Charlotte has a mistrust for men abandoning her thanks to her father so she keeps her distance emotionally. That is, until she meets Phillip on a plane. For some reason, he seems difference. He is just as infatuated with her as she is with him. With promises to make her happy beyond her wildest dreams, she moves with him to Islamorado, near the Florida Keys. Once there, his traveling goes into high gear but when he is home, he is hers.
Circumstances begin to change as Phillip is gone more and more and Ben is there for her. Charlotte has had a lot of heartache in her life but she dealing but nothing can prepare her for the next big blow. The heartbreak, reconciliation with her father, and Ben and Jimmy leaving the island. How much can a girl take? How does it really end? This is my first book that I have read by Ms. Weinstein. She has created a story that you can connect with the characters and feel the good times and the bad times. Thanks to Ms. Weinstein, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

My first book of 2020, and if it this is what books are like this year, it's going to be a good one.

Charlotte and Philip have a (somewhat stereotypical) meet cute on an airplane while sitting in economy, and start a romantic relationship that will alter both of their lives. And writing it like this makes it sound cliche, but that's not what this is. It's a really good book, which I couldn't put down, about your childhood and trauma and how it really can shape who people love and what people need or want from relationships.

Without giving too much away, make sure you keep the tissue box handy for the last quarter of this book, and be prepared to be unavailable for a day or two so you can focus on immersing yourself in these characters and their stories.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. It has not influenced my opinion.

A wonderful novel about what it takes to open yourself up to love, hope, despair and forgiveness. Charlotte is a character that you will cheer for as you watch her grow into a confident person who figures out what she wants and goes for it.

A truly heart wrenching and heart warming story. Charlotte and Phillip meet and quickly fall in love. Living in an idyllic part of Florida life seems truly wonderful. Phillip then seems to be away more and leaving Charlotte doubting their relationship and starting to fall for single father Ben and his adorable son. I loved this story. All characters were likeable and the description made you feel the sand beneath your feet and the wonderful Florida sun. A gripping read.

Solid. Then Waterfall. I’ve heard a lot of friends talking about this book for a few months, and even though I had it already there were always more pressing deadlines, so I didn’t actually manage to read it until release day. And damn. For the first 2/3 ish of this book, it is solid but on par with the level expected from Lake Union Publishing – a high ish standard already, as they’ve never once let me down and given me a subpar book. But then you get to the last 1/3 ish of this text and suddenly your eyes are effectively waterfalls for the next 100 pages or so. And I began to see why so many friends were praising this book so highly. Truly excellent work, and very much recommended.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and I have to say this book was a surprise. Reading about the book, I was expecting the relationship between Charlotte and Philip but the book has so much more depth. It was the depth that captured my attention and made the book different from others. I don't want to tell you the different things that made the depth of the book because I hope you can discover them on your own as I did. The description of the book enticed me to read it, the things going on that made the depth made me enjoy the book even more and then when Charley visited TINHIE it brought the book home for me. It wasn't a rollercoaster ride but a fast-paced, keep you reading a book. I am not saying too much about the book because the nicest part of reading it is all the things woven together. When I got to a part, I said the title is This is not how it ends and the title was perfect. I think you will love it as I did.

I. Could. Not. Put. Down. This. Book. I neglected family for this book. I read it in one day. No one got dinner and I’m not even sorry.

This Is Not How It Ends was amazing. The magnetism in this book is felt by the reader. The love and frustrations between Charlotte and Philip, the attraction brewing between Charlotte and Ben, every single emotion and thought. They are written as if you are a proverbial fly on the wall.

To be honest, I normally despise reading about even the remote possibility of infidelity by main characters. But in this book, Rochelle B. Weinstein shows you every side of the story. She reveals to you the weaknesses, the longing, the heartbreaking desire someone doesn’t even realize they have.

I loved each and every character in this book for who they were and I miss them as if I knew them. Definitely a must read.

I received an advanced copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

An emotional story about relationships, serendipity, and how life and time change how we feel about those we love. The characters are beautifully flawed and therefore believable. The story is told in two timelines, showing how Charlotte meets Philip, and how past events shape their present-day love. The second timeline is the present-day and features several serendipitous events, including the drama when Charlotte meets Ben and his son.

The storytelling is engaging and the writing style easy to read but full of hidden meanings. This story is a fusion of literary fiction and romance.

I received a copy of this book from Lake Union Publishing via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

What a beautiful story of love! Though it is filled with grief and ever so many struggles, there is love in all forms and shapes. The emotions are raw and real. I was so invested in the characters, there where times I just wanted to throw the book across the room, because it hurt too much to read about another struggle! This book is so well written and worth the investment of having your heart broken but put back together with such care!

3.5 stars. Very well written and full of different emotions. The first part of the book goes back and forth between present day and the backstory to how Charlotte and Philip met and developed a relationship. The backstory reveals a lot of Charlotte's past pain and explains more of her current feelings and reactions to situations. She deeply loves Philip, but he's a bit emotionally distant and frequently gone on business travel, and Charlotte begins to wonder if the two of them actually want the same things from life and their relationship. She gave up her beloved teaching job and moved away from the only place she'd ever lived to go to the Florida Keys with him. I don't want to give spoilers, but there is a lot that happens, real and raw and difficult life circumstances, but a nice bit of hope that comes out also. It was an enjoyable book but not lighthearted.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's a beautiful story well told by a writer who out does herself with every book that she writes. The story, plot, and voice all flow seamlessly. I couldn't put it down once I started reading it. Absolutely pick up this winner of a book and keep your Kleenex near by because you will definitely need it. Happy reading!

THIS IS NOT HOW IT ENDS by Rochelle Berger Weinstein

This was a very emotionally charged book. One that will pull at your heart in every way. It’s a very raw story of love and loss. A bit of laughter and friendships you will absolutely love. A very tight friendship despite everything that happens. It’s a beautiful story of so many feelings. One that touched my heart many times over. One that I had a hard time putting down.

Charlotte/Charley meets this man on an airplane, Phillip. They fall madly in love and become engaged. Charley’s mom gets a terrible diagnosis and leaves Charley devastated. Phillip watches her go through the worst pain a daughter has to go through. Charley has issues. Trust and giving her heart over completely are top of the list. Her dad had left when she was small never to return. That is enough to make it hard to trust. Then she loses her mother and she’s alone. Phillip and Charley though have a love that will transcend everything. He loves Charley with all his heart. But he also is gone so much of the time. He leaves Charley alone to wonder if things are what they seem. To wonder if they do truly belong together.

Phillip is a wonderful man. He fell for Charley from the start. He has his own demons but he buries them in his work. He has businesses all over the world and he takes them very serious. He takes failing businesses and makes them whole again. Makes up for the things they lack and gives people what they need. Jobs, a worry free life knowing they won’t lose said job. He loves completely and from his soul. But he has a secret also. One that will devastate Charley and one he truly wants to protect her from.

Ben... Aww Ben. I loved Ben. He is a broken man with a little boy named Jimmy. Jimmy is all he has left after losing his wife. Ben and Phillip are also best friends. Ben knows that Phillip has helped him and taken him under his wing. He truly loves Phillip and considers him family. They are such good friends. The very best of friends. Phillip is also keeping a secret from Ben though.

This is a story that will pull you in. Tear your heart out and stomp on it a few times. It will break your heart and put it back together again only to break it again. There are two letters in this story that made me weep. I do mean literally weep. I don’t see how anyone can read them and not feel like their heart is going to break into several thousand pieces. If they can they obviously don’t feel deep emotion. One is a letter to Ben. The other a letter to Charley. This is a beautifully written story of love, loss, maybe a bit of betrayal and coming together. Of a friendship that can’t be broken no matter what. Of a love that was meant to be. Of so much. It’s just one of those stories that will keep you thinking about life and what you would do. Or what could you do. Could you move on or continue. It’s the best book I’ve read by this author hands down.

Be warned, this book requires lots and lots of tissues and I don’t say that lightly. It’s going to make you cry. There are some laughs but for the most part you will have the big ugly, huge tear cries.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #LakeUnion, #RochelleWeinstein for this eARC. This is my own true review.

I had to give it only 5 stars and the highest recommendation ever. It’s worth so many more stars and an even better review.

Charlotte meets Phillip on an airplane, and thinks he's rude and annoying. He falls for her. Phillip pursues her and Charlotte falls in love, moves to Florida and in with him, then agrees to marry him. Soon after, Phillip becomes distance and travels all the time for work. Charlotte finds herself alone with her dog, and Phillip's best friend Ben and his son, Jimmy. Charlotte tires of being alone all the time and begins to wonder if Phillip will ever marry her and be home or if Ben could be the person she is meant to be with?

Bring out the tissues for this one! I cried at several points in this book, both happy and sad tears. It was just lovely, well written and emotional and exactly what I need to read at this time in my life. Charlotte is so real and relatable, as are her decisions and challenges. She doesn't make the easy, selfish choices, but the hard, responsible ones and keeps you in her corner for the entire book. I highly recommend this book to all readers!

I could not relate to this book whatsoever. I thought the characters were shallow and I could not relate to the situation that was unfolding. Life is too short to read books that don't resonate, so I quit this book at 22 percent in. Too bad because I had read some really great reviews. This one just wasn't for me.

This is Not How it Ends is a fabulous story that pulled me in immediately and had me riveted through to the very end. Charlotte's journey was told via alternating chapters of "now" and "then". I loved Charlotte, Phillip and Ben so very much and between the three of them, my heart was broken a couple of times because the happy ever after I wanted and hoped for always seemed just out of reach.

Phillip's secrets, Ben's medical challenges with his son and Charlotte trying to balance the two was handled so well by Rochelle B. Weinstein that I didn't know who to root for and found my loyalties changing repeatedly. The setting of this book is great and Weinstein's descriptions of people and places are beautiful. I haven't been to the area of Florida that this book is set in, but I definitely want to visit now. When this story ended, all I wanted was more. Another book, another 150 pages or something. It was fantastic.

If you're looking for a book to take you away to a beautiful area, pull you in and keep you turning pages so quickly that you don't want to put the book down, this is the story for you.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and author for approving my request for an ARC. Thoughts in this review are my own.

There were definite tears with this one. Told in the present and before, we follow Charlotte and Phillip and their relationship now, and before as they fall in love and come to the point. When the book opens, Charlotte is engaged, living in a beautiful house in the Keys, and unhappy. She loves Phillip, but knows something has changed in their relationship since they became engaged. She used to be content with the relationship, including Phillip’s constant travel, but now she wants more. A chance meeting with Ben and Jimmy brings them into her life before she finds out that Ben is Phillip’s best friend.
Phillip’s constant travel has him pushing Charlotte and Ben together, trusting his friend to take care of his fiancée. The friendship, along with Charlotte helping with Jimmy’s allergies, contribute to the deepening of the Ben and Charlotte’s relationship, leaving her confused and torn between two good men. When a storm comes, she makes a decision, and then circumstances dictate another choice. No spoilers.
This story is not what you expect or what it sounds like. This is an emotional novel that tears at your heart. The story and characters are so well-developed that I was invested from the beginning. This is the first time I have read a book by Rochelle B. Weinstein and it won’t be the last.
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
#ThisIsNotHowItEnds #RochelleBWeinstein #LakeUnionPublishing

This is Not How it Ends by Rochelle B. Weinstein is a full length, standlone contemporary romance novel. Before I start my review let me say two things. The author is new to me and it took me exactly one chapter to fall in love with this wonderful, heart wrenching, gutting read.
This is Not How it Ends tells Charlotte Myers' story. Charlotte is a woman in her thirties, engaged to a great man. They're deeply in love and he's all he has. Her family is gone. But his often absence puts a strain in their relationship. When she meets a single dad at the store they have a deep and insta-connection. Charlotte is torn. What to do? To make matters worse, the men know each other.
Til this point I was captivated and thought, ok she has to chose her knight in shining armor and they ride into the sunset. But no, nothing, nothing had me prepared for the unexpected twists and major turns that the story took.
This Not How it Ends is an emotional read and I needed quiet a lot of tissues, be prepared. I fell in love with the writing, the story and the characters. I was hurting for them, I laughed with them and at some point I was angry at them. The story is told in a fitting single POV and I can't express how easily I connected with the characters. I could feel every single one of their emotions in the words, their suffereing, their love, their desperation.
I highly recommend the book, it's one of my favorite reads this year and give 5++ stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It broke my heart and then put it back together. Bring the tissues for this one.
*Great Word Building
*Wonderful Characters
* Hard to Put Down

Gut-wrenchingly beautiful! I loved this book. Charlotte meets a older British man, Philip, on a flight. He is enamored with her, and works to find her in her hometown. They immediately fall in love and settle in Islamorada, Florida. Charlotte and Philip are truly in love, but Philip is business man who travels quite often. Charlotte becomes lonely and tries to let Philip know that she is struggling with the amount of time they are separated. Philip understands and tries to do better, but he maintains that this was always the plan and he enlists the help of his best friend, Ben to help Charlotte pass the time while he is away. What happens next is a bit predictable. However, it is beautifully written with some twists thrown in. Have your tissues ready! It's incredibly good!

This Is Not How It Ends by Rochelle B. Weinstein is a contemporary love story that deals with issues of loss, abandonment and forgiveness. It has been quite a while since I read a book that brought tears to my eyes. I also enjoyed all the modern-day details that the author incorporated into the story. Thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.