I really enjoyed this book. Ada Calhoun explores and interrogates what it means to be married to one person, and fall in love with another. Initially hesitant to agree to her husband's request to "soft launch" into an open marriage, once the protagonist contacts an old college crush, an avalanche of emotions and spiritual awakenings begin, rocking everyone in its wake. Wonderfully written, at its core, this book examines what it is to love. Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read this eArc in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Crushes while married leads to complications.

This novel reads so much like a memoir that I had to double check myself multiple times. Ada Calhoun is a brilliant writer, and a writer who writes for English majors and anyone who loves books. The subject matter of this book might be difficult for some, but it’s much more a novel of self exploration than it is about polyamory. It’s about the nuances of love, relationships, family and marriage, not sex. I thought it was smart, funny, wise and engaging.

I’m not quite sure how I feel about this one and know it’ll be a book that will be talked about and create conversations. And that’s ultimately good for literature and book culture. But I can’t say I liked it and found it hard to read at times. Interesting but not for me.

Crush by Ada Calhoun is an interesting character study of a woman finding herself later in life. The book is written in a way that almost feels like a memoir and it follows its narrator as she and her husband begin to experiment with their relationship, beginning when Paul suggests that she might be interested in kissing other people and telling him about it. So begins her foray into self-discovery and trying to figure out what it is that she wants out of her life now that she has been married and raised her son who is nearly ready to go off to college. She discusses her life changes with her best friend and ends up striking up a correspondence with an old colleague who teaches her even more about what she wants out of life, but straining her relationship with her husband in the process.

I found this book to be quite unique. There wasn't a huge overarching plot, but each chapter felt like a story of its own and they were all connected by the fact that the narrator was having these experiences and learning about herself. Part of what made the book feel so much like a memoir was that there were a lot of quotes and references to literature and philosophy. I think for the length of the book there were maybe a few too many quotes, making some chapters feel more like an analysis of a concept than a chapter in a book. I did still enjoy getting to know the main character and seeing her grow throughout the story. The later part of the book had more of a plot, so I enjoyed the second half more than the first. This will be a great read for people who enjoy character driven books and books about self-discovery.

5/5

"Crushes were how you stayed a little bit in love with the world even though you had a husband."

This book ripped me open and sewed me back together. I devoured this book, and I am already planning my re-read. Crush is romantic, and heartbreaking, and pretentious in the best way.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I'm a huge fan of Ada Calhoun's work, but this one missed the mark for me. It's yet another female midlife crisis memoir, but when compared to the far superior "All Fours" or "Don't Be a Stranger," it falls short. Calhoun reconnects with a guy, falls in love via ponderous emails, divorces her husband with very little drama, and then has a magical romance with her new beau. I'd love to have the financial cushion to just say "eh, I'll give my ex half my money, all good" and just move on. Guess her dad's Village Voice art criticism paid pretty well.

Thanks to NetGalley and Viking for the advanced reader copy.

The premise for this book--the husband of a woman seemingly content with her life asks her to consider what their roles as husband and wife really mean, sending her down the rabbit hole of thinking about what it means to have a crush on someone--sounded intriguing, but the book read more like a journal of unconnected thoughts than a well structured novel. This one just wasn't for me.

This concept was a little far fetched for me to feel attached to the plot or characters. This main character is also not very likable.

A debut novel a look at marriage at the complexities at outside longing at the idea of a crush a desire for someone outside.This is so well written reads like a memoir very entertaining.#netgalley #viking

Thank you Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC.

I enjoyed this fast moving easy reading novel. Pick this one if you need an memoir style romance to lift you up.

Great debut from someone I’ve followed for quite sometime. Feel it’ll be a smash hit in the US and abroad.

Thank you Penguin Group Viking and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book had me hooked. It was sent to me and I didn't read the description before I started reading, and it truly had me turning the pages quickly. I wasn't sure how it would end, and truthfully, I am not sure how I feel about it. I am in a monogamous marriage that would never be open, so it was enlightening to see how this story unfolded. I am curious to do more research about this author, and look forward to the press tour when this book is officially released!

Thank you again for the ARC!

Crush reads like a combination of a memoir and someone’s personal commonplace book. It was easy to read and spend time with. I enjoyed the collection of quotes and thoughts on love and friendship, but they didn’t feel part of the story. It’s a particular book that was somehow intimate and intense, but not always genuine. Overall, I was more invested in thinking about the quotes she added from other books instead of the actual plot of the novel, but it was still an interesting read.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.

I finished this several hours ago, and let myself stew about how to respond to this. Several hours later, I'm still not sure how to put into words how this made me feel. I'll try. This felt like a memoir, less a novel, more a way to quote books and philosophers and make most of the audience feel amazingly naive and unread. I didn't feel much growth to the main characters, and I really have no idea of the time frame that the story took place in. Yes, the author is smart, erudite, learned. It felt like that needed to be proven every single page.

I actually did enjoy reading this, and am not really sure why. Clearly the author has a deft way of putting words to the page, and many will respond favorably to this. Would I read more from the author? Yes.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

The first half of the book was so well written and the plot carried me along at a quick pace especially the treatment of flirting as a skill injecting an element of fun as a protagonist trait. The second half had a different and almost memoir like tone especially re how the father was written. I actually liked how different the tone of the two “halves” seemed. I read at the same time as the recent New Yorker story by Lauren Groff and the
duo made for some of the best reading of the year.

Where to start? I think I was expecting something different going into this book and that ultimately hindered my enjoyment a little bit.
Seen as Crush is marketed as a novel, I wasn't quite prepared for the format and writing style very much mirroring that of a memoir. While Calhoun's writing is fun to follow along, I struggled to really connect with any of the characters. The story was laced with so many quotes and references that it felt more like an amalgamation of what others thought of love, loss and grief rather than the author's original thoughts, which is odd considering this book is very much (loosely) inspired by her own life.
Still, I could see this book being a sort of catharsis for the author. I, personally, enjoyed the parts about her difficult relationship with her father the most. However, I don't think it dealt with non-monogamy in as deep a way as it could have.

A sometimes confusing story line - is it real or fiction? Making sense of marital roles and feelings. I feel for the wife since it's clear her husband really doesn't know her. She wants to please him. I had a hard time keeping things straight. On the whole not too keen on this read. Sorry.

A few times while reading this I had to ask myself: This is fiction, right?!

This reads like a memoir, so I kept waiting for some stats to be thrown at me, then I remembered that I was reading a novel. What a wonderfully crafted story about the intricacies of opening a marriage when one of the partners is not entirely sold on the idea.

One of the best books I’ve read this year!

Not sure what to say about this one…in a lot of ways I felt confused. While it’s marketed as a work of fiction it’s not quite a novel. It’s told in a more nonfiction/memoir format that makes it hard to remember you’re not reading a full on memoir. By 25% through it felt repetitive and dull and the FMC was grating on me. It just didn’t work for me!