Book Review - And Now There's You
And Now There's You, by Susan. S. Etkin is a "feel good" story that many middle-aged singles would be able to relate to. Transitioning into a new phase of life after losing a loved one is difficult. Learning to trust people takes leaps of faith. Follow along at Leila allows herself to find love after losing the love of her life.
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Summary:
It's been 5 years since Leila Brandt's husband, Nick died of cancer. She's become independent and found an easy routine in her life. However, her daughter and business partner/friend feel that she needs a man in her life. When they surprise Leila with an appointment with a dating agency for her birthday, she is LESS than enthused with the idea.
Leila and Michelle own and operate a Home Design boutique and offer designer services. When Michelle asks Leila to take the lead on a new design job for the Perkinses, Leila meets the single, self-assured, Ayden Doyle who has been hired to do the renovation work. Immediately, she fees some chemistry with Ayden.
Although Leila is not excited about meeting someone through a dating service, she agrees to meet with the counselor to set up her profile. After completing the preliminary profile for her account, she is presented with 3 possible gentleman to meet. She begins reading through the files of each of the prospects until she gets to the third file and sees a picture of Ayden Doyle. While Leila cannot deny the attraction she feels towards Ayden, she fears that to consider a relationship with him would only end in hurt. He's been single for more than 20 years, playing the field.
Playing the Field
Leila agrees to go on a date with one of the other gentlemen, Morgan. He's a nice enough guy, but she doesn't feel any sort of chemistry with him. When on their 2nd date he suggests a date that would require an overnight stay together, Leila lets him know that she's not ready for that kind of date with him. His response indicates that she might not hear from him again.
On to the next gentleman, Chet. Having recently lost his wife to cancer, Chet isn't really ready to move on. During their dinner date he spoke of little more than his wife and every reference was to her. Leila ended their dinner date letting him know that he needs to take more time to get past his loss.
As Leila and Ayden continue working on the same project, some flirtation begins. Finally, Ayden asks Leila to go on a date with him. They fall pretty hard for each other, pretty fast. But, Leila can't lose her insecurities about Ayden being able to settle down. She is not the type of woman to date around and she makes that clear from the beginning.
Follow the love story of Leila and Ayden. You'll feel the anticipation of new love as well as the insecurities that are inevitable when sharing your life with someone new. At the end, an unexpected hiccup may shatter everything.
Review:
From the first chapter, I was interested in learning about the characters in And Now There's You. Susan S. Etkin does a great job of making you feel that you know the characters and you feel their pain, joy and excitement. This is generally my type of book and it didn't disappoint. While it may some across as predictable, the story kept me wanting to read on from chapter to chapter to follow the love story.
The hiccup towards the end of the story made me root more for Ayden and Leila. I found myself seeing into their future, melding their businesses together, recreating beautiful new spaces for their clients and they build a beautiful new life for themselves.
If you enjoy a good love story, And Now There's You should be next on your list. What have you read lately? Let me know in the comments below.
Until my next review,
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