Review: Between Now and Forever by Adriana Locke


Note: An advance reader copy (ARC) was provided by Montlake.

Between Now and Forever is a new small-town romance standalone from Adriana Locke and published through Amazon Publishing's Montlake imprint. Thirty-eight-year-old Gabrielle Solomon has just moved back to Alden, Ohio, ready to begin a new chapter after some major life-altering events in her life. She and her husband, Christopher, divorced a few years back, but they remained the closest of friends, which is why his sudden passing devastated her. Now, she's moving forward, raising their two sons, Dylan, fourteen, and Carter, seven, the best she can. She's not quite sure, however, that tumbling into a flower bed while covered with nothing but a bath towel was the best way to make a first, albeit lasting, impression on her new neighbor. Forty-year-old Jay Stetson is hot and single, and as much as he's attracted to the single mom next door, he can't afford to be anything more than friendly with her. He can only resist for so long, but can Jay let go of the past and fight for a future with Gabby, Dylan and Carter?

I love the romance genre in general, but I confess that being the age that I am, there's something about having the main characters be older than the usual twenty-somethings that calls to me. Gabby was a great female main character, what with her independence and her protective nature, especially when it came to her sons, Dylan and Carter. I know that quite a few readers adored the younger of the two boys, but Dylan was someone I could relate to, empathizing with what how he was dealing with the recent changes in his life. Could he have handled some things better? Definitely, but he was also a teenager who had gone through his parents' divorce and his father's death. As for Jay, I admit that I was surprised to how he was during his first encounter with Gabby, but it certainly caught my attention. I understood why he made the choice that he did near the end of the book, but I was really hoping there wouldn't be the dreaded third act break-up here. Still, Between Now and Forever was heartwarming, four-starred read.

Release Date: 17 December 2024

Date Read: 14 December 2024

Learn more about Adriana Locke.

Pre-order Between Now and Forever on Amazon.

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