Wasted Love by Poppy In Review

As a follow-up to my review of SE Holz’s wonderful short story collection, I bring to you my long-overdue review of another Vocal's foray into the world of self-publishing in the form of Poppy's poetry collection - Wasted Love.

I have, like many other people, long been a fan of Poppy's creative output on this platform. She has this ability to capture emotions, which are often very personal to her, and give them lyrical, literary beauty. Whether it's the emptiness and sadness of a breakup or the grief for the passing of a loved one, she has a stunning gift for weaving poetic magic with the English language.

The Actual Review

I feel a little unqualified to give a detailed review of a poetry collection, as I have not read many in my adult life. However, I did appreciate the overall theme of this collection. It's called Wasted Love and it's an apt title. There are four sections, which help break up what is quite a large collection of work. That is by no means a complaint, but without it being divided as it has been, it may have been a much tougher read.

The four sections are:

Pretty Poison -The One I Thought Could Save Me

Hopeless Haven - The One I Wanted To Save

Reckless Falling - The One Who Did Save Me

Clear Skies - The One I Needed Saving From

Poppy told me once that this was work from earlier in her writing life...and while I have noticed in more recent pieces, improvements, the skill and heart are there between the pages of this collection.

Her poems tug at the heartstrings, have you contemplating past relationships, feeling empathy, sadness, minor fleeting moments of joy and learning the importance of life after a breakup and breaking free from relationships that are unhealthy. It’s all dissected in some truly gorgeous poetry.

There is a lack of pretention to the writing too, which I adore. It is free from polishing to its benefit in many of the great pieces, but never strays into "meandering journalling". It feels raw and heartfelt and is a great showcase of where Poppy started as a poet and how she has progressed since.

Any concerns that I would not be able to relate to it, disappeared after reading a few pieces.

Some of my favourites include:

Lost

I knew I couldn't find

The world in your eyes

But I searched for it there

Just the same

Cages and Homes

He put me in a cage

Telling me it was a home

And I believed him because

He made me feel like

I was flying when

My feet never

Left the groun

Fireplace

I know you're not quite

Sunshine on a rainy day

But maybe you're a fireplace

And maybe that's enough

I won't ruin anyone else's poetic journey through this collection by sharing anymore. But, hopefully these little teasers are enough to whet your appetite.

Summary

Overall, this is a strong collection of poetry looking at all aspects of “wasted love” and a great introductory showcase for Poppy’s impressive writing.

If you are a fan of her work on Vocal, you should buy this. If you are a fan of poetry that tugs at the heartstrings, makes you think and that is raw and free of pretention, you should buy this. If you want to support fellow Vocal writers, you should buy this.

If you do buy it – you should review it, as the reviews make a lot of difference. Not just for the author but for Amazon and other online retailers and may make all the difference between someone deciding to click Buy Now and not. It doesn't need to be much, but even a small review can have a big impact.

Here is a link to Wasted Love by Poppy on Amazon

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Thank you for reading!

If you're interested...I also have a book, which you can find here: