Another enjoyable author from the author of THE ROSIE PROJECT.
THE BEST OF ADAM SHARP is another touching, endearing, and engaging story from Simsion. It's reminiscent of Nick Hornby and David Nicholls, but distinct enough that it feels original and wholly its own.
I really enjoyed this. Recommended.

The main character of this novel, Adam (of the title), is a 49 year old happy-ish in a long term relationship but who has never really gotten over his first love, Angelina, who he had a 3 month long relationship with in Australia back when he was in his 20s. When he hears from her again out of the blue, he begins to think about their relationship again, including in flashbacks for the reader of that time when they were young, and things proceed from there. I have to say, this book does not have any of the humor, or most of the charm, of Graeme Simsion's "The Rosie Project" and its sequels, and was not entirely believable in several ways. But nonetheless I was completely pulled into the story, emotionally invested, and couldn't put it down. 3.75 stars.

I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Adam Sharp's life has turned into a comfortable routine, living with his partner Claire, doing weekly trivia at the pubs, and sometimes working as an IT consultant. That changes when Angelina Brown gets in touch. For Adam, Angelina was always the one that got away; he always wondered what might have been with her. Does Adam dare to blow up his life to see what could be with Angelina?

I think the best way to sum up my reaction to this book is that if this is the best of Adam Sharp, I'm glad we didn't have to see the rest of him. The first half was OK; the second half was awful. None of the characters were particularly likable. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this book.

I enjoyed both of his Rosie and Don novels but this one fell flat for me. Adam Sharp was not a very likable character. I never got invested in the story.

I recommended this on my blog Modern Mrs Darcy, in a blog post called "https://modernmrsdarcy.com/hot-summer-books/"

https://modernmrsdarcy.com/hot-summer-books/

The Best of Adam Sharp

by Graeme Simsion

When I saw this title available on NetGalley, I immediately requested it, based on having read Simsion's other books. In retrospect, I should have known that this was different, especially with the summary including the part about Adam Sharp, "on the cusp of turning 50", which, in my experience, never bodes well for the unsuspecting wife and the seemingly happy marriage. I think what I missed was the charm of Simsion's other novels, which were appealing in their breezy way, and not at all affected, as Adam Sharp seems to be here, caught up in what can only be described as a mid-life crisis fantasy. Simsion doesn't do any favors to the women he depicts here, either. Despite all this, I kept reading; because I am weak, and I needed to know what happened in the end. And no, I'm not really proud of that. The music aspect appealed to me, invoking Nick Hornby themes, but it couldn't overcome my issues with the often creepy-feeling plot twists. I still think Simsion is a terrific writer (I wouldn't have been able to finish it otherwise), so I will try to keep an open mind about whatever he comes up with next.


For Goodreads:
Why I picked it — I read and enjoyed The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect, so of course I had to read this.
Reminded me of… Juliet's Answer, by Glenn Dixon http://kathyannecowie.booklikes.com/post/1617360/juliet-s-answer
For my full review — click here

I enjoyed and appreciated Graeme Simsion's wit, as well as the clever piano music playlist mentioned along the story- to match the events. Felt a bit let down after reading his novel The Rosie Project, however this book had its own sort of charm. Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the copy. All opinions are my own.

Prior to reading The Best of Adam Sharp, I had looked at a few other reviews and some people hadn’t really given it much of a chance. I, however, enjoyed most of it. I really liked the idea of a soundtrack that went with it. I enjoyed reading about Adam Sharp’s troubles and his ‘different lives’. I did think it went a little too fifty shades of grey for me at some points but still an enjoyable book.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. While I enjoyed the undercurrent of music as an integral part of life and the songs that create the memories of our lives, I didn't really love this book. I couldn't relate to the main characters and didn't feel connected to either Adam or Angelina. I also don't think of this book as a love story considering the incredible amount of selfishness exhibited by all the characters involved in relationships.
I really enjoyed Graeme Samson's earlier books, but this one didn't pull me in.

This book did not pass my first chapter rule. If I cannot get interested enough in a book to proceed to chapter 2, I'll not go any further. I thought this would be a different kind of book.

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

On the cusp of turning fifty, Adam Sharp likes his life. He’s happy with his partner Claire, he excels in music trivia at quiz night at the local pub, he looks after his mother, and he does the occasional consulting job in IT. But he can never quite shake off his nostalgia for what might have been: his blazing affair more than twenty years ago with an intelligent and strong-willed actress named Angelina Brown who taught him for the first time what it means to find—and then lose—love. How different might his life have been if he hadn’t let her walk away?
And then, out of nowhere, from the other side of the world, Angelina gets in touch. What does she want? Does Adam dare to live dangerously?

Suffering greatly from the pressure of expectation, this novel does absolutely nothing to build on the success of The Rosie Project. In fact, it does it harm.

This would have to be considered the author's "second" novel (although he did a sequel to Rosie) - new characters, new settings. And it is just "meh." A middle-aged guy who looks back at a fling he had in his younger years. Contacted by said fling. Goes and sees what life COULD have been like...

But Angelina is a dreadful character (not that Adam is any better) - it is like she was written to be the "middle-aged male fantasy" but failed to actually give her any character - other than being pretty. I absolutely failed to see the attraction and really didn't care what Adam thought or had to say (which he did a lot of, talking)...

A disappointing book from someone we all thought was going to be a smashing success!


Paul
ARH

A very interesting tale that held my attention all the way through. Great plot, twists and turns & the writing kept me hopping! Thanks for the opportunity with this ARC!

I thought this was such a poor followup from an author whose prior books I had enjoyed. I missed the lightheartedness and humor from his previous books. This one was a downer for me.

I struggled to read this book. I absolutely love The Rosie Project (and enjoyed The Rosie Effect) however missed the humor and wit that was lacking in this read.

Unfortunately, I abandoned this book after reading half of it (my personal rule is to read at least 50% and then decide whether or not to continue). I read and really enjoyed The Rosie Project, but this just didn't do it for me. I feel like halfway through the book I still had no idea where the author was going. It was very slow-moving. There were some funny and heartwarming parts, but it just didn't get going for me like I had hoped.

As others have said before me, if you are expecting The Rosie Project, then you will be disappointed.

This book is well written and a departure from Mr. Simsion's other works. I thought the premise was interesting but I have to admit it took a direction that I wasn't expecting. I'm still not sure how I feel about the book and not sure who I would recommend it to, but not unhappy that I finished it.

This story will stick with me and I'll have to process it a bit more. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an advanced copy.

For fans of Graeme Simsion's Rosie books, his newest offering--The Best of Adam Sharp--is not of the same caliber. His plot idea was clever--Adam Sharp is about to turn 50, and he has a fairly happy life complete with his partner, Claire, and occasion IT consulting jobs, when he is contacted via email by one of the loves of his life and a major "what if ?"in his life--Angelina Brown--an Australian actress with whom he had a passionate affair in his younger days. Can his life be exciting again? Adam has a chance to find out when Angelina and her husband invite him to join the, for a week at their home in France. What makes Adam an endearing and interesting character is the fact that he plays the piano and sees life through songs. So, the book is one long playlist. The playlist and premise are great, but Adam and Angelina (as well as his partner and her husband) come out as self-centered and flat characters for whom self gratification is the be-all and end- all. The book began well, and then became incredibly gratuitous--especially during the week in France. The Rosie novels were brilliant and endearing, but sadly this novel disappointed me. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC, and for allowing me to review this book.

The Best of Adam Sharp by Graeme Simsion is nothing like The Rosie Project. So, remove that expectation and then decide if this is a book for you. Unfortunately, a twist in the story takes the book from a sweet, reflective story about relationships and to a story on sexual encounters. The twist is odd, not in keeping with Graeme Samson's other writing, unnecessary to the story, and sadly not the story for me.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2017/07/the-best-of-adam-sharp.html

Reviewed for NetGalley

From page one to the very end, this had a very cinematic feeling to the story, and so I was not at all surprised when it was announced that it was going to be adapted into a movie. There is essentially no compelling plot (which you always knew because this is a literary fiction), just a series of tropes like insta-love and old-lovers reconnected. The problem is, I feel like I’ve seen this story many times before, and this is just another repeat of that same structure.

The one thing that I did enjoy was that this focused on music, which is a common theme that brought these characters together. The author even has a playlist in the back pages of this book, and includes specific titles of 80s song.

To introduce these characters, you have to understand that even though it has 1 POV, it was written at two distinctly different times in the character’s life. Adam Sharp, is a different person in the 80s when he’s falling in love with the Australian actress Angelina Brown:

[quote]“Back in 1989, I did not have a plan, either. Just a hope–a fantasy–of how events might play out. The Australian left of my tour was due to finish on the Friday before Christmas”

Basically, the gist is that Adam was touring all over the world as a musician, and was pretty much unsure of where his life was going and unstable in his commitments. Fast forward twenty years later, he is living around fifty years in England, the director of some big business company, has a plan for his retirement, and has a long-lasting relationship with his partner Claire. Needless to say, we can see how different of a life and person he is right when the book is happening.

To set the stage up even more from there, while Adam is telling us the story of his past true love, he is going through the doubts and struggles in in his relationship with Claire. All of this is happening and he receives a one word email from Angelina saying “hello” that leads him down a path of self-discovery.

There were many little useless moments of the monotony of daily life that I just thought were uneccesary like

[quote]:"I nearly missed my train at the Gare de Lyon, having forgotten to put my watch forward an hour, then spent the two-hour journey to Macon trying to decide what to wear. By the time I had settled on a gray t-shit and suit jacket with my jeans, and made a dash to the bathroom to change, the train was pulling into the station."

This whole cluster of a run-on could have been deleted and a one-sentence replacement would suffice, something that conveys the idea that he was late. Noone really cares why or how he was late, me least of all.

I was more than a bit hesitant to start a book that was not in my wheelhouse, and my suspicious of my enjoyment were confirmed. Not only is this no the type of literature that I usually read, because it centers around love and romance, but also I have 0 connection with the characters. I think that all of these characters should be categorized as unlikable to the extent where I was apathetic to what things happened to them. Which in turn created an unwillingness to pick the book up; which turned out to truly be a sludge.

**Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending me an arc in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.**

Desperate for something a little lighter, on Thursday I decided to begin The Best of Adam Sharp, an upcoming release by Graeme Simsion (author of The Rosie Project, among others); not surprisingly, his male protagonist is intelligent and witty, with a kind heart. It may not be a five-star read but it has provided a great break from heavier fare and I love the characters!