Review: From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata

From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This review is based on listening to an audio book from Audible, rather than reading the written word. This changes the experience and this review should be considered from that point of view.

Mariana Zapata has a brilliant ability to write truly enthralling stories. She creates characters that live and breathe for the reader. I become so engrossed in what I’m listening to, the time disappears, because I just want to keep listening. Callie Dalton has narrated a lot, if not most of the Mariana Zapata books I’ve listened to on audio and she manages to transform herself into the different characters each time. I liked having Teddy Hamilton read the parts spoken by Ivan quite a lot. I wasn’t sure I would, because I thought it might break up the flow and Callie Dalton has always done a decent job of narrating a male character. I really shouldn’t have worried because he did a great job and it actually made his character better, because he had a unique voice that contrasted with the way Jasmine perceived the rest of the story.

The story itself was excellent, and used a subject matter that all readers of the author would recognise, that of a sports person. In this case it was both the MFC and the MMC who were ice skaters. Both Ivan and Jasmine have been skating since childhood, and as adults moved into pairs skating. Jasmine had been a singles skater but nerves got the better of her, so she moved into pairs. She’s skated for 3 years with Paul, who then ditched her a year before the story started, without warning, for another partner. She couldn’t find another partner because she has always been perceived as having a bad attitude, something she’d never defended herself against, because she didn’t care what anyone else thought.

Jasmine is friends with Ivan’s sister, so has known his family for years, and as his parents own the ice centre where she trains, his parents had always subsidised her rink fees. However, she and Ivan clashed, a lot. They never said anything nice to each other and Ivan was successful, whilst Jasmine was not. The year she spent partner-less she’d continued to train, without a coach, but still going to the rink every day to practice just in case she ever got an opportunity to skate competitively again. She’d almost come to the conclusion that she may as well give up hope, when Ivan and his coach offered her an opportunity to partner with him for the next year. After some consideration, she took him up on the offer and they started to train.

This story isn’t really about them winning medals or prizes, this about them and their relationship. It’s about how two very socially awkward people who don’t care what others think, who are rude and confrontational, start to find a way to work together.

I loved Jasmine. She was obnoxious, bad tempered and determined, to the detriment of everything else, to skate. Her relationship with her family was much improved after her year out and she was determined to keep hold of that even whilst starting a ridiculously intense training regime. She was also fiercely loyal to her family and would pummel anyone who hurt them into the ground.

Her family are brilliant characters and their banter at family get together’s is hilarious. I love how this author is able to sketch out supporting characters so fully and quickly that we immediately understand them and their relationship to the main characters. It’s a definite gift.

Ivan is at first unknowable. He hides behind a strangely blended mask of professionalism and insults. It’s hard to understand his motives because we only see him from Jasmine’s point of view. I love how slowly our perceptions of him change as Jasmine starts to see him more clearly.

This is a funny, sad and uplifting story. It’s about family, a passionate drive for success, and it’s about friendship and love. It’s a great story and I know I’ll listen to it again at some point. You can’t go wrong with this author.

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