Information

• Goodreads: 3.85 out of 667 Ratings
• My Rating: 4.5 Stars
• Age Range: Adult; New Adult
• Category: Romance, Contemporary
• Series: None

Summary:

I did receive this as an ARC copy from Netgalley.

Samantha is down on her luck. She thought her career would have kicked off by now, but she’s been living the corner of her mother’s office for 5 years. Not at all how she imagined her life would be at 26, but here we are. Not all is lost, though. She could still get into that PhD program that would change everything. Nick is everything Samantha isn’t. He’s almost 40, has a child, has just moved into the apartment next to Sam, and just seems so put together. I mean, he even plays with his kid and engages with her, has given up nights of fun for being a manager at Chili’s just so his little girl can have a relatively good and stable life. That isn’t something Sam thought was possible. It definitely wasn’t something her father was capable of. She’s not interested in Nick or children, but he’s nearly impossible to avoid and there’s something about seeing a loving, doting, and dependable man that kind of does it for her. And his kid isn’t too bad, either. Even if Sam does have a mini panic attack every time they talk.

Review:

I had also received Goldbeck’s You, Again through Netgalley and didn’t like it. I think I gave it 2 or 3 stars. I really enjoyed the people and the banter, but the relationship felt….very pushy. There was a scene in that book that made me incredibly uncomfortable; the kind where I wouldn’t have blinked twice if it were a dark romance, but alas, it wasn’t.

This book felt different. I loved the characters and banter still, but everything else felt like it got better. I genuinely feel like I’ve gotten to see an author grow and improve just over two books and I’m really excited to see how much she continues to grow. The characters in this book are unlikable – or Sam is, anyway. But even the people who are likable are still flawed. Goldbeck doesn’t write beautiful and magnificent characters who have everything together and no regrets and no real flaws. Sam is stuck in a rut. She goes into Youtube spirals and has essentially wasted away five years of her life because she can’t do what she’s always dreamed of. Sam flat out refuses to try for opportunities if they aren’t exactly what she wanted. Nick had a child and has completely turned his life around. And he absolutely made mistakes within his marriage and it could be said it’s a little uncomfy for an almost 40 year old to be going to a 26 year old – rest assured, that is talked about. Still, you feel for em. The characters feel real. They don’t feel like someone’s glamorized version of a romance. Nick is a little chubby – he’s got a dad bod. He’s not conventionally attractive. Neither is Sam. They feel like actual people that I could run into on the street. Characters are absolutely Goldbeck’s niche.

The plot of the book is also a little more interesting for me, personally. I love when people are willing to have real conversations and looks at what dating a single parent could look like. Sam is told over and over again that she will never be Nick’s biggest priority and it’s never villainized. That’s just how it is and she has to figure out if she’s okay with that. And if she isn’t, that’s perfectly fine. If she is, that’s perfectly fine. There’s no right or wrong answer here and I love that. Nick doesn’t want to hold her back. I think that’s what makes him go from an almost 40 year old preying on younger women to someone who happens to be almost 40 falling for someone else. He’s happy with what he can have and doesn’t rush or ask for more. Sam’s not ready for sex yet? No worries, I can savor what we have. Sam’s not ready to be a step mom? No worries, I wasn’t asking her to be.

There’s a moment when Sam’s mom is (rightfully) worried about Sam and Nick being together. Nick is divorced and will be here for the next 10 years or so, tied to Ohio and his wife (ex) and his child. Sam is a young woman with big ambitions, seeking to get a PhD and move to New York (or somewhere like it). Yes, that dynamic is concerning. No one would want their child to settle for something they never wanted just because a potential partner asked them to. But Nick doesn’t and would never ask her to.

What I love more, though, is the absolute lack of miscommunication. I initially hated the romance genre because of the miscommunication trope alone. There is miscommunication, don’t get me wrong. Especially between Sam and her mother. But the miscommunication that is there feels realistic instead of something thrown in for the 3rd act breakup. Sam is brutally honest with Nick about her reservations. She isn’t ready to be a mother. She doesn’t know if she wants to be a mother. And she is freaked out about how much his daughter, Kira, seems to like her. And Nick, when hearing this, agrees. You’re completely right, we did do this a bit backwards. But he’s not asking her to be a step mother. He’s not asking her to have it all figured out right then and there. He’s just asking her to enjoy time with him, if that’s what she wants, and see where it goes.

If you read this book, you’re going to get a romance with flawed people. You’re going to get witty banter that genuinely made me giggle. You’re going to get people having real conversations. And that’s all I ever want and ask for from a romance. But, you’re also going to get something that isn’t perfect.

There are a few scenes that, once again, made me slightly uncomfortable. Nick and Sam’s first sexual encounter happens after Sam has been drinking – kind of heavily. Granted, it is stated clearly in her point of view that she’s sobering up a bit. But she also calls it a drunken endeavor the next day, so. I believe, pretty firmly, that consent given when drunk doesn’t count. However, when she retracted her consent, Nick immediately backed off. I don’t know if I count this as something bad the character did or a strange lack of nuanced consent. You, Again has a similar consent issue in, too. But neither feel damaging. Neither are objectively awful. Just something to be aware of, particularly if you’re sensitive to those issues.

I think it’s phenomenal. A fun and quick read – yes, I read it in one sitting. Definitely worth it.