Hidalgo espouses a particularly pragmatic stance on this particular novel. It is not rooted in realism nor does it have any attempt on realism ---- it is a romantic novel. Fellow writer Ophelia Dimalanta supports Hidalgo as she says in her review of ""Recuerdo"", that readers might have the tendency of commenting on "the contravening of some degree of verisimilitude in the narrating of the stories rendered through letters which come regularly and with such contrived continuity and incessantness." Clearly, Dimalanta's response is a way of reinforcing Hidalgo's claim of ""Recuerdo"" being a romantic novel.