Book Review: Not Moving Out

By Sara Steven

Freya and Joe’s marriage has fizzled its way to the end, but for financial reasons, and to support their daughter in her final year of school, they decide they need to keep living together for six months.

They know it won’t be easy, but for Joe at least, it provides creative a struggling sitcom writer, he has found his new project. Why not write about his own situation? And the network loves it.

There is just one problem - Freya doesn’t know.

Can Freya and Joe navigate the six months together and might they find out something new about their relationship? (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

Not Moving Out was a realistic look at the changes that can happen within a marriage, particularly after being married for a very long length of time. The last eighteen months of Freya’s and Joe’s marriage had felt like a strain for both characters–Freya feels that Joe doesn’t want to put in the work and effort to improve their relationship, while Joe feels like Freya isn’t giving him the benefit of the doubt. I appreciated how they are coming at it from different perspectives, with valid points on either side, but it’s obvious something drastic has to happen in order for this marriage to be salvageable.

Freya comes up with a temporary solution: To separate internally, in their home, while waiting out their daughter’s last year of school. Freya will take the primary bedroom, while Joe will make room in his office. And they’ll both try their best to be respectful to one another in the meantime, until they can officially divorce. As can be imagined, the time spent apart while still under the same roof proves to be off putting and awkward, and that scenario also felt realistic. Having done something similar myself, it’s strange how the person you pledged to spend the rest of your life with becomes almost like an acquaintance, and I really felt that for Freya and Joe.

A subcurrent plot is Joe’s fledgling career. One of the catalysts that has led to the separation had been Joe’s need to put his career first, so when the suggestion to write about his experiences with Freya becomes a reality and an option, he jumps at the chance, with minimal reservations. They always say to write what you know, right? Only, the longer Joe goes without talking with Freya about his latest project, the harder it gets to come clean with her. And the more he writes, the closer he feels to her, reliving many of the reasons he fell in love with her to begin with.

I could appreciate Not Moving Out. A near-constant thread and lesson that is presented for both characters is to not forget who they were before the marriage. So often, people no longer remember who they were, or the types of hobbies or interests they had before, often choosing to go with their partner’s choices, or thoughts and ideas. Which only later serves to make them feel like they no longer know who they are. I felt that more with Freya, but there are glimpses of that for Joe, too. The big question is whether the two of them are meant to stay together, or if it’s better to be apart. And maybe the separation will help them figure it out. It was an eye-opening experience!   

Thanks to Rachel's Random Resources for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK * Amazon US * Waterstones *Apple * Kobo 

Jon Rance writes novels about love, family, relationships, and all the messy bits in between. His novels have been described as hilarious, romantic, and perfect for fans of Mike Gayle and Beth O’Leary. His first two books, This Thirtysomething Life and Happy Endings, were published by Hodder and Stoughton. Since then, he has written numerous novels including, Sunday Dinners, Dan And Nat Got Married, and The Worst Man. Jon signed a two-book deal with Hera in 2024 and the first novel, One Hundred Moments Of Us, was published in August 2024. The second book, Not Moving Out, a second chance rom com, was published in May 2025.

Jon grew up in England and studied English Literature at Middlesex University, London, before travelling the world and meeting his American wife in Australia. He now lives in California with his wife, two kids, and a dog called Pickle, where he writes full-time and drinks far too much tea.

Visit Jon at his website and on Instagram.

Visit all the stops on Jon's blog tour:

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

Hannah Orenstein builds character...plus a book giveaway

Credit: The Deans
Photography (2024)

We're pleased to have Hannah Orenstein back at CLC to talk about her latest novel, Maine Characters. The story sounds intriguing and we are loving the cover! Melissa has it in her five book pile and is excited to read it soon. Allyson read it and enjoyed it! Check out her mini-review. We enjoyed chatting with Hannah and we hope you will enjoy what she had to say. Thanks to Dutton, we have THREE copies up for grabs!

Hannah Orenstein is a writer and editor.

She’s the author of five novels, including Meant to Be Mine, Playing with Matches, and Love at First Like.

At Bustle, she’s the Deputy Editor of Lifestyle & Wellness. She splits her time between Brooklyn and Maine. (Bio adapted from Hannah's website.)

Visit Hannah online:
Website * Facebook * Instagram

Synopsis:
Every summer, Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster spend a month with their father at his lake house — separately. Raised in New York City, Vivian is an ambitious sommelier with a secret that could derail her future. Lucy grew up in a tiny Maine town, where she now teaches high school English while watching her marriage unravel. They’ve never met. While Lucy envied her half-sister from afar, their father kept Vivian in the dark.

When Vivian arrives at the lake to spread his ashes and sell his cabin, she's shocked to find Lucy there, awaiting his return. In an ideal world, they’d help each other through their grief. Instead, forced to spend the summer together, they fight through a storm of suspicion and hostility to untangle the messy truth about their parents’ pasts. While Lucy is desperate to hold onto the house, Vivian is scrambling after a betrayal. After thirty years apart, is it too late for them to be a family?

For fans of Carley Fortune and Elin Hilderbrand, this sister story set on a lush lake brims with the undeniable heart, depth, charm, and humor that have endeared Hannah Orenstein to legions of readers. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

"Every family has secrets, but this father has a whole secret family. Maine Characters is a juicy, escapist read — a grown-up Parent Trap, only with affairs and great wine."

—Jo Piazza, nationally bestselling author of The Sicilian Inheritance

What is one thing you would tell the debut novelist version of yourself?
Yes, you figured out how to write a book. Congratulations! But don't assume the next book will be easier. Ideally, each consecutive one gets a little harder to puzzle out. It's great to challenge yourself — think multiple POVs, interesting structure, etc.

What is something you learned from writing your previous novels that you applied to Maine Characters?
Before Maine Characters, I wrote four books in the rom-com/romance space: Playing with Matches, Love at First Like, Head Over Heels, and Meant to Be Mine. Working in that genre meant thinking a lot about how two characters can grow and evolve in relation to each other. I think (hope!) that experience set me up well for my new book, which is my first time doing dual POV. Even though it's not a romance, it fits into the "enemies to lovers" trope — here, it's enemies to sisters. 

If Maine Characters were made into a movie, what songs would be on the soundtrack?
I'm obsessed with "East Coast Summers," a song just dropped by Kaleb Cohen. It's the perfect ode. We also need Lana Del Rey's cover of "Take Me Home (Country Roads)." Nothing could be more Maine Characters than a New Yorker's depiction of Maine. Here's the full playlist! 

If your life was a TV series, which celebrity would you want to narrate it?
Kristen Bell nailed it in Gossip Girl. No notes.

If we were to visit you right now, what are some places you would take us to see?
Maine Characters is set on a fictional lake inspired by the one I live on every summer. Come join me! I'll pour you a glass of wine in a Mason jar, and we'll head out on the boat at sunset. We might spot some loons, and play some dad rock or country music. This is exactly how I wrote a good portion of the book.

What's the last thing you had a good laugh about?
@gettothepointbro is hilarious. He's a French guy with a face tattoo and strong opinions. I cackled through his entire video about New Yorkers. 

Thanks to Hannah for visiting with us and to Dutton for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

Giveaway ends May 20th at midnight EST. 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

Book Review: Lie in the Tide

By Melissa Amster

It’s been twenty years since Mori, Avery, Remi and Calista last saw each other. As they reconnect on Cape Cod to celebrate Calista’s fortieth birthday, each one hides a painful and devastating secret.

Former introvert Mori is now a bestselling erotica author. She’s more successful than she ever dreamed, and yet shamefully on the cusp of divorce number three.

Remi’s a yoga instructor, blissfully married to her high school sweetheart. On this trip, she’s concealing her pregnancy – and the baby’s paternity.

Quiet Avery is a farm wife living in Iowa. Her life doesn’t have the scandals of her friends’. But she does have a house full of kids she fears she’ll never see again . . .

And Calista, the quintessential suburban mom and high school English teacher, is harboring the biggest secret of all.

These four women are about to learn that one little white lie could kill more than just their friendship . . 

Lie in the Tide is an edge-of-your-seat suspense thriller that digs deep into those little white lies that have the potential to turn deadly. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

The premise of Lie in the Tide sounded interesting and I liked the cover picture, so I was excited to check it out.

This story had a Desperate Housewives feel. The four main characters were interesting and I liked their dynamic. I enjoyed that each woman had her own secret coming into the reunion. It was interesting getting to know each of them leading up to it. There was a lot at stake, especially for Calista, whose secret had the potential to destroy a friendship and already destroyed her marriage. When she didn't show up to the reunion right away, a lot of thoughts went through my head. 

While there were a lot of mysterious and suspenseful elements, I felt it was somewhat easy to guess at what might be going on. However, I was surprised at other times. The ending threw me for a loop and felt kind of confusing too. I found myself turning the pages quickly to see where things were going and to also see if my guess was correct or not.

Overall, an entertaining story. I feel like it's being set up as part of a series, so I hope we can either revisit with these characters or meet some new ones in future novels. 

Movie casting suggestions:
Calista: Torrey DeVitto
Remi: Meredith Hagner
Avery: Jessy Schram
Mori: Jessica Parker Kennedy
Gabe: Michael Cassidy
Kirk: Christopher Lowell

(Trigger warnings below.)

Thanks to Thriller Book Lovers the Pulse for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Also by Holly Danvers: Lakeside Library Mysteries

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

TW: Miscarriage, infidelity, blindness

Allison Larkin always has a home here...plus a book giveaway

Introduction by Melissa Amster

I'm thrilled to have Allison Larkin back at CLC today! She was one of the first authors I got to interview when we started out 15 years ago. I loved her debut (as Allie Larkin), Stay, and have enjoyed all her novels ever since. I loved her first novel written as Allison (The People We Keep), so I knew I had to read her latest, Home of the American Circus, right away! It is just as beautifully written and as heartfelt as her previous novel. It's up next for me to review on Goodreads, but you can find my thoughts and Allyson's review on Instagram. Allison is delightful and I hope you will enjoy reading her answers to our questions as much as we did. Thanks to Gallery, we have THREE copies to give away!

Allison Larkin is the internationally bestselling author of the novels, The People We Keep, Stay, Why Can’t I Be You, and Swimming for Sunlight. Her short fiction has been published in the Summerset Review and Slice, and nonfiction in the anthologies, I’m Not the Biggest Bitch in This Relationship and Author in Progress. (Bio courtesy of Allison's website.)

She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, with her husband, Jeremy.

Visit Allison online:

Website * Facebook * Instagram

Synopsis:

After an emergency leaves her short on rent, thirty-year-old Freya Arnalds bails on her lackluster life as bartender in Maine and returns to her suburban hometown of Somers, New York, to live in the house she inherited from her estranged parents. Despite attempts to lay low, Freya encounters childhood friends, familial enemies, and old flames—as well as her fifteen-year-old niece, Aubrey, who is secretly living in the derelict home. As they reconnect, Freya and Aubrey lean on each other, working to restore the house and come to terms with the devastating events that pulled them apart years ago.

Set in the birthplace of the American circus, this deeply moving novel is an exploration of broken families, the weight of the past, and the complicated journey of finding home. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

“Told with compassion, humor, and honesty, Allison Larkin’s stunning Home of the American Circus is a poignant tale of estrangement, redefining family, reckoning with the past, and healing through challenging but ultimately empowering circumstances. Readers will fall in love with Larkin’s cast of vivid characters and won’t want to say goodbye at the end of the book.” 

—Cassandra Dunn, author of The Art of Adapting

"A tender and heartbreaking exploration of what it's like to come crawling back to a home you once fled. Amid her keen observations on life in small towns, Larkin shows us the crushing despair of failure and the fearlessness it brings. You will come away from this book changed, eyes bleary with nostalgia and hope for the future." 

—Bryn Greenwood, New York Times bestselling author of All the Ugly and Wonderful Things

What is one thing you'd tell the debut novelist version of yourself?
At the beginning of my career, I carried the sense that having a book published could be a fluke — what if I wasn't good enough? That imposter syndrome led me to seek approval from people who knew how to use my insecurity as leverage or didn't even realize their approval was something I needed. Now, instead of worrying if I'm good enough, I simply focus on whether I've told the story I want to tell the way I want to tell it. Did I dig deep enough? Did I earn the big emotional moments? Do I believe I've written the best book I could possibly write? No matter what happens or what anyone else thinks, I want to do the best work I can for me and tell a story that does justice to the characters I've built. So I would tell my past self to stop worrying about what anyone else thinks. Keep your eyes on your own paper and believe in yourself. And look for earnest feedback from trustworthy sources, which is very different from seeking approval. 

How is Freya similar to or different from you?
The occurrences of Freya's life aren't mine. A big example is that I don't have a sister. And while I also dropped out of college and worked as a bartender and worked hard to leave my hometown, my reasons were very different from Freya's.The people populating her world are very different from the ones who populated mine in that time and place, even though I crafted them to be characters who could have existed there. But like Freya, I grew up in Somers and felt sad about the elephant, had a rowboat, and didn't feel like I fit in that town or in my family, and now have a family of friends who mean everything to me. 

Where Freya and I truly line up is the way our brains work. I do think I was probably selectively mute as a child, and I still sometimes have moments during extreme stress when I can see words in my head--or pictures about those words--and get a little stuck on how to speak them. Our sensory issues and sense memory are the same. And I've had to work very hard to figure out that giving people space to have their feelings can easily cross over into being a negligent friend, so like Freya, that's something I'm continually examining. I'm trying to be more emotionally brave. 

What is something you cut from Home of the American Circus that you wish you could have kept?
In one draft, Freya's childhood friendship with Bee was a little more complicated, and I'd written a super emotional scene where Bee had a seizure at school, and even though they'd drifted apart, Freya was the one who comforted her. I did so much research on seizures and wrote it at a level of detail that made me cry and gave me goosebumps. But ultimately, I think the universality in the simple ways Freya and Bee disconnect and reconnect is a more powerful story to tell. As tweens, we're all maturing at different rates, and it's very common for childhood friends to grow apart and come back together in adulthood when the tempest of adolescence dies down. So, while I loved that scene, I think the simple story is the more honest one. And I'm pretty fearless about letting go of things that don't serve the story I want to tell. When a scene is still in the book by the end, it usually serves many more purposes than it may seem on the surface — they're all load-bearing scenes by the end. 

What is your favorite circus act?
To be honest, as a child the circus made me very uncomfortable. I felt sad for the animals and worried the people performing might get hurt. I think there was a lot of inhumanity in the circus in the past. But one of my college friends actually has his own animal-free Broadway-style circus now, and I know he cares deeply about the safety of his team, and bringing joy to his audiences. I haven't had the chance to go, but I would really love to see Venardos Circus live someday. 

If your life was a TV series, which celebrity would you want to narrate it? 
Oh my goodness! I love this question! This is a little obscure, but do you remember that Tumblr page, Louis Vs. Rick, that was written as if a cat had learned to text his owner? At one point, Louis the cat discovers caps lock, and Rick tells him it's obnoxious to use all caps, and Louis writes back, "CAPS LOCK IS HOW I FEEL INSIDE RICK".

Well, when I listen to the beginning of the WTF podcast, and Marc is talking about his anxieties and annoyances, I often think to myself MARC MARON IS HOW I FEEL INSIDE RICK. So, I'm certain he'd be a good narrator for my life, and there'd probably be a lot of defeated sighing over situations where a molehill feels like a mountain. He gets it. I know he does. 

If we were to visit you right now, what are some places you would take us to see?
There are two layers to this because I love the greater Bay Area so much. There's a long, long list of amazing bookstores on all sides of the bay. In San Francisco, there's The Pirate Supply Store at 826 Valencia and an arcade museum on Pier 45. Also, I don't care if it's touristy; seeing the sea lions at Pier 39 is awesome. Claude the white alligator at the Academy of Sciences is awesome, too. The Lands End trail to Sutro Baths is incredible. We could spend all day at the botanical gardens in Berkeley (and they have a summer concert series in the redwood grove that is my favorite music experience). I love Half Moon Bay and Goat Rock Beach and Mount Tamalpais and Mount Diablo. There's a very cool little town called Port Costa that's pretty deserted on weekdays and super fun to walk around. But I get equally excited about small beautiful things. So, I'm just as likely to show you my favorite trees in my neighborhood or take you to see a spot where I know butterfly mariposa lilies are blooming or the right area to catch the tarantula migration in fall (if you're not squeamish about muppet-like spiders). As an East Coaster, the fact that I now live in a place with palm trees, cactus, and hedge-sized rosemary bushes delights me to no end. California is gorgeous on a level I'll never fully get used to. I love that so much, and I love to share this beauty. But also, I really just want everyone to meet my dogs. Come for a walk with us! I know a good tree we can visit. 

Thanks to Allison for chatting with us and to Gallery for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

Giveaway ends May 18th at midnight EST. 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

Book Review: Where the Rivers Merge

By Sara Steven

1908: The Lowcountry of South Carolina is at the cusp of change. Mayfield, the grand estate held for generations by the Rivers family, is the treasured home of young Eliza. Free spirited, she refuses to be confined by societal norms. Instead, Eliza revels in exploring the golden fields and sparkling ponds of Mayfield, observing wildlife, and riding horses.

But her halcyon days are cut short by the Great War, coastal storms, and unexpected challenges to Mayfield. As Eliza battles personal pains and the ravages of family turmoil over the years, her love and devotion for the natural world puts her on a collision course with the patriarchal traditions of a bygone era.

1988: At 88, Eliza is the scion of the Rivers/DeLancey family. She’s fought a lifetime to save her beloved Mayfield and is too independent and committed to quietly retire and leave the fate of the estate to her greedy son. She must make decisions that will assure the future of the land and her family—or watch them both be split apart.  

Set against the evocative landscape of the twentieth-century low country, Where the Rivers Merge is a dramatic and sweeping multigenerational family story of unyielding love, lessons learned, profound sacrifices, and the indomitable spirit of a woman determined to persevere in the face of change in order to protect her family legacy and the land she loves. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

I enjoy historical fiction, and Where the Rivers Merge is the perfect historical fiction experience. I didn’t know anything about the Lowcountry of South Carolina, and it was interesting to get a feel for life in the early 1900s in that part of the country, told from Eliza’s perspective. Despite a society that feels women and girls should stick to what is conventionally seen as feminine hobbies and skills, Eliza proves she can break those barriers and nothing is off limits, proving she has what it takes to eventually become the matriarch of Mayfield.

Surprisingly, Eliza still deals with patriarchal viewpoints in 1988. Her son threatens the fate of Mayfield, which means Eliza has to come up with a way to protect her heritage at all costs–even if it means going against the grain of her family. With the help of two unlikely relatives and family murals, she weaves a story that is deep and profound, at times heartbreaking and solemn, giving what feels to be a very honest and open portrayal of life and societal differences in 1908 and beyond. 

What I enjoyed most was the environmental aspects to the story. It starts and ends with a large tree hollow, a place Eliza has found to be a place of reflection and safety, with childhood friends who grow up with her as the decades move on. There are watery streams and ponds, with infamous fishing holes and horse and livestock that become just as much a part of Eliza’s background as the people within it. The scenery felt idyllic, making me yearn for my own childhood and nature experiences. Each chapter started out with descriptions of wildlife, giving its reader teachable moments before delving into Eliza’s inner voice. 

Eliza sees the best in people, even when I felt they didn’t deserve it–like with her son, or her mother. She doesn’t try to seek out redemption or to get even with those who want to push her down, instead working on a way to ultimately protect her future and the future of those who care about Mayfield just as much as she does. When it comes to Mayfield, there is no such thing as fighting fire with fire. Instead, fight fire with conservation, and education. I’ve heard there’s a part two to Eliza’s story, in The River’s End, and I look forward to reading that next installment. Where the Rivers Merge is five-star, all the way! 

Thanks to HarperCollins for the book in exchange for an honest review.

More by Mary Alice Monroe:

The Beach House

The Four Seasons

The Long Road Home

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

What's in the (e)mail...plus a book giveaway

All (or most) of these books can be found on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Apple, Kobo, etc.

NG = NetGalley

Melissa:
Room 706 by Ellie Levenson from Zando (NG)

Last Night Was Fun by Holly Michelle from Avon (NG)

Ghost Business by Jen DeLuca from Berkley (NG)

Vianne by Joanne Harris from MB Communications (print)

Taste the Love by Karelia Stetz-Waters; Fay Stetz-Waters from Forever (NG)

Always Hope by/from Heather Frimmer (print)

The Midnight Estate by Kelly Rimmer from Harlequin (NG)

Grace & Henry's Holiday Movie Marathon from Random House (NG)

When Stars Align by Melissa de la Cruz from Mindy's Book Studio (NG)

Dear Miss Lake by AJ Pearce from Scribner (NG)

Both Things Are True by Kathleen Barber from Kathleen Carter Communications (print)

The Sandy Page Bookshop by Hannah McKinnon from Atria (NG)

Sonora by Jenni L. Walsh from HarperCollins (NG)

All the Signs by Jessie Rosen from Putnam (NG)

Town & Country by Brian Schaefer from Atria (NG)

The Girl I Was by Jeneva Rose from Harlequin (NG)

Counting Down to You by Sarah J. Harris from Amazon UK (NG)

The Marriage Slip by Laura Barrow from Lake Union (NG)

In the Family Way by Laney Katz Becker from Harper (NG)

Sara:

The Swimming Group by/from Bella Ellwood-Clayton (ebook)

Road Trip with a Vampire by Jenna Levine from Berkley (NG)

Life Derailed by Beth Merlin and Danielle Modafferi from Montlake (NG)

Dead Reckoning by Rob Sinclair from Rachel's Random Resources (NG)

Jami:

The Grand Paloma Resort by Cleyvis Natera from Random House (NG)

The Cover Girl by Amy Rossi from Kaye Publicity (NG)

The Kidnapping of Alice Ingold by Cate Holahan from MB Communications (NG)

The Tutor by Courtney Psak from Kaye Publicity (NG)

Melissa S:

The Busybody Book Club by Freya Sampson from Berkley (print)

What could be in YOUR mail:

What's Mine is Yours by Leah Mercer. Leah has one copy to give away!

She invited her into her home. She shouldn't have...

Emily: It's been a long time since my best friend Ava stopped speaking to me. But I knew I'd find a way back in. When I hear that her daughter won't sleep at home because of a burglary on the street, I offer to swap houses for a while. Ava is so grateful. And now I'm staying in her family home, I finally understand why she's been avoiding me... Ava isn't as perfect as she makes out. She's been hiding a big secret that could ruin her idyllic life. Only now, I know all about it...

Ava: I didn't want to let Emily back into my life, but my daughter begged me to agree to the swap. I'll do anything for my precious girl. As I lie in Emily's bed in her cramped apartment, I fear what she's up to inside my home. Has she looked through my belongings? Has she found the key to the locked room in my basement? And does she know the truth about what I did?

Two friends. Two secrets. Which one is telling a deadly lie, and which is in danger? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

"One of the best reads I've come across this year!… WTH?… Superb… Downright delicious!!!!"

-- The Secret Book Sleuth ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"One word: gripping!… Totally unexpected and explosive… I was glued to my Kindle all evening until l finished it and devoured it in one sitting!"

-- arcreviews_by_m ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

Giveaway ends May 14th at midnight EST. 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!

Book Review: This Thing Called Love

By Sara Steven

Far away, on a beautiful Mediterranean island, a little girl writes a letter to the Universe, with one wish – for something to change so that her father, Luke, can be happy again.

Little does she know, there are two strangers in search of Luke already. Bee, who has just found out a deep secret about her past. And Alex, who dreams of his mother finding some of her memories again, and who believes Luke might be the key.

As Bee’s and Alex’s lives are drawn together – in entirely unexpected ways – will they only find what they’re looking for? Or could the Universe also have a love story planned for two people who might just be soulmates, if only their paths could cross… (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

Debbie Howells does an excellent job of weaving storylines together that intertwine, compliment one another, and at times, parallel one another, all in an effort to eventually get the characters and their storylines to collide. Bee is down on her luck and feels she’s at the lowest point in her life–so much so, she finds herself back at “home” with her emotionally unavailable mother. This one choice propels her onto a path she never saw coming, with a small brief moment with a stranger somewhat fueling her on, not knowing just how serendipitous things will get for her.

The same can be said for Alex. While his mom isn’t emotionally unavailable, she is withdrawn and different, and he finds himself making all of the decisions for her, often putting his own needs aside. A chance encounter in a hospital leads him to discover more about his mom’s past–and for both Alex and Bee, all roads eventually lead to Luke. Luke is the central character that ties everyone together, mostly enlightening Alex on the stranger he remembers running into not so long ago, a time where he felt like maybe he could do something outside of his comfort zone, despite not really having the opportunity to do so.

What follows is a path to finding a way for everyone featured in This Thing Called Love to heal, all in different ways and what works best for them and their individualized characterizations. Bee is trying to figure out what family really means, and Alex needs to spread his wings more and know that in the end, everything will be OK. Luke could arguably be dealing with the most profound moments of healing out of everyone, and given everything he’s been through, it makes sense. Watching everyone grow and adapt was beautiful to see.

I wanted to discover where the storylines would end up, how the characters would deal with the collision, and the fallout (or wins) that would follow suit. The story was beautifully told and had a mix of everything I appreciate in a well-written romance/friendship novel–love; loss; heartbreak; perseverance; revelation. It was a definite five-star read!    

Thanks to Rachel's Random Resources for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Links:
Amazon US * Amazon UK

Debbie Howells is a Sunday Times bestseller, who is now fulfilling her dream of writing women’s fiction with Boldwood. She has previously worked as cabin crew, a flying instructor, and a wedding florist! Now living in the countryside with her partner and Bean the rescued cat, Debbie spends her time writing.

Visit Debbie online:
Website * Facebook * Instagram

Sign up for Debbie's newsletter.

Visit all the stops on Debbie's blog tour:

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.

Listen to this book on Speechify!