As it Seems

by Jayne Conway

Libby and Ted have been happily married for over twelve years and live a picture perfect life; two beautiful kids, a successful business, a gorgeous home in the suburbs, money, friends, and most importantly, one another. After all these years, they are passionately in love, two of the lucky few - or so Libby believes - until one snowy evening, the unthinkable happens, and she learns... nothing is as it seems.

Genres: Friends To Lovers, Contemporary, Second Chance, Family Drama, Divorce, Romance, Fiction

374 pages, Paperback

Published January 16, 2016

About the author

Jayne Conway is the author of four books: What if I Fly?, As it Seems, Say Something and A Good Wife. A graduate of SUNY: FIT in New York City with a BS in Marketing, she earned a master's degree in Urban Education from Providence College and teaches high school history on Block Island (the polar opposite of an urban environment).

On the little island she calls home, Jayne enjoys photography, reading, baking, hiking, dinner with friends, watching romcoms and musicals with her teenage daughters, listening to history, true crime and political podcasts and hunting for sea glass.

One day in the not too distant future, Jayne hopes to retire in the magical land of her ancestors; Italy. Her three children approve and intend to visit often. Only time will tell.

Reviews

[Nikki ღ Navareus · Rating 3 out of 5]

***THREE AND A HALF STARS***
I'm one of the sick few that actually enjoy a cheating story, if it's written just right, and this one was pretty darned close.

This story starts out where Libby meets Ted, and he claims her for his own. They marry, are infinitely happy and he tells her he wants oodles of children, but they come to an agreement on only three children. Libby works with Ted and together they build his business to become mega successful and they have money rolling in. Ted insists that he, Libby and their family, live in a stifling fancy neighborhood, within a snobby home association, and he insists Libby participate in all the neighborhood functions and keep up appearances with all the neighbors like a good little wife should.


Ted was the perfect husband we all love to hate AKA Cheating BASTARD. He was overbearing, pushy, all of his needs came first and Libby literally sacrifices all her needs and wants to give Ted everything he desires, and to become Mother Extraordinare to her children. Problems start when Libby, accidentally becomes pregnant with their third child. She's in her 40's and doesn't want a new baby and to start all over again. Ted insists this is what he's always wanted, and he pretty much makes it clear that if she goes against his wishes it could get ugly, like their marriage over kind of ugly. Libby, now a stay at home mom, starts getting paranoid about Ted, and suspects him of possibly cheating but blames this paranoia on her pregnancy hormones. Ted is working extreme hours. He's always gone in the evenings and weekends, and he travels a fair amount for work too. Libby starts to notice, they aren't as intimate as they once were, and his clothes are starting to smell more and more like other women's perfume. She goes to the office to talk to Ted, and discovers he's hired a new assistant, who is also a beautiful young thing, and he never mentioned her at all.


Luckily, Libby has her best friend and confidant, Truman, who is also her next door neighbor. Truman and Libby do everything together. He's a stay at home dad, taking care of his young girls while his wife works to further her career and is never home either. Libby and Truman form a tight bond with each other, and they help each other out so much. Libby would be lost without Truman's guidance, confidence, and help, and vice versa for Truman.


I'm going to put the rest of my review in a spoiler, because there's too much of the actual story in it and I don't want to give it all away. Definitely don't unspoil the rest of this review if you are truly interested in reading this story.

Ted finally confesses that he did cheat, one time, and it never meant anything (of course). Libby realizes that this blip of a screw up, isn't worth losing her marriage over, and tells Ted she's willing to forgive him and move on. Problem is, towards the end of Libby's pregnancy, Libby catches Ted fucking Truman's wife up against a tree in Libby's own backyard, in clear view view of Libby and whoever else in the family might catch them. Then we find out that Ted is a fucking liar. He cheated on Libby LOADS of times. Lots of one night stands with random women in his travels for work, and he carried on a four year affair with Truman's hottie wife next door before being caught up against a tree with is dick in her. Ted was a gigantic cheating piece of shit. Problem I had though, was Libby STILL decides to stick with him, because, yes-you guessed it!!! He says he'll NEVER do this again and he wants to make this marriage work for her AND the children.


It was so frustrating to see Libby stick with this asshat and impossibly try to make her marriage work even with the knowledge of ALL his cheating, and after she's discovered that she actually loves her best friend Truman, who has stuck by her side through everything, even the birth of her child where she almost died. I really wanted Ted to suffer. He needed some of this:

or this:

or even, at the very least:


Ted and Libby stick together for a full year, but it's an ugly year full of therapy, pissed off feelings, and no trust what so ever. Ted tires quickly of kissing Libby's ass and not getting anywhere because he can't get it through his thick head that what he did was unforgivable, and he starts to get insecure, and demanding, and pissy as Libby becomes successful in her career of photography. Ted resents the hell out of Libby's success and wants their lives to go back to the way they were before when he was the shining star, and Libby was the good little wife that stayed home, unnoticed. Ted starts to demand she quit her "hobby of photography", and a big blow up fight ensues. Later that evening, Libby shows up at Ted's office to make peace, but unfortunately for her, she gets to catch him with his dick in his assistant's mouth.

This is where the story finally got really good, because Libby looses her shit, pulls out a gun she had hidden in her purse, and repeatedly shoots Ted in the dick, then walks out the door as he's screaming and writing in pain, suffering horribly. It was perfection!


Oh wait, that didn't happen. I just wanted it to so badly, I could taste it. Libby just tells him she wants a divorce and then finally DOES divorce him, and eventually marries her best friend Truman.

This story was almost a Four Star read for me, except:
1. Libby stayed and martyred her happiness "For the Children", without once blowing up at Ted, never flipping shit on him for the pain he had inflicted on her, and they just merrily resumed their farce of a marriage, with Libby depressingly trudging along with her marriage "For the sake of the Children!".
2. Although I loved that Ted was such a douche that I loved to hate him, he never paid for his indiscretions in any way (except for legally, but he needed a good hard kick to the balls, at the very least). The fact that he didn't suffer at all left this story very unsatisfying.
3. I was happy that Libby and Truman finally got to become a couple, and finally find their happiness, but the road took forever for them to get there. And even though Truman was such a sweetheart, I never really "believed" their romantic connection in this story. Truman felt like the "gay best friend" through this story (indeed I thought he WAS gay in the beginning until it was revealed he had a wife and children), rather than the sexy best friend that she craved and loved in a sexual nature as well as being her closest friend and confidant.

That being said, this author can tell a tale, and the writing was tight. I would definitely read her work again.

[Jac K · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 Stars
No surprises here, we have a cheating husband. I actually like this trope, when done well, they are some of the best emotional reads ever. This might be an it’s me thing, because I just didn’t connect with this one. Free with scribd, As it Seems follows Libby and Ted, who’ve been married for 12 years, and her BFF’s Truman and Ginger. This book was super SLOW, especially the beginning. We know Ted’s gonna cheat, but it still took 30% in to get to any cheating.

Both Ted and Libby were pretty awful. He was a self-centered prick; and she came across as a selfish complainer. I felt like the author went out of her way to make Libby pretty undesirable, which made it tough to feel sorry for her. For example, a large chuck of the first part of the book consist of her going Hulk-Smash because Ted won’t let her have an abortion. She’s portrayed as immature; she spends zero time even pondering a decision, and the reasons we’re given are shallow. "This is the first year both of my children are in school all day. I thought I was finally free.” Also, Ted promised her that they could travel when the kids were grown, and now everything will be delayed by 6 years!! She drinks wine, resents and hates her unborn child, and wants to smother her hubs with a pillow.

Which brings me to probably the biggest thing for me, the facts we were given did not make sense with where the author was trying to lead us for much of the book. I can’t do this without spoilers so the rest will be spoiler tagged.
I was completely confused by how the pregnancy was handled. At first, I thought maybe the author was trying to make a statement about a woman’s right to choose, because she mentions Ted hijacking her body, and taking away her rights. Then, I thought she was trying to take a dig at Catholics because I guess they have lots of kids, and expect others to put up with cheaters. Regardless, it added nothing to the story, because after reading chapters of Libby ranting, and being bitter ; it’s explained away as depression, and the topic never comes up again. She goes from “I hate this baby” to becoming all about her kids, even claiming mothering rights of Truman’s two. So what was the point in all that?

It also seemed a bit overdramatic because she has a 6-yr-old… OK… so you’ll be 60 instead of 54… where’s the fire? Not to mention, they’re rich, and can afford a nanny. She went on about how she finally wanted to put herself first, but her oldest is 10, so she started being a mom at 30. It could have been understandable if her kids were older, like HS or going off to college, which would be a HUGE lifestyle change, and would have eaten up her 20’s. As is, it didn’t make sense; I felt like I was given a set of facts that didn’t jive with what I was being fed.

Originally, I was perplexed why we were given Truman’s POV instead of Ted’s. It made the marriage trouble that took up the majority of the book one-sided, and ineffective. I didn’t connect with Ted, and had zero cares about him, which made the endless cycle of them “trying to work it out” pointless and BORING. If Libby and Truman’s relationship was supposed to be the focal point, why did it take a back seat for most of the book?

Bottom line- I didn’t enjoy this one, and all the contradictory information made my head spin. I felt like the author wasted my time on a wild goose chase through confusionville. It also annoys the shit out of me when authors try to infuse their opinions and beliefs throughout a book, and I sniffed an agenda. I’m here only to be entertained. That being said, many reviewers liked it, so maybe I scratched too deep… or am grumpy:)

[Beeg Panda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worst cheating h ever.🚩UGH
This woman’s choices and way of thinking or (not thinking) leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
It’s realistic, yes. The whole situation is something I can see happening in real life, but it irks me.

Still the book is very eloquently written.
From dialogue to plot to editing, to pacing, to the timeline, everything is professionally done.
The characters are very well brought across; people we can relate to in our everyday lives .
To me it reads more like Contemporary Women’s fiction than Chicklit.
The tone of my review is probably flippant as it doesn’t reflect the way in which the book is written but I’m fed-up with the actions of the MFC, how it affects others’ lives and how her story ends.

Ted and Libby, married for 12 years have 2 kids.
They adore each other and their sexual chemistry and passion is off the charts. WOW.

Their neighbours Truman and Caroline are married with 2 kids.
They’re more like roommates with kids than a happily married couple.

Ted and Caroline are workaholics and “absentee parents/spouses”.
Libby and Tru have given up their dream jobs in favour of staying home with their families.

The 2 families have lived in Littleton, Rhode Island for about 6 years now.
Tru and Lib have become best friends, practically raising, and co-parenting each other’s kids; in and out of each other’s homes, meal and chore sharing, etc.
Unique situation to me.
I loved their natural, easy friendship and closeness.
Their kids and her other bff play a big part in the story as well.


The bares bones of it, because so much more than this happens in their story; not necessarily in chronological order:

Libby, 40 years old, 5 months pregnant with a baby she wasn’t initially keen on having, discovers that for the last 4 years Ted, and cunty Caroline have been having an affair. She witnesses his cheating - omg - that was a gut punch scene. He's also slept around with multiple other women. Libby is usually a loving giving woman. I really liked her in the beginning.

Lib is now broken.
Devastated.
There was NO indication of him being unhappy in any way. They had a happy life, if not perfect.
The woman shuts down in every way: she can’t be a friend, a wife, a mother.
I get it, I do: this is how real life people could react to the discovery of infidelity but damn this woman couldn’t care less about her kids during this time. Everyone rallied and picked up her slack because they’re good people, but still!
Truman, 44, the quintessential good guy, loving father, friend, and caregiver, was more angry on Libby’s behalf than his own, because crusty Caroline isn’t much of a feature in his life by now but he knows Libby is devoted to Ted and deserves better. (Tru and his wife have been together for just more than 20 years now)

As usual Tru supports Libby and her kids including the new baby, even while realising that he loves her more than just friends.
Libby uses Tru as her sounding board. Gives him hope, leads him on and then cheats on Ted with him.
And still rejects him in favour of Ted and their 2 kids.
Her waffling and betrayal hurt Tru deeply.
By now I’m disliking this FMC with a vengeance because she’s messing with the wellbeing of his kids as well.
She brought those kids up and is now effectively abandoning them.
The older kids are acting up, hurting, and bewildered by how much their lives are changing.
For far too long she remains somewhat thoughtless about this.

Ted, 44, usually a “spectacularly successful” and confident man, has become a lost crying pos.
Libby is the love of his life.
He hates that she’s hurting and begs her not to leave him.
He can’t give 2 shits about contemptuous Caroline, who honestly thought he would leave Lib for her.
Everyone laughed in her face at that preposterous idea.

Lib loves Ted from the bottom of her soul. He’s everything to her.
But she’s starting to see Tru as more than just a friend now.
Still, she stays with Ted because she wants answers via couple’s counselling. He makes great strides, I must say.
She loves him and can’t give up so easily.
BUT during her waffling she sleeps with Ted and is intimate with Tru as well. On more than one occasion throughout the book.
She doesn’t have the explosive sexual connection with Tru like she does with Ted, though.
Sure, he’s gorgeous and things are new, different and the thrill is there with Tru but to the reader it’s never on the same off-the-charts scale as with Ted.

Ted is blissfully unaware.
She offers Ted 1 year in which he must prove himself worthy.
She’s staying for the kids now and also because she just can’t move on yet.

Poor Tru deserved better.
He divorces clueless Caroline and forces himself to move away from Libby so that he can stop pining for her.
He eventually meets Barbara, a really nice lady whom he dates exclusively. His kids like her and her kids like him.

Libby starts working and becomes successful in her chosen field. Ted spends more time at home than ever before. Loving his family and being the perfect husband in every way possible. If his name wasn’t Ted I’d have thought, at this point, that he was her endgame hero because he was perfect from the minute his redemption begins.

But eventually he starts resenting the new Libby who has a life outside of their family. He does NOT like it and starts acting up.

Libby realises she’s staying with Ted for the wrong reasons and when on the day of the anniversary of her 1 year commitment, she catches him cheating, she really couldn’t even be bothered. It was great seeing just how little she cared. I enjoyed that scene!

She goes to see Tru, though. UGH.
I literally rejoiced when she sees him happy with Barbara and their respective kids together. Playing happy families.
Her doublemindedness was selfish and destructive, so she needed that wake up call.
They remain in each other’s lives because of the kids of course.

A year after her divorce, Miss High Maintenance finally goes out on a blind date.
Unfortunately it’s at the same restaurant where Barb and Tru are celebrating her big 40th birthday.
Of course lib asks Tru to sit with her while she awaits her date because she’s an idiot.
The whole night goes downhill from there: she ends up drunk. Tru ignores Barb. Libby confesses her feelings and poor Tru is like:
“You can’t do this to me, Libby,” he muttered. “Too much has happened.”
Her eyes filled with tears and she nodded.
“I understand.”
“Do you?” he asked. “Do you have any idea what it was like for me? What we had was so special, Libby, and you threw it away. Now I’m with a woman who loves me and wants to live with me. Barbara wants to spend her life with me,” he paused. “And now you tell me you made a mistake and miss me? What am I supposed to do with that information? What do you want from me?”

But of course he dumps Barb because he loves her but is not IN love with her.

He and Libby live their best lives after that.
I’m thrilled for him because all he’s ever wanted was his family intact and now he has that with the love of this life.
As long as Libby controls her self-centered tendencies, I’m happy for Truman and their kids.
Last we hear about Ted was him jumping straight back into the dating game after the divorce.

Also, with all the sleeping and fooling with each other you’d think they’d have the condom talk but, nope:
Caroline and Tru - once
Ted and Caroline
Ted and Libby
Libby and Tru
Ugh


NTS:
Ted and Lib met 14 years ago.
Neaten review -- sheesh

[Mindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

(I got this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)
Another 5 star book! I am so happy that I stumbled upon this author! The plot was amazing, the characters were awesome! I like how she even incorporated some people from her first book into this one. I will anxiously be awaiting her 3rd book!

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Libby needed some common sense. She need to stand up for herself a bit more. Come on after all the cheating her husband did it was still doing including a 4 yr. Affair with the neighbor she still gives him a year. Unbelievable!

The only two characters I really liked were Turman and Ginger.

[JJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fuck Libby. Truman deserves so much more than her wishy-washy ass. She watched her husband fuck the neighbor against a tree but feels she should stick to her vows of for better or worse for her children??

I’m at 65% and DONE.

I don’t even want to know how it ends other than to know Truman finds a good woman who appreciates him. And I have a feeling that’s not what happens and he’ll go back to Libby so FUCK LIBBY. Stupid bitch. Her stupid ass deserves Ted and Truman deserves a good woman.

I’ll never read another book by this author.

[Linda Carvelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eerily realistic. From the very first paragraph to the last word, Jayne easily drew me in to the lives of each character. The story is a realistic view of love, family, sacrifice, and ultimately encourages each of us to consistently honor our authentic selves.

[Ari · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Lib♥Tru stars

Who looks inside, awakens..

I honestly am quite in love with this book.
To me, there are two types: one where I fall in love with the book because of the writing, and the other, where I fall in love with the book because it opens my eyes to more than I ever thought possible.

As it seems easily falls in the second category for me.

This was a first Jane Conway book for me, and reading this- the language, the honesty, and the life she weaves into her words makes me eager to get my hands on more. That aside, let me get started with the review.

This book starts with two families- the Whitakers and the Fitzgeralds. Libby is a 40 year old mother of two, who is married to Ted, the man she loves, and who loves her back. Her best friend is her neighbor Truman, the father of two girls, who is married to a high end lawyer Caroline. Both he and Libby take care of both their children while their respective spouses work.

They bond over parenting experience, and get closer to each other over the years. The first strain between the Fitzgeralds arises when Ted forces Libby to go ahead with her third pregnancy when she clearly doesn't want to. She develops a deep resentment against her husband, and goes deep into depression. During that period, she and Truman get more closer than ever.

"..again the lens has become a filter between herself and the world, distracting her from reality."

On the other hand, Truman and Caroline are facing their own problems in their loveless marriage. They fall out and pretend to be married because of their children. That is when he realizes that he's in love with Libby.

That Christmas, a lot of secrets are revealed, and Libby is in a cross section in her life. She feels so lost after she looses the illusion of a perfect family, that she is forced to grow stronger. Not for herself, but her babies, and the man she loves.

"Againt, she longs for her camera, wanting to capture his pain, raw and intense, in stark contrast to the pastel rug with the alphabet border.."

I loved Libby, and her strength. I might not have always liked her decisions, but the thing is, it wasn't because the author wanted to create some drama. Nothing in the book felt overtly dramatic. Every single plot point was carefully and thoughtfully placed. Truman's love and dedication to Libby was truly heartbreaking and at the same time, swoon worthy. This book gave me a completely different outlook into the way adults behave, and their reasons.

The only description I have gotten for the book is painfully real. It was reality written in the most beautiful way possible. I have to give my hats off for the author for writing something so haunting.

I was given a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"With each movement, she feels herself slipping further away from the life she chose, letting go of rhyme and reason in favor of the absolute bliss she is experiencing in his arms.."

[Jack Graham · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disclosure: I received this book for free as part of a good reads giveaway.

As It Seems by Jayne Conway is a story of Libby Fitzgerald.

Cast of Charters:
Libby Fitzgerald nay Taylor is a mostly stay at home mother but works with her husband in the firm they built.
Ted Fitzgerald is her husband.
Truman Whitaker is the househusband next door and Libby's best friend.
Caroline Whitaker is his wife who is a lawyer.
Ginger is a friend of both Libby and Truman.
Jasper, Gingers ex-husband who ran off with his 24 year old secretary. We never meet him, but he plays a part in the novel.

Writing: The righting style is nice. It generally has a good flow and never really gets bogged down. The author is good at enabling the reader to empathize with Libby through the entire book - you understand what she is thinking and can understand why she feels the way she does.

Everything is presented from the perspective of Libby, Ted, and Truman. Occasionally the author presents us with replayed moments from a different perspective.

Plot: The story is one of finding true love, the trials and tribulations of trying to hold on, and the ultimate reward for being true to oneself.

My mother told me if I do not have anything nice to say, then do say anything at all. But my mother was never in a Literary Criticism class, or is a creative writing course.

As an aspiring writer I tend to second guess and author asking "Why did they do that?" or "Why did they say it that way?" This kind critical analysis seemed to work well for me in college English Literature classes, but does me no favors outside of the class room. This book left me scratching my head and asking "Why did the author....?" or "Why didn't the author....?" a lot. And I have not found satisfying answers.

I do not have anything positive to say about the characters, the story line, or the novel's theme. Part, perhaps a majority, of the problem was my inability to suspend my disbelief. While the characters emotional state was convincing and enabled you as the reader to understand what they were feeling, the story was not.

For me, I could not get past my own internal roadblocks along the story's arc to allow myself to believe in the characters or their story.

jack

[i. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love is complicated and marriage is even more. Jayne Conway explores the problems of two upper-class couples in her novel in a realistic way.

For both Truman, a stay-home-dad o and Libby, a part-time worker and full-time mother, their marriages are not what they envisioned when they got married. Their partners have taken different paths and Truman and Libby find it difficult to accept the fact that their love dream is not what it seemed and certainly not what they wanted.

I think that this novel is about disillusionment, being disenchanted , a charming prince (or princess) becoming a toad.


The book reminded me of this quote by Leon Tolstoy:“All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”


However, this novel is also about picking yourself up and dealing with it, making choices and moving forward. Finding a strength within yourself you probably thought you lacked.You may even be rewarded with true love in the end.



www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com

[Tom Lamora · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Jayne Conway's second novel, and I've enjoyed reading this as much, or more than I did her first effort. While that first novel, "What If I Fly", followed the evolving romance of some twenty-somethings, "As It Seems" looks at two fortyish couples, their friendships, their interactions, and their marriages. As you read, you'll quickly see that the title relates to how our public faces and the public face of our relationships may not match what happens behind closed doors. It may not at all be "As It Seems". I found the story and the characters well developed and believable. I found myself liking Libby and Ted and especially Ginger, and I think you will as well. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it.

[Gwen|| Bookish Blondie · Rating 1 out of 5]

There isn't a single likable character in this novel, not the husband or wife or the friends. I see people gushing about Truman, but that man is a emotionally manipulative asshole who treated Libby nearly as badly as Ted did. I didn't like that asshole either. Obviously Ted and Ginger are the real villains here, but also Libby is so whiny, annoying, and honestly a terrible person herself, that I was rooting for them all to have a meteor hit their houses and them all to die. THEY ALL SUCK.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read about two best friends and neighbors, one male and one female, who indeed belong together. Throughout the book you cannot help wishing they would not miss all the opportunities they had to cut ties with their spouses and just end up together. You will have to read the book to find out if they do!

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I fucking hated Libby.

Also, if you enjoy writing such as:

Libby went to the market and bought dinner.
Truman would bring his girls over for dinner.
Dinner was a pot roast with mashed potatoes.

…that’s the kind of methodical boring writing style that we’re dealing with here. This was over 350 pages and I was bored to tears throughout the entirety of it.

[Melissa Borsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I enjoyed this easy to read book about friendships, love, marriage, and betrayal. The characters were very well done and the story kept my interest throughout! I would definitely recommend this book.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was just bored. Like I understood the reasons the h did what she did. It made sense but at the same time it just didn’t. Idk I just had to push myself through it because it seemed repetitive in a way. Writing was fine. Editing was fine. I was just not feeling it.

[Lissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giving this 2 stars because the FMC pissed me off and honestly this book was a little dragged out, could have been 2-3 chapters less. I gave up on Libby when she went back to Ted, like how obvious can one man be???? Geez

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second novel for this author and just as enjoyable as the first. Can't wait for her third. Highly recommended

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even better than the first novel! I really enjoyed this book & the background of RI is always interesting.. great characters, great writing & a great story! Look forward to reading her next novel!

[Karrie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Three hours of my life I will never get back. I hated Libby. Selfish, whiny, pathetic.

[Misty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stopped reading at 25%

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I can appreciate a story about people in their middle age restarting whatever it is they are in the midst of, including a marriage. Libby and Ted Fitzgerald have been together for about 2 decades and live next to Truman and Caroline Whitaker. Ted works a lot, often away from home so Libby handles the children. It takes a village to raise a child so Libby’s village consists of her close friends Ginger and Truman, who also have children.

I wasn’t a fan of Ted for obvious reasons, but he was fascinating in the sense that he could have so many sides of his personality and come off authentic, even though it was all hogwash. Who really knew what Ted’s true motivations are other than that he lives for a constant adrenaline rush. Libby, in contrast, is very calm and mellow, and definitely the reliable and stable one. Truman is her male counterpart, whereas Caroline is more plastic and pretentious. It’s not hard to see where things are going and why relationships crumble.

I did empathize with Libby and the hard choices she had to face and to make, including the sacrifice of her happiness for her children. However, it was equally frustrating to watch because leopards don’t change their spots when there’s a mile long list rap sheet by Ted. Also, I’m not a huge fan of excess man tears in a book and both Ted and Truman had this in spades. People change as they grow, or they finally show their real selves. Libby didn’t deserve to be put through the wringer, but for all of her accumulated losses, she had genuine gains that were worth the battle. I liked the storyline, drama and even the characters, but something about the writing style didn’t totally jive with me.

[Heather Dochylo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book surprised me. Every so often, I go hunting for a book by a writer completely outside by frame of reference. I blame Mhari McFarlane, and her book "If I Never Met You", for my growing addiction to stories about women who have to learn how to fall in love with themselves and their lives after betral by husband or very long term boyfriend. Witnessing women find their way back to themselves after losing all sense of themselves brought on by the devastation caused by cheating in a long-term relationship is bizarrely satisfying. This book had the disadvantage of a cover that really needs an overhaul, but the advantage of over 300 reviews averaging 4 stars on Amazon. It's really well crafted: well structured, well edited, good character development, convincing melodrama and an ending that makes sense for this heroine and surprising/not surprising romantic hero. I you enjoy the sort of story that questions the authenticity of the "white picket fence" happily ever after, I think this darker look at how to get there might be your cup of tea.

[Shell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real

I had a hard time rating this one. I wanted to go with 3/3.5. But why? Because my feelings were hurt because the book is real. The FMC makes bad choices in my opinion. That doesn’t downgrade the book, just makes me mad at the character. But that’s what makes this book real.

If you like cheating trope books then I would recommend this one. Just be prepared to not like Ted, Libby’s husband AT ALL. And honestly be ready to not like the choices Libby makes to try to salvage her marriage. However, one could argue maybe she needed the experience and time for growth. You never know, maybe someone would. And who makes the perfect choices when faced with loss? This book hurts a little but honestly I felt the most pain for Tru.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow

So I don’t usually do reviews beyond rating ⭐️’s. I have had this book come up several times and just kept passing it up. I read several low reviews that also kept me from getting this book. I am glad that I looked past all of that and finally read it. It was amazing. A really hard read for personal reasons but that is also what makes it so good it was relatable. I have read several reviews that called Libby weak for her choices. I believe she was very strong to stay and try to work it out. I have to say ignore the negative reviews and read for yourself. Look pass the cheating aspect unless it’s a trigger for you. Well written. Could not put down.

[larry Mccauley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad

I read until Libby broke down and is in the hospital with no control over her state of mind . Words of .any kind will never explain what should happen to her dead beat husband who probably has no idea of what true ove is . its only sex seems to be the way of life for many . This guy took.an oath before God to forsake All others .There is a special p!ace In hell for men that commit adultry especially when its with multip!e women but his wife needs to find herself for the children .

[Paige Whitecotton · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely loved.

Spoiler alert.

I have to say I was routing for Ted when this all started. But he proved to be a selfish egotistical man whore. He didn’t deserve his family. I don’t believe you can say you love your kids or even your spouse and cheat. What cheating proves is you love yourself and yourself alone.

I was not on board with Truman but I can say he did grow on me. He was the perfect choice.

Loved this book.

[Elizabeth Grieve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read, with a mystery built in! Libby and Truman are neighbours, and become close friends ... but there's something going on in their married lives, and someone seems to be stalking Libby. Her husband is always working (or is he?) and so she naturally spends a lot of time with Truman. Both have family secrets which will change their lives ...
Thanks to the publisher for a review copy.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favorite

I haven't read a book by this author before and decided to try this book and am so glad I did. What an emotional book. I loved this book so much and shed plenty of tears while reading this book.