What If I Never Get Over You – 3.5/5 ✩
What If I Never Get Over You opens strong with a spontaneous meeting between Ellie and Ash while interrailing through Europe. The attraction is strong and fast, and when plans to meet up in a different city fall through, Ellie is faced with trying to get over a man it seems like she will never cross paths with again. Six years later though, Ellie and Ash come crashing into each other’s lives again and they are faced with the reality of whether their relationship can actually withstand the test of time.
This novel had me hooked from the very first page, I genuinely could not put this book down. I was lost in the story, in its characters, and completely swept up in the drama of whether or not these two characters would finally be able to be happy with one another.
The best way I can describe the opening of the book is magical. There was something for everyone in the beginning of the book: romance, travel, banter, and it really rooted me in the story and brought me back to what it felt like to be twenty one and in love. It was the perfect way to open a story and get readers invested right from the get-go.
As for the book as a whole, I enjoyed the realness of the characters. I liked that their meeting felt realistic and how little they knew another each other on the surface after their meeting, but also how deeply they got to know each other. They may not have ever exchanged last names, but they knew and understood who the other was down to their very core.
I also enjoyed how Ash positioned himself as being someone who might not have much money and was pinching pennies, but in reality, he was *spoiler* a freaking viscount! It also didn’t feel unrealistic or too coincidental that Ellie would end up working at his family’s estate, given that when they met, Ash told her to consider working on an estate, almost as though he had a plan all along.
My only qualm with the novel is that I feel almost like the book was four completely separate entities: interrailing, meeting at Ash’s estate, bouncing back from what happened on the estate, and trying to win Ash back. I think Toon did a fantastic job separating these parts with time jumps, but I also felt almost like these characters were completely different people in each part. For me, it’s a matter of maturing with time vs. becoming fully fledged new characters, and I lean more toward the latter for what happened with these characters.
What I was craving after these characters reunited was more banter and spontaneity and fun like we saw during their travels, and we did get some of this, but I felt like I was wanting more than what we were getting. The conflict after the initial six-year time jump was necessary for the story, but at the same time, I wished these characters had a little more time of just being happy with one another. Their issues felt like they were resolved quite easily due to the time jumps, but once one was solved, it felt like another came just as quickly. I loved these characters and the spark between them, so I wish they could’ve experienced more happiness on the page in addition to the happiness we learn they get at the book’s resolution.
Overall, I did really enjoy this novel and if Paige’s other books have the same spirit and vibe as part 1 of this one, sign me up!
Thanks NetGalley and Putnam for the proof in exchange for an honest review!
Anchored Musings 