★★★★ A violinist attempts a one night stand with a tattooed, motorcycle-riding cinnamon roll but find something so much more with each other - and themselves.
I felt so many emotions while reading this book. My heart hurt, I got frustrated and angry, I squealed from adorableness, and I wanted to cry.
I had been warned before going into it that this was unlike the previous two books in the series. It was more emotional, more heart wrenching. I do think that’s true, but not in the ways I expected.
Quan may be my favorite hero of all time. There were so many brief, quiet moments where my heart ached for him. When he was nervous to be naked around someone again, when he brought food from his mother to Anna’s family and then became embarrassed they might not have room for it all. He was so, so wonderful. And it was crazy to see how much he changed from books 1 and 2.
Anna is a heroine I rooted for. I know Helen Hoang said that she put a lot of herself into this book and into Anna, and my heart went out to her every time Anna changed herself (“masked” herself) to conform to what other people wanted. I’ve done that too and it’s exhausting. But seeing Anna do that around her family, the people who are supposed to care for her regardless, and seeing their negative reactions to her, her life, her relationship, her job… was so frustrating.
Anna and Quan’s relationship and love story to me felt easy and natural. But as I was browsing other reviews, trying to formulate the end of my review, someone else put into words what I hadn’t yet: this didn’t really feel like a “romance book”. I mean, it is one, but not a typical romance where the relationship plot is central to the story. It was more about self-acceptance, self-confidence, and finding yourself again.
The story is split up into Before / During / After. To me, the After section was the weakest, which disappointed me. It’s where Quan and Anna both find their strides. But because so much time passes in After but it’s only 9 chapters (compared to 18 in Before and 19 in During), it’s more of… a summary. Like checking in with a friend after a few months - you get a summary of what they’ve been up to and what’s new. I didn’t want that! I wanted the knitty gritty.
I did think it was interesting that the book ended without resolution between Anna and Priscilla. It was realistic and I didn’t hate it. Then again I’m someone who firmly believes if someone is not good to you, you don’t “owe them” your time/ relationship/ sanity just because they’re “family”.
CWs: cancer, sterility, hospital, hospice care, sick parent, death of a loved one, toxic relationships, ableism, anxiety, depression
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