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The Recovery Run
Not yet published
Expected 3 Mar 26He may be the guide, but she’s the one taking them to the finish line in this Brittany Runs a Marathon meets Wild Hearts Can’t be Broken contemporary romance.
Nearing thirty, Jensen Larsen still hasn’t hit her stride. The visually impaired assistant disability coordinator never chases what she wants. Jobs. Friendships. Love. Faced with another romantic disappointment, she’s ready to run toward what she wants, just like her brother. The year they turn thirty, men from her family run a marathon and find the love of their lives.
There are a few obstacles in her way; Jensen hates running, and her idea of a marathon is binging Bridgerton. Trust issues from past relationships continue to make it difficult for her, as a blind woman, to find a guide runner she trusts. Enter her brother’s best friend, Dr. Garrett Marlowe.
For the last five years, Garrett has only worried about himself. Outside of being a reluctant cat dad, Garrett isn’t looking for emotional attachments. Until the woman who both vexes him and makes him smile needs help.
It may not just be Jensen’s stride that Garrett, the experienced marathon runner, is helping find. As Jensen deals with her trust issues, Garrett faces the pain of the tragic event that led him to seal off his heart. With each running session, Jensen and Garrett must learn to trust each other and themselves.
But marathon training, just like life, is a mental game, and the obstacles they face may trip them up before they even reach the starting line.
Nearing thirty, Jensen Larsen still hasn’t hit her stride. The visually impaired assistant disability coordinator never chases what she wants. Jobs. Friendships. Love. Faced with another romantic disappointment, she’s ready to run toward what she wants, just like her brother. The year they turn thirty, men from her family run a marathon and find the love of their lives.
There are a few obstacles in her way; Jensen hates running, and her idea of a marathon is binging Bridgerton. Trust issues from past relationships continue to make it difficult for her, as a blind woman, to find a guide runner she trusts. Enter her brother’s best friend, Dr. Garrett Marlowe.
For the last five years, Garrett has only worried about himself. Outside of being a reluctant cat dad, Garrett isn’t looking for emotional attachments. Until the woman who both vexes him and makes him smile needs help.
It may not just be Jensen’s stride that Garrett, the experienced marathon runner, is helping find. As Jensen deals with her trust issues, Garrett faces the pain of the tragic event that led him to seal off his heart. With each running session, Jensen and Garrett must learn to trust each other and themselves.
But marathon training, just like life, is a mental game, and the obstacles they face may trip them up before they even reach the starting line.
- GenresRomance
356 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication March 3, 2026
7 people are currently reading
56 people want to read
About the author
Melissa Whitney
11 books96 followersWith a name like Melissa Whitney she had two choices become a Real Housewife or a romance author. Sorry Andy Cohen, she's chose romance!
A Jane Austen fangirl, Melissa hails from Western New York, but currently lives in Southern California with her husband and rescue pugs. When she's not brewing the perfect cup of tea, hunting for a delicious pastry, or traveling with her husband, she's writing swoony and steamy romance novels.
Melissa explores themes of disability, mental health, trauma, grief/loss, and family in her emotionally heartfelt and comedic stories. She often says, "Life isn't a romcom nor a high drama. It's somewhere in-between and so are my stories." As a legally blind woman and trauma survivor, Melissa taps into her own lived experience and her masters in social work to craft thoughtful/sensitive stories that delve into deeper themes, while still offering the swoon, steam, and humor that make us fall in love with a good romance.
A Jane Austen fangirl, Melissa hails from Western New York, but currently lives in Southern California with her husband and rescue pugs. When she's not brewing the perfect cup of tea, hunting for a delicious pastry, or traveling with her husband, she's writing swoony and steamy romance novels.
Melissa explores themes of disability, mental health, trauma, grief/loss, and family in her emotionally heartfelt and comedic stories. She often says, "Life isn't a romcom nor a high drama. It's somewhere in-between and so are my stories." As a legally blind woman and trauma survivor, Melissa taps into her own lived experience and her masters in social work to craft thoughtful/sensitive stories that delve into deeper themes, while still offering the swoon, steam, and humor that make us fall in love with a good romance.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 18, 2026
Recovery Run
I LOVED this book!!! I spent half the time reading it with a grin on my face, twenty percent of the time absolutely swooning, ten percent crying, and the remaining bit cycling through all the rest of the emotions. I literally laughed out loud at multiple points, causing my husband to ask me not to read it in bed (aparently sleep is more important than my book!).
Jensen is a legally blind woman who has had a crush on her brother's best friend for five years. When her brother gets injured and can't run the marathon he was planning to, Jensen decides to train and run to help fulfill a family love prophecy. Because she is blind, she needs a guide runner to traverse the course with her. Her brother suggests Garrett, his best friend, and Garrett agrees.
Jensen feels like she needs to run this race to challenge herself and assumptions she's had about herself. For anyone who has never felt like enough or that they should be willing to accept less because they aren't good enough, her journey felt really relatable. She pushes herself to be uncomfortable and not to accept the bare minimum because she deserves more than that, just like we all do!
When I started this, I didn't expect to find my new number one book boyfried, but I did in Garrett. I am absolutely in love with this man. He’s grumpy but loves so deeply. He cares in unexpected ways, and if I weren’t so thrilled for Jensen, I would push her out of the way to get to him (shh, don't tell my husband!). Garrett is dealing with his own trauma, making him flawed, but he makes an effort to learn to live with his past for HIM not for Jensen, just like she keeps going and training to prove to herself that she can. I love that they both want to work on their issues to better to themeselves and for the person they love.
One of the things I loved about this book is that it features Jensen, a legally-blind main female character. Disability representation is sadly lacking in everything, including romance books, or, if it is included, it's often relegated to a side character or a character that deserves the reader's pity. This book shows a strong, independent woman who is successful in a lot of things, but is faced with challenges because of her disability. One of my dear friends in college was a woman who was blind, so I was familiar with some of the barriers that Jensen faced. It would have been easy to make readers feel guilty, but Melissa did a nice job of explaining what life is like for someone who is blind, while building empathy. Through Garrett, she demonstrates how little changes can make the world more accessible, and how easy it is to do so.
Overall, I loved, loved, loved this book.
I LOVED this book!!! I spent half the time reading it with a grin on my face, twenty percent of the time absolutely swooning, ten percent crying, and the remaining bit cycling through all the rest of the emotions. I literally laughed out loud at multiple points, causing my husband to ask me not to read it in bed (aparently sleep is more important than my book!).
Jensen is a legally blind woman who has had a crush on her brother's best friend for five years. When her brother gets injured and can't run the marathon he was planning to, Jensen decides to train and run to help fulfill a family love prophecy. Because she is blind, she needs a guide runner to traverse the course with her. Her brother suggests Garrett, his best friend, and Garrett agrees.
Jensen feels like she needs to run this race to challenge herself and assumptions she's had about herself. For anyone who has never felt like enough or that they should be willing to accept less because they aren't good enough, her journey felt really relatable. She pushes herself to be uncomfortable and not to accept the bare minimum because she deserves more than that, just like we all do!
When I started this, I didn't expect to find my new number one book boyfried, but I did in Garrett. I am absolutely in love with this man. He’s grumpy but loves so deeply. He cares in unexpected ways, and if I weren’t so thrilled for Jensen, I would push her out of the way to get to him (shh, don't tell my husband!). Garrett is dealing with his own trauma, making him flawed, but he makes an effort to learn to live with his past for HIM not for Jensen, just like she keeps going and training to prove to herself that she can. I love that they both want to work on their issues to better to themeselves and for the person they love.
One of the things I loved about this book is that it features Jensen, a legally-blind main female character. Disability representation is sadly lacking in everything, including romance books, or, if it is included, it's often relegated to a side character or a character that deserves the reader's pity. This book shows a strong, independent woman who is successful in a lot of things, but is faced with challenges because of her disability. One of my dear friends in college was a woman who was blind, so I was familiar with some of the barriers that Jensen faced. It would have been easy to make readers feel guilty, but Melissa did a nice job of explaining what life is like for someone who is blind, while building empathy. Through Garrett, she demonstrates how little changes can make the world more accessible, and how easy it is to do so.
Overall, I loved, loved, loved this book.
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is a very sweet, slow burn romance. Both are recovering from very different trauma, and the banter between the pair before they even get to the relationship is top-notch. They don't hold back, Jensen doesn't see it at first, but Garret is her safe space, and it is the cutest thing to watch unfold. Nothing holds her back from her goals, or her man, this is a really heartwarming story. Very little angst and just a sweet, easy read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews