This novella is actually two tales woven into one, and each is so richly distinct and described that you have to give credit to Jennifer Colgan, the author of The Concubine’s Tale, for it being both a contemporary romance and a historical one or you don’t do it justice. The story begins with the contemporary characters of Cait Lang and Grant Pierson. Cait is head curator at an art auction house and Grant is one of their most valued customers. Frankly, they can’t stand each other, having drawn displeasing conclusions about one another. But the one thing they have in common, their passion for antiquities…in this case Egyptian antiquities, is the one thing that can bridge them together. The antique in question? A scroll. A story of two lovers. Ms. Colgan draws the contemporary hero and heroine closer and closer together as the tale of the concubine unravels and launches us into the past.

Honestly, in either era, the flavor and detail Ms. Colgan uses to lure us into the dance of attraction that is seemingly as new as ever and as old as time is flawless. When the story transports us to Egypt, you can almost feel the sun’s oppressive heat. When we are in the modern metropolitan rhythm of Grant’s lifestyle you can hear the sound of fine dining on fine china. Remarkable. The author throws out dual hooks, one to Grant and Cait, and one to us, as we are all drawn in deeper and deeper into the tale of one concubine’s life and how it changes so unexpectedly.

The only flaw is the ending. I am all for happily ever after. Truly. But I suddenly had a feeling that I had come to a cross section of a totally different story and unnecessary confusion that didn’t even have to be seen here. (I am uncertain, but it sounds like there’s a second story connected here somewhere that I don’t know about) Resolution is nice, but I was much more interested in the resolution of Grant and Cait’s romance than I was in a fantastical Egyptian tale meant to tidy up loose ends. I felt like story time would have been better spent on the here and now. But Ms. Colgan deserves her every angel because I simply adored the enriching flavor of her writing and I will be seeking her out in the future.

Reviewed by: Catrina