4:50 ab Paddington

3.5 rounded up

I've been meaning to read a Cara Malone book for a long while but hadn't found that right moment or title. Until I got an email with an offer to get an audiobook code for free. I love free. And I love audiobooks. I immediately hopped over to Audible and picked a fairly recent book, listened to a sample - because nothing will kill a book quicker than a narrator that doesn't work for me - and shot off my request.

I was pretty quickly offered a code to redeem for the audiobook but had to stop for a minute when I saw it was from Spotify and not Audible. I very wrongly assumed that I'd be getting an Audible code because the author participates in Kindle unlimited and Audible is owned by Amazon. Well that's what I get for assuming. I haven't used Spotify in a few years since switching to YouTube Music so I had to dust that off and give it a try. And it wasn't a bad experience. Is the audiobook reading portion of the Spotify app as nice as Audible? Nope. I swear I couldn't find a bookmark option but I didn't really need to use it for this particular book. I don't know that I'd ever actually buy a book through Spotify but it wasn't a terrible listening experience.

Anyway, the story itself was sweet and only set my BS meter pinging a few times and fairly mildly. It's pretend, as my lovely wife likes to remind me. The bunnies were adorable and I'm not going to lie, I maybe contemplated momentarily making one my next pet. But my killer dogs probably wouldn't be okay with that...

So I enjoyed the story, I enjoyed the writing, and the narrator did a great job. I do wonder where she's from though. She does a fantastic American accent but a few words give it away. Unless "schedule" is pronounced "shed-yule" somewhere in the US that I'm not aware of. And the "savory craps" instead of "savory crepes" made me laugh. That one may have been my deaf self mishearing but it was funny regardless.

I very much appreciate the free audiobook because 1) I got to read a book by an author who’s been on my list for a very long time and 2) because I got to try out audiobooks on Spotify.

Thank you Cara Malone!

I feel like I should really give it a one star but I can't bring myself to do it. I did enjoy bits and pieces throughout but mostly found the situations unbelievable, Riley ridiculous in her choices and actions, Lil was fine but there was still something about her that didn't ring true. The narrator's choice of voices for Wanda, Marge, and others were irritating and grated on my nerves. I mostly wish I hadn't picked this one up.

I'll still give the author's other books a shot because I've enjoyed them but this one was a big miss for me.

Since I've not been living completely under a rock for the past several years, I have heard of Aurora Rey but I've never picked up one of her books. I think she was getting popular as I was moving away from solidly reading wlw books and was pretty well burned out on them. My reading tastes are much more varied than back then but I still read plenty of wlw romances. Mostly as a way to balance out the true crime and murdery thrillers and mysteries I love. But I tend to stick to favorite old books or authors I've previously read and enjoyed. I don't often take a chance on someone who is new to me. After reading You Again, I'm going to be adding Aurora Rey to my list of authors to choose from when I need a fix.

My favorite romance trope is the second chance at love one. I absolutely adore it. When it's done well, that is. And this book was damn near perfect. The reason for the separation, the reason for the return to the hometown, the hurt, the angst, the chemistry, and the family - it was all on point and believable. Even the plot point that creates the final drama and resolution was well done and not the dreaded miscommunication or lack of communication or secret. There's little I hate more than something so that could be so easily resolved or prevented being used in such a way. It tends to feel lazy and emotionally manipulative and I want more than that. Yes, I'm demanding and have high expectations but still...

I feel like You Again has earned a spot on my reread list and I'm not lying when I say that I'm legitimately going to miss Sutton and Kate and Harper. Mostly Sutton though. She really spoke to me as a character and she had my heart aching a few times. I felt for her so much. sigh

I better wrap this up before I get lost in my own head rehashing the story. Big thanks to Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to finally read Ms. Rey.