When I saw Rainbow Rowell had a new book coming out I immediately requested an ARC and squealed when I was approved. Plus, how stunning is this cover?!!

Overall, this is a good book. Rowell’s dialogue is snappy. She is astute and I enjoy her writing style. This is a story about life and the complexities of loving yourself and someone else. Especially when you love someone else deeply, but maybe don’t always love yourself. Cherry is in her mid-thirties and on the verge of a divorce with her husband, Tom. Tom has become famous with his webcomic, Thursday, which is about to become a blockbuster movie. In his webcomic, there are two main characters, The Guy (based on Tom) and Baby (based on Cherry).

Both Baby and Cherry are fat.

While Cherry is kind of in process with the divorce, she runs into Russ, her college crush, and they rekindle what could have been. And we see Cherry’s life over about a year as she navigates what she wants and needs.

I’ve shared some of what I like (the writing, the mostly linear timeline with occasional flashbacks, Cherry as a character). But there is a lot in here that got old quickly. Like how many times Cherry reminds us she is fat. Also, Cherry cries a lot. Which she’s going through some hard stuff, but poor girl, she needs like 42 boxes of Kleenex for how much she cries in this. Also I felt like she was really bad at expressing her needs and thoughts. She shuts down so much with Russ and Tom. I can’t help but wonder if the story could have turned out differently if she was a better communicator. Also the talk of GLP-1s seemed very current and like it could age poorly.

I think this is a solid 3.5 stars. I like reading books with FMCs in middle age. I like other RR characters and stories more. But I enjoyed this and think I will think about it in the future. I also think if someone is going through maybe separating or getting divorced they may relate more. There are also sex scenes which I could have had or not had. If you like Rainbow Rowell, pick it up. If you haven’t read her before, I’d recommend her other books more highly than this one.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary e-ARC!