A supremely satisfying love story with all the charm readers have come to expect from Cousens.
A recently divorced woman lets her kids set her up with eligible men, only to find herself falling for someone unexpected.
British magazine writer Anna Appleby has sworn off love. After the depressing and drawn-out end to her marriage, she doesn’t believe in romance—and she’s definitely not into online dating. But when Will Havers, a younger, way-too-cocky fellow writer, starts angling to take over her column, Anna needs to step it up. So she pitches a new column idea: She’ll go out on dates with men chosen by her children. Will, meanwhile, will write a companion column about his adventures in online dating. Anna’s kid-chosen dates—with everyone from a dad at their school to the mail carrier to a celebrity—end up charmingly awkward or downright disastrous. (Who knew a fishing date could end with a hook to the face?) Meanwhile, Anna has to deal with the frustration of seeing her ex-husband move on. It’s only when she spends more time with Will that she starts to feel the sparks she never thought she’d experience again—but he’s her office rival, and isn’t he trying to take her job? That’s difficult to remember, though, when the sexual tension between them is driving her to distraction. Cousens has a well-earned reputation for writing delightful love stories, and this one more than delivers. The enemies-to-lovers chemistry between Anna and Will is both believable and steamy, and Cousens deftly plays with rom-com tropes while crafting a journey of self-discovery in the wake of divorce. It’s also refreshing to read a slightly older heroine—Anna is in her late 30s, an age that often seems nonexistent in romances—with an established life, career, and children.
A supremely satisfying love story with all the charm readers have come to expect from Cousens.Pub Date: Nov. 19, 2024
ISBN: 9780593718902
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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