Published by William Morrow on April 1, 2025
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction
Rating:
Goodreads
From New York Times bestselling author Sarah Jio comes an escapist timeslip novel following a young woman stuck in a “time loop” of one-day relationships with romantic partners from her past.
“An ingenious and heartfelt love story. I absolutely adored this novel!” —Emily Giffin, #1 New York Times bestselling author
What if you could have a second chance to say “yes” to the one who got away?
Lena Westbrook, a perfectionist and workaholic, has carefully planned and orchestrated every detail of her life. So when her boyfriend of two years breaks up with her on the night she expects him to propose, she’s heartbroken and confused. Lena flees to her beloved aunt’s home on Seattle’s picturesque Bainbridge Island to lick her wounds and recalibrate. That night, she falls asleep in the guest house. But when she awakens the next morning, she’s no longer in a cottage nestled on the Puget Sound, but rather in a chic Parisian apartment—wearing an expensive silk nightgown in bed with a handsome French man who seems to think that Lena is his wife.
From the elegant neighborhoods of Paris to the charming landscape of Kinsale, Ireland, to the sparkling skyline of New York City, and many other unexpected destinations in between, each time Lena awakens, she finds herself somewhere else with someone else. In each experience, she’s given a glimpse of what life might have looked like had she chosen the “road not taken.” And as she becomes more clear-sighted about her past decisions, Lena begins to wonder, were any of these former romantic encounters actually...significant?
Marrying the wish-fulfilling romance of Emily in Paris with the high-concept premise of Groundhog Day, Insignificant Others is a lively, surprising, and enchanting novel that explores the relatable and resonant “what ifs” of life, but most especially, love.
When the marriage proposal she expected doesn't happen, Lena flees to her childhood home to ease her pain. When she awakens the following morning, she finds herself in France and married! But this day doesn't last, and she finds herself with yet another husband each day. Jumping from relationship to relationship, Lena is determined to find her way home while learning a lot about love and herself along the way.
This was quite an interesting personal journey. Lena had been living the life she thought she wanted, dating the man she thought was the ONE, but when she was thrust into this chain of what-if relationships, she began to re-examine her beliefs about love, marriage, parenthood, and her future. I was invested in all Lena's "leaps" and appreciated how many different situations she found herself in. These what-ifs ranged from heartbreaking to joyful and even horrifying. Regardless of the success level of these relationships, Lena always gleaned something important from them. My small quibble would be that I wish we saw a bit further into the future at the end. I was quite happy about how it all worked out but still wanted to know a little more. Otherwise, this was a delightful and entertaining journey.
Published by Sourcebooks Landmark on October 15, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction
Rating:
Goodreads
Libby Lost and Found is a book for people who don't know who they are without the books they love. It's about the stories we tell ourselves and the chapters of our lives we regret. Most importantly, it's about the endings we write for ourselves.
Meet Libby Weeks, author of the mega-best-selling fantasy series, The Falling Children—written as "F.T. Goldhero" to maintain her privacy. When the last manuscript is already months overdue to her publisher and rabid fans around the world are growing impatient, Libby is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's. Already suffering from crippling anxiety, Libby's symptoms quickly accelerate. After she forgets her dog at the park one day—then almost discloses her identity to the journalist who finds him—Libby has to admit she needs help finishing the last book.
Desperately, she turns to eleven-year-old superfan Peanut Bixton, who knows the books even better than she does but harbors her own dark secrets. Tensions mount as Libby's dementia deepens—until both Peanut and Libby swirl into an inevitable but bone-shocking conclusion.
Needing to finish the series while also keeping her identity a secret, Libby Weeks taps a tween from her fandom to help write the ending.
I loved the idea of this. A superfan getting the opportunity to help wrap up a beloved series, but the reason was so sad to me. Libby needed help with the book due to early onset dementia robbing her of her memories and creativity. This part of the story was heartbreaking, but opening herself up to Peanut and her family was one of the best decisions Libby made.
It bothered me so much that she was so alone with her illness. I suppose she could have hired "help", but I wanted her to be with people she cared for and who cared for her. This was by no means a conventional family, but they always seemed to step up for each other when push came to shove. And the ending of this book actually moved me to tears. It was sweet and endearing, and it made me so happy.
Overall, I grew to care very much for these characters, and all the book stuff was icing on the cake for me.
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