Plot and Storyline Quality (2 points)
Regina Scott’s latest historical romance, Nothing Short of Wondrous, has a few moments of creativity but is mostly the humdrum norm we see in women’s fiction. Kate is the widowed owner of Geyser Gateway, a hotel in a young Yellowstone National Park. A year ago she lost her husband in a grizzly attack, and now works doubly hard to provide for herself and her son Danny. Will is a U.S. calvary officer who has been tasked with hunting down and arresting buffalo poachers hiding out in the park. The two are instantpy attracted to each other and find themselves spending a lot of time together out of mutual need…or is that the real reason? Will soon learns that Kate and her husband were dedicated to protecting a herd of buffalo from being poached – a project that Kate continues. Will’s presence at the hotel seems to make unsavory characters more eager to cause trouble. As so-called natural disasters and accidents begin to happen more frequently, Will and Kate wonder who they can trust, and who the real troublemakers are. Will their budding love survive adversity?? (insert long-suffering sigh here). The strong points of the plot and storyline are its attention to historical detail and the effort the author made to paint Yellowstone in a realistic, rather than fantastical light. It was also nice to see an attempt at continuity here and there. Unfortunately, much of the dialogue and word pictures are littered with silly romance aspects that need depth and basis. Additionally, the plot tends to be choppy and has an inconsistent pace. These culminate in an average score for this area.
Character Development (1 point)
Scott’s characters show some potential, but are underdeveloped. Kate has relatable tendencies and learns an important spiritual lesson, the third person dialogue makes it hard for us to know who she really is. Will is little more than a plot device, unfortunately, because he lacks motive. Minor characters are textbook and forgettable. It was nice to see the author infusing unexpected spiritual depth in the storyline, but this does not always tie in well with the novel’s themes. In short, the characters lack emotion, personality, and depth. This earns the novel a below average score in character development.
Creativity and Originality (0 points)
Finally, other than the attempt at a spiritual connection we mentioned earlier, there is nothing particularly original or creative about this novel. Thus, we here at BOR do not recommend that it be adapted to screenplay form. Christian screenwriters should look to the novels rated 7 points and above on our site for higher quality content that would make great films or series.
Wish List Rating: 3 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 