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Captivated
Alternate cover edition for ASIN B07FFVTRP7
For previous cover edition see here
A Breath-Taking Short Sweet Romance Novel About Love.
“I asked if you like me?” he asked again.
“Yes,” she answered, looking him straight in the eye.
Troy had been teasing her. He had never expected her to answer in the affirmative. His expressions changed suddenly, from playful to confused, then to cold and unreadable.
Lana felt something in her heart tear, painfully. She pushed her way out from where he had trapped her between his arms, and back through the club’s side door.
Lana Blaine's unrequited love for her boss Troy Savant has spanned five years. What happens when at last she decides to leave it behind her? Will the shy, but passionate Lana leave Troy's life for good or will the tables turn unexpectedly, leading to longing and desire? Will the romance end?
Excitement, regret & passion, clubbed with a fast-paced plot, written with heart. Read on and feel engaged in this sweet romance story.
For previous cover edition see here
A Breath-Taking Short Sweet Romance Novel About Love.
“I asked if you like me?” he asked again.
“Yes,” she answered, looking him straight in the eye.
Troy had been teasing her. He had never expected her to answer in the affirmative. His expressions changed suddenly, from playful to confused, then to cold and unreadable.
Lana felt something in her heart tear, painfully. She pushed her way out from where he had trapped her between his arms, and back through the club’s side door.
Lana Blaine's unrequited love for her boss Troy Savant has spanned five years. What happens when at last she decides to leave it behind her? Will the shy, but passionate Lana leave Troy's life for good or will the tables turn unexpectedly, leading to longing and desire? Will the romance end?
Excitement, regret & passion, clubbed with a fast-paced plot, written with heart. Read on and feel engaged in this sweet romance story.
52 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 11, 2018
3 people are currently reading
5 people want to read
About the author
Gauri Mittal
7 books8 followersAll the books are available at Amazon.
For a few of my short stories, poems and articles please visit: viewthewriting.wordpress.com
Link to After Annihilation:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NDCT5BH/...
Link to Love, Arranged By Mother Nature:
https://www.amazon.in/Arranged-Mother...
For a few of my short stories, poems and articles please visit: viewthewriting.wordpress.com
Link to After Annihilation:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NDCT5BH/...
Link to Love, Arranged By Mother Nature:
https://www.amazon.in/Arranged-Mother...
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 19, 2018
GOOD EFFORT BUT NEEDS WORK!!!
Title: Captivated
Author: Gauri Mittal
Designation: Standalone Contemporary Romance, Novelette/Short Story, No Cliffhanger #noprofanity #noexplicitsex
Format: Ebook Edition
My Rating: Two Stars**
I'd like to preface this review by saying it pains me to leave a two-star rating for this book or for anyone's hard work, but my reviews are always heartfelt and honest. Although I applaud this author's effort, the story needs work and a good editor. Captivated is a short, sweet, standalone office romance trope but despite the heartwarming happy ending, the story has no hook and lacks any notable drama, angst, and conflict. There's just no wow factor for readers. The narrative is riddled with errors in formatting, grammar, punctuation, and poor word choices, the dialogue is stilted and unnatural, the conflict for the story is weak at best, and the characters are dispassionate and read more like kids in grade school with a childish crush rather than twenty/thirty-year-old adults falling in love. No exact ages are given but the heroine is a college graduate who has been working for the same man for five years and the hero is the Chairman/CEO of his own company and is described as being older than the heroine. The story itself has no continuity or flow. Every sentence feels forced, and the character perspectives are unorganized, not clearly defined, and confusing. Possibly the author was trying to write a third person omniscient narrative but failed. I found myself rereading paragraphs trying to determine who was thinking and saying what. I suspect English is not this author's first language and possibly the true essence of this story is lost in the translation. For instance, the author kept referring to the hero's workspace as his cabin when it was clearly his private office. As much as I tried, I could not feel the attraction or a real connection between the two protagonists, Troy Savant and Lana Blaine. Both came off as immature and childish. Troy was rude, demanding, selfish, completely unlikable, and had no redeeming qualities until the very end. Not once during Lana's five year employment did Troy offer her a kind word or gesture. No, really, not a single one. How does an intelligent woman secretly love a man for five long years who has never been anything other than critical and cruel to her? And a wealthy, sophisticated, well-educated, successful young man in his late twenties or early thirties, like Troy who is the chairman/CEO of his own company, would never ask a young woman if she 'likes' him (I'm using the author's word). That's something kids do in elementary school when they exchange notes that read, ' I like you. Do you like me? Check yes or no.' Lol... However, he might ask if she has feelings for him or loves him, but never 'like' him. There's no profanity and no explicit sex which is fine, but there has to be a mutual attraction in order for readers to relate to the couple and their circumstances. Actual sex is not required to convey love, but there must be chemistry and sadly, I never felt it. An author must be able to show the emotions and feelings of her characters with words and inner dialogue - show don't tell. You can't just have your character say they love someone and expect the reader to accept it. It must be described, explained, exhibited, verified, and consistently developed as the story progresses. The characters must evolve. The author did try, but the result was weak and again, unbelievable. The entire book has more of a teen vibe rather than an adult contemporary romance. And worst of all, I never felt true love between Troy and Lana. I'm not trying to be critical, but I am attempting to give constructive criticism. I'm almost 70 years young and have been a voracious reader since I was four. My reviews are strictly my opinions and based on insights from my education and experience after reading thousands of books, many of which have been in the romance genre. Another thing I found a little disconcerting is the cover used for this book. In the story, Lana is the one who wears glasses and not Troy. This may seem trivial, but Lana's eyeglasses are actually an important detail. On the cover shown here, the male model is wearing the glasses and NOT the female model. Again, I'm not trying to be overly critical but if a suitable cover couldn't be found with the girl wearing glasses, it probably would have been better to leave them off completely. A cover is the first thing a potential reader sees and should always attempt to depict the actual characters. Also, if you intend to use a tagline on the front cover, it should be punctuated correctly. Good effort but keep trying, Gauri Mittal. I'm not a writer but I am an avid reader/reviewer and I know what I like. I base my reviews strictly on how much I enjoy a story, so did I like this book? It was okay but not really my cup of tea. Would I recommend it? No, not as is. Will I read this author again? Probably not. If you're a true romance aficionado who prefers seasoned romance written by experienced authors, you may want to skip this one. But if you enjoy new authors trying to find their voice, by all means, give Captivated a whirl.
Title: Captivated
Author: Gauri Mittal
Designation: Standalone Contemporary Romance, Novelette/Short Story, No Cliffhanger #noprofanity #noexplicitsex
Format: Ebook Edition
My Rating: Two Stars**
I'd like to preface this review by saying it pains me to leave a two-star rating for this book or for anyone's hard work, but my reviews are always heartfelt and honest. Although I applaud this author's effort, the story needs work and a good editor. Captivated is a short, sweet, standalone office romance trope but despite the heartwarming happy ending, the story has no hook and lacks any notable drama, angst, and conflict. There's just no wow factor for readers. The narrative is riddled with errors in formatting, grammar, punctuation, and poor word choices, the dialogue is stilted and unnatural, the conflict for the story is weak at best, and the characters are dispassionate and read more like kids in grade school with a childish crush rather than twenty/thirty-year-old adults falling in love. No exact ages are given but the heroine is a college graduate who has been working for the same man for five years and the hero is the Chairman/CEO of his own company and is described as being older than the heroine. The story itself has no continuity or flow. Every sentence feels forced, and the character perspectives are unorganized, not clearly defined, and confusing. Possibly the author was trying to write a third person omniscient narrative but failed. I found myself rereading paragraphs trying to determine who was thinking and saying what. I suspect English is not this author's first language and possibly the true essence of this story is lost in the translation. For instance, the author kept referring to the hero's workspace as his cabin when it was clearly his private office. As much as I tried, I could not feel the attraction or a real connection between the two protagonists, Troy Savant and Lana Blaine. Both came off as immature and childish. Troy was rude, demanding, selfish, completely unlikable, and had no redeeming qualities until the very end. Not once during Lana's five year employment did Troy offer her a kind word or gesture. No, really, not a single one. How does an intelligent woman secretly love a man for five long years who has never been anything other than critical and cruel to her? And a wealthy, sophisticated, well-educated, successful young man in his late twenties or early thirties, like Troy who is the chairman/CEO of his own company, would never ask a young woman if she 'likes' him (I'm using the author's word). That's something kids do in elementary school when they exchange notes that read, ' I like you. Do you like me? Check yes or no.' Lol... However, he might ask if she has feelings for him or loves him, but never 'like' him. There's no profanity and no explicit sex which is fine, but there has to be a mutual attraction in order for readers to relate to the couple and their circumstances. Actual sex is not required to convey love, but there must be chemistry and sadly, I never felt it. An author must be able to show the emotions and feelings of her characters with words and inner dialogue - show don't tell. You can't just have your character say they love someone and expect the reader to accept it. It must be described, explained, exhibited, verified, and consistently developed as the story progresses. The characters must evolve. The author did try, but the result was weak and again, unbelievable. The entire book has more of a teen vibe rather than an adult contemporary romance. And worst of all, I never felt true love between Troy and Lana. I'm not trying to be critical, but I am attempting to give constructive criticism. I'm almost 70 years young and have been a voracious reader since I was four. My reviews are strictly my opinions and based on insights from my education and experience after reading thousands of books, many of which have been in the romance genre. Another thing I found a little disconcerting is the cover used for this book. In the story, Lana is the one who wears glasses and not Troy. This may seem trivial, but Lana's eyeglasses are actually an important detail. On the cover shown here, the male model is wearing the glasses and NOT the female model. Again, I'm not trying to be overly critical but if a suitable cover couldn't be found with the girl wearing glasses, it probably would have been better to leave them off completely. A cover is the first thing a potential reader sees and should always attempt to depict the actual characters. Also, if you intend to use a tagline on the front cover, it should be punctuated correctly. Good effort but keep trying, Gauri Mittal. I'm not a writer but I am an avid reader/reviewer and I know what I like. I base my reviews strictly on how much I enjoy a story, so did I like this book? It was okay but not really my cup of tea. Would I recommend it? No, not as is. Will I read this author again? Probably not. If you're a true romance aficionado who prefers seasoned romance written by experienced authors, you may want to skip this one. But if you enjoy new authors trying to find their voice, by all means, give Captivated a whirl.
July 28, 2018
It’s an amazing love story. The way of presenting the story and writing style, I liked the most.
The most important thing is writer’s imagination. I’m in love❤️ with writer’s language style. I’m now reading writer’s another book “Love, arranged by Mother Nature”. Many more to expect from writer.
The most important thing is writer’s imagination. I’m in love❤️ with writer’s language style. I’m now reading writer’s another book “Love, arranged by Mother Nature”. Many more to expect from writer.
July 31, 2018
GOOD EFFORT BUT NEEDS WORK!
Title: Captivated
Author: Gauri Mittal
Designation: Standalone Contemporary Romance, Novelette/Short Story, No Cliffhanger #noprofanity #noexplicitsex
Format: Ebook Edition
My Rating: Two Stars**
I'd like to preface this review by saying it pains me to leave a two star rating for this book or for anyone's hard work, but my reviews are always heartfelt and honest. Although I applaud this author's effort, the story needs work and a good editor. Captivated is a short, sweet, standalone office romance trope but despite the heartwarming happy ending, the story has no hook and lacks relatable angst. There's just no wow factor for readers. The narrative is riddled with errors in formatting, grammar, punctuation, and poor word choices, the dialogue is stilted and unnatural, the conflict for the story is weak, and the characters read more like kids in grade school with a childish crush rather than young adults falling in love. The characters lack real passion, and the words have no continuity or flow. Every sentence feels forced, and the character perspectives are unorganized and confusing. Possibly the author was trying to write a third person omniscient narrative but failed. I found myself rereading paragraphs trying to determine who was thinking and saying what. I suspect English is not this author's first language and possibly the true essence of this story is lost in the translation. As much as I tried, I could not feel the attraction or connection between the two protagonists, Troy and Lana. Both came off as immature and childish. Troy was completely unlikable and had no redeeming qualities until the very end. For example, a wealthy, sophisticated, and successful young man in his late twenties or early thirties, like Troy who is the chairman of CEO of his own company, would never ask a young woman if she 'liked' him (and I'm using the author's words). That's something kids do in elementary school when they exchange notes that read, 'Do you like me? Check yes or no.' Lol... However, he might ask if she had feelings for him. There's no profanity and no explicit sex which is fine, but there has to be a physical attraction and connection in order for readers to relate to the couple and their circumstances. Actual sex is not required to convey love, but there must be chemistry and sadly it just wasn't there. An author must be able to show a character's emotions and feelings with words and inner dialogue - show don't tell. You can't just have your character say they love someone and expect the reader to accept it. It must be described, exhibited, and consistently developed as the story progresses. The characters must evolve. The author did try, but the result was weak and again, unbelievable. The entire book has more of a teen vibe rather than an adult contemporary romance. And worst of all, I never felt true love between Troy and Lana. I'm not trying to be critical, but I am attempting to give constructive criticism. Good effort but keep trying, Gauri Mittal. I'm not a writer but I am an avid reader/reviewer and I know what I like. I base my reviews strictly on how much I enjoy a story, so did I like this book? It was okay but not really my cup of tea. Would I recommend it? No, not as is. Will I read this author again? Probably not. If you're a true romance aficionado who prefers seasoned romance written by experienced authors, you may want to skip this one. But if you enjoy new authors trying to find their voice, by all means give Captivated a whirl.
Title: Captivated
Author: Gauri Mittal
Designation: Standalone Contemporary Romance, Novelette/Short Story, No Cliffhanger #noprofanity #noexplicitsex
Format: Ebook Edition
My Rating: Two Stars**
I'd like to preface this review by saying it pains me to leave a two star rating for this book or for anyone's hard work, but my reviews are always heartfelt and honest. Although I applaud this author's effort, the story needs work and a good editor. Captivated is a short, sweet, standalone office romance trope but despite the heartwarming happy ending, the story has no hook and lacks relatable angst. There's just no wow factor for readers. The narrative is riddled with errors in formatting, grammar, punctuation, and poor word choices, the dialogue is stilted and unnatural, the conflict for the story is weak, and the characters read more like kids in grade school with a childish crush rather than young adults falling in love. The characters lack real passion, and the words have no continuity or flow. Every sentence feels forced, and the character perspectives are unorganized and confusing. Possibly the author was trying to write a third person omniscient narrative but failed. I found myself rereading paragraphs trying to determine who was thinking and saying what. I suspect English is not this author's first language and possibly the true essence of this story is lost in the translation. As much as I tried, I could not feel the attraction or connection between the two protagonists, Troy and Lana. Both came off as immature and childish. Troy was completely unlikable and had no redeeming qualities until the very end. For example, a wealthy, sophisticated, and successful young man in his late twenties or early thirties, like Troy who is the chairman of CEO of his own company, would never ask a young woman if she 'liked' him (and I'm using the author's words). That's something kids do in elementary school when they exchange notes that read, 'Do you like me? Check yes or no.' Lol... However, he might ask if she had feelings for him. There's no profanity and no explicit sex which is fine, but there has to be a physical attraction and connection in order for readers to relate to the couple and their circumstances. Actual sex is not required to convey love, but there must be chemistry and sadly it just wasn't there. An author must be able to show a character's emotions and feelings with words and inner dialogue - show don't tell. You can't just have your character say they love someone and expect the reader to accept it. It must be described, exhibited, and consistently developed as the story progresses. The characters must evolve. The author did try, but the result was weak and again, unbelievable. The entire book has more of a teen vibe rather than an adult contemporary romance. And worst of all, I never felt true love between Troy and Lana. I'm not trying to be critical, but I am attempting to give constructive criticism. Good effort but keep trying, Gauri Mittal. I'm not a writer but I am an avid reader/reviewer and I know what I like. I base my reviews strictly on how much I enjoy a story, so did I like this book? It was okay but not really my cup of tea. Would I recommend it? No, not as is. Will I read this author again? Probably not. If you're a true romance aficionado who prefers seasoned romance written by experienced authors, you may want to skip this one. But if you enjoy new authors trying to find their voice, by all means give Captivated a whirl.
August 5, 2018
All Said & Done, The Author GAURI MITTAL Has Kept The Flow Of The Language Smooth In It’s Simplicity & That Is More Than Enough To Captivate The Readers As It Definitely Strikes A Chord..
There Is No Denying That At Times The Story Starts To Go Really Slow But Perhaps That Is Because GAURI Is In No Hurry To Rush It & So She Tells It At A Leisurely Pace.
Even Though There Are No Twists & Turns In The Plot Yet This Simple Love Story Has A Grip Of It’s Own On The Reader As One Has An Inkling That All Said & Done This Love Story Between LANA BLAINE & TROY SAVANT Is Bound To Have A Happy Ending.
There Are A Lot Of Things That Are Predictable Yet The Earnestness Of The Author Is Never In Question.
Being My First Book Of GAURI MITTAL The Impression She Leaves Me With Is To Find Out Her Other Books & Keep Aside On My Wishlist With A Mental Note-“Must Read!!”
There Is No Denying That At Times The Story Starts To Go Really Slow But Perhaps That Is Because GAURI Is In No Hurry To Rush It & So She Tells It At A Leisurely Pace.
Even Though There Are No Twists & Turns In The Plot Yet This Simple Love Story Has A Grip Of It’s Own On The Reader As One Has An Inkling That All Said & Done This Love Story Between LANA BLAINE & TROY SAVANT Is Bound To Have A Happy Ending.
There Are A Lot Of Things That Are Predictable Yet The Earnestness Of The Author Is Never In Question.
Being My First Book Of GAURI MITTAL The Impression She Leaves Me With Is To Find Out Her Other Books & Keep Aside On My Wishlist With A Mental Note-“Must Read!!”
August 1, 2018
Nice Story
This was a nice story. The writing style isn't something that I am fond of, but the story concept was awesome to say the least. Some parts came off unrealistic and not possible to happen, but again the plot kept me reading.
This was a nice story. The writing style isn't something that I am fond of, but the story concept was awesome to say the least. Some parts came off unrealistic and not possible to happen, but again the plot kept me reading.
June 13, 2019
An average read
Nothing special. Just another average book. No suspense. Very little romance. Just the same old jealousy track retold. Wouldn't recommend
Nothing special. Just another average book. No suspense. Very little romance. Just the same old jealousy track retold. Wouldn't recommend
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews