Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

For a book that takes place largely in a weekend, I appreciated how much actually happened and the level of character development. While it didn’t go a lot of different places, it covered a lot of emotional ground. There were a lot of big themes covered in this story, and I really appreciated how it ended. I definitely will make sure to check out other books by this author in the future. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Leese Cross-Smith is a master at writing rich relationships with tons of depth. While I wasn't a huge fan of the plot of this book, I loved the reading experience. Her language use is stunning and she knows how to stir feelings in a reader!

I received an arc of this book from NetGalley around a year ago and never picked it up (oops), but I am so glad that I finally did. This was such an original yet powerful premise. From page one, my heart was heavy, but I will say that it wasn't as sad and difficult to read as I anticipated it being. Leesa Cross-Smith writes about a difficult subject matter so effortlessly and I appreciated that we continued to learn more and more about Tallie and Emmett throughout the course of the novel. I also thought the author did a great job shedding light into the intersection of racism and mental health. I'll admit that the middle kind of lost me there, but the ending certainly made up for it and felt realistic in my opinion. I would definitely recommend you pick this up if you are looking for a character-driven book that makes you think, though make sure you are in the headspace for it!

CW: suicide, suicidal ideation, child death

This Close to Okay is a book I’ve had on my shelf for over a year and I decided it was finally time to pick it up! I have to say I really love the title of the book. It’s perfect for this story.

Tallie is on her way home from work when she sees a man in the rain standing on a bridge. She jumps out of her car and convinces the man to go get coffee with her. They talk and she realizes he has no where to stay. She invites him to stay with her despite her therapist background telling her this is a bad idea.

Emmett is the man on the bridge and he’s been through a lot. He doesn’t want to tell Tallie of this and keeps everything close to himself. He’s helpful around the house and loves to cook. Tallie finds her herself daydreaming about Emmett and maybe something romantic might happen. Emmett is in no place for this; he’s grieving the loss of his wife.

The story is told over a week on a very accelerated timeline. Emmett meets her family and basically moves in with her immediately. I will say that’s it’s kind of sweet she took a chance on a man who needs help, but this is so incredibly dangerous, it made me so uncomfortable. She also alludes several times that she knows it’s a bad idea, both as a therapist and a woman. There is also so much smoking in this book which is a personal turn off. It was distracting how much they smoked.

If you can look past these things, it’s a very entertaining book. I was dying to know Emmett’s secrets were because I just knew they were going to be a doozy.

Many thanks to @grandcentralpub for my gifted copy. This book was extremely heavy, but I like to read books that expand my palette. It’s good to be uncomfortable sometimes.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2022 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2022/01/readers-advisory-announce-2022-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

This book had my heart racing, even though it's not necessarily suspenseful...at least not in the way you'd think if you call a book "suspenseful." I was desperate to know what happened and desperate to spend more time with the characters, so I alternated between devouring this book and savoring it. Leesa Cross-Smith is becoming one of my favorite authors.

This book! I was not prepared for the river of tears! This book deal surrounds around mental health. I did have a hard time connecting with any of the characters so I don't think I appreciated it as much as I'd hoped.

Okay I read this book in less than 24 hours. It was so good and I absolutely loved it. I didn’t want Tallie’s and Emmett’s (Rye’s) story to end.
Such a heart warming story of life, love and forgiveness. I believe everyone should read this book.

<strong>People dealing with trauma</strong>

Talia, a 40 year old therapist, was struggling with her emotions after her husband married his mistress and now they have a child together. On her way from home, she sees a man who about to commit suicide. She talks him down and brings him to her home. This begins Talia and Emmett’s friendship. Clearly they both needed someone who didn’t know them, to help process all their past traumas. The connection they feel blurred the lines romantically. I wanted them to be together but I wanted them to get healed individually.
I don’t know how I feel about Talia not being honest about her job and Emmett not being honest about his past or even the ending. I had difficulty reading this book.

I don’t like how the author wrote Tally’s husband and that affair etc. she clearly wanted the readers to abhor him and it was complicated when there is infertility and affairs.

I can’t say that I enjoyed this book but Tally and Emmett/Rye really helped each other confront and deal with their pain so that’s what matters.

I’m judging the L.A. Times 2020 and 2021 fiction contest. It’d be generous to call what I’m doing upon my first cursory glance—reading. I also don’t take this task lightly. As a fellow writer and lover of words and books, I took this position—in hopes of being a good literary citizen. My heart aches for all the writers who have a debut at this time. What I can share now is the thing that held my attention and got this book from the perspective pile into the read further pile.

“Who lives in Montana? I can’t even remember where it is half the time,” she said, hating that she’d used the word mistress. She usually tried to avoid it, knowing how it cast a spell she didn’t intend. Mistress—with its snaky curves and Marilyn Monroe breathiness—implied so much drama and romance that it seemed desirable.

Funny and deft. Love.

I didn't get past 25% of this one because it did not grab my interest. I do believe I might try to read it again later but for now it was slow moving and I needed a speedier read to keep my attention.

Emmet and Tallie cross paths with each other when they were at really low points in their lives. The story starts with Tallie finding Emmet on a bridge while he was contemplating jumping off. Tallie decides to help him out and coaxes him into joining her for coffee. They then go on to spend the whole weekend together, while trying to figure each other out and peeling off layers.
The characters were so well fleshed out and I was able to connect to them, and I desperately wanted them to be okay. The writing style completely engulfs the reader. If you are looking for a deep, heartfelt book with amazing characters and writing, pick this one up. You cannot go wrong with it! There are trigger warnings for suicide, so check those out before you dive into the book, but definitely worth reading.
Beautifully written book. Mental health issues are delicately and gracefully handled. My heart went out to Tallie and Emmet, amazingly created characters and story!

A woman happens upon a man about to make a very permanent decision. Their encounter changes both of their lives in significant ways. The story unfolds over a weekend and has the feel of Richard Linklater’s movies in which nothing much happens in the moment but big change happens by the end of the story. Fans of plot-driven stories might be bored with this book. But give it a try if you like books that stick with you after the final page.

I wavered between 2 and 3 stars, and went with 3 because for some reason I still found it very readable and it didn't feel like a slog. That said, this was pretty boring and most of the action occurred in the last 20%. I found both main characters fairly unbelievable, and their relationship made me extremely uncomfortable. I also saw many of the "twists" coming, but didn't believe the ending with Nico. It was just "close to okay" for me.

Reading This Close to Okay was like getting a warm comforting embrace. A beautiful nod to the good in humanity.

Tallie is driving home one rainy night and spots a man on a bridge bracing to jump. Being the nurturing woman she is she stops and is able to convince Emmett to join her for a cup of coffee. Tallie and Emmett end up spending a weekend together both getting emotional support they desperately need. This is the sweet, yet deep read you need.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. The handling of suicidal ideation was rough and I stopped 25% in. I'll have to go back and read other Cross-Smith books that I've heard such good things about.

Tallie Clark, a therapist is on her way home one evening when through the rain she spots a man about to take his life off a bridge. Tallie runs through the rain, using her skills, and convinces the man to get off the bridge and just talk to her over a cup of coffee. Over the course of just a few days, Tallie will begin to provide safety and clarity for the man. What she doesn't expect is how much she has to learn from him.

This was a really sweet read! I don't think it's my favorite, nor was it so captivating that I couldn't put it down, but it was definitely a sweet story that I'm glad that I read and was entertained by. Would I read the author again? Yes, but I probably won't be rushing out to buy the next book.

Leesa Cross-Smith is a master at depicting interpersonal relationships.

Tallie and Emmett are two stuck people. Both characters are defined and fixated on their past. The actions and wills of others continue to define our two characters. Together, they pry each other out of their vicious cycle to live.

Neither characters are perfect. A lot of morally questionable actions take place. That’s what’s so genuine about it. In real life, not all relationships are easily definable, nor are they supposed to serve a singular purpose. People are more complicated and multifaceted. I appreciate that Cross-Smith doesn’t perpetuate unrealistic human relationships. Often in works of fiction, people and relationships are romanticized or vilified for drama, but the truth is life doesn’t always fit into an easily palatable box with a PG-13 rating. That’s not real life.

Real-life is making destructive choices, taking risks, making mistakes, overstepping other people’s boundaries, recognizing your boundaries, and taking responsibility for your shitty actions. You have to fuck up to learn. That’s human nature. While this does rely on the cliche “hurt people, hurt people,” there’s a reason that something becomes a cliche. There’s a kernel of truth in overused sentiments.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and Netgalley for the eARC.