The Man I Never Met Review

The Man I Never Met by Elle Cook is a slow burn, complicated romance. I settled in to read what I thought was going to be an easy-going romcom to escape reality for a bit, but I shortly found myself in very unexpected territory. 

The author, Elle Cook, tackles a hard, emotional subject with care and respect, and even though the story wasn't what I'd anticipated, I found myself glad my initial expectations weren't met. A love interest with a serious illness isn't exactly the usual romcom material, and, to be honest, isn't a subject I'd intentionally have chosen to read, but I'm very glad I was surprised by the turn The Man I Never Met took. I hope to read more stories like this. 

I did find the pacing a little too slow for my liking, and I would have preferred that Hannah's character had a bit more backbone. Other than that, I found it well written, surprising, and a book that handles a scary subject with respect.

Thanks to NetGalley, Elle Cook, and Random House for providing this ARC for me to review. 

50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover Review

50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover, a second chance, small town romcom, by Kelly Siskind, has introduced me to a new favorite author! What a well written, engaging book with witty banter, lovable characters, and a cozy, but gossipy, small town. Hooked! Not only were the main characters well developed, but even the incidental ones are memorable. I'm someone who gets overwhelmed with too much information thrown at me too quickly, and have a hard time remembering who's who, but no problem with this one, and that's due to good writing, not my suddenly improved memory! 

The book is written from the male lead's POV. E, or Edgar, is a softie with a determination to win back the love of his high school sweetheart, Delilah Moon, after he and his family suddenly disappeared overnight 10 years earlier. A decade apart with no communication (it's complicated, as E would say) seems like an insurmountable hurdle to leap, but it's made even worse by the fact that E can't tell anyone WHY he and his entire family deserted their small town and all their friends. It's not just Delilah Moon he needs to make peace with, it's the whole town, and he's the only one in the family making an effort. Poor E has a lot on his shoulders. But, he's determined, even though he is working through his own pain, regret, anger, and ongoing family problems. 

E makes a reference to Windfall, the small town, being like Stars Hollow in the Gilmore Girls, and with that the whole town seemed more relatable. It made me appreciate even more how the townspeople rallied around Delilah in a protective circle when E dared to show his face there again. 

I love the scenes in Delilah's bakery, the precious dog E adopts, the banter, and the passion between E and Delilah, but it's not all sweetness and light. There's a lot of hurt on both sides to deal with, as well as mental health, angst, fear of the future, and so on. 

I can hardly wait to read more in this series, but even though this is the first book, it's a standalone. I'll be very interested in the other brothers' stories, but especially Desmond's. I'm excited to follow the journeys of the Bower brothers!

Thanks to NetGalley, Kelly Siskind, and Montlake for providing this ARC for me to review. 

The Duke and I

Welp, I figured I'd do some re-reading in anticipation of the Bridgerton series coming up on Netflix on Dec. 25. I decided to do audiobooks since a lot of the series is available in that format on Scribd, so I started off happily with the first book in the series, The Duke and I (paperback £8.99, Kindle £2.99). Everything was going along quite well until the first appearance of Simon. The voice. Oh, my God, the voice. I never knew a voice could make me hate a character so goddamned much. Now, I'll admit, I'm a picky one when it comes to narrators and I've been known to pull the plug on audiobooks within seconds because the voice irritated me, but this...this was a whole new level. I loved the other character's voices, I knew I loved the story, and I was determined not to give up, so I finished listening to the book, even though I couldn't stand to spend more than a half hour at a time listening. I have never been so glad to finish an audiobook in my life. I have given up on my idea to read through the series before watching the show. It seems like it would be a chore now instead of a fun thing to do. I refuse to buy the books when there are free audiobooks available, and the others are read by the same narrator, so I know there will be more godawful male voices awaiting me. I guess I'll just enjoy the Netflix series come Christmas Day, and later, when the memory of the awful voice has faded, I'll attempt the whole series in book form. What with all the moves I've made in my life and the thousands (literally) of books I've had to sacrifice to the moving gods, replacing ones previously purchased and read is not my favorite thing to do, but I'll just take it one at a time. 

Why do I always type out The DUCK and I instead of The Duke and I? Are there any anthropomorphic historical romances? Wouldn't that be fun? I'd deffo read them. 

As for now, I've started an anthology of cozy Christmas mysteries. I've decided to limit myself to reading one book at a time again, and it seems to be working out better for me. I never used to read more until a couple of years ago, when, for some unknown reason, I suddenly started having up to four or more going at once. It worked for a while, but then I started missing the simplicity of having one book to devote my attention to. The anthology is helping me ease back into the habit since it's giving me such a variety in one book. Novellas are perfect for Christmas reading, because I want to cram in as many stories as possible in a short time.

Also, Biden and Harris. I voted for them, I love them, I'm looking forward to having a sense safety and comfort that have eluded me for four years. If you're a Trump supporter, fuck right off.