I wanted to like this book. The premise was interesting and epistolary novels are a favorite genre of mine. However, the two main characters were insufferable. Contrary to the protestations of the characters, epic love shouldn’t be this difficult. It was enraging that Adin and Lilly didn’t just *communicate,* as they probably could have headed off many of their problems by simply expressing themselves with words.

As is discussed at a certain point in the book, Adin IS pathetic. Meanwhile, Lilly is fickle and standoffish.

It was uncomfortable and unenjoyable to experience this particular love story as a reader. While I can appreciate the care, time, and effort that went into this book, ultimately it was not for me.

Nonetheless, thank you to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I feel really bad for this book, I do. I definitely think this is a case of me, not you, dear book.

I loved the idea of this book but I think I've read a few too many romances lately. I liked the additional elements in the story like emails and texts. But I was so frustrated with the couple! The story felt long, unecessarily long. And as the pages stretched, I just wasn't feeling a connection to the story or the characters.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

I hate to DNF a book I'm supposed to be reviewing, but after two years, I just have too many other books on my TBR pile to come back to this one.

I enjoyed this! It wasn’t really what I was expecting which was quite refreshing! Easy to follow the storyline and nicely paced in my opinion! Couldn’t wait to see where this was going to go.

I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to finish this book. I didn’t care much for the character Aiden alternating voices of Aiden and Lily made it exciting both characters do a lot of growing in this book. I had much higher hopes for the story because the description was captivating but unfortunately The book just did not work for me. I just felt it was a very slow moving book which at times it was boring for me.

This is my honest opinion. Thank you for the opportunity from NetGalley!

I loved this story so much. So realistic and I love how it was told through texts, emails and letters etc. Two friends who drifted apart come together to see if they could be something more. Very authentic all the way through. I related heavily to both sides and made me think of my own experiences. Wonderful!

I didn't love the format of this book and thought it was hard to piece together from the beginning. The format made it confusing.

I didn’t expect to like this book. I didn’t WANT to like this book. It’s 424 pages, there’s no time in life for a 424 page mediocre book.

I’ve had this book sitting on my Kindle for about 5 months (thanks to NetGalley). I started the book once and stopped after ten pages.

This time I gave it another shot and for the first 50 pages I thought the writing was meh, at best. The story was sophomoric. A YA novel with 28 year olds. But that was just the first 50 pages. Then I couldn’t put it down. The book barely left my hands over the past 48 hours. It’s good. Surprisingly good.

The Taylor Swift song “Exile” is the musical equivalent of this book. Where one person is singing “You never gave a warning sign” while the other is singing “I gave so many signs”

That’s the Adin - Lilly relationship. And that’s what this book follows, the relationship between these two that started in college and then continued ten years later.

Listen, not everybody is going to like this book. One reason I liked it is because I saw a lot of college aged me in college aged Adin. I too was oblivious and shy and more of an introvert than extro. It definitely left me with a “if I only knew then what I know now” type of feeling

The thing is, I wasn’t as weak as Adin and I grew and matured after college.

Here are the things I liked about this book:
- the writing, though not perfect, kept me continually engaged and flipping pages
- As mentioned, I saw pieces of my younger self in a lot of college-aged adin.
- Lilly is an interesting character
- there’s a hook about 90% into the book that wasn’t expected and made me like it even more. It also made the meaning of the title so much more impactful.
- many of the characters had life. I could envision them and they were completely believable.

Things I didn’t like (spoiler alert)
- some of the writing (especially about Adin) was a bit hokey.
- I don’t believe that two people who were so close for so long would suddenly get together and begin with fights. The early stages of a new relationship are the honeymoon phase where all is great. Especially if it is built off a close close friendship like these were
- I don’t believe they would have never even kissed in college. It’s not like either of them didn’t date.
- they seemed to communicate so well in school and then, all of the sudden, outside of school they couldn’t communicate at all for the life of them.

Again, not everybody will like it but I suppose if you love that Taylor Swift song “exile”, this book is for you. As for me, I’m infatuated with that song.

#netgalley #usinpieces

I just loved Us, In Pieces!

Lilly and Adin were inseparable teens until midway through high school when Lilly leaves. Having gone for ten years without talking for ten years, the duo is finally re-united. Can this work or will they have to return to cities across the country from one another and go without once again?

I wanted to love this, but it was difficult with two main characters who were so wholly wishy washy and unlikeable. I liked the story was told through emails and it really gave you an idea of who these people were... unfortunately, they weren’t great. I find it hard to read a book where I don’t care about the characters and that’s what happened here.

Us, in Pieces
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I’m almost embarrassed to say how long this has been in my @netgalley queue 🤭 but I finally read it! So happy I did.

Who has ever had the most back & forth relationship with an ex? You know you have...😅 Meet Adin and Lilly. Adin and Lilly met during their freshman year in college and were inseparable. Adin was friend-zoned and decided to never spoke up about his true feelings. Until days before the new semester, Lilly moves out of her dorm and he never hears from her until 10 years later. They begin to rekindle their friendship via emails and text messages at first, leading into hanging out and spending time together.

Their love story is narrated by Adin and Lilly through dialogue, text messages, and emails. I loved the creative content behind their story through all their emails and text messages. Call me old fashion, but I can appreciate the time behind writing an actual love letter to someone. Personally I love the dual perspectives in romances. It makes all the emotions double sided and more complete. There were times I just wanted to scream at both of them!! I was so frustrated, but it actually made them more relatable. I saw many real-life qualities couples go through. Be patient with the main characters - they’re figuring out whether second chances do work. I thought Cotters & Greens co-writing was brilliant and it showed with each MCs voice. Overall, a great read!

I really enjoyed the way this story was structured, using both characters email addresses and then their inner worlds too. The emails kept the story light and easy to read, whereas the inner monologues are more truthful and often contrast with what the character writes. Sometimes the distance we feel begin£ a keyboard makes us more honest, but with these two characters we still see an element of performance and the difference between public and private. It’s also interesting to see how each character receives the email, what they take away from it and whether they can read between the lines. Often misunderstandings can happen when we don’t have the nuance of facial expressions, gestures and other body language.

Adin and Lily knew each other at school, and were probably perfect for one another, but never fully connected. Now reintroduced ten years later, they’re still having trouble with logistics, but decide to start writing to each other until their schedules synch up and they can meet. Meanwhile we get to see what their lives are truly like. Rekindled relationships via the internet are a huge phenomenon these days and it is very easy to make mistakes, because we think the person in front of us now is exactly the same person they were before, But so much has happened to them and the relationship has to be approached as if you don’t know each other. Getting to know the person and taking it slow are vital to see if you are still compatible with this person, or have you both changed too much? I think the insecurities that sprung up between them were very realistic and I liked the way it explored how we decide who to date and who to ‘friend zone’ and whether those judgements change as we grow older. Once I got past being infuriated with them both a couple of times, I felt compelled to read to the end and see whether they did come together. This is a modern love story that is light but full of feeling.

Thank you for my ARC copy and apologies for the late review,

I struggle sometimes with writing that feels like it being written to me as a reader instead of being written because this story has to be told. I felt a little of that in this book. I like rom com drama but I struggled to find purchase in these characters which meant I felt a little frustrated at them instead of rooting for them. I thought the writing was great at painting the scene and helping me feel like I was there.

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This story is about Lilly and Adin, college besties at first but then their relationshipi develops into something more in adulthood. The story is told in a mixture of first person, emails, and text conversations. I did however feel that some better background on how Lilly and Adin met and the development of their college friendship was needed in order for me to feel more invested and also to make their relationship more believable to me. A mediocre book overall in my opinion.

This was a beautiful story about two people who were meant to be. I love stories where the characters meet, part ways and then find one another again. This story is one of those that ropes you in from the beginning and you find yourself rooting for the couple to realize they are meant to be together.

Thank you to the authors, Shadelandhouse Modern Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I do love epistolary novels, and this one is well done, with a flawless mix of face-to-face dialogue, texts and e-mails. This is especially notable because it's co-written by two persons, one known more for their poetry, and the other more known for their parenting books.

But oh, did I get fed up with the two main characters. So immature, insecure, indecisive and prone to thinking the worst and believing it - rather than just speaking openly and honestly with each other, and getting on with life either together or separately. It felt like forever to get to a kind of happy end.

This book was refreshing, stirring and winsome. I love the fluidity of the authors and the shared narrative space. We need more books like this across the modern bookshelves of our lives. Splendid : )

Loved this book! I really connected with the characters. It went between different perspectives, but you are able to keep up really easily!

Lily and Adin haven’t spoken to one another in ten years, college best friends they used to be inseparable until Lily just didn’t return to college one semester and severed all intact with Adin. All throughout their college years Adin was head over heels in love with Lily, but never told her.

Now, ten years later they rekindle their friendship through emails and messages. They have realised they mean more to each other than to be just friend zoned.

I enjoyed the telling of this story, however I really wish they’d have gotten their act together much sooner. If you like a very slow burn romance, this will be your cup of tea.

I was really excited to read this one because the description really drew me in. I love a book written from multiple perspectives. The alternating voices of the two main characters really added to the feel of the story. The texts and emails show the growth of these characters that are so easy to become invested in. Even though the story is a bit slow at times, the friendship, love and maturity throughout the book makes it a worthwhile read.