Annie is trying to leave her life with the CIA behind and return to college. She moves across the country to leave it all behind and ends up renting space from a professor at the college, Helen. Helen is going through a divorce and living alone with her children.
Annie’s past life follows her and complicates the new life she is trying to create as she begins classes and finds herself attracted to Helen. Helen is more than just a professor. The story unfolds from there.
I enjoyed this book very much. Familiar tropes were present that made me smile. The story flowed well and as their relationship evolves we witness the obstacles that exist that get in their way.
The ending was sweet and I wanted a little more. But then, with a good story I always do.
I received this book in exchange for a fair review.

I finished the book yesterday. It made such an impact on me that I am still numb. It was serious, intelligent, emotional, sad, scary, intense, very sexy, and not anything even close to Honey in the Marrow, a book I’ve probably listened to multiple times because the storyline was something I could relate to in my own life.

Annie Weaver was caught in a web, beginning as an agent for the CIA, trained in interrogation and fluent in Slavic languages. Serving overseas, a woman and her two young children died because of a bad decision she made with her libido; a mistake that would cause her to fear future decisions. She was trapped in an abnormal situation by a boss who used his obsession with her to control her.

She had moved to Los Angeles to get another masters degree at UCLA, but she remained under the thumb of her CIA boss and his unreasonable demands of her. She rented a small room in the garage of an adjunct professor, Helen Everton, who was suspicious and concerned about Annie’s sometimes sudden disappearance in the middle of the night, and even wondered if she could possibly be a call girl.

I loved this storyline with Helen’s family and the sexual chemistry the two had, but the relationship was risky because of her previous mistake and her not wanting anything bad to happen to others in her life. The hurt and pain was difficult, as things happened that were out of her control.

I just loved this book. It was such great reading. I wished it had been longer but, in reality, it wasn’t necessary to drag things out. The ending was fine because things that could happen next were inferred.

This book was so well written and set up that I was glued to my sofa and couldn’t stop reading. I bow and cheer to Emily Waters and thank her for the joy I received from reading it.
I thank NetGalley and Ylva Publishing for the arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow, I was blown away by this author's second book! Annie and Helen were characters I absolutely loved, but Frank, oh my god, I couldn't stand him. The writing was so compelling that I found myself stopping to curse multiple times. This story has so much to offer, and every page kept me on the edge of my seat. The ending brought me joy because the characters deserved so much better than what unfolded. Definitely a must-read!

“..she worried it was a bad idea. But Annie had never let bad ideas stop her before”

my god this was incredible, my heart broke a little when I seen the title of the last chapter but it was such a beautiful book 😭🤍

Everything about it was perfect - Annie’s complex connection with her job, the building relationship between Annie & Helen, the splashes of other characters mixed in, and all the references to life in the 1990s (how did people get about without GPS?); There was never too much of one thing.

Anabelle 'Anna' Weaver I'd heading to California, both to get a degree and to get away from her former boss in the CIA.

Discovering she has no student housing, she has to scramble for a room from a professor, Helen.

Then her former boss blackmails her into doing jobs for them. And Helen misunderstandings things and thinks Anna is a high priced call girl...

One point: I had to look twice before I saw the author's name. While the design is neat, I'm not sure it's a great idea from a marketing POV.

On to the book... good, but the ending feels rushed to me. It's very abrupt, compared to the rest of the book. Maybe pad out the scenario there a bit?

4/5 stars, mostly due to the rushed end.

Emily Waters does it again! She is two for two in my book with this new release and now I'm firmly in the Emily Waters fan club since two is a pattern (badum tss)--for those who haven't read her debut novel 'Honey in the Marrow' I can't recommend it enough. While the content of these two novels is quite different (refreshingly so), the writing quality is the same; that is to say it is superb (imagine that I am popping that 'p'). The cadence of her prose is satisfying to read, and the way she weaves her words makes for very effective and evocative storytelling.

Set in 90's, 'Two is a Pattern' follows the story of Annie Weaver who is essentially ex-secret agent extraordinaire (she is young, often underestimated, and has a very wide set of very applicable skills--yes we suspend disbelief because the fun is worth it). When we meet her, she is on her way to California from Ohio to start her second masters in crimonology after something mysteriously goes wrong on her last CIA mission; she chose to quit, her boss Frank did not give her up willingly--she was that good. Because of a university housing snafu Annie finds herself in the half-baked detached garage unit of one Professor Helen Everton, a single mom who works two jobs, who loves her kids and never stops (you get the gist). Although Annie is just trying to find a new normal, her past catches up to her and if her life wasn't complicated enough she has to deal with the growing vibes between her and her landlord/professor and trying to her best to keep her secrets in the process. Tensions rise and stakes only get higher as the story progresses until they reach a fever pitch (this felt a bit abrupt to me, but it didn't really take away from my overall enjoyment of the book). I do wish the book was a bit longer--I wish there were more Annie/Helen interactions; hey I like what I like, but overall I'm happy to say I thoroughly enjoyed this.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ylva, and Emily Waters for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a total aside, I am very grateful to have started driving in the time of GPS.