What do you think?
Rate this book
Closer Than They Appear
With appeal for fans of Jonathan Tropper and Emily Giffin, this quirky novella from the author of Driving Sideways follows two people who are perfect for each other ... if only they would meet.
Personal chef Harper and aspiring writer Zach have never met, but they see one another at the same stoplight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on their morning commutes. Harper turns left, Zach turns right, and gradually, each begins to wonder about the person they see every other morning. The person with the smile that could fuel an empty heart for miles.
Reminiscent of Attachments and You’ve Got Mail, Closer Than They Appear is an irreverent, sweet mix of lad lit and chick lit. A charming "he said, she said" comedy of missed connections that will remind your heart of the wistful hope and secret joy of a nearly impossible crush.
BONUSES: this novella also includes ten vegetarian recipes inspired by Harper and her clients, as well as the actual templates for Festival Bingo, inspired by Zach’s roommate Josh.
Personal chef Harper and aspiring writer Zach have never met, but they see one another at the same stoplight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on their morning commutes. Harper turns left, Zach turns right, and gradually, each begins to wonder about the person they see every other morning. The person with the smile that could fuel an empty heart for miles.
Reminiscent of Attachments and You’ve Got Mail, Closer Than They Appear is an irreverent, sweet mix of lad lit and chick lit. A charming "he said, she said" comedy of missed connections that will remind your heart of the wistful hope and secret joy of a nearly impossible crush.
BONUSES: this novella also includes ten vegetarian recipes inspired by Harper and her clients, as well as the actual templates for Festival Bingo, inspired by Zach’s roommate Josh.
108 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 12, 2013
3 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
About the author
Jess Riley
13 books107 followersWisconsin native Jess Riley spent much of her childhood being punished for lying and/or passing notes during class, both of which qualified her for a possible future as a novelist. She won her first short story contest in high school for a tale told through the point of view of a seven-year-old black boy living in Cabrini Green because as a middle-class white teenager, she knew a lot about that kind of life.
Jess has been a waitress, a blue cheese packager, and a school grant writer. She worked at a toy store during the Tickle Me Elmo craze and lived to tell about it. She's also worked at a medium-security men's prison, which was much less stressful. Jess graduated from UW-Oshkosh in 1998 with degrees in English and History. She shares a drafty old house in Oshkosh, Wisconsin with her husband and a neurotic dog that despises public radio.
Her debut novel, Driving Sideways, was released by Random House in 2008. Selected as a Target Breakout Book, it returned to press four times within three months of release. Jess drank lots of wine to celebrate. Her second novel, All the Lonely People, was released in 2012, and her third, Mandatory Release, was released in 2013.
Jess has been a waitress, a blue cheese packager, and a school grant writer. She worked at a toy store during the Tickle Me Elmo craze and lived to tell about it. She's also worked at a medium-security men's prison, which was much less stressful. Jess graduated from UW-Oshkosh in 1998 with degrees in English and History. She shares a drafty old house in Oshkosh, Wisconsin with her husband and a neurotic dog that despises public radio.
Her debut novel, Driving Sideways, was released by Random House in 2008. Selected as a Target Breakout Book, it returned to press four times within three months of release. Jess drank lots of wine to celebrate. Her second novel, All the Lonely People, was released in 2012, and her third, Mandatory Release, was released in 2013.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 7, 2013
I am so excited to announce my novella,
Closer Than They Appear
--now available on Kindle, Nook, and via Kobo. It represents a lot of "firsts" for me:
First novella.
First story written entirely in the third person, past-tense.
First in which I mostly get out of the way and let my characters run the show. Meaning, lots and lots of (hopefully) witty dialogue.
First pure romantic comedy / love story without any heavy themes. (Huzzah! says everyone sick of me trying to get all meaningful up in their grille. I’m not sure if “grill” needed an “e” right there, but it looked lonely and boring without it.)
First to be set in my current city.
First to include recipes. Seriously. And I wrote them all funny-like, to entertain you while you cook. Hope you like tofu and kale! *Collective retching sounds*
First to include bingo cards. Actually, I’m kind of hoping I’ve written the first book EVER to include bingo cards in the appendices, because wouldn’t that be awesome??
First novella.
First story written entirely in the third person, past-tense.
First in which I mostly get out of the way and let my characters run the show. Meaning, lots and lots of (hopefully) witty dialogue.
First pure romantic comedy / love story without any heavy themes. (Huzzah! says everyone sick of me trying to get all meaningful up in their grille. I’m not sure if “grill” needed an “e” right there, but it looked lonely and boring without it.)
First to be set in my current city.
First to include recipes. Seriously. And I wrote them all funny-like, to entertain you while you cook. Hope you like tofu and kale! *Collective retching sounds*
First to include bingo cards. Actually, I’m kind of hoping I’ve written the first book EVER to include bingo cards in the appendices, because wouldn’t that be awesome??
February 12, 2013
Loved this cute novella of missed opportunities between a guy and a girl who keep running into each other at the same stop light. Harper and Zach each keep looking forward to their Mon, Wed, Fri 'visits' at the corner stop light where each turns the opposite direction but smile at one another, although that's as far as the connection goes. There's something there, each can tell. Throughout the story, there are other opportunities for them to bump into each other (kind of reminds me of my favorite Christmas tune -- Christmas Wrapping by The Waitresses how they can't just seem to meet up), but something always happens and they never connect. Interesting and fun characters, like Harper's 75-year-old hip aunt Ginger with the boob job, and Zach's roommate Josh add to this quick-paced novella, and yummy recipes are included for you at the end. Of course, as with any sweet boy meets girl, you know what's going to happen at the end, but getting there is so much fun in Jess Riley's first novella, and it seems that Zach and Harper have always been closer than they appear! (Don't forget to check out Jess' other books too! All the Lonely People and Driving Sideways!)
February 17, 2013
I really, really love Jess Riley. I love her so much that I am willing to overlook such things as the fact that she misspelled "dietitian" throughout this e-book (and if you know me, you know it takes a LOT to get me to overlook something like that). Please write faster, Jess Riley. Thank you.
Read
February 17, 2013I decided to review this novella to help others decide if this would be a good fit for them because it was mislabeled. I was disappointed with this novella. The problem was not the author's but the way this novella was presented. I went in expecting a romance and got chick lit instead with no actual romance. I thought the writing was good and the author spent a lot of time crafting her characters with lots of quirky characterizations as well as dialogue. It was good for a chick lit novella and if that is what I had expected then I would not have felt cheated. Unfortunately, it was labeled as romance.
The meet cute and the beginning of a relationship is why I read romance novellas. It is a way to get a kind of quick happy story without investing extensive time or emotional energy that full length romance novels require (the back and forth angst in a full length novel can become tiring and even boring for me at times). We get time with both of their exes and a lot of internal drama about those failed relationships but not anything beyond daydreaming about the possibilities for the one presented here. That to me is contemporary fiction or chick lit and not romance in my book.
I think if people know what they are getting going in then they'll be happier. I don't want to criticize this novella because I think there is an audience out there for it. It just needs to be marketed to the right audience- thus my review.
The meet cute and the beginning of a relationship is why I read romance novellas. It is a way to get a kind of quick happy story without investing extensive time or emotional energy that full length romance novels require (the back and forth angst in a full length novel can become tiring and even boring for me at times). We get time with both of their exes and a lot of internal drama about those failed relationships but not anything beyond daydreaming about the possibilities for the one presented here. That to me is contemporary fiction or chick lit and not romance in my book.
I think if people know what they are getting going in then they'll be happier. I don't want to criticize this novella because I think there is an audience out there for it. It just needs to be marketed to the right audience- thus my review.
February 13, 2013
Another home run from Jess Riley. This is her third book and first novella. I'm always transported by her writing because her humor and prose are so effective. Many times she uses descriptive phrases I secretly want to co-op. OK, not so secretly.
She gives us a true movie ending (as all her books do) but I'm not going to spoil it by giving it away. She also very cleverly adds two things to the book that I've never seen done in any novel. She gives us funny, but accurate, recipes and something she made up called Festival Bingo cards. All in all, a great read and answers the question of "What might have been" quite nicely. I'd cast Ryan Gosling as Zack. And my future husband.
She gives us a true movie ending (as all her books do) but I'm not going to spoil it by giving it away. She also very cleverly adds two things to the book that I've never seen done in any novel. She gives us funny, but accurate, recipes and something she made up called Festival Bingo cards. All in all, a great read and answers the question of "What might have been" quite nicely. I'd cast Ryan Gosling as Zack. And my future husband.
February 11, 2013
I read an advance copy of this book, and fell in love with the story right away. So sweet and charming, and laugh out loud funny.
I felt like I knew these characters immediately, and I was rooting for them to find their happy ever after. Closer Than They Appear did not disappoint.
If you're looking for something to cheer up a gloomy winter afternoon, this book is JUST the thing.
It actually made me check out other drivers when I'm at the corner... just in case.
THREE CHEERS for Harper and Zach!
I felt like I knew these characters immediately, and I was rooting for them to find their happy ever after. Closer Than They Appear did not disappoint.
If you're looking for something to cheer up a gloomy winter afternoon, this book is JUST the thing.
It actually made me check out other drivers when I'm at the corner... just in case.
THREE CHEERS for Harper and Zach!
March 2, 2013
Oh I am so bummed! I was absolutely hooked and loved the premise behind meeting someone at a stop light everyday and gaining a relationship, but never actually talking, it kind of has a spin off of love at first sight! Such a different, non traditional way that I absolutely LOVED and thought was very clever! BUT, I want more, oh so much more! I loved the characters but I want to see them develop after they "meet". I feel that if we had more this book could have easily gotten 5 stars. Please give us a sequel!
February 24, 2013
Wait! This isn't a prequel? Ooh, there's such a lost opportunity to continue this story. One star less simply because I feel the story is unfinished/incomplete.
What are the chances of seeing a stranger every day? Close enough to see but never speak with each other? Be in the same store yet not see each other? Intersecting moments in each other's lives are the key to this novella. The reader is made to believe at the end of the story, that our two main characters finally meet each other. But do they?
What are the chances of seeing a stranger every day? Close enough to see but never speak with each other? Be in the same store yet not see each other? Intersecting moments in each other's lives are the key to this novella. The reader is made to believe at the end of the story, that our two main characters finally meet each other. But do they?
February 12, 2013
Ms. Riley's writing is seriously hilarious and bizarre and hard to describe... I really enjoyed the concept and fell for the little flirtation between Harper and Zach right off the bat. About 2/3 of the way through though I kept hoping for something specific to happen and found myself skipping ahead pages looking for it....so I guess in the end this wasn't the story I was looking for.
February 9, 2013
The ending was unexpected, totally caught me off guard. I thought that's what I'm thinking the moment I hit the last few sentences. I expect more to be brutally honest, I never thought their story will be ending like that, and I wish there are more of their story in the near future.
February 21, 2013
I love Jess Riley's writing, I love the fact that she's from Wisconsin and based this story in our state, and I can't wait for this summer so I can play Festival Bingo!
February 24, 2013
Great book! This is the first novella I've ever read. I loved the Oshkosh references even though it does it doesn't really say that it is Oshkosh, WI.
February 10, 2013
Most anti-climactic ending ever. The two main characters don't even meet until the last page. So frustrating! The build up was good, but there is no payoff. I feel cheated.
February 15, 2013
3.5 stars
June 26, 2013
I wish this story was longer. I really would have loved more insight into Harper and Zach's lives before and after they met. However, this story is really adorable.
December 9, 2013
Unless this is a prequel novella to an upcoming novel, I was not impressed. It could've been so much more if expanded to a full novel.
February 20, 2014
Really short and sweet!
July 31, 2013
I really like Jess Riley's books. They're quirky and fun. This one is no different.
April 9, 2017
I'm finding what most people hated about this book, I quite enjoyed. The ending was perfect. Throughout this novella you get a feel for each character and get a sense that they would make a nice fit as a couple. The side characters were all a bit over the top... each one bursting with excessive personalities, but I still really liked the book. And I love this author's use of songs to describe a scene or mood. Great taste in music.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews