The first word that came to mind while reading Briefly, A Delicious Life was “magical.” It wasn’t long into reading before Nell Stevens’ words really made me feel like I sank into her world – she truly captivates all of the senses with a refreshing lyrical tone. Bianca acts as a third party perspective to George’s life, which lends to the book being part fictionalized biography; but also has enough of an outspoken and tenacious personality to be a ghost story. At times, the plot interjects Bianca’s account with visitor’s experiences, and she has spectral powers that lets her gaze into other people’s minds and reads their futures. Her role as the omnipresent narrator casts a spotlight on the male gaze and reverses it, and it’s an interesting plot device to explore more deep themes on love, living fully, creativity, etc. I wasn’t quite sure how well the two merged together cohesively. The plot flitting between scenes or characters never definitively set the scene for the stakes, and it’s that non-narrative structure, especially with a lot of hype for the sapphic romance, that I struggled with. Bianca’s involvement in Sand’s life felt more removed, even though she’s our gateway into Sand and those around her. If you were to peer into the lives of George Sand from the outside at the time that they were alive, I imagine that Bianca would be a suitable voice in explaining or exploring what their lives were like...but on some level, I kept waiting for something more with the non-narrative arc or lack of stakes to push the character development further.