Another perfect summer read from Lauren K Denton. You won't be able to put it down.
Mac and Edie Swan seemed to have it all. He is a successful doctor; she's a much sought after interior decorator. They have two perfect kids. And then one day a crack appeared in their happy life. A young girl shows up to put cracks in that happy life the Swans have created.The story goes between the summer of 2000 and the present. We see how we actually got to this place in their life. We see both Mac and Edie wrestling with the choices they made so many years ago. Will they be able to go forward together. The story is told beautifully.

I enjoyed this novel about a seemingly perfect couple. One day, a 19 year old girls walks into the man's office and it is immediately clear that she is his daughter from a short relationship 20 years prior when he and his then-girlfriend (now wife) took a summer break.

Told in alternating viewpoints between the man, the woman and the unexpected daughter, this book looks at family and all it entails as well as thoughts about roads not taken in life.

Gosh, I hate to be the naysayer here, but this was very shallow. The female protagonist, Edie, was totally into herself and very, very annoying. The husband’s misadventure was prior to their marriage and during a summer after they had broken up with each other. For 20 years there was no known sequelae nor reason to think there was. The whole basis for this story was just … unrealistic. And yet Edie blew the whole thing out of proportion making a volcano out of a sand dune.

And then there was the wife’s interior decorating skills and job in a firm. Whine, whine, whine.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, Thomas Nelson. Needless to say, all opinions are my own.

Mac and Edie have the perfect life...or is it? When a visitor comes to town, their lives begin to move in different directions than they ever imagined! Will they be able to stay together on this new path? This is a story of commitment and love. I really enjoyed all of the characters and found myself wanting the story not to end. Great book!

Mac and Edie Swan were high school sweethearts who have been married almost 20 years and have 2 children and fulfilling careers. One day an 18 year old girl walks into Mac's office and says she is his daughter. The story is told in Mac's point of view and Edie's point of view and in the present day and the Summer of 2000.
We get to see how that Summer shaped and changed both their lives and how the arrival of Mac's daughter tests their marriage. I really enjoyed this book. Lauren Denton has become one of my new favorite authors.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book for review.

Life becomes a struggle for a perfect couple when the past invades their calm existence. Told in rotating voices, the past reveals their hidden secrets threatening to destroy the wonderful life they have built.
This is a touching novel where lives lived collide with loves that could have been.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a hard book to read but a good one too. The family dynamics in The One You’re With is real,raw and believable. Mac and Edie’s is a true life story of family bonds, past secrets and how love can fix anything. Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy. This was a good one!

I was lucky to receive an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. I really enjoyed this book as I found it to be very thought-provoking and made you really dig deep and wonder about your own life and what' if's. I was pulled into this story from the beginning and enjoyed it until the very last page.

“The voice reminded her she could have been doing what she loved somewhere else. With someone else. The uncharted path called to her the most when her defenses were down, when she was the most frustrated, the most exhausted. The voice was easy to shut down—she’d been doing it for years—but it called to her nonetheless.”

The One You’re With, the first novel I’ve read by Lauren K. Denton, is split-time women’s fiction surrounding Mac and Edie Swan and their shaky marriage. Wavering between present day and summer 2000, the story unravels secrets the couple kept—secrets poised to destroy their family while they each examine their life choices.

Within the pages is a raw, thought-provoking look at how a marriage can buckle without the proper supports. Nothing is glossed over, and because of that, the characters’ choices and responses feel realistic. The more I read, the more I didn’t want to stop reading. As I got further into the book, I expected one specific incidence and appreciated that the author didn’t choose that route.

I will add that there were two instances of language that I wasn’t expecting from a novel published by Thomas Nelson. This is clean fiction, not Christian fiction, which is fine, of course, but I did expect something different because of the publisher. The story was still tastefully done and absolutely clutched my heart until the last page. I’m looking forward to reading some of the author’s backlist!

*I received a copy of the book free from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.*

#netgalley #TheOneYoureWith

Great book with a cool setting at least to me. I loved reading about an area I know so well and honestly you can see all this going down just like it was written. So very believable.

I really need to stop sleeping on authors seriously. This is my first Lauren K. Denton book and boy didn't I just love it. A Huge thanks to Thomas Nelson for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. The One You're With is a story of sweethearts Mac and Edie Swan who have a seemingly great life until one day everything changes because of what happened in the past. As we watch them work through things we reminded that Marriage is choosing the one you are with over and over. I highly recommend this book as it has been written well regardless that it tackled heaving hitting subjects. Brilliant book!!

This novel has accumulated so many positive reviews – I wish I could endorse it with the same enthusiasm. Unfortunately, I gritted my teeth through much of the reading for two reasons. First, the female protagonist was one of the most irritating characters I have encountered in a long time. Second, I am not a big fan of dramas built around love triangles.

Mac, Edie and Graham have been best friends since childhood. It seemed evident to everyone that Mac and Edie belonged together and would eventually marry and have a family. With the exception of the summer they broke up before their senior year in college, that’s exactly what they did. One the eve of Mac’s fortieth birthday, he receives some jolting news that threatens to implode the “perfect life” he and Edie have built. The fault lines under this well-respected, successful couple’s marriage are revealed and each one must embrace the deeper truths of long-held secrets.

The story is told from the perspectives of Mac and Edie alternating between the summer of 2000 and the present. While I can appreciate the shock that Edie experienced over the consequences of Mac’s actions when they were no longer considered a couple, I felt she was disingenuous in claiming that he lied to her by omission when she, herself, was not forthcoming with her own withheld secret. She seemed rather shallow, worrying more about public appearances and reputations than about the needs of another human being. Mac, struggling with integrating his past with the present, was much more compassionate and genuinely remorseful, if not a bit too accommodating of Edie’s anger. Then just when it seems Edie has turned the corner on her propensity to project blame, her reaction to her son’s trauma highlights this unpleasant aspect of her personality again. It makes me wonder about their future.

The conclusion does end on a realistic note and certainly underscores that any long term marriage goes through ups and downs, requiring patience, compassion and forgiveness. As the author wisely notes love is a choice and marriage requires that choice to be made over and over again.

My thanks to the author, Thomas Nelson, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing a digital ARC in exchange for an independent, honest review.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

I like the idea of this one. Watching the story form and unfold was enjoyable. Relationships are work — down, dirty, hardcore you take it all and do it together- work.

The One You're With by Lauren K. Denton is an excellent book that showcases the redemptive power of forgiveness. As always, Denton includes the perfect elements to keep the reader absolutely enthralled —- family drama, long held secrets revealed, a deeper meaning to take to heart, and relatable characters.

The book opens with a confused 20 year old, Mac, who has done everything according to the plans of others his whole life. He has taken the summer off from being the ideal pre-med student, boyfriend, and son to do something completely different. Working at a marina he is using his body in a physical way for almost the first time in his life. His longtime girlfriend, Edie, is also doing something different as an intern in NYC who is writing long letters to their mutual friend, Graham.

We then fast forward twenty years and find Mac and Edie have a picture perfect life with great jobs, two kids, and wonderful community support. But, the long ago summer comes back to meet both of them with a return of an unknown consequence for Mac and Graham moving to town for Edie. What follows is a redemptive journey showing that while love is not easy and forgiveness is even more challenging choices made in the part can be honored. But, this is not an easy path and Denton is a master at drawing the reader in to feel emotions that are complex.

As the story progresses this seemingly straight forward plot brings out long held secrets and has everyone questioning their values. But, what is never a question is the respectful handling by allowing for compassion and grace when mistakes were made. There is a richness and a joy that leaps off of the pages despite the damage to the human heart and the fallout that secrets can cause to not just those directly involved but the entire family unit.

I was provided a free advance reader copy from Thomas Nelson - Fiction in exchange for my honest review on Net Galley. The opinions shared in this review are my own.

What a great book this was! I loved how the author wove the story together including in the past and in the present day. I couldn't wait until the end when I could see how the "quilt" came together.

I loved how the choices that we make in life were displayed in the book. It made me fall in love with the characters and root for them.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc. The opinions are my own.

Once again, thank you NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to review this title.

I loved this book! I truly did not want to put this one down. I loved the trio of Mac, Edie and Graham. Although, I loved the love story that formed in this book too and how everything unfolded. Also, Lauren did such an amazing job with going between time periods and it really guided the story so well. Then when the twist hit, I was not expecting it in the least, but love how it all unfolded.

Well done!

The One You're With is a heart warming story about love, marriage, and the choices we make. Edie and Mac appear to have to the perfect lives until a young girl shows up and turns their seemingly perfect lives upside down. Mac and Edie begin to question their lives and the choices they made when they were younger.

The characters and storyline were well written and captivating. I loved this and definitely recommend!!

"Marriage consisted of choosing the one you married over and over and over again."

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishers through Net Galley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

What a thought-provoking and poignant story with just the right amount of soul searching and ultimate healing. What-ifs can be devastating, but Lauren Denton handles this one with finesse. I was pulled into the story and then held on for this emotional ride. Highly recommended.

'Marriage consisted of choosing the one you married over and over and over again.'

Once again Lauren K. Denton proves that she is very adept at tackling the super hard stuff of life. And I mean hard stuff. Mac and Edie Swan have a great life until one day everything is thrown up into the wind and no one knows or even has any idea how it will all play out as it falls to the ground. Their entire lives are shaken. Denton knows how to do this writing and do it well. She proves that sometimes love just may need to be examined every once in a while to make sure it's going to stand the test of time and adversity. Well done!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishers through Net Galley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

When I got into this book, I was reminded of a movie I saw in the early 1980s called A Small Circle of Friends. The premise was pretty much the same between the movie and the book, but Lauren K Denton's take on the situation was handled with much grace and aplomb.

Mac and Graham are friends who both love Edie, and Edie loves both of them--but differently. Mac and Edie have dated since junior high school with the exception of one summer when Mac goes to work at a marina on the beach and Edie goes to New York for an internship. Their lives are intertwined early on, but for a number of years Mac and Edie haven't interacted with Graham. When Edie is asked to do the interior design for a house of a client, she comes back into contact with Graham. About the same time, Mac's summer on the beach comes back to haunt him in the person of a daughter he didn't know he had.

Lauren takes this very real situation and works through the ins and outs of saving relationships, building a solid foundation for a family, and giving grace and mercy where it's needed most. She also takes on working life in that there is more to life than grinding out the work hours: there is giving back, there is fulfilling basic creativity, there is finding satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment in the job.

There is a sense of wanting a do-over among the characters, even though some things can't be "done over.," while at the same time there are choices and chances to be taken every day.

Lauren makes her novel one of enjoyment, yes, but at the same time there are aspects that can lead the reader to personal growth. Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a chance to make the right decision.

Thomas Nelson and NetGalley.com provided the copy I read for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.