Spring, Summer, Autumn, Us

An interesting story with well-developed characters.
Thank you Fiona Collins, NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of this book.

This was a fantastic read. Will be posting my full thoughts and review soon, but I just wanted to comment and say this was a great introduction to my netgalley reviewing/acquisition. I loved arachels story. I was so invested to know if she would land up with Gabeor stay with Jonny. I was not disappointed. Thus pulled me out of a slump. Beautiful writing, interesting characters, and a great storyline. Cover was attractive as wel.
4/5 stars

Four decades. Four seasons. Four chance encounters with the same man.

Spring 1986, Oxford. Rachel has landed on her feet: engaged to handsome author Jonny, soon to be stepmother to his young daughter Teddy, and with a dream to open her own art gallery. It’s everything she wished for during her unsettled childhood. So when she meets candid and carefree American artist Gabe at a party and feels a familiar spark, she knows she needs to resist.

But as her perfect life moves forward, Gabe is never far away, and there’s no denying the lure of the spontaneous, wildly adventurous existence he seems to offer. His is a world of endless possibilities—ones Rachel can’t let herself be tempted by if she’s ever to stay the safe course with Jonny. But how can she focus on the life she thought she wanted when she can’t help imagining the alternative?

One thing’s for certain: Gabe is more than a minor character in Rachel’s life. And as their paths intersect over seasons and decades, each meeting presents Rachel with a choice that could alter everything, and she has to wonder whether the life story she once fought for is the version she’s meant to be living…

“‘It’s been lovely meeting you, Gabe.’ ‘Likewise.’ He held out his hand to her and the touch of it was a promise of something that couldn’t be promised. An evocation of a life that could never be lived.“

This book leveled me in a way I was not expecting. Spanning decades, it weaves through the life of Rachel, as she settles into her life with Jonny, only wanting stability and safety. But in every decade, she finds herself meeting up with Gabe, an American artist that is everything she wants, yet does not allow herself to have.

Through the years Rachel’s life gets more settled, but Gabe is always there, a reminder of what could have been. The story was both amazingly ordinary, yet heartbreaking. It highlights how much we can never know about the time we have, and that the grass may not be greener on the other side… but then again, there is always the chance it could be.

This is a story about love, the kind of love that does not diminish. The kind of love that maintains as a thread throughout everything, hoping that you can find it again and follow it home.

Thank you so much Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley.

I've been in a bit of a book slump, and this was the perfect book to bring me out of it. I woke up early to finish it after starting it last night. This book follows Rachel and Gabe as they have chance encounters once every decade. This book vaguely reminded me of one of my favorite film series, Before Sunrise.

What I appreciated about this book is the struggles that Rachel faced. She is very obviously unhappy in her marriage with Jonny. He's not even a good guy! However, she is devoted to this life and to her stepdaughter. It doesn't feel right to write that this stands in the way of whatever is possible with Gabe. It's not quite that as she is so devoted and this current life of hers is so safe.

I also really liked how this book was all from Rachel's point of view. What we know about Gabe is only what he reveals through his encounters with her. This story is all Rachel's and it was surprisingly a nice change to let it all be hers. While I do feel that we got to know enough about Gabe and that his character is still a strong one (Fiona Collins does such a great job), I think it was important that this be from Rachel's POV.

Spring summer autumn us - what a lovely read about love, relationships, family, and responsibility. What does it mean to spend your life pleasing others? We get to find that out as we travel through Rachel’s life, developing, learning, and growing along with her. I enjoyed this read as a mixture of my favorite things - relationships and strong characters. A little Sophie Kinsella mixed with Emily Henry, this book is perfect to read in the bath or on the beach. Thanks to Net Galley, the publisher, and Fiona Collins for the advanced copy.

Oh I really loved this book. The constant will they, won't they. The fact that fate kept bringing them together and then separating them, the chemistry, the character development. All helped make this story something very special. I really loved it.

Posted on Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5196400416

Thank you Netgally, Amazon Publishing UK and Lake Union Publishing for providing a copy of Spring, Summer, Autumn, Us for review.

Over four decades, four chance encounters with the same man cause married Rachel to wonder whether the life story she once fought for is the version she’s supposed to be living.

I was very attracted to the premise of this book. I love the ‘is the grass greener on the other side’ trope. Being Canadian, I love reading about the quaint English countryside, and I thought Collins immersed me in Rachel’s world quickly and vividly. I felt the cover represented the content of the book well. The characterizations of Jonny and Gabe were distinct, and I saw the realism in Rachel being attracted to two very different men. I have read many books set in the art world and Collins brought artworks to life through prose like no other author I’ve read. I enjoyed the first half of the book, hoping Collins would dive deeper into the characterizations and motivations as we went a long to help support her premise. To give us the chance to see what was Rachel’s better decision.

I was sad to see the second half of the book didn’t bring this about. I felt Rachel acted so much on feeling and so little on reason, or examining her past behaviour, that I’m afraid I began to become indifferent to her outcome. By the end I wasn’t rooting for her choice. I think if we’d seen Rachel more critical of Gabe, more probing, I would’ve believed her reversal and been cheering for her. I thought this book was well written, many sections were very enjoyable, but didn’t dive deep enough to provide what I expect from this genre.

I LOVED this book. It broke my heart and put it back together, so many times. I just need to say that this book could and should be a movie.
I loved this love story so deeply. It was so incredible to see the universe to work its magic. To keep putting together two people who should be together. So many others try to do this type of story, but it’s too “hallmark” esk. There’s never any depth to the characters or the relationship in those movies. But, this author did such a remarkable job with both of those things. It never felt forced. It felt like this is what is supposed to happen. That this whole love story makes sense. So beautifully done.

This is a lovely read about Rachel and Gabe and their meetings over time.
It's a testament to love and how it can take different shapes with different people.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this and it’s been a while since I read this kind of story. I love anything that spans several time periods and I felt each decade and the changes in life and the characters were really well done. I particularly liked seeing Teddy grow up and her relationship with Rachel.

I was absolutely rooting for a happy ending and very invested in the central relationship between Rachel and Gabe. My favourite bit was the trip to Marrakech - the beautiful scenery, the longing and tension and the heat! Would definitely read more from this author and recommend to others.