Allison Winn Scotch is among my favorite authors so I am always happy and excited when she publishes a new book as her work never disappoints. Between Me and You is no exception. In fact, with this latest release, Scotch demonstrates again that her work grows increasingly richer, deeper, and more resonant with each successive book she writes. Between Me and You is narrated from the two perspectives of Ben and Tatum, but one tells the story of their relationship in reverse (starting from the present) while the other relates the tale in chronological order. They meet in NYC as part of a bet when they are both students. Ben is a screenwriter from a privileged background who is teetering on the brink of his big break, and Tatum is a bartender and would-be actress. in a New York City dive. Their meeting and early days together are charming and relatable. They relocate to Hollywood, have a child,. and both are wildly successful in their careers but, typically, not in equal proportions or duration. Although Scotch tells their story against the backdrop of show business, the stressors that threaten their marriage are universal -- ambition, jealousy, insecurity and feelings of inadequacy. (With the impact of fame and being surrounded by sycophants thrown in for good measure.), Add lingering affection for a prior lover and infidelity. Scotch's account is an insightful, poignant, and touching examination of a relationship that has all the ingredients for success but still falters. Ben and Tatum contemplate their futures, their own roles in the making and undoing of a loving relationship, and whether they can forgive each other and themselves. Scotch demonstrates skillful control of a story that could have veered into maudlin cliches but, instead, plays out in a steady, measured, and, most critically, believable manner. And miraculously, there is no villain in this story. Scotch also manages, despite all of their flaws and the trappings with which they are surrounded, to craft two extremely likable, endearing characters for whom reader will find themselves cheering. Still . . . as the disparate narratives converge and ultimately merge in the present day, readers may long to hear the swell of violins, signifying a classic Hollywood-style happy ending. Will Scotch deliver?
(Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book!)

Between Me and You is a breathtaking book about love and marriage. About promises kept and promises broken. And how in a million little ways the little choices we make each day can break us, but they can also make us whole again. This book was so raw and real. Tatum and Ben, our main characters are so terribly flawed that you can't help but relate to them. I loved how it was told from each of their perspectives in alternating chapters. With Ben we start in the present and work our way back to when they first meet. Tatum's chapters begin in the past, on the night of their first meeting. This book will you bare and weeping, as it did me. And you will love it.
* Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is the second book I have read from Allison Winn Scotch. 
Between Me and You is told in two different POV, one is Ben and the other is Tatum. The back and forth was a little confusing in the beginning as was the one of the POV was being told backwards but hang in there it will all make sense when everything is figured out!
Allison Will Scotch writes an unique story about real life stuff, I feel that she embraces the true meaning of "women's fiction".

3.5 star read.

I have mixed feelings about this book ... I liked it - and more than "this was an ok read" - I was eager to keep reading and to find out how it ends. But I also felt that at times it stalled, that it just didn't move quickly enough and repeated itself one time too many.

Tatum and Ben fall in love ... and then life gets messy and complicated and things happen.

What we get is a story in two parts.

Part 1 told from alternating points of view, Ben and Tatum's depending on that chapter, and also told either in chronological order (Tatum) or backwards (Ben). The first 70% of the book is told either as Tatum falls in love with Ben and then leads to the eventual separation, while every other chapter gives you a snippet of Ben as he goes back in time - from the separation and what lead to it, to falling in love with Tatum and what made him choose her.

It sounds more complicated than it is. But it's also the reason I felt that a lot of the story was repetitive - because you have alternating points of view on similar events, or times in peoples' lives; you end up with things repeated... things that maybe don't need to be repeated. And so that's where I found it dragged.

Then you get to Part 2 - the present day. Both Tatum and Ben take turns bringing us to the "grand finale" - and that moves faster. Far less repetition and it reads more like a traditional novel.

Overall, this is a book about two people who love one another but get caught up in life - either trying to live up to expectations, or trying to surpass expectations. It's well written, a little long-winded, but an enjoyable read. If you have read Firefly Lane - I think you would enjoy this book. It's about relationships and finding yourself and finding happiness.

This is the first book by this author I have read. I enjoyed the book and storyline but it took me a little while to catch on to the fact it was told in two different point of views and that one was telling the story from the begging and one was telling me the story from the end. I think this made me dislike one character from early in the book. When we got to the middle of the book I almost disliked both the main characters equally. I felt like the death of the dog was the turning point for me. The ending of the past hurt, frustration and anger. I could finally see Tatum and Ben as separate flawed people and what they became together and how they would move on together. I did enjoy the ending and felt like the story came back around full circle and I was pleased with the resolution.

This story is told in the perspectives of Ben and Tatum. I have to say that I was a little confused at the beginning as one story is told backwards and the other forward. Once I had that figured out, though, I found it to be a very unique and interesting way to tell a story about love, the difficulties in a marriage, and forgiveness. It was very well done.

I received an early copy of Between Me and You through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Was looking forward to reading Between Me and You based on positive reviews and description. This story is told forward (by Tatum) and backwards (by Ben) – this part I really liked! Just because you’re reading it from past-to-present by one character, does not mean you know what’s going to happen! Allison Winn Scotch managed to keep you hooked by nothing giving everything away. That being said, I anticipated a story being told by two different characters to give you two different POVs for the same events; but in reality, it was very repetitive – this I did not like.

The plot was filled with love, loss, success, tragedy, addiction, illness. Everyone will have something to relate to. I don’t often read this type of book but I would recommend to fans of Nicolas Sparks.

Author's vocal political views have turned me off from reading her books.

Ben and Tatum meet in a bar in NY, both at the start of their careers. Ben is from a wealthy family, with ambitions to become a successful screenwriter, while Tatum is from a modest Midwestern family, studying acting. As their relationship evolves, their story is told in alternating chapters, full of misunderstandings, disappointments, successes, and family drama. I like this author’s previous books and this novel reaffirms with a different approach.

This was my first read by Allison Winn Scotch and I was super excited to have a dose of a romance. Well.... I was pretty disappointed.

Between Me and You started out on a bang but it started to slowly lose it's sparkle and just lost me big time.

The biggest issue I had with this novel was how it's told (dual perspective). I usually LOVE dual perspective but wow was this a serious hot mess. This was ALL over the place and not in a good way. Tatum Connelly's perspective is told from chronological order and Ben's perspective is told from the opposite/reverse order. All I can say is be prepared for some MAJOR confusion when you tread these waters. Honestly, I'm not sure at all what the author was trying to do with the timeline but it did not work at all for me.

Not only did I have issues with the delivery, but also the repetitiveness. Either we heard about "I see you" moments or Ben's writing projects. I felt like the story was a bunch of fluff without the actual meat. I was rolling me eyes pretty much the entire story.

And, let's be honest. The author brings up some serious issues that Ben and Tatum have experienced. Infidelity, resentment, and trust. The characterization was lacking BIG time with Ben and Tatum. I was expecting to hurt when Ben/Tatum were hurt. I expected to be happy when Ben/Tatum were happy. Nope.... the feelings to her characters were absent. And... wow Tatum was a spoiled brat. Ben... was also a jerk and extremely self-centered. YIKES!!!

The ending?..... also was horrible. Cheesy and unbelievable. The story held promise but unfortunately it did not live up to my expectations.

Overall 2.5 stars for this one.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the advanced arc in exchange for an honest review.
Publication date: 1/9/18.
Review posted: 1/15/18.

Inside look at a failed marriage (Tatum and Ben). Where did things go wrong? Could they have done anything differently to change the outcome? Join Tatum and Ben as they fight to "see" each other again and save their marriage ...

Wow. Wow. Wow. Between Me and You has alllll the feels. This story supplies an in depth look at a failing marriage and the natural ebb and flow of long time love. Wife Tatum's perspective of the marriage is told from the day they met to the present, while husband Ben's version is told the opposite way, starting at the present and moving backwards to the day they met. The story ends with both versions picking up in the present. I cannot even imagine how difficult it was to write the story in this unique way; kudos to Allison Winn Scotch for pulling it off with aplomb!

This book focused on the following themes: love, marriage, parenthood, family, regret, drive to succeed, love, forgiveness, and grief at the loss of a parent (this one really hit home with me since I lost my own mom just last month). It made me laugh. And it made me cry. This was a breathtaking, beautiful story with alllll the feels ... and my first 5-star read of 2018! This was my first time reading a book by this author, and I look forward to many more.

Tatum attended Ohio University, my own alma mater. so that was fun. OU, OU, OU ;)

Thank you to the author, the publisher, the Great Thought's Ninja Review Team, and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! All opinions are my own.

This is the story of Ben and Tatum from when they initially meet in 1999 up to 2016. I was initially a little confused about the time lines as the book is told in alternating chapters between the characters. Ben’s story is told backwards in time and Tatum’s is told chronologically. This also contributes to some repetition of the stories. Aside from that I loved the book. The characters live through emotions that are at times loving, raw, sad, happy, and frustrating. At the beginning of the book, Ben, a recent university grad is a writer and is showing promise of a great career. Tatum is a struggling young actress. They move to LA as Ben’s career is taking off. Overtime the situation reverses and Tatum has become a top actress and Ben is struggling to write anything of significance. We follow them as they are in love and happy initially and then throughout their marriage to a point where they now both have secrets and are burdened by resentments, bruised egos, and guilt. The question becomes - have they moved so far away from each other emotionally to continue their lives together.

This novel tells the story of a couple on the verge of divorce with a very unique structure - in alternating chapters, we get the perspective of Ben, the husband, revealed in chapters going backwards chronologically from 2016, while the perspective of Tatum, the wife, is told going forward from when they first meet in 1999. Even among the same perspective, each chapter skips somewhere between a few months and a year between each one, so it's more like snapshots from over the years, and even once their stories pass each other at the midway mark, rarely do we get the same event told from both their perspectives. For me, this was not just an interesting and unique structure, but really deepened our understanding of the characters and gave the book so much emotional resonance. Ben and Tatum are both flawed people in ways both endearing and annoying, but you really end up rooting for both of them. Allison Winn Scotch has been one of my favorite writers of contemporary women's fiction since her first book (though I was not as keen on her last book before this one), and this was one of her best. 4.5 stars.

Allison Winn Scotch has done it again, and this may just be her best book yet. The alternating points-of-view of Ben and Tatum---his moving from the present backwards and hers moving in a linear, past-to-present frame--make for a complex and deeply emotional read that explores the rush of falling in love and the heartaches and secrets, big and small, that affect a relationship. From the earliest pages, I was hooked on their story, and the beautifully flawed, richly drawn characters made this book impossible to put down. There's nothing I love more than seeing characters I've come to love make mistakes, and diving into all of the hows and whys behind those mistakes is guaranteed to keep me reading until deep into the night. If you're looking to get sucked into a compelling read about the mess, heartache, and power of love in relationships, look no further than Between Me and You

I'm a longtime fan of Winn Scotch and her writing, and I was very excited to read this book, her seventh novel. I did love it for a lot of reasons- from the colourful cover to the tears that I found myself shedding at the end (yes, actual tears- of happiness, but still!).

This is the story of Tatum and Ben, and how they grew together and then grew apart. When they met they were college students with lofty dreams for the future and no idea of the rocky road that lay ahead for them both. As Tatum's Hollywood success skyrockets and Ben's potential comes crashing down around him, the two find that they are further apart than ever from where they thought that they'd be as a couple, and their separation is inevitable. Although they are co-parenting their son, hand-offs are completed by their nanny so that the two former lovers have as little contact as possible.

What makes Between Me and You truly unique is the way that the story is told. Tatum's story is told forwards and Ben's story is told backwards. I really enjoyed what this brought to the story, however there were times when I found the story confusing. The unique time frame makes this worth a re-read, perhaps in order to discover things that I may have missed the first time around.

My sole complaint about this book was that there was a point that I got bored by Tatum and Ben's story, and had to put the book down for a few days. There was a plot point that propelled me again towards the ending, but I had to read quite a bit to actually get to the good stuff. Until the last third of the book I felt like I got a lot of back story, but not enough to keep me reading on. However, I really enjoyed the ending, and that alone made it worth the read.

While this wasn't my favourite of Winn Scotch's books, it was enjoyable, and it was a beautiful story of how sometimes we have to grow apart before we can grow back together again.

Between You and Me is a heartfelt story about two people who are in love–at least they were in love–trying to figure out if they are still in love. Ben and Tatum are both very insecure about themselves, and their relationship. As their lives take on the ups and downs of marriage, success, and unhappiness, they drift apart and aren't sure if they will find their way back to each other again. And really, do they want to?

This is a wonderful tale about the difficulties of love and commitments and how hard it is to try to be there through the good as well as the bad. As the author takes us, the reader, back and forth throughout Ben and Tatum's lives, we learn how their marriage got to the place it is today and we can see where it starts to go wrong. And we so want it to go right again.

',,,sometimes the only way to free yourself is to learn what you thought you couldn't know. To knock everything down and start over.'

Let me just say that I think the story itself was a solid 4 stars. I wish I could have loved it more and rated it higher, but the back and forth of the years was just too confusing and I kept getting lost in what was going on.. I think it was a brave thing to try to accomplish, but it just didn't work for me. I'd love to read another book from this author, because I believe she has a great ability to tell a story, but not in this format.

Enjoyed this novel about the complexities of marriage. I could definitely see this being a great book club choice as there is much to discuss.

I’m such a sucker for a great love story and this one definitely fits that bill. Tatum and Ben were divine when they were, and heartbreaking when they weren’t and I enjoyed the ride as they tried to figure out where they were going next.

There were moments when I loved them and moments when I didn’t, but isn’t that just how life goes. I loved the back and forth as we discover what went wrong and why and I also loved their discovery of that as well. It felt very true to life and I felt as if I lived their story along with them. There were a lot of tears and throwing things and wanting to smack them a time or two. But there was also a lot of joy and goodness as well.

I recommend this book to lovers of romance and family drama. This was a good one.

At one point, I thought I might not finish this book. I couldn’t get into the style of storytelling at first and the story seemed like it would be bound to break my heart, a couple who has split up and the story is told from both them falling in love to them breaking each other’s hearts. I decided to give it a few more chapters and I’m really glad I did. Between Me and You is the story of Tatum and Ben, but it’s also the story of how outside influences shape the future and the past, as well as shape our reactions and perspectives. I found myself really caring about Ben and Tatum and was invested in their future. The storytelling is a bold move, but it pays off. Just stick with the story long enough to let it impact you, because I’m glad I did.