Underwhelming

This book fell a little short for me. Just, underwhelming considering I thought it might be like Jojo Moyes' Me Before You or just Moyes' writing. The only comparison? It's a love story. And, one I didn't enjoy very much. Nor, did I like the way the book was written- it was unnatural. The reader was told too much too soon. There was no anticipation, until near the end but everything else was immediately put out there. I had no curiosity for the story being told and so, it wasn't nearly as gripping as it could have been. This was also because the reader wasn't really given an opportunity to warm up to any of the characters, or connect with them.

This is a story about a love surviving against the odds. Jessica is a new mother, her boyfriend Adam failed to witness their first child's birth. He wasn't there when she needed him. Their relationship falls apart shortly after. Jessica's mother was there, Jess has come to rely on her, appreciate her more. Shortly after, her mother is diagnosed with Huntington's Disease. Ten Years Later: Jessica thinks she ought to reignite the relationship between her son and his father, for practical reasons. They're going to spend a holiday together. Things have changed: Adam has a girlfriend and his life is in France. In short: he's unavailable. But for how long?

This is a heart warming story, I sympathised completely with the family but where the author was striving to be funny, or make light of situations it didn't work. This story was much too serious for my taste. I also didn't like the choice Jess ultimately made, it didn't feel fully justified and it seemed like it was based on their intimacy. But begrudgingly, I could understand her desire to reunite her son with his father. It suggested responsibility but doing what she ultimately did felt out of character. It was unexplained, but the author knows the characters better.

Also disagree with the sentiment 'When you are surrounded by love, you have nothing to fear.' The book itself disagrees, you are fearful of heartbreak, loss, fate. The sentiment almost tempts fate, something I fiercely despise. I found a lot of the dialogue was guilty of the same crime. Telling someone it will all be okay, that they will have a good life- when life is by nature uncertain- is high on my list of pet-peeves.

Side note: the cover is rather genius.

I received this book through NetGalley.