Philip Pavlović

For the Love of Roman

Hannah

I will start this post with a trigger warning - suicide. 
For those who would like to skip this post, I do understand. As always, if you feel you need to talk I am always available, so please drop me an email. 

It’s February! Which means only one thing… Valentine reads! Oh and roses of course….

I find Valentine's reads always a little difficult. I’ll be honest, I’m not hugely into romance novels unless there is a good dose of spice in them. A girl has gotta have spice in her life! And for those of you who do not get the tenuous Spice Girls reference then I’m sad, as I’m now clearly showing my age.

This year I was lucky enough to be part of The Book Networks’ February readalong. As part of this readalPhilip Pavlovicong I have been given the opportunity to read a book by an author I have never had the pleasure of knowing before. This story is not my typical read however, there are certainly pros to this tale. 


Synopsis
Young Roman yearns for love and yet, he has been unable to find his soulmate. The pain he feels in being unable to find her, drives Romans’ longing to leave this world. Taking fate into his own hands, Roman has to deal with the consequences of his drastic actions. Embarking on a mystical yet nightmarish train journey across Europe, Roman becomes the catalyst for the merging of two dimensions. In war-torn Yugoslavia, Roman encounters Drago, a man facing death who vehemently clings to life. Roman and Drago’s stories twist together in a touching tale that shows how, even in the face of tragedy, love conquers all. 

For the Love of Roman, carefully entwines two timelines and individual stories together. Combines with Philip’s poetic prose, you are very much drawn into the turmoil of emotions throughout this book.

The beginning of the story was an interesting take of this young man’s lacklustre feel for life. Pavlović carves a very sincere and honest look at male suicide as well as how the event can affect both the person acting and their loved ones. 

I found the second part of this book quite harrowing. I had not heard much of Yugoslavia and it’s dealing with WW2 before so for those of you who are adverse to detailed tragedy or war, you may find this section particularly difficult to read. Although this was descriptive, for me it felt powerful and immersive. I understood the pain, the fear and the longing these characters felt. 

There are some really beautiful quotes about love within this story. Some I have noted down and kept for future reference and one I will share with you. It is Valentines’ day after all.

‘You with your waiting saved me’. 

This was a very interesting read and a change from my typical fantasy trope so should you read this, please share some love for Philip Pavlović and his tale of Roman.

For the Love of Roman

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