My thoughts




Narrative and Plot


This is one of the most beautiful books I've come across so far in 2020. The narrative is in first person but it is also a descriptive account of the events in the a journal entry by the protagonist, Annie Mercer. The style is different and engaging.
The plot is a bit slow in the first few chapters. And we don't exactly know where all this is going but once it picks up speed this is a page turner. It never loses its rhythm and discusses some serious issues even if maintaining a light tone throughout.



Characters and Conflicts


Annie is the central character of the story. This being a first person narrative, the other characters are a reflection of how Annie perceives them. However, since she gives an honest account and sees her own fault for what it is, it is easier to get to know the other characters. There are not a lot of bad guys in the story. And that's the thing about life. You can picture them as bad in your head ( some really are but apart from them, generally) or you can see where they come from and choose to let them live their own life even if you disagree with them.

Annie's conflict is easily relatable to most women. Anyone can feel that way about letting new people in their lives. And yet, the people who are meant to be will find a way. Only if you let them in, you will know where life takes you next. That is about the gist of the book.



Conclusion


This Won't End Well, really ended well as far as the reader is concerned. Annie has a remarkable character growth. The romance in the book is a bit subdued and you may end up wishing for more. But it is not the central story. This book is about personal growth and how you can choose to be with the people around your life.

4.3 🌟Camille Pagan's books never disappoint me, they are fun, different and always with content to analyze. Its characters are so simple and real that you always identify with one of them. It is different and unusual subject where the tegnology; which is the mode where most of the humans currently use plays a great role in the plot, which makes it complicated, but at the same time funny. Events that occurred while the protagonist struggles against the distance of the person she thought she loved, the events that take place around her and her decisions for the benefit of her own life, bring her to the end of this odyssey and writings to the most important decision. of their life. They say that writing everything we think is healthy in this case this curious novel proves it well. Thanks Netgalley for the chance to read and enjoyed it. All the opinions are my own.

Another entertaining story from one of my favorite authors. Camille really knows how to write quirky characters and deceptively layered and nuanced stories. There's more going on than you realize.. Annie has had enough of people. Her boss sabotaged her career, her boyfriend went off to Paris without her, her best friend just seems to want to sell her on the latest MLM scheme she's involved with, and her mother thinks she's destined to be alone. And you know what, alone sounds just fine to Annie. She keeps track of her life through her journal and links to the neighborhood via Listserv. That is until her new neighbor moves in next door. Harper really peaks Annie's interest. In the scenes where Annie is spying on Harper to find out more about her, I was reminded of the nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz, from the old TV show Bewitched! This story has it all, even a little romance. You'll be glad you came along for the ride as Annie figures out how she wants to live her life.

I was provided an e-arc from netgalley to read and review

I unfortunately missed the opportunity to read

Three and a half stars for This Won’t End Well by Camille Pagan. I enjoyed this quick but somewhat forgettable novel - it was a fun read to break up some more serious reading I have done of late. Annie is having a bad month - she is engaged to Jon, who has just left unexpectedly to “find himself” in France, she was forced to resign her job when her boss sexually harassed her, and she is now taking house cleaning jobs while living with her mother. When a mysterious new neighbor moves in and she falls into a new friendship, she is forced to reassess her worldview.

I liked Pagan’s writing style, which felt reminiscent of Where’d You Go Bernadette. There was a good amount of humor and a slight mystery to keep me interested. I never felt like I connected with Annie as a lead character, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying her story. A fun beach read for the summer, but not one that I will return to in the future.

Annie has been pushed out of her chemistry job (for shoving a sexually harassing colleague), her best friend Leesa is always trying to spruik her wellbeing products and her fiance Jon has taken off to Paris - without her. Then Harper moves in next door and Annie becomes intrigued with her life and the private investigator tracking her.
Told through journal entries, emails and texts, this is a story of a woman who has taken a number of hits and wants to retreat from the world. But her own curiosity and instinct for wanting to do the right thing requires her to open up to new people and experiences.
Annie is a quirky character who will win her way into readers' hearts. The book has moments of sheer brilliance, such as her snarky email exchanges with Leesa and Jon, but I found the story less than captivating in the second half. Perhaps the title was foreshadowing.

This was my first Camille Pagan book and once I finished This Won't End Well I immediately went and purchased 4 of her other books. I loved the writing style of this book, it was written through the main character Annie's perspective. I loved Annie's personality, she was so witty and I found myself laughing many times while reading this book. It was such a quick and lovely read. I highly recommend reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley, Lake Union Publishing and Camille Pagan.
This is a cute, funny, quick read.
Story of Annie Mercer who is forced to quick her job because of her boss and at the same time her fiancé needs to find himself months prior to their wedding.
I loved Annie and the new friends she makes during this difficult time in her life.
Loved the adventures. Delightful read.
Recommend. 4 stars

Thank you Lake Union Authors and Netgalley for a copy of This Won't End Well by Camille Pagan for review.

Annie is back at her mother's house after losing her much loved job and her fiancée disappearing to France to "find himself". While she is there she vows to not get involved with any new people because they are too much work. Annie is a little socially awkward but mostly just not sure how it all went so wrong all at once. When a new woman moves in across the street and Annie finds a PI following her, her vow becomes harder and harder to stick to.

I liked Annie, she was a little awkward and shy but she was strong when she needed to be. Her social skills meant that she was a little slow to notice some things but I liked how she stuck up for what she wanted by the end,

Okay, listen, this was a total cover "click". I was so caught up in the gorgeous cover that I didn't even read the synopsis before going in - and I'm weirdly thankful for that! I really enjoyed this story and Annie was such a relatable and heartwarming character! Following her discovery of herself and her coming to terms with who she is and who she wants to be was beautiful. I loved the light-heartedness Pagán brought to the page and the writing flowed so well that I could not put this down. Definitely recommended for anyone searching for their place in life and wanting to discover themselves all over again.

Firstly I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher of this novel for the opportunity to read it in return for an unbiased review.

This was my first book by this particular author and at the reviews had been good. For some reason - although the books are very different- I had a feel of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine when I read it, probably because of the single female character and how her relationships with others blossomed as the story progressed. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it; It is an easy, gentle read but it has a fairly obvious trajectory and a very predictable ending. I admit I smiled to myself about one of the minor storylines regarding hand sanitiser, particularly in these times of coronavirus!

I would give it a solid 3.5 stars out of five and I would read others by this writer.

Annie Mercer is going through a rough time.
She lost her chemist job due to a handsy boss, and now her fiance has decided to take off to France for some "me" time before their wedding
When the mysterious Harper moves into the neighborhood, Annie can't help but be drawn to her.
Then she stumbles upon private investigator Mo who is following Harper, and gets pulled in to helping him with other cases.
And this is after she vowed not to let any new people into her life!
She begins to think this won't end well...
An eloquent, charming and humorous contemporary fiction story. The slightly eccentric characters are thoroughly engaging.
My first book by this author was a pleasure to read.
Thank you to Lake Union Publishing for the e-ARC via NetGalley.

Deeply relatable and brilliantly witty! Pagan is a go to author for me and brings real life and makes it clever, funny and true. You'll get sucked in to Annie's world and her journey. Do not miss this one!

When was the last time you read a book that absolutely delighted you? That left you feeling enchanted and captivated?

Run, don't walk, and read This Won't End Well.

You will love how flawed Annie is as Camille Pagán shows you how Annie's scientific mind cannot process human error. Annie is a planner, a plotter, a pattern-seeker. When the vagaries of life throw those plans, plots, and patterns askew, she struggles to adapt. She thinks she's fine. Her fiancé Jon tells her he's heading to Paris for a month without her so he can find an internal reset? She grants him permission, not bothering to ask herself what she thinks. She gets fired from a job she loved due to others' duplicitous behavior? Create a new job as a housekeeper. Her former best friend is caught up in a wacky pyramid scheme? Exit the friendship. Her new neighbor appears to be under some sort of personal siege? Do not get involved.

Annie decides, in fact, to remove herself from people. No new friendships. No new relationships. What have people done for her? Leave her for Paris? Try to sell her crystals and essential oils? Demand she take social media photos? Who needs that?

When she finds an unused journal, she decides to write down her thoughts, feelings, and what is happening to her. Ever the scientist, she needs this data collection. Camille Pagán tells Annie's story through her journal entries, texts, and emails, developing the sense that Annie uses these inputs to analyze and understand what is happening to her and how she will repond.

Annie has quite a bit to process: her relationship with her mother, her memories of her father, her friendships, her love life, and her former career. Some of this processing seems like it moves a little quickly, yet Pagán makes you feel its authenticity. After examining her data collection, Annie is able to react, to solve the hypotheses.

I love Annie Mercer. I love her growth, and I love her openness, however unwilling, to broach her own boundaries. She delights me. This book delights me. I need to be delighted by Camille Pagán more often.

I love quirky, and this novel delivers. Scientist Annie Mercer is a little odd -- geeky and just a tad OCD, not super good at human warmth. She has a best friend -- but they have quarreled and can't seem to mend it. And she has a job -- but she quits after her boss makes a move on her. And she has a fiancee, Jon -- but he fled to Paris without telling her and has asked her not to contact him for a month, while he tries to figure out what he wants.

Consequently her life is sort of in tatters. She lives with her mother, a hoarder. Her father departed the scene long long ago and has left Annie a bit afraid of commitment.

After her job fiasco, Annie starts a house cleaning business to bring in some money and ends up meeting the young woman who just moved in next door. There's a mystery about her, and Annie isn't sure what is going on. This is made even more intriguing when Annie surprises a private investigator who is keeping tabs on the neighbor. And against all logic or her personal behavior code, Annie begins to feel close to both her new neighbor -- and to the investigator.

Much of the story is told via e-mails to and from Annie and various characters. Annie is finally persuaded to travel to France to see her fiance and discovers that they still care about each other. Even so, Annie can't help but wonder where the spark in their relationship is.

Annie is an appealing character and we root for her as she really tries to solve the confusion of her feelings and think about the direction of her life. This is a very readable upbeat story with charm and humor. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a new to me author, but not entirely unfamiliar to me. I’ve seen her books popping up all over the Amazon charts, especially her release from last year, I’m Fine and Neither are You.

When this new release, This Won’t End Well, came up for review, I jumped at the chance to read it! Everything I have heard about this book and this author, make it inevitable that I will love this book!

I couldn’t wait to crack open my copy and let the good times roll so to speak! And let me tell you, this book did not disappoint! What a refreshing new voice in contempo lit!

Summary
An ingeniously witty novel about the risks—and rewards—of opening your life to new people by Amazon Charts bestselling author Camille Pagán.

No new people: that’s Annie Mercer’s vow. It’s bad enough that her boss sabotaged her chemistry career and her best friend tried to cure her with crystals. But after her fiancé, Jon, asks for space while he’s gallivanting around Paris, Annie decides she needs space too—from everyone.

Yet when Harper moves in next door, Annie can’t help but train a watchful eye on the glamorous but fragile young woman. And if keeping Harper safe requires teaming up with Mo, a maddeningly optimistic amateur detective, who is she to mind her own business?

Soon Annie has let not one but two new people into her life. Then Jon reappears—and he wants her to join him in France. She’s pretty sure letting anyone get close won’t end well. So she must decide: Is another shot at happiness worth the risk? (summary from Goodreads)

Review
My first thought about Pagan is that she has an amazing talent for conveying humor in her writing. I found myself laughing out loud at many points during this one and frequently chuckled at different plot points and dialogues. Se really has a gift for humor and I loved that the absolute most about this one.

I loved how Annie’s life is going up in flames and her fiancé has jumped ship to Paris to ‘find himself’ leaving Annie alone and lost. What transpires is the beautiful story of Annie’s own self discovery that is heartfelt and funny. She has to navigate her friends, family, career, and love life and I couldn’t get enough of this one, I just loved it so much.

Like I said before, this is a new to me author and now I want to read all of her books. This book in particular was 100% relatable for the modern woman. Annie represents what so many millennial women are going through in their lives and I think many women will find something to like in this one and will strongly connect to Annie. I definitely want to go and read some of Pagan’s other books now because I enjoyed this one so much.

It also read really fast. I mean it took me a few days to read it but only because life got in the way. They story is told through emails and journal entries etc so it went really quick. I enjoy novels written through letters and such so I didn’t find it distracting at all and I think most readers would agree that this style reads very fast.

I am thrilled that I finally got around to reading one of her novels and can’t wait to go back and read some of her others! This is an excellent spring read, it’s a novel you could pick up on a lazy weekend and breeze through or read on the beach or maybe on the plane to your next vacation spot! It’s a novel you will find enjoyable and engaging without being overly emotional and heart wrenching.

Book Info and Rating
Kindle Edition, 295 pages
Expected publication: February 25th 2020 by Lake Union Publishing
ASIN B07TC2XCQC
Free review copy provided by, Lake Union Publishing in partnership with Tall Poppy Bloggers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 5 stars
Genre: womens fiction, chick lit, contempo lit

<b>Because every time I think I'm starting to get my footing, the ground shifts beneath me again.</b>

This book wasn't supposed to make me laugh.
It was supposed to make me cry, test my patience, curse men, bring out my crystals, and rebuke men for wasting the time of women time and time again.

But dear readers I laughed while reading this and I laughed hard.

It's such a good sign. Because when the the authors weaves a story of a man leaving his fiancee to go on a trip to France mere months before their wedding to "find himself" and asks her to not contact him AND I CAN SMILE NEARLY THE ENTIRE TIME...That is great writing.

Annie Mercer isn't having a great year.
Her career has stalled thanks to her creepy boss sexually assaulting her. Her best friend has truly gone off the deep end and thinks crystals and essential oils are the cure all to all her ailments and now Jon, her beloved fiance has vanished to Paris, he will be back he tells her through email. He just needs time.

Annie decides that she too wants the same.

Ousted from the Chemical company she works at, she takes up her old cleaning company again and settles into a rhythm of sorts. That's when a new neighbor moves in. The glamorous Harper. Who is she? And why does she have an amateur detective named Mo trailing her? Annie's analytical life has been turned upside down and she wonders if it'll ever be normal again.

This was a fun read and not a normal one because it's mostly told through a series of emails between Annie and the people of her life which isn't as confusing as it sounds. My favorite bits is the Neighborhood Association emails where this dude is increasingly asking to be unsubscribed and is ignored repeatedly.

Annie is such a fantastic character and waaay more patient than I am because I would be absolutely LIVID with Jon.

The dynamic she had with Harper and Mo was fantastic however and it's nice to see Annie come out of her shell.

This is one of those books that make me want to read more of Camille Pagán's books because her writing is something that is unique and refreshing.

Thanks very much to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy of my ARC.

This book is mainly about relationships and though I am not a fan of delving too much into the emotional issues of such, the writing in the form of emails for the most part interspersed with chapters of the story added a variance to this book.

Annie is left nonplussed by her fiancée. He telephones her on the way to the airport, saying he is going to be away for a month in Paris (he loves everything French) and also says he does not want communication from her for this period. This is in the midst of them planning a wedding. To everyone it seems as if he has got cold feet but Annie surprisingly unlike others decides to take him at face value at what he says and thinks she should continue as before.

Ignoring his instructions not to write, she continues a series of emails to him outlining her views, her feelings on all matters to which there are no replies. When he does reply almost at the end of the month with entreaties for her to join him because what he wants to explain can only be done in Paris (!!) Annie herself is beginning to doubt her feelings for him and whether this relationship is going anywhere or whether she has just got used to him. The fact that there is another man with whom she is very comfortable with and can easily converse on any subject also adds to her change of feeling.

Going to Paris eventually, and returning with her relationship restored. It is after this that she realizes that the spark has gone from their relationship and decides to end it. Definitely better late than never in Annie's case. It seemed to be a relief for Jon too!

The ups and downs of modern relationships - in this case all amicably settled.

I was nervous about this one as I don’t usually love epistolary style writing, but being the author of one of my favourites, Forever is the Worst Long Time, I still wanted to give it a shot. If you’re like me, don’t let the letter style writing stop you, she makes it work and it’s just sprinkled throughout the story, not entirely written in letters.

The thing I love about Camille Pagan’s writing (and it was the same in FITWLT) is that her characters make some decisions that you might not think are the smartest, but they’re realistic. Her characters feel like real, flawed people. The other thing I love is that her books are so darn readable, and this was no exception. You fly through the story because the writing flows nicely, the story is addicting and you’re kept entertained the whole time. This book is witty, real, emotional and unique. If you haven’t read a Camille Pagán novel, you are truly missing out!

I love this book so much. I read Camille's previous book and was excited to read the ARC of This Won't End Well. This story has heart. It's about a woman who has to find her own way and realize her own strength. The characters are enjoyable and it's an overall easy read. It's not only a cute read, but the story has heart to it!