An Endless Love Story - an Editorial Review of "Til The End"

Book Blurb:

An endless love story. Born in 1945, in Upstate New York, Mela Rogers would suffer two stigmas during her childhood, she was the great granddaughter of the famous Hosea Rogers family and she was black. In the suburb of Irondequoit, she lived a secluded life of family and farming until Dorian Ambrose a handsome, brave high school football player bravely asked her to prom. From that point on, Mela’s life changed. She was no longer the lonely teenager who was never invited to the party.

After graduating, Mela went off to college at NYU in New York City, while Dorian went to IU McKinney in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he studied law. They tried the long-distance relationship, but it slowly fizzled out and they turned to their careers. Mela became the Chief Marketing Officer at a large department store where she would meet Matthew Barnes, while Dorian successfully passed the bar and began his career in law and met Cami Collins.

They would both find love and marry, have children, and become devoted spouses until insurmountable obstacles would end their happiness.

Many years later, destiny would lay out a path that would transport them back to their beginnings and life would take on a whole new meaning.

Book Buy Link: https://geni.us/x0MIJ

Author Bio:

Juanita Tischendorf has also written under Juanita B Tischendorf and JB Tischendorf. She lives in Upstate NY. To her credit she has released several nonfiction books and several fiction books, completing books recently at the rate of one book per year. Her fiction writing covers fantasy, love and forensic type mysteries. She completed a writing course at the University of Washington and participates in the James Patterson masterclass offering. Juanita is a member of the Writers Guild of America. She started a book club over 10 years ago and has a little library installed in front of her home.

Editorial Review:

Editorial Review: “Til The End”

Author: Juanita Tischendorf

Mela Rogers and Dorian Ambrose are in love. Well, not at first, but Dorian was a high school football player, and he asked Mela to prom, and well, we can all guess how it went from there. Love, definitely, because what else do you need? Quite a bit more, it turns out, definitely quite a bit more, because this story is not set in modern times, and Mela is (half) Black, and Dorian is not, and, well, we can all guess how it went from there too.

“When she first went off to college in 1965, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do, so she decided to take some liberal arts classes until she made up her mind. Growing up in a small town hadn’t given her a lot of feedback, especially since she spent most of her free time helping on the farm. When her classmates went on vacation, she would hang around the farm doing whatever needed to be done so she wasn’t worldly, but she did have a comfortable life, handed to her on a silver platter.”

“Til The End” by Juanita Tischendorf is set in Rochester, New York, United States of America. The story, while coming a full circle in many ways, will make many a reader take a deep breath, as it is a highly emotional story of the power of love, but also the power of prejudice. Mela and Dorian’s youthful relationship falls apart and hey, maybe it would have anyway, but the significance of the race issue is impossible to ignore, at least in the 1960s. The story is told in the third person, and Mela is deeply conscious of her heritage as part of the Hosea Rogers Family, and references both her race but also her desire to fit in with her peers. As well as racial issues, there is also a focus on the changing status of women in the post-war era, as Mela is also focused on trying to build a career.

There is ample reference to history, including Betty Friedan’s book, the TV show “I Love Lucy” and other cultural touchstones. The style of writing includes a level of telling rather than showing, and for this reason, some parts of the story are more in narrative form, bridging time and then returning to the past and back again. (There is also reference to the COVID-19 pandemic). Overall, in light of the storyline, this structure will make sense to the reader, but some may prefer a different approach.

“Dorian had finished ‘working the room’ and was ready for some fresh air when he spotted her, standing out in the garden. He walked through the large glass sliding door opening and proceeded across the patio to join her. Once he was next to her he said, “mind if I join you?” Her back was to him and from her body’s reaction he knew he had startled her. “I’m so sorry.” When she turned and he saw she had dropped her glass of wine and there were red drips on her dress, legs and shoes, he was overwhelmed with regret. “Please, let me help you.”

“Til The End” is not only a poignant love story, it is a story that emphasizes the importance of family relationships. While the focus is on Mela and Dorian starting out in their respective lives and careers, there are also secondary characters and a web of family subplots and perspectives.

“Just as hard as it was to settle in back home in Irondequoit, it was tricky to settle in with her family. Both her brothers and their wives lived on the property and over the years they had formed a close relationship that made her feel like an outsider. Now and then she would sit on the back porch and watch them mingling together, knowing that it wasn’t that they didn’t include her, they would, but she felt like an odd duck out with two couples even if they were her brothers. The last time they had spent an evening together was back when she first moved in and later a forced time together when she lived in her brother’s house while the homestead was being remodeled. She had even asked their permission to make the changes. Maybe it was one sided. Maybe she felt like a tag along and they didn’t mind it at all.”

“Til The End” by Juanita Tischendorf is a wonderful read that will transport the reader back in time, to reflect on the choices made by Mela and Dorian that impact them for decades to come. It is sobering to reflect on how many individuals and couples must have run into the same social barriers and expectations in a time that, while now history, does not seem that long ago. The vivid historical details included throughout the storyline add to the immersive sense of the story, and contribute to a highly satisfying ending.

*****

“Til The End” by Juanita Tischendorf receives 4 stars from The Historical Fiction Company

---

To have your historical novel editorially reviewed and/or enter the HFC Book of the Year contest, please visit www.thehistoricalfictioncompany.com/book-awards/award-submission