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Review by Maryam: Bluebells and Hanging Ropes

The plot starts off relatively soon; the letters themselves were from a war soldier, so we already got a glimpse into his life and the war. You also gave us a subplot, which you mentioned in the letter.

But I found that the story started to trail away from the war-aspect and toward the subplot if romance. It's all right to focus on the subplot sometimes, but it felt like you concentrated it too much. 

Don't get me wrong; the romance is very angsty and suspenseful, and I grew to feel so sorry for a character, but if you're writing a historical fiction, that's your chance to give us information on the world. What's happening to the country? Why?

Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres, and most of the time, I read it to learn about the time. I might know what happened around the 19th century, but others might not. There's a war—but which? What was it referred to back then? Where in the world are the battles happening? 

The romance in this story, though, is beautifully heartbreaking. The amount of times I just wanted to hug the poor guy was endless. The way you managed to write heartbreak was too good.

I know this because I teared up at one point. I won't say because I don't want to spoil it, but if you're interested in knowing what scene it was, just PM me and I'll rant about it to you. 

All I can say is: what have you done to my heart?

Character Development: 4/5

I always have a soft-spot for too-good guys; you don't find enough of them on Wattpad. Can I be the first to call dibs on him? If he doesn't get anyone equally as good, I want him in my life.

That said, his emotions were truly saddening. The way he went on with his life was so realistic and so... mature of him. He refused to betray his friend, and he didn't try to steal the girl away. Benjamin has his flaws, and they are mentioned, but he's just too good for this world. 

Myers is such a party person. He's not afraid to show that he's visibly bothered, unlike Benjamin.

Then why did I rate this a 4?

Easy answer: Molly.

She has beautiful blonde locks, piercing sapphire eyes, and flawless skin. She is so kind and caring. There seems to be no flaws to her. If I'm being completely truthful, she just seems so... perfect. She isn't; because her parents died. But even then, having a character with unnoticeable flaws can be very tiring for a reader. They'll try to find something wrong about the character, and it can drive their attention away from the story.

Don't get me wrong; there is nothing wrong with a beautiful, kind, and caring character. In fact, you'll be surprised by how hard it is to find just a simple character like that. As I read, I tried to find any flaws about her, and I can tell you now, it was hard.

And Frederick. Oh, Frederick. I'll talk about him in Characterization, though. 

Other than that, I will say this again: I adore Benjamin. He is one of my favorite male characters, and I can tell you now, it's hard to get me attached so fast.

Characterisation: 4/5

The way you described the characters personalities were unique. You showed rather than told (which is a good thing to do, so keep it up).

I could easily tell the difference between Benjamin, Molly, and Myers. They all were so special and so different in their own ways. Myers is so bold, Molly is so soft, and Benjamin is so mysterious. 

You're probably going to ask: "What about Frederick?"

That's just it; Frederick seemed too much like Benjamin (minus the part where Frederick is a soldier and Benjamin isn't). I couldn't bring myself to enjoy Frederick's character, and it felt like he's just a replica of Benjamin. 

It might just be me, but I kind of despise him (in a good way, if that makes sense). And I think you know why (if you don't, I'll explain it to you if you PM me. I don't want to spoil anyone).

Just add a bit of variation between Frederick and Benjamin and you should be fine.

OVERALL SCORE: 19/25

This has one of the best male characters I've ever read about. The story is written uniquely and with so much emotion. I can't remember the last time I breezed past chapters.

Just fix the dialogue and edit the summary a bit, and you should be golden. 

If you have any questions, please PM me at Marykhah77. Please leave feedback, and I'll try my best to answer you.