Sheila's Reads

January has been left a house in Michigan by her late father. She goes up to live in it when she is broke and still is working on her current novel--or rather not working on it. Her next door neighbor is Gus Everett, her rival in college. After taking potshots at each other, they decide to have a contest where he writes a rom-com and she writes a literary novel and see which one can sell theirs first. In the course of their writing, truths come out.

I loved this book! I loved January. I could relate to her as she and Gus have their discussions at the end of their days of writing. I understood her thoughts. I also loved Gus. He is similar to January but his thoughts took on a darker tone. Once January can get him to open up, he reveals a lot to January--things she never expected. I did appreciate their openness when their thoughts and explanations came out. It is rare to have that much communication between characters. His explanation when they went to New Eden was wonderful and swoon-worthy.

I loved the other characters--Pete, Maggie, even Sonya. They are quirky (not Sonya). I was glad when Sonya made January listen to her. So much was said and pain was let go eventually. I wish January's mother had been more open with her earlier so her father's death would not have been a shock.

I liked the humor. There were times I was laughing out loud as I pictured these scenes. The dialog was snappy and snarky (reminds me of the dialog in The Maltese Falcon). This is one of the top books I have read this year. It is wonderful watching a curmudgeon fall in love.