I didn't particularly find any part of this book entertaining, but I didn't actively dislike it either, so this rating will have to do. With Eleanor and Fin’s shared history, the narrative switches back and forth to reveal relevant bits of their lives. And lastly, I think it important for fans of romance fiction who need to be reminded that the HEA ending is, in many real situations, a fiction in and of itself. It was during a sabbatical from work, whilst she was travelling around India that her first book was born and the first draft is still written on her phone.

What is interesting is that there are no real badies in this, just measured acknowledgement and understanding. Readers have fallen for Emily Houghton’s brilliant romances:***** ‘I’m an absolute sucker for a good friends-to-lovers trope and this book definitely delivers that. Eleanor and Fin's stories hook you right from the off, making you root for them as individuals as well as for their sizzling, gorgeous romance that builds throughout the book. Read more about the condition New: A new, unread, unused book in perfect condition with no missing or damaged pages. When they jokingly sign an agreement that they will marry if they are still single neither think they will need it.The sister, who is not sure of her relationship, and the father, a lovesick, are very funny, and each one of them are very supportive. Fin and Eleanor are both great characters (I especially loved their closeness as teens), and it’s a joy to watch them slowly build back their friendship. A gorgeous friends-to-lovers romance filled with wise explorations of love, loss and self-forgiveness. Celine and her exhusband Mike are now officially divorced except Celine keeps wondering if she made a mistake letting Mike go.

I loved how poetic many of the conversations went, which makes the whole narrative feel very artful. Carol Mason explores those questions, contrasting one woman's memories and reunion with her first love, fifteen years later while juggling the demands of family, work, and friends. So often, authors fall prey to an annoying, lazy tendency to vilify one love interest while sanctifying the other in love triangles, stacking the deck in the future "winner's" favor. She learns that he is married but although he wants to be with her he cannot abandon his wife in Hong Kong.He was a faithful and supportive companion of many years yet she never truly felt like she was in love with him. Eleanor has family issues to work through, plus is struggling to get her love life on track and regain her passion for her life and work.

Emily is completely obsessed with dogs, is a trained yoga teacher and has dreamt of being an author ever since she could hold a pen. She has a curiosity for life and has a passion for all things well-being, one day hoping to create her own retreat space with a lot of dogs! As we experience these flashbacks of childhood memories it is clear just how much they both mean to each other and what a perfect pair they made so it must of been something drastic to tear them apart?This author is new to me, but I must own up to liking her writing style and her willingness to address the brutal nature of divorce, the factors that impact these lives before and after, and the awareness that when writing about real life, there are not often happy endings. The author compares that exciting instant attraction kind of love with dependable, deep friendship love. I was surprised by the ending, but relieved by it too - I just was doubting that it was going to happen! Eleanor and Fin were childhood best friends and were inseparable, when they were thirteen they made a pact to always be there for each other and, if they were both still single at thirty five they would marry, but things don't always work out how you want them to and Eleanor hasn't seen or spoken to him since he left the country when he was eighteen, until now.