It's Greek for Love

It's Greek for Love by judevanderhall
On a beach in Corfu, Helga meets Kit. She’s preoccupied with her past and he’s anxious about the future, but maybe for one night they can live in the present. A story about love found, love lost, and finding it all over again. A one-shot in four parts.
Banner Credit: Marta

Rosie Thinks: I really love the setting for this story: we start off in Corfu, then go to Paris, Sydney and all the way back to Corfu again. It sets it apart from the many, many stories that are set in America. Maybe I'm such a sucker for this story because I love travelling and seeing the rest of the world, and that is exactly what Helga and Kit are doing. At the beginning, they're drifting around Europe, both wanting a break from their lives back in Canada or Australia when they met each other on a deserted beach in Corfu.

Each chapter is set a few years apart, in different places each time. You can argue that this story is completely improbable, and you could be right. However I think it worked and it didn't seem overly farfetched to me - I saw a friend I haven't talked to in years in Venice of all places, when we both live in Sydney. It can be an incredibly small world. And I like the Aristophanes twist in it, about how two people can be two halves of a whole.

judevanderhall truly has a way with words. There isn't too much description, but I like the whimsical quality that her writing gives the story. There are no long info dumps, just straight into the characters and showing rather than telling. There are a few mistakes, but overall it is very well written and the punctuation is spot on. One line that truly struck me was: 'For what is love without friendship? And what is love and friendship without longing?' How beautiful is that?! It also sums up the story really well. The two have an incredible bond but real life seems to get in the way every time.

It's not very long, only 11k words and four chapters long. However, a story spanning eight years was told in a way that wasn't in the least bit rushed or hurried. It was beautiful and by the end of the third chapter, I wanted to cry for these two. Enthralling, heartbreaking, deep - I could go on forever, but I strongly recommend this story!