I really enjoyed reading "Can't Look Away" by Carola Lovering. This is the second novel of hers that I have read and it far exceeded expectations! This story flashes between the past and present and introduces us to Molly and her new friend Sabrina in the small, but definitely not boring town of Flynn Cove. Secrets, lies, and love fill the pages of this book and it will keep you guessing until the very end!

Can't Look Away is a compelling story of young aspiring writer and barista, Molly, who is swept into a romance with a charismatic rock musician that alters the course of her life. Fast forward to the present, and Molly is now a houswife in Conneticut, married to Hunter, having left her writer dreams behind. Molly's past starts to collide with her present, as a new friend and a song re-release bring the past back to life.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this title.
#CantLookAway #NetGalley

I loved reading this book! I found the writing to be very insightful and interesting. I was intrigued by the premise and I enjoyed reading it from start to finish.

review ✨

I am a hugeeee Carola Lovering fan and this was such an entertaining read — it reminded me of both of her books, the toxic first love found in TELL ME LIES and the page-turner essence of TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. This is marketed as a thriller, but it’s more domestic drama with thriller/suspense aspects!

Read if you like:
* multiple POVs and time jumps, we jump back from 2013 when Jake and Molly first meet to 2022 when Molly is a mother in the suburbs

* Female friendships! Loved Molly’s friendship with Nina 👯‍♀️

* Instant love trope yet toxic ! Molly & Jake fall FAST & book really captures the angst and tumultuous emotions of a toxic love

* Heavy dose of OTT drama 🎭

* Characters that are very dimensional; Lovering really knows how to make characters true to life — one minute you’re rooting for them and the next you’re like 🤨 ???? But that’s what I love about her writing, her characters are flawed and feel like real humans who are lovable yet make decisions you don’t agree with

* You will need to suspend reality for some of the plot lines, but if you can let the book take you for a ride it is very entertaining

This comes out June 14, 2022! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review

📖 320 pages
✨ my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TW: graphic depictions of miscarriage and fertility struggles

I enjoyed reading this book and could barely put it down, but reflecting on it afterward I didn't enjoy it was much. Molly was unrelatable in the way that she was put on such a pedestal by her friends and lovers. Jake was represented as some kind of god on earth which is just ridiculous. Hunter was unrealistically forgiving. And the whole book seemed to be a justification for cheating on a serious partner. While represented as evil, Sabrina was the most relatable character in the book! I do still enjoy this author's writing style so will look forward to more of her work but hopefully with more likeable/believable characters.

**Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy to read**

DNF-- I tried getting through this, picked it up multiple times but the story just never drew me in. I was under the impression that this would be a psychological thriller sort of like The Girl on the Train , but this is much more of a familial drama. Some people might enough that type of story, but I went into it thinking it would be something way different.
Additionally, the writing style just wasn't for me but again some people might enjoy it.
The 'twists' really weren't anything shocking, and for me they were just way too predictable and the story just felt drawn out and long.
I really think if this is marketed correctly (NOT AS A THRILLER) that it would have been a different reading experience, but alas I had different expectations.

Wow, bring on the crazy!

I read this book in a day because I literally couldn't put it down. Perfect escape book for me. A blend of thriller meet family drama meets obsession meets Lifetime movie. I gave it 4 stars because it really got melodramatic by the last quarter of the book. I'm not sorry I read it though. Not at all. Like I said, it was the perfect escape. And more often than not, I need books like Can't Look Away. So much fun if you don't take it too seriously. I really enjoyed the author's previous book, Too Good To Be True as well.

4.25 stars
I want to first say I went into this book blind. I hadn’t read the synopsis first but I loved Carola Lovering’s last book so I figured this would be a safe bet and I was right.
I enjoy the multiple perspectives over various timelines and how they all linked together or overlapped to give you a better overall storyline with complete imagery. For me, I found it very relatable since the story is based in a fictional Connecticut town.
Molly is so likable and so relatable. Jake is your favorite bad boy you love to fall for and always hope he’ll change. And Sabrina, well you’ll just have to read and find out what chaos Sabrina brings to the table.
I wouldn’t necessarily categorize this as your typical thriller/mystery. It was more of general fiction. I enjoyed the pace and the various reveals throughout. I wasn’t ever bored and was happy with the ending. Overall, I would definitely recommend.

Huge thank you to St Martin’s press for being my first Netgalley ARC approval.

Spoiler warnings.

Ugh. This one did not do it for me. First of all. I hated Molly. I didn't make it more than a couple of chapters in before I just really disliked her. She seemed self-centered to me through the whole thing. She couldn't go a couple of weeks without her boyfriend, really? Then that's not his fault, he's not the person she should be with. He was at a point in his career where the kind of support she needed wasn't realistic. She couldn't have lasted at all before smartphones were a thing. I realize she was young, but it doesn't feel like she grows out of it.

I literally laughed out loud in the last chapter of the book where she and Hunter are discussing what happened and she is upset with Hunter because he didn't acknowledge this "huge earth-shattering thing" that was her seeing Jake again. Yes, you got it - it's Hunter's fault for not making a big enough deal out of supporting her when Jake comes back into her life and she kind of forgets she's married. There were other moments in the book where she makes everything all about her, but I've blocked the rest out.

I didn't like her friends either. Nina maybe. Everly didn't seem to have much of a character and Liz wasn't really much of a friend. I couldn't stand all the perfect shallow, sorority girl-esque thing going on with all of them. It was kind of like Despearate Housewives (which I love) but without any comedy or irony to it and it didn't work for me.

I didn't think the bandmates were terribly realistic either. One part that stuck out to me is one of the brothers giving Jake relationship advice. It felt like a woman writing what she wants a man to say rather than something authentic from a man in his early 20s.

I saw where the whole thing was going pretty quickly. Stella's age was mentioned about five too many times for it to not be extremely important. I actually didn't think Molly knew though, so that was a bit of a surprise and I thought the other baby was the same story. I was surprised at how Jake came back into the story. I didn't expect him to be that stupid.

Oh and then, by the way, Hunter is a bit of a stalker too. But it's supposed to be endearing when it's him. He was the only likable character for me and although that was not shocking he was following her around a bit, it still seemed wrong given how Sisi is portrayed.

I kept reading to see how the author would end it. If Molly and Jake ended up together, I might have thrown something but I also didn't see how the "good guy" Hunter was going to be ok with being second fiddle.

I thought the epilogue was the best part of the book. If I hadn't read the rest of the book and known how screwed up Sisi (psycho) and Molly (self-absorbed) were, it would have been a perfectly lovely ending.

I think what could be relatable in this book for a lot of people is the idea of the one that got away and what would happen if they reappeared in their life. Spoiler - Molly didn't handle it well.

So in summary, not for me, but I could see how others would like it. It felt more romance than thriller to me. Someone who might find Jake and Molly more romantic than I did or who loves the idea of dating a lead singer of a hot band might really enjoy this.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this advance copy!

Can't Look Away by Carola Lovering is great book! It has a nice start and then gets into a bit of a psychological drama. I could not look away from this book and avoided any interruptions to my reading! You will enjoy the development of the characters and the intertwined storytelling. I am recommending this to friends for summer reading! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second read by this author, and just like with her first one, the genre defies description. It is most definitely not a thriller, and I think this book may be mislabeled as one; HOWEVER, it is a tightly woven story of desperation, deception, and the unforgettable nostalgia of first love.

In 2013 and Molly is a barista dreaming of becoming a writer, and Jake is the charismatic lead singer of a band. One look, and they were smitten. Their love was not to be, and nearly a decade later, Molly is living in Connecticut with her husband Hunter and their young daughter. She's teaching yoga and struggling with infertility issues. After meeting Sabrina at her yoga class, the two instantly click, and Molly finally has the friend she's longed for...except Sabrina is no friend. She has a shocking connection to Molly's past that will force Molly to confront the life she's built for herself and ask herself the age-old questions: 𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦?

Publishes June 14, 2022, from St. Martin's Press.

A trope that I loved was sidelined by too many plots! It took quite a while to finish this as some storylines were outright boring or not needed. I haven’t read this author’s other book but I am willing to check it out. I didn’t dislike this but I can’t love it either.

Two characters who fall for each other, break up and reconnect nine years later. A nice enough story, but no dramatics or twists but will keep you reading to see what happens next.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

𝗖𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝖻𝗒 𝖢𝖺𝗋𝗈𝗅𝖺 𝖫𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 🌟🌟🌟🌟✨ 𝟦.𝟧/𝟧
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Nearly ten years ago, Molly locked eyes with Jake, a budding rockstar, and neither was able to look away. They fell into an all-consuming love, with her becoming his muse.

Now, Molly is happily married (to a different man) with a daughter, when a new friend comes into her life. However, not is all as it seems with this friend. Molly’s past may be catching up with her.
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I am 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 reeling from this one! I read it in two days, staying up late into the night. I just couldn’t put it down. I loved the different points of view, as well as the flashbacks to the relationship of Molly and Jake. The storyline pulled me in, the characters kept a hold of me. I needed to know what happened between Jake and Molly! Definitely recommend💕
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Favorite line ~ “…It’s more than chemistry. It’s unbearable, heartbreaking nostalgia.”
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𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝟲/𝟭𝟰

Some people have a little bit of crazy in their past. In their youth. But what if crazy comes to find you? This was a gripping story that was hard to put down.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Carola Lovering has done it again with her latest novel, "Can't Look Away". I didn't want to stop reading this fast-pasted novel.

I loved both of Carola's other books, Tell Me Lies and Too Good to Be True, and with Can't Look Away, she continues to show that she is an auto-read author for me. For me, this book was really hard to put down, and I do think it is misclassified with the genre. While there are mysteries throughout the book and some twists, it isn't a thriller, and it definitely helps to know that going in. I would classify it more as a mix of domestic and contemporary fiction.

Throughout the book, you get the perspective of Molly, Jake, and Sabrina over the course of ten years, and how their lives all intersect. You learn right away that Sabrina has been stalking Molly for a number of years and has followed her and her family to Connecticut. As you start to piece together why, even with the twists that you could see coming, I was still pleasantly surprised when they happened. As you are given the answers to some secrets, you also know that more are coming, and everything is not as it seems.

There are some heartbreaking moments as well throughout the book. Molly and Jake's relationship at times is tumultuous, and you can feel Molly's pain as Jake ignores her as his band starts to make it big, or he makes everything about him. But, you can also see how much love there is between them. I really loved Hunter and the things he did for Molly, and if there was one thing I wish was different in the book it would've been that we got a chapter from his perspective. There is some really great character growth throughout the book for most characters, and I truly think in the end, everyone got the future they deserved.

I think going into this book it’s important to know this reads more as suspense than thriller. If you read it as a thriller you’ll probably be disappointed, but if you read it as romantic suspense you’ll really enjoy it. I loved the character development, romance, and unexpected plot development. Would absolutely recommend!

This book held my interest, but the plot twists near the end threw me for a loop! Character development was strong and I appreciated the attention to detail

Can't Look Away by Carola Lovering is a suspense filled romance. Interesting characters and told from different POVs.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley.