"The Remedy for Love", by Bill Roorbach

Have you ever been stranded in a snow storm where the thermometer has dipped below the freezing point. It is so cold you hear the sound of gunshots but actually it is the sound trees make when their bark expands. To boot it is pitch black outside, your only shelter is a dilapidated shack in the middle of nowhere and you share it with a person who hasn't wash in weeks…. You will experience every bit of this and much more in this fiction.

Strange enough this is not a horror novel but a love story featuring two individuals, Eric and Danielle, not tailor –made to get along but rather to hate each other….well at least at first. Being thrown into a cabin with the Storm of the Century raging may bring surprising emotions. Both these characters are distinct, fascinating in many ways and never act as anticipated, there is always a spin to what they do. With no place to go Eric and Danielle’s narrative becomes quite intimate as they slowly reveal themselves to each other. The author’s share their story in a refreshing and unexpected ways and conveys their secrets through back story that fills the pages. I am certain Mr. Roorbach has experienced a winter storm: the description of the blizzard’s torment is artfully depicted. This tale weaves equal part survival adventure, romance and comedy into a colourful tapestry of nature scenes and this is where this story excels.

On the other hand, parts of it didn't quite feel believable and at times the meandering style was so repetitive and disjointed it was hard to keep focus. With this said the story has its merits in originality and reading it I felt strongly the urge to put wool socks on, a tuque, mitts, and parka and wrap myself in a cozy down duvet.