pity. I think he believes he lives the ultimate care free life – no commitments, no wife, no children, not even any girlfriends. Just another town, more pretty women who know the score (and some who don’t). He relishes in attention and pleasure, a tactile connection rather than an emotional one. In fact I came to feel pity for his former teenage lover too – in her attempts to seek what she had with Soloman in adulthood, she succumbs to the first instances where she feels it might be possible and ends up unhappy, unsatisfied in a failing marriage to a man she doesn’t understand, doesn’t know anymore and doesn’t love. She can’t let go of the thoughts of Soloman, her lover from so long ago and she needs to do that as an adult, in order to be truly happy and satisfied.

The Yearning certainly gave me a lot more than I bargained for and I definitely enjoyed the ride. It’s a book I find hard to classify – it’s more explicit sexually than I expected, especially given the ages of Soloman and his student but it’s much more than that. It’s an exploration of sexuality and feeling, it’s a deeper insight into what makes that connection, how it can be found in unlikely places and then lost. It’s about a fear of intimacy (not sexual, but emotional) and perhaps a chance missed. It’s a rich journey, well written. I may not have much in common with either of the characters but I often find dissatisfaction easy to relate to. We all have regrets, we are all searching for something that will make us feel, or keep the feelings alive.

[MarciaB - Book Muster Down Under · Rating 5 out of 5]

A young girl’s life is irrevocably changed when the new English high school teacher moves in next door to her.

As she sits in her bedroom, not far from the window overlooking the new teacher’s house, her longings for real, timeless love are evident from the perfect prose that this emerging sexual being writes in her diary along with the secret love letters she slips between the pages, and her clandestine, or so she thinks, almost voyeuristic observations of the “God” who lives next door, begin.

Twenty-something years old, Solomon Andrews is spiritual, charismatic and beautiful. A man who grew up in the immoral clutches of his mother where his first sexual encounter was downright sinful, he has a questionable past which threatens to catch up to him and has moved to this new town seeking a new life, perhaps some new conquests, “a field of skin yet to be tasted”. He soon realises that he is being observed but, used to the wide attention he generally receives from his female students, he tries to ignore the girl’s attentions knowing that if he acts on his impulses there will, yet again, be dire consequences.

Not long after a confrontation takes place in his driveaway between the girl and another female student from school, the perfumed love letters begin to arrive in his mail box. He knows he should resist, but the girl’s passionate declarations of love stir something deep inside him causing a yearning for something real and tangible. When she finally presents herself to him, he is unable to resist the allure of teaching this naive young girl all he knows.

Their illicit affair begins and the sexual awakening she has yearned for is made all the more beautiful as we see her become enraptured by his kind and gentle sexual teachings, yet he knows what they are doing is wrong, but he just can’t see his way out.

Unfortunately, and as they say, all good things must come to an end and, as a result of their affair being discovered, Solomon says goodbye to a town that held so many possibilities and leaves behind a broken-hearted young girl.

As the emotional consequences of the heartfelt but forbidden union reverberate through the decades, we meet the young girl again, but this time as a thirty-something year old woman who has never quite been able to move past her memories of Solomon, remaining ever-hopeful that she will find “the one”, constantly comparing every man who comes into her life with him. On meeting Max, their attraction is almost instant and they begin a relationship, but still, she remains disillusioned about her sexual encounters and is unable to move past what her and Solomon shared. When fate sees her and Solomon’s paths crossing once again, we wonder who, at the end of the day, will have the power to sever a connection steeped in yearning.

Having read a lot of erotica in the past and coming close to throwing most of them against the wall due to the bad writing and constant replay of the same old salacious smut, I was a bit hesitant to pick this novel up due to its genre labelling, in case I was disappointed. I can excitedly say that while it has been classed as erotica, it is so much more than that and I was hooked from the very first page.

There is a love story of deep, emotional meaning contained within the covers of this book along with a well-rounded story and, while most of us are brought up to understand that any kind of sexual relationship between a teacher and student is taboo and we ultimately end up not transcending those moral and ethical boundaries, Kate Belle has not written about a teacher’s debauched unions with under-age girls, but rather has created something beautiful and intensely intimate.

This is a powerfully seductive, sensually evocative and tastefully written tale in which Kate Belle explores forbidden love and sexual desire with a narrative that is lyrical and filled with substance, and I wish to thank Simon & Schuster and The Reading Room for providing me with a paperback copy of this delicious, darkly threaded love story.

[Rebecca Berto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some books have happy endings and make you satisfied because of that; some have cliffhangers and drive you mad in wait; others have a unique and perfect ending that makes you think.

The Yearning by Kate Belle the the last one, and I feel ( *shifty eyes* ) like I'm now a better type of human race for reading it. *smug face*

First of all, this is categorised as romance, but it read more like poetry at times, was always beautiful and flowed easily, and at other scenes it was more like erotica. What does this tell me? Best. Book. Ever! Well, for romance and such. I love quick reads, but this one had an extra special touch. Kate Belle can write and it's that "cherry on top" quality that made this book stand out from the other angsty romances that now all blend into one in my head. This one isn't really an angsty romance. It feels like real life. Not fluffed up for reading pleasure. It's like real life told over a span of time that's loveable, and hurt-y, and hot and thoughtful.

I found myself loving both the main character, and the first and main love interest, Solomon. They were both so...real? relatable? Maybe both. I'll call the main character MC or she because this book was told in third person, and was always narrated without her actual name. So. The MC as a teenager was captivating to read because she exuded the typical lust-driven, I'm-so-in-love teenager at 15/16, but in her own way. As she grew, I found myself nodding and agreeing with her thoughts. She just was written so well.

Strangely, Solomon was a favourite of mine, too. He was a hippie type, care-free, no responsibilities. He loved sex, lots of it, with no strings attached, ever. It was because of the depth of the characters that I was able to like Solomon. He never used the MC and he was more respectful than any other guy in her life. He is a kind man, who has a huge flaw in that he's great at love but just can't actually love one special woman.

I don't want to spoil the plot, but this story is told over many years and the fact Solomon is the MC's teacher causes many big problems for the prospect of their relationship. The Yearning never felt cheap by this teacher/student relationship. It was beautiful and different to what you're probably expecting.

I still don't think I've covered everything about why I loved this book so much, but it's safe to say it's one of my favourite romances ever and one you absolutely need to try.

Huge 5 stars.

[Mayu · Rating 1 out of 5]

¿Por qué será que me atraen las novelas de amor entre profes jóvenes y alumnos maduros?

Bueno, sea por lo que sea, esta novela no cumple lo que yo esperaba, y sin más os digo, que ESTA NO ES UNA NOVELA DE AMOR, si esperáis encontrar un cuento de hadas, o si quiera, una historia bonita y encantadora, esta no es la vuestra. Sin ninguna duda, no ha sido la mía. Aquí en goodreads tiene muy buena puntuación, pero sinceramente, no sé que le ven a esta obra, quizás si la novela hubiera empezado por el final y no por el principio.... ¬¬, y si Solomon no hubiera sido nada más que un mal recuerdo de la protagonista...

Pero no, Solomon es la fantasía, el amor juvenil de la inocente protagonista, una joven que creía que sin amor no se era mujer, que sin un hombre ahí, a tu lado, no eras fuerte, y es la historia de un cerdo, porque solo así se puede definir a Solomon, que va por ahí follando y follando, punto, eso es todo su vocabulario. Solomon tiene la sensibilidad donde yo me sé, y sinceramente, después de leer el principio de esta novela, llegué a un punto en que, o le mandaba a la mierda, o abandonaba el libro ¬¬. Eso sí, miré el final, ¿y sabéis qué? Es lo mejor, ese final, donde esa inocente chica que tuvo que aprenderlo todo de la vida a base de errores, le da la patada a este cerdo que se cree un dios.

La cita original está en inglés, pero aquí os la dejo traducida:

"Finalmente, después de todo este lamentable asunto entre nosotros, entiendo que nos he confundido por algo divino. Pensé que ambos fuimos bendecidos. No lo somos. No soy un ángel y tú no eres un Dios. Pensé que podrías hacerme completa. Me ha costado la mitad de mi vida entender que ya estoy completa. No necesito un hombre en mi vida para que mi vida valga la pena vivirla. Mi vida vale la pena vivirla porque es mía, porque yo cuento, porque puedo ser yo misma sin constantemente necesitar a otra persona para apoyarme y rescatarme."

Aquí la novela en inglés versión Kindle, para quien le interese:

http://www.amazon.es/Yearning-Kate-Be...

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry bookies, this one did NOT work for me.. Since I reserve my 1 star reviews for the truly heinous reads I am being a bit generous with this one..

I don't care what country this takes place in.. This girl ( I didn't really catch her name.. she is referred to as "her" and "she" is freaking OBSESSED with her teacher. Nasty obsessed, nothing cute about this.. She has binoculars to look inside his window and watches him screwing chicks.. EW

She writes him "love" notes, but they were scary..

The back and forth "confidence" that this teacher Solomon felt made me sick. This dude is a sex offender.. Maybe not legally charged, but he starts having feelings and sex with a girl who is 16 (I'm not spoiling..) When they are caught, he moves away.. Doesn't think twice about her really

She gets married to a jerk, pops out a baby and all she can think about is this old guy teacher who use to sleep with her when she was an awkward creeper.

I went in thinking this might be a bit like Unteachable, or Slammed. Where it's a forbidden love, but that the age difference wasn't all that great. Solomon was messed up, he had no interest in love, no real respect for women and "she" was a fool to fall for him or to keep him in her life when he came back twenty years later..

I just didn't feel it.. It was creepy as I said, I didn't feel that this story was meant to be romantic, it felt like the author was making fun of reader's who like the forbidden teacher/student romance and brought us this crazy teen and pedophile teacher. Jokes on me, I paid for it.

[Jodell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Your first experience with love and sex will, jade you, taunt you, follow you, live with you, the rest of your life, it will be the example of all other future relationships to come, the thing you long for, dream about, desire, love, or hate and how you think about a close relationship forever.

So, be careful how you are introduced to it and who you choose to share those memories with because those memories last a lifetime.

[Cate Ellink · Rating 5 out of 5]

There aren't enough stars for my rating of this book. It swept me into the story, had me identify too much with a few characters, and turned my thoughts inside out. I completely loved it. My thoughts are long and rambley and I made it a blog post. If you're interested, you can find them here http://www.cateellink.com/2013/06/sto...

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

It would be easy to write off The Yearning as a book in the vein of Fifty Shades given its frequent steamy sex scenes. But if you continue reading, you are rewarded with a novel that explores deeply the effect of previous relationships, the power balance between men and women and how idealism can ruin your future.

The novel begins as a new teacher, Solomon Andrews moves into a country town in the height of a hot Aussie summer. His next door neighbour, an unnamed student, watches him move in…and continues watching. At first, she is forced to by a school bully, but then watching Solomon go about his daily tasks becomes a lovesick ritual. When she witnesses an act in Solomon’s study, she decides to start sending him letters expressing her devotion and yearning for him. Solomon (who has been in some ‘trouble’ at his previous school) is entranced by the letters, being a firm believer in good sex but no love. Things start to get dangerous when he invites her inside his house – nothing stays secret in a country town for long, and nothing will be the same for either of them…

Belle evokes a hot, never-ending sense of Australian summer in the initial part of the book – the heat, cloying and unending, is almost like another character of the book. The weather acts as a force to exemplify how ‘hot’ (read: sexually attractive) Solomon is and how he sets all the women’s hearts aflutter. The sticky weather also serves to intensify the depth of our heroine’s feelings for Solomon and when things come together…BOOM! It’s like a summer thunderstorm, drenching the thirsty ground.

You might have wondered why so far I haven’t revealed the female main character’s name yet- that’s because that’s something you have to look forward to because Belle doesn’t name her until the very end of the book (I’m not telling you which page as you might cheat). I thought it was an excellent choice and brought a wry smile to my face given the events that took place. At first it seemed a bit odd that she hadn’t been named, but I got used to this – this character is (generally) an everyday woman, prone to making mistakes, having good and bad times, which made her easy to relate to (except for her initial relationship – that was unique). Her journey seems somewhat the wrong way round – from the ultimate to the mundane, but it’s an important one.

Now, what about Solomon? Even though I personally don’t care for the long hair and skin-tight jean look, not being a child of the 70’s – Belle creates a character who is hot Hot HOT! In more modern terms, Solomon is ‘sexy and he knows it’. He prides himself on giving pleasure to women when it was uncool to do so, knowing the Kama Sutra and never giving into love. This takes on a whole different twist when we find out his motivation for this, plus one of his final scenes has a pitying, almost laughable conclusion.

This book has a myriad of themes and insights into the human psyche that I could go on and on about (rather like Solomon *wink*) – please don’t dismiss it as erotica; this is an insight into human relationships (positive and negative) that should not be missed.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and The Reading Room for the copy of this book.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

[Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5 stars

The Yearning is a gut-wrenching and provocative story that’s written exceptionally well. Many times throughout the story it felt lyrical and those poetic words moved me. So if it’s written so well and I was moved how can I possibly rate it only 3.5 stars? I’m so glad you asked…

If I had to rate the book on the writing, the stunning cover and intimate moments alone, it would get 5 glorious stars. Back to the intimate moments for just a second, oh my word, they were done tastefully and while they were graphic (borderline erotic), it was beautiful.

There was something amiss about the relationship between Solomon and his student, their relationship was purely physical. Where was the emotional connection? And because the relationship lacked that depth it felt one-dimensional which was (for lack of a better expression), a bummer. I knew early on that nothing meaningful would bloom in terms of emotion because their short-lived affair was just about the sex. The protagonist feels so much that it overwhelms her emotionally and mentally but it’s completely one-sided because there’s barely any dialogue between them.

Normally when I read a book there are several compelling characters that I like, love or hate. However, in this particular story the men were absolutely, simply put, douchebags and that includes Solomon. There were slivers of hope when Solomon would reveal bits and pieces of himself that could redeem him but those were fleeting moments and again, I was left feeling unsatisfied. And the mom, delivered a ghastly message to her daughter, if a man sticks around it’s because he cares, despite his plentiful shortcomings. Someone shoot me now…

What’s brilliantly done by the author is how she withholds the name of the protagonist until the very end, the use of the metaphor was top-notch and I honestly didn’t realize she was nameless and I was 30% in when it hit me. I loved how she was on the quest to find an earth shattering love that would move her to tears and it’s that very elusive dream that she clings to ever so desperately that makes this story incredibly sad. She goes on this emotional journey of sorts, evolving as a woman and realizes that the dream she had about Solomon was just that, a dream.

“When the universe was young, it took a breath, then sighed with a longing so deep, so ancient, that it stole God’s attention for a moment. The sigh brushed God’s cheek and He recognized it as the breath of love. In that moment God wished for another. The yearning had begun.”

I realize I’ve picked this book apart but I definitely enjoyed this teacher/student story; for the writing alone it should be read and I promise you, it’s not boring nor is it poorly executed. This could very well be your next favorite book. ;)

[Bella · Rating 3 out of 5]

★3 Stars★

*Mild Spoilers*

I decided to read this book on a whim, after coming across that beautifully melancholy cover and reading the synopsis. I love a good forbidden relationship story, and they don’t get much more taboo than a 16 year old heroine, and her twenty-something teacher.

I have to admit to a feeling of mild-dredd through much of this story, because it was clear there wouldn’t be any classic HEA - whichever way things went, someone was going to be hurt. So this was the stories downfall for me. Even though I agreed with the endings all the characters got, the romantic in me cannot be satisfied with anything less than a fairytale finale.

Thumbs UP

I personally love taboo stories. Even though I’d find it all kinds of disgusting in reality, the relationship between this infatuated young teen and her teacher, I felt, was all kinds of hot!

I loved the setting of the story, and I could picture the small country town quite vividly. It felt right for the story, and the time.

The yearning was so well written, I could feel the want from both characters as it grew throughout the story. The tension, the heat, the passion, all made for enticing reading.

The love letters were something I came to crave, as they were so poetic and heartfelt and they showed the desire of this young teen perfectly. The final letter, bittersweet as it was, was my favourite and it was the perfect way to finish this story.

Thumbs DOWN

This story was unique in the fact that I didn’t actually come to love any of the main characters. They all had flaws, and they weren’t exactly the best people. I couldn’t love a guy that took advantage of teenage girls (yes, plural), then disappeared, leaving a trail of broken hearts and lives behind him. I couldn’t love a heroine who lusted after a man she hadn’t seen in decades, and entered into adultery at the first chance she got. And I couldn’t love a man who was a drunk, a bad father, and a neglectful husband.

Though she was true to the time, I wish the heroine had more of a backbone.

Final Thoughts

If you’re a fan of the forbidden, and stories that come with a nontraditional ending, I would recommend this story. There was nothing particularly sweet, romantic or swoon-worthy about this story, but there was plenty of passion and lust to make up for it, and I personally liked that point of difference.

This story was well written, poignant, and the perfect read for my rainy afternoon.

[☆*Angie's Reviews*☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 RAW STARS!
This book… I have so many things I want to say but the main one is: It definitely deserves more rating than it has!



I get why people might not get too fond with it, IT IS NOT a love story, it is not a fairytale with the 2.5 kids and white fence house. This is a story that describes the real consequences and life of a young girl becoming a woman and a man with ghosts from his past discovering each other; it shows how life can take you to unexpected situations and how some experiences simply define your way of living. It is RAW. The author made an amazing work describing each feeling, each thought, each encounter so perfectly detailed you could definitely felt in the shoes of the characters (YES! It has different POV´s, you don’t get only Solomon and Eve ones)

It was amazing how you could hate someone and the next minute you could actually understand their motives and feel sorry for them. Things in this book don´t happen because, everyone and everything has its reasons.

About the encounters… I wouldn’t call it sexy, I would call it sensual and erotic, you can totally understand why Eve feels ruined for every other man in her life. What happens in Salomon’s house is basically a lesson for both of them, how he talks about all the books he as read pleasure and foreplay, all the “methods” he uses (No BSDM), it leaves you BREATHLESS! Even though she is still young and naïve everything that happened they both wanted it.

I cannot be okay with the low rating because the writing is so beautiful and poetic! How can trashy books that seem written by ten years old can have 4.5 stars?

Don´t read this book if you are expecting a fairytale, don’t read this book with prejudices and a close mind. There are taboos in the story that might not be appropriate for some.

[Joanna Lloyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story of a young girl’s romantic obsession for her English teacher, Solomon, which changes her irrevocably and cracks the shell of narcissism protecting his heart. She begins to write of her love as she watches him from her bedroom window. “When the universe was young it took a breath, then sighed with a longing so deep, so ancient, that it stole God’s attention for a moment. The sigh brushed God’s cheek and He recognised it as the breath of love. In that moment God wished for another. The yearning had begun.”
To Solomon she appears like any other mindless student, blossoming into womanhood until he begins to receive her scented love letters filled with a yearning so powerful, and words so poignant, he finds himself once again unable to resist the offer of a young, ripe body. The irresistible pull of his lust and her obsession sabotages all adult relationships for the young woman for over 20 years; all she can manage is to play at the edges of love. When they meet again, this unyielding connection must be resolved for them both to find fulfilment and peace.
I hesitated when I realised this was an erotic love story but the pull of Kate Belle’s stunning prose and the heart-wrenching fragility of this girl’s yearning for Solomon, transcends the limits of labelling. The author has created characters so real, I could feel them as well as see them and her writing is so beautiful, I felt moved by almost every word. This author’s powerful and astute exploration of the complexities of this teacher/student relationship and its long-lasting effects on both their lives left me questioning all my previously held opinions about such scandalous power-play. I found it hard to pick up another book after this one as most seemed bland and empty. Thank you Kate Belle!

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not really sure what to think. I'm kind of having a love/hate relationship with this book. On one hand it is slightly my fault. I missed the last few words at the end of the blurb where it says, "when they meet again twenty years later."

There are certain themes I absolutely love in stories. Hence why I picked this one up. But others I can't stand and refuse to read. Second chance romances/married couples within books/children and pregnancy are all no's for me in romances. Just not my cup of tea. So when I get halfway through the book and all of the sudden there is a new character, I must admit I was kind of lost.

The first half was exactly what I was looking for. I am a sucker for teachers in novels and mix in obsessive student, yes winner! The intenseness of how their relationship evolved kept me glued to the pages. Heart racing, just knowing something bad would happen.

And did it ever.

We meet Max halfway through and I literally said, "What the fuck?" At this point I was still thinking this was a book about a student/teacher. I felt duped. I didn't ask for a half book of this intense relationship, only for it to end abruptly.

I didn't feel the connection between the main character and Max. I didn't like their relationship. She was an adult and I didn't feel the intensity that existed in the first half of the story. The whole time she kept mentioning Solomon and how she yearned for him. But to the point where she became obsessive again.(Not in a way I liked when she was younger.) When Solomon finally appears again, it's not the same.

At all.

Ugh.

I am glad it ended without a HEA between them though.

[Sharon Mariampillai · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was an absurd story. I found it boring, to be honest. That is not good considering I love student-teacher relationship books, but this book is one of those rare exceptions. I found the characters to be under-developed. The story was just was not for me. Solomon was boring and static, while Eve was just flat for me. There were a lot of cheesy moments in this story such as the letters. I did like the Dear John letter at the end though. Overall, a boring read.

[♥ Ashleigh ♥ Contrary to popular belief I'm not actually mad!]

Hilariously bad.
Skimmed through the book and it looks like it only gets worse, which I'll admit is impressive.

Also I just want to point out what kind of teenager hates Saturdays?
"It was Saturday. A vague and hopeless day of the week."
She also writes "Does love begin with a flash of recognition in the heart of an eye?"
WTF is the heart of an eye? Anyways I think I've proven my point.

[Sasha Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is not an easy genre fit, starting, as it does, in the realms of YA but finishing the coming of age at a point where we like to imagine most lives have long had it together. In the end this is a very adult story of Solomon, a teacher, a mentor, a sexual guru, who wafts through his life unscathed due to charm, good looks and luck. Eve is a young girl on the brink who, when she is finally driven from this deeply erotic but tainted and unsuitable relationship, spends the rest of her adult life willing him to rescue her. We are often nostalgic about our first loves but this is so much more than that. The Yearning is a story of heroic love, misguided passions, erotic teaching, breaking cycles and repressed memories. It would have been easy to simply dwell on Eve's emotional journey but the dance and development of both Solomon and Max is equally, if not more compelling. Kate Belle has the unique gift of making you care for all of the characters in spite of their flaws, even Eve's somewhat cold and standoffish parents, proving that, in life, there is never truly black and white. I have friends who have traveled Eve's footsteps. I have known a Max or two, some who have turned around and others who have been doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past. I have seen Judes, who holds back their own secrets while wanting something better for their children. I know of a Solomon (perhaps more than one and not in the biblical sense), who I have watched and waited to see if they would finally find that their charmed lives needed something more. We shall see... These characters are very real to me and I think they will resonate with many readers.