Series: N/A
Traits & Tropes: second chance; small town
Publication Date: 05.03.22
Genre/Setting: Contemporary; Laurel, Illinois, USA
Heat Level: 0
Rating: 3/5
Narration Rating: 4/5
Athena Murphy is struggling to save her career as an English professor and that means successfully publishing a book. She decides an investigation not mysterious erotic literature writer C.L. Garland is her ticket to stability. This book means returning to her southern Illinois hometown where Garland is also supposed to hail from, and where her ex, Thorne Kent, also happens to live.
When she sees Thorne, Athena realizes that her life hasn’t lived up to her imagination. They’ve broken each other’s hearts twice and now she has to see him almost every day as she works in the café he now owns.
Athena doesn’t know what else to do except write the book and get back to San Francisco as quickly as she can. With her deadline looming, she and Thorne’s relationship morphs from one of near-hostile banter to the true friendship they always shared. It’s possible that a third time around could work for these two, but only if they can move beyond their past mistakes first.
I have some mixed feelings on this one. I really enjoyed the premise and the small-town setting, though the numerous interruptions by side characters at inopportune moments did get a bit old at times. some of the scenes were hilarious, even when they went over the top, and I really enjoyed the fact that we had so many supporting characters also finding love and pushing Athena to claim hers. My issue here was really just with Athena and her attitude. She was incredibly egocentric and one-tracked in her thinking, focused only on what she needed to do for her career, to save a job she really didn’t even like, and she didn’t really seem to care how her decisions affected others, especially Thorne. She was incredibly quick to judge him, not really trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, even when he poured his heart out to her. I just would’ve liked to have seen her learn from her mistakes and learn to compromise a bit more, especially once she realized that Thorne was her happiness. Along those lines, I think the ending was a bit rushed. I loved how everything tied up, but this all happened in about the last 20 minutes or so of the narration and I would’ve liked to see more page time for Athena and Thorne in a real relationship. I probably would’ve set this aside and lost interest if I’d been reading it, but the narrator helped me get through it much easier. Overall, I liked Thorne as a hero, especially when he finally stepped up to be honest with Athena, and I liked them as a couple, she was just a bit of a pill at times and needed to take a step back and reevaluate her priorities.
I voluntarily listened to and reviewed an audio advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/2981207875
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4752260371
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