Author:  Greg Bauder

Publisher:  PublishAmerica

ISBN:  1-4137-3296-8

Don fell in love with Ariel the very first minute he saw her.  With her long black hair and easy smile, she was a beauty like no other he’d seen.  He wanted to kiss that smile, to love the moody new girl in the psychiatric boarding home.

Greg Bauder’s novel, THE TEMPTRESS ARIEL, tells the poignant tale of Don and Ariel, two patients in a psychiatric boarding home who fall in love.  In the easy to read 106-page novel, the reader comes to know Don and Ariel in their bright love and dark mental illness.  At times the two contrasts overshadow each other, passing in front of one another like storm clouds.

Don is obsessed with Ariel from the very beginning, even though her mood fluctuates from elated to tearful in a matter of seconds.  Don can never seem to say the right thing, but rather than be repulsed by her illness, Don simply dries “the tears from her gorgeous face with [his] fingers,” (p. 20) and professes his love to her all the more. 

Don and Ariel’s love for each other is a rollercoaster, at times bordering on “normal,” with day trips to Ariel’s grandmother’s house and to local clubs.  But those “normal” days never seem to stay normal.  During those times, their affair is bleak, confusing, and gut-wrenching, ultimately landing both Don and Ariel relapsing in a hospital psychiatric ward.

Still, Don is determined to make his relationship with Ariel work, despite his recurring nightmares about her and his misgivings over a previous relationship that left him shattered.  How far will Don go to keep Ariel in his life?  And just how far will Ariel go? 

THE TEMPTRESS ARIEL is a unique story told from the point of view of a schizophrenic.  It offers a candid look into a world seen as “scary” by many – the world of the mentally ill.  Bauder takes on some tough questions:  Can the mentally ill love and be loved, despite their illnesses?  Can there be trust among the anxious?  And, most importantly, is having loved worth it in the end?

Although the metaphors throughout the book at times seem clumsy and repetitive, and it is unclear as to whether this is Bauder’s writing or Don’s thinking that makes it so, his subtle repetition of daily routines and Don’s cyclic thoughts and dreams make the story convincing.  In the end, the reader finds himself rooting for Don and Ariel, hoping against hope that the two of them really will find forever-love. 

THE TEMPTRESS ARIEL is a quick, easy read and is entertaining and interesting.  Bauder has no need to pit the two against a dangerous, cynical and cruel psychiatric system, which saves the book from becoming a “typical story about a couple of mental patients.”  The cover is pleasing to the eye, giving the reader a clear picture of this raven-haired beauty before page one is even read.  Good for quick time-outs or before bed reading, ARIEL is indeed tempting.   

The following review was contributed by:  Jennifer Brown & Click Here To View Jennifer Brown's Reviews