Evvie Drake Starts Over is a cute but predictable novel. A fun story that is great for summer. I read it in one weekend at the beach. However, for me, I could have completely gone without all the bad language. For that reason, I can only give 3 stars.

What to say about this lovely book! First of all I was captivated from the beginning. Secondly I'm pretty sure I have a bookish crush on two of the main characters, Evvie and Dean. Both are "broken:" Evvie because she carries the guilt over attempting to leave her husband the night he was killed in a car accident, and Dean who has the "yips" and can no longer pitch a baseball. So this unlikely friendship starts out slowly as Evvie rents a room to Dean. They agree they won't mention or question each other's issues. There is incredible banter between the two as well as with Evvie and her best friend, Andy. This relationship too, is heartfelt and flawed and oh so realistically human. I laughed, I cried, and I could barely stop crying at the end. Holmes certainly has a poignant voice in her writing and I just didn't want the book to end! If you've ever cried during Field of Dreams, this is what it feels like!

This romance novel starts when the protagonist, Evvie Drake, is packing to leave her husband. She's loading the car when she gets the call that her husband has been in a car accident. Tim's death leaves an opening for Evvie to evaluate her life and her own state of mind. When she rents out a spare apartment to a washed out baseball superstar to help pay the mortgage, the possibilities loom large.

What's lovely about the way Holmes has written this story is that she is patient. She has taken the time to introduce and then develop the main characters, especially Evvie. Evvie doesn't tell us everything in the beginning. We get to know her as she gets to know Dean, her tenant. We get to root for her and then we get to experience her turmoil. Holmes controls the story and we don't mind getting immersed in this world of Evvie's big house, big hurts, and her vitally important connection with her platonic buddy, Andy, before it wobbles. The novel transcends the typical formula romance because there is significant time and development of relationships outside the core love interest. Evvie's friendship with Andy is long-standing and somewhat co-dependent. She was there for him during his divorce; he was there for her through her husband's unexpected death. But she has been holding back certain things and when Andy finds out, there is a rift. And we get to know the baseball player, Dean, too, to a lesser degree. It's definitely Evvie's story, but the narrative makes sure to show why Dean is worth so much investment.

Yet the themes of this novel go beyond romance. Mental health is key, and so is the disruption of the traditional gendered expectation of a woman being a supportive spouse behind the career of a successful professional husband. Holmes explores these ideas gently and with a great deal of empathy.

The author of this novel is well known to the pop culture world and anyone who's been following her trajectory over the years will recognize how interpreting and promoting good things like movies, books, and other podcasts has shaped her world view. Her willingness to open up about her own life and tastes are evident in this heartfelt and tender story.

Finally, this would make a fantastic movie, that is, if anyone wants to make a zillion dollars.

Evvie Drake Starts Over is one of the best beach reads I’ve read in a long, long time. It’s a great story about a young widow who was planning to leave her husband on the night he was killed in an automobile accident. They live in a small town and Evvie can’t tell anyone she was leaving, not even her best friend. When her best friend’s, pro baseball playing friend comes to town to escape bad publicity in the “real” world, they get to know each other in a fun, lighthearted way that makes you cheer for them both.

I’ve been reading some more depressing books lately and this was the perfect book to bring me out of that kind of “over it” feeling on WW II books. It’s a quick read and definitely a page turner. The dialogue is smart and funny and I wish the book was longer. I hope there is a sequel – if there is I will pre-order it.

Review will be published at The Tin Kitchen (link below) within one week prior to release.




Evvie Drake Starts Over tells a story of second chances with wit, compassion, and kinetic dialogue. Romantic and moving: an absolute joy to read. Five Stars.



Despite reading many of her articles, I was still caught off guard that man, Linda Holmes can write. Her prose is free and creative, but always for the sake of being direct. She writes what she means, even when she has to create an onomatopeia or use a TV reference to get there.

The cover and synopsis will make you think this book takes place in Maine. It does not. Maine is a real place, and Evvie Drake lives in a fantasy world–a seaside town of gossips and diners and cereal-box races, infused with pop-culture references and built on personal relationships.

Holmes populates this imaginary world with vividly, messily real people and lets them do what real people do: screw up. Fight. Fall in love. Take care of each other. Talk about things. Not talk about things. Be happy. Be unhappy. Think about little things. Think about huge things.

Holmes lets external circumstances have as little sway as possible in her story. Once things are set in motion, few obstacles or opportunities come from the world outside. They come, instead, from the traps characters have set for themselves. It’s an immensely interior, relationship-driven story. The focus is on Evvie’s journey, and even when there’s turbulence, Evvie stays the pilot.

It probably sounds like I’m describing a pretty light story. And Evvie Drake Starts Over does feel light most of the time. But it’s worth noting that there’s are some dark edges to the story. In the first couple chapters, we come to understand Evvie’s impossible position as the pitied widow of a beloved doctor that, unbeknownst to anyone else, Evvie was in the process of leaving when she learned he died in a car accident. Their private relationship, which the reader will quickly recognize as emotionally abusive, is drawn with devastating subtlety in Evvie’s scattered recollections.

I could tell after the first few chapters that the book would have to dig into some thorny areas of mental health. Thankfully, it didn’t run away from those topics, but always left them room to breathe. Evvie Drake Starts Over was still a witty, breezy read, even when it was chipping away at my heart.

It is accurate to describe Evvie Drake Starts Over as a romance, but it's important not to overlook a second relationship just as important as the romance. Evvie’s relationship with her long-time best friend Andy is one of my favorite fictional friendships I’ve read in a long time. If you’ve been frustrated by the lack of well-drawn platonic relationships between men and women (that aren’t familial or sassy-gay-bff types), this is what you’re looking for. The book takes seriously how important this kind of relationship is, and honors it with an arc every bit as lovingly, realistically drawn as the romance.

But don’t get me wrong–the romance is there, and it’s sweet, and it’s sexy, and it’s great. Like the rest of the book, it’s built on banter and compassion and actual human connection. And so wonderfully, deliciously consensual.

I’ve already seen some praise for Evvie Drake for “elevating” the chick lit/book club/women’s lit genre, “going beyond” the usual in those categories. And… okay, I guess. It is certainly better than what I’ve come to expect from those categories (though I don’t love the way we categorize those books).

But that praise suggests that somehow Linda Holmes is fighting against the conventions of romance or women’s lit. I don’t think she is. I think the key is that she isn’t afraid of what she’s writing. She embraces writing women’s lit and trusts that her story is enough. It’s enough to write an entire book about the relationships one woman has with her most important friends and family. It’s enough to write a romance, because romance is a great way to dig into the character work she’s doing. She’s not reinventing the genre; she’s digging into its roots, confident that she doesn’t need to add an experimental frame or a deadly twist to keep readers engaged.

A romantic contemporary is enough. Holmes’ delightful, smooth prose is enough. The lovable, human Evvie Drake is enough.

This book was an enjoyable read. The characters were all very believable. Even though it could seem predictable it was written well enough so I didn’t care.

I love books that are set in Maine. It's a unique state and favorite place to visit (at least, for me, in the summer and early fall). Not sure that the author totally captured the character and essence of the state (some references to lobstering didn't quite do it for me), but otherwise, it was an enjoyable and interesting book.
The two main characters, Evvie and Dean, have each been through traumatic events. For Evvie, it's the sudden death of her high school sweetheart husband (but things in that relationship weren't really what they appeared to be), and Dean is dealing with what could be the early ending of his career as a major league pitcher. There are a number of other interesting characters and one disappointment was that I didn't feel Evvie's husband's character wasn't really well-developed on a timely basis. We do eventually learn more about him and their relationship, but it's very late in the book.
The book is well written with lots of funny lines and a number of poignant moments. I like its depiction of adult relationships, as they should be (but aren't always portrayed in fiction), and the story lines kept my attention.

Evvie Drake Starts Over is included in a Books for Summer article in Entertainment Weekly and I loved the author's response to a question about it being classified as a beach read: "I'm extremely lucky to have written this book and published it. Read it at the beach. Read it in book club. Read it in the tub. Someone told me she read it in the tub. It made me so happy."

I agree -- read Evvie Drake Starts Over in the place and time that suits you best!

Thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

Evvie Drake Starts Over is a cute romance novel about a young widow and a washed out Major League pitcher helping each other get through personal struggles. Evvie's husband dies in a car accident and the whole small community has their eyes on her while she holds a secret about their marriage that she doesn't want the community to know about. Dean's career crashed when he suddenly couldn't pitch anymore. Evvie's best friend connects the two of them and they soon develop a fresh and well you know how it will end ;)

This would be a great beach read. The characters and their relationships are well balanced and believable. Lots of witty dialogue which I love. I got frustrated when the characters had a hard time communicating with each other - leading to more drama but that's just me as a reader being sucked into the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Evelyn Drake lives a quiet existence in a small sleepy coastal town. She has been a widow for a year. Everyone in town thinks that she taken her husband death badly, even her best friend Andy.
Dean Tenney is having a hard time as a pitcher in Major League Baseball, and needs a place to lay lay and figure out what his plans for the future are without baseball. He moves to Maine in a spare apartment that Evelyn has. The two have agreed not not discuss baseball or Evelyn's diseased husband. But as the rules get thrown out the window when something more then friendship develops between the two, can they find a way to make it work. Or are there lives to different. I loved this book. It was a cute romance.

What a singularly lovely book. Funny, sexy, inspiring... reading along as Evvie finds her footing was a marvelous ride. Watching her love the people around her and learn to love herself felt like a long, slow, satisfying stretch (punctuated by laughter and tears). Understanding her feelings, allowing herself to take up room in her own life and that of her friends and family, Evvie finds not just the expected romantic happy ending but a much more profound happily every after in her own skin.

I’ve listened to the author’s podcast for years, and Evvie’s hilarious banter was all the more satisfying being heard in her voice. I’ve also enjoyed ring side seats with she had to gently inform the podcast audience that her cohost and male best friend were really never getting married. Seeing pieces of that friendship on the page was so rewarding, honoring the value of found family alongside an interest in other romantic loves.

I know Holmes has a rewarding job currently, and I wouldn’t want to miss her editorials or wry voice commenting on the pop culture of the week, but a big part of me wishes she would do this and only this. I know I’ll be back to read Evvie’s story again and I can’t wait for the day when those rereads can skip right into other parts of her back catalogue. This is a debut that demands more, and I look forward to the day when Holmes takes up up more room on my shelf.

I've been listening to Linda Holmes' Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast for about a decade now so I was thrilled to get to read her first book. I have to say, it sounds exactly like something Linda would write- smart female protagonist with a male best friend (sounds like co-host Stephen Thomson!), cute, but flawed romantic interest, and a book that's about baseball, but not about baseball at the same time (harkens back to all the times Linda has said Friday Night Lights is about football, but not about football). All in all, a cozy read with a touch of baseball and romance.

Oh my gosh, I loved this book so much! Set in a small town in Maine, this book is about Evvie Drake, a young widow struggling with the fact that she was planning to leave her husband right when he died in a car accident, and what happens when a friend of a friend, former major league pitcher Dean who has spectacularly washed out of baseball, comes to rent the apartment attached to her house. Just one of those great books with quirky but very real characters, a perfect slice of contemporary women's fiction. I read much of the last quarter of the book with tears in my eyes, not because it was all sad but just because it gave me all the feels! I've been a fan of Linda Holmes all the way back to her recapping days for Television Without Pity, so I was excited to check out this debut novel of hers, and I wasn't disappointed. 4.5 stars.

#41: EVVIE DRAKE STARTS OVER // Are you looking for another great summer read? This is it! I adored this sweet story! The characters are all wonderful, and of course, Evvie was my favorite! I pictured her being a Rachel Green while reading this novel. Another thanks to @annebogel for the recommendation from her Summer Reading Guide!
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Evvie’s husband passes away, and while trying to get past his death, a handsome, ex-pitcher moves into her guesthouse. Does love blossom between them?? Read it and find out! Evvie Drake releases June 25th! Thank you, @netgalley for my copy!
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As Evvie Drake packs her car to leave her husband, she receives a call from the hospital that will change her life for good. A sweet story that would make a fine rom-con, this is one of those books that will be a great summer read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this debut! First, it’s a small town setting and I have come to really enjoy these types of books. Secondly, I feel like readers can really connect with Evvie and Dean. I think at one point or at some point in your life you you experience(d) what they are going through. Evvie Drake is a recently widowed woman. With no children of her own she spends her time alone or with her bff, John and his 2 children. Her father lives not far either. She works from home so it’s easy for her to stay hidden. That is until Dean, who’s battling his own problems rents her spare apartment on her property. Slowly she starts confiding about her deceased husband who was a doctor and the issues their marriage had. Dean becomes the person Evvie needs in her life. They share warm, fun moments and at times heavy issues too. Through time Evvie starts to live while trying to gain control of her past that has affected her in more ways than one. I love how Dean brings out the best in her but how Evvie has hope for a much better life.

Sweet book that deals with some tough ideas in a very kind and loving way. The characters have their flaws, but that is what makes them worth spending some time with. Recommend!

This is a 5 star book!! I loved this book. This book spoke to me on so many levels. I laughed. I cried. I got mad. I got happy. I identified with so many of the emotions of so many of the characters. So thankful to have had this book dropped into my life!!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2828826142

Funny and sweet! A good romcom with strong female character. Relationships (friendship and dating) drive the plot.

This is an adorable, witty, feel-good romance - I loved the characters and the dialogue and the relatable development of the relationship between the protagonists as they become friends and fall in love. Sequel?

"There would come a time, she knew--she supposed, she even hoped--when it would have lasted long enough with him that it would be relaxed and familiar. It would feel so beautifully ordinary that seeing him emerge from anywhere and move toward her wouldn't turn her cheeks pink."


This story is well written, compelling and thought provoking. Evie is a complex, likable protagonist with emotional baggage that involves a dead husband and her feelings about their relationship. Evie's friendships and romance are colored by her previous experiences. Human connection and communication is at the heart of this story. Themes of divorce, absent parents, unhappy marriage, friendship, love, loyalty, vulnerability and connection will keep you thinking long after you've read the last page of this book.