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304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
鈥淚f you only shine light on your flaws, all your perfects will dim.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 a grammar snob. It should be your perfections.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what makes me like it. The one word they misuse is perfects. Kind of ironic.鈥�
" Sometimes I look at him and feel such an overwhelming appreciation for him, I almost want to write thank-you notes to our exes."
"I recently concluded that there鈥檚 no other explanation for how you and I could end up on the same planet, in the same species, in the same century, in the same country, in the same state, in the same town, in the same hallway, in front of the same door for the same reason at the exact same time. If God didn鈥檛 believe in me, then I鈥檇 have to believe you were just a coincidence. And you being a coincidence in my life is a lot harder for me to fathom than the mere existence of a higher power.鈥�
"If a scientist could figure out how to align the heart with the brain, there would be very little agony left in the world."
鈥淲hat鈥檚 the secret to such a perfect marriage?鈥� The old man leaned forward and looked at me very seriously. 鈥淥ur marriage hasn鈥檛 been perfect. No marriage is perfect. There were times when she gave up on us. There were even more times when I gave up on us. The secret to our longevity is that we never gave up at the same time.鈥�
鈥淵ou say that like marriage is a Category 5 hurricane.鈥� 鈥淣ot all the time. But I definitely think there are Category 5 moments in every marriage.鈥�
It鈥檚 hard to admit that a marriage might be over when the love is still there.
People can鈥檛 always control who their circumstances turn them into.
鈥淚 used to be fine when I was alone. But now that I have you, I鈥檓 lonely when I鈥檓 alone.鈥�
鈥淲hat's the secret to a perfect marriage?'
'Our marriage hasn't been perfect. No marriage is perfect. There were times when she gave up on us. There were even more times when I gave up on us. The secret to our longevity is that we never gave up at the same time.鈥�
*Possible spoilers*
Quinn, our heroine, is infertile and consequently, she spirals into a depression that widens the disconnect between her and, Graham, her husband. The reader is then taken on a journey through Quinn鈥檚 five stages of grief.
Hoover interspersed past and present to bring us this couple鈥檚 story and it鈥檚 quite blatant that incorporating their 鈥渢hen鈥� was an attempt to bring much-needed levity to a book that is intensely melancholic. A melancholy I鈥檓 sure was meant to tug at our heartstrings; and while it didn鈥檛 move me to tears as it did other reviewers, I was sympathetic toward Quinn and wished she would get help for depression and PTSD. Otherwise, this story was quite forgettable.
鉁� This is a spoil-free review鉁�
馃尭 PLOT 馃尭
馃尭 CHARACTERS馃尭
馃尭 WRITING馃尭
馃尭 TRIGGER WARNINGS馃尭
馃尭 OTHER THINGS I LOVED馃尭
鈥淭he problem is, love and happiness are not concordant. One can exist without the other.鈥�
鈥淥ur marriage didn鈥檛 collapse. It didn鈥檛 suddenly fall apart. It鈥檚 been a much slower process. It鈥檚 been dwindling, if you will. I鈥檓 not even sure who is most at fault.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 funny how you can be so happy with someone and love them so much, it creates an underlying sense of fear in you that you never knew before them. The fear of losing them. The fear of them getting hurt. I imagine that鈥檚 what it鈥檚 like when you have children. It鈥檚 probably the most incredible kind of love you鈥檒l ever know, but it鈥檚 also the most terrifying.鈥�
鈥淚 wish I could say I鈥檓 sorry for wanting a baby more than I want him. But that wouldn鈥檛 help, because it would be a lie. I鈥檓 not sorry.鈥�
鈥淚f you only shine light on your flaws, all your perfects will dim.鈥�
And I promise...I swear...that if you choose to end things between us, I will love you more as you're walking out the door than on the day you walked down the aisle.
I hope you choose the road that will make you the happiest. Even if it's not a choice I'll love, I will still always love you. Whether I'm a part of your life or not. You deserve happiness more than anyone I know.
I love you. Forever.
Graham