Undulate
A Particular Brand of Magic
Between the frivolity and lightness of the debauchery and designer names, there's depth and desire and delicious devotion. Undulate by Elodie Hart is not erotica, but it certainly circles the fringes. It is, at its heart, a story of loss and love and legacy and learning and it is so incredibly beautiful. It’s a story of character and charm, finding your forever and losing it, and being brought to life again through passion and movement and power and desire.
I didn't know if I would ever love a couple in this series as much as I loved Belle and Rafe, but Maddy and Zach may have surpassed them. The honesty Hart infuses into them and their story is magnificent. It's equal parts flash and complexity. Descriptive not just in its words, but in its tone and texture, its deeper meanings and soul level connections.
And the beauty of a story that evokes such deep emotions is that it transcends the hype. Sure, it's a steamy (incredibly steamy, actually) story about two gorgeous, wealthy individuals, but it's not. It's so much more. It's loss and grief and finding your way back to the light. It's friendship and trust and recognizing your worth (and it has nothing to do with their bankrolls). It's understanding that the right person can help you get through anything, without trying to change you, but by merely being who they're meant to be.
The chemistry between the characters is simply divine. It resonates with the series and club title (Alchemy) and emphasizes how the perfect combination of elements brings about the most amazing results, especially when the process involves some of the most incendiary methods.
I love an author who can take the “fun” side character from one book and build layers of depth and intensity to them. Readers of Unfurl may think they know Maddy, but she is so much more than she appears on the surface. It’s also equally as impressive when that author can build more than the stereotypical tall-dark-and-broody character out of the bereft husk of the straight-laced, closed off best friend of the uninhibited heroes. Hart does both, in truly impressive style. Zach is clearly lost in his darkness, and Maddy is the light he craves and needs.
Betwixt and between all the face-fanning steam, there's elements of vulnerability and strength. Lessons of learning to live with loss bring deep, guttural emotions into play. Depravity and catharsis sleep in the same bed and wake up as a soul-bound partnership rife with love within lust and faith within trust.
