A love story about what happens after you meet, or rather, don't meet the one.
Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn't exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there's a moment of pure magic...and then her bus drives away.
Certain they're fated to find each other again, Laurie spends a year scanning every bus stop and cafe in London for him. But she doesn't find him, not when it matters anyway. Instead they "reunite" at a Christmas party, when her best friend Sarah giddily introduces her new boyfriend to Laurie. It's Jack, the man from the bus. It would be.
What follows for Laurie, Sarah and Jack is ten years of friendship, heartbreak, missed opportunities, roads not taken, and destinies reconsidered. One Day in December is a joyous, heartwarming and immensely moving love story to escape into and a reminder that fate takes inexplicable turns along the route to happiness.
Purchase Links
Amazon US: https://bit.ly/2NJFjVL
Indiebound: https://bit.ly/2yjPoDZ
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JOSIE SILVER is an unashamed romantic who met her husband when she stepped on his foot on his twenty-first birthday. She lives with him, her two young sons, and their cats in a little town in England called Wolverhampton.
REVIEW
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Title: One Day in December
Series: Standalone
Author: Josie Silver
Release date: October 16, 2018
Cliffhanger: No
The potential angst in this book, combined with the beautiful illustrated cover were the biggest drawing points when I spotted One Day in December. I've never read a book by this author before, but the total package being presented was appealing to me in every way, so I had to have it. Based on the blurb, I knew I was taking a risk because it seemed to be a bit of a love triangle, and honestly I avoid those books like the plague. Not to say I could never read one that I'd like, but from my experience, the vast majority are not enjoyable so I don't fight the odds. However, my curiosity got the better of me, and I went all in. Thankfully, I can say with all honesty that though that trope is present in the first half, it's not the overwhelming feel of the book. Not at all. I would describe this story as more of a friends to lovers trope, minus the lovers. And that's probably what ended up being the biggest disappointment.
Love at first sight is the other trope that can be found in the story. This is another one that doesn't always work for me, but if the author can sell it to me, my squishy romantic heart will happily beat double time. Realistically, it is a little far-fetched that a woman locks eyes with a man outside while sitting on a bus, and hears a metaphorical choir of angels singing true love. I'm not sure it felt completely genuine to me at that point, but it did seem as if she had a massive crush at first sight. And I won't deny that was exciting and a little bit exhilarating to feel the giddiness she experienced.
For months, Laurie daydreamed about fate bringing them together again, fall into each other's arms, and live happily ever after. I didn't ever feel that Jack felt the same, probably because from the moment she set eyes on him again, he was very happily in a committed relationship with Sarah. If you can believe that someone can be in love with two people at the same time, perhaps it's possible. Maybe Jack did love her at first sight, and loved her with the same intensity he loved Sarah. I just didn't feel it. Which in turn, made me not care too much about the fact that they were separated and unable to be together. They were pushed firmly in the friend zone, that friendship grew over time, and Laurie eventually had to let go of her idealistic dream she had when she briefly spotted him first. In fact, it was actually their friendship over time that made me believe more than anything that they could eventually be more if not for their circumstances.
From the very start, it seemed as if Jack and Laurie were fated to remain friends. As we're led through the ups and downs of his relationship with Sarah and Laurie, it was almost like walking through a minefield with them. There's a wistful feeling from both, as if they have a "what if" thought in the back of their minds. But really, how could it ever go anywhere? After four long years of sustaining a serious relationship, Jack and Sarah split up, but now the friend code comes into play! Throughout the years, I didn't feel much romantic angst. And unfortunately that's what I was going into this looking for. It's very hard to feel romantic angst and a tangible connection between two people who are making a valiant effort to be happy with other people. Over and over, for a decade. Poor choices are made, and there are hurt feelings all around with the trio, but did I root for them to get together? Not really.
It would have greatly changed my feelings if less detail were put into this couple's relationships with other people, and we were given more page time seeing Jack and Laurie together. I felt shorted on their actual romance. The end is undeniably rom-com perfect and movie worthy. But it was all too little, too late, for this reader. I struggled between a rating of a two and three. Two is my overall feel for the romance and the characters, and yet there is an addictive quality about the book that held me captive. I flew through its 400 pages almost in one sitting, and the humor was especially noteworthy. I would definitely read another by this author, but it was clear by the end that while I was entertained and intrigued, this time around I was not charmed by the romance.
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