Desperate for something a little lighter, on Thursday I decided to begin The Best of Adam Sharp, an upcoming release by Graeme Simsion (author of The Rosie Project, among others); not surprisingly, his male protagonist is intelligent and witty, with a kind heart. It may not be a five-star read but it has provided a great break from heavier fare and I love the characters!

I really enjoyed both The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect so I was very curious to see what that author would write next. The first I noticed about this story is that it is quite different to his previous books. It is less humorous, drier and less touching. The characters in this one are difficult to like and they usually take quite questionable decisions. It doesn't mean that it is not a good story, but I have to say that I didn't enjoy it as much as I wanted.

First of all we have Adam, almost fifty with quite an easy even if a bit boring life. That is until he gets un email from his first love, Australian actress Angelina Brown. She stole his heart more than 20 years ago and they haven't been in touch since then. During the first part of the book, we get to know what happened back then and also how they interact now via email. There's a certain mystery surrounding their story so I was really curious to find more about them as a couple. This is definitely the part I enjoyed the most.

When they finally meet again, the story takes quite an unexpected turn that I am not sure worked that well. They were not their better self when they were together and I found the relationship between Angelina and her current husband plain weird. I then realized that I didn't like Adam and I even liked Angelina less, so I didn't care about what would happen to them next. But I guess, like in life, you cannot like everybody.

All in all, this is quite an interesting story that reflects on what could have been and long lost loves but also on how we don't appreciate what we have until it's too late. I was expecting something a bit more fun but it turned out to have quite a serious tone, which was OK as it was well written and engaging. But it won't be for sure a story that will stay with me.

This book wasn't what I expected and it was a little bit disappointing. The story follows Adam as he reconnects with an old flame. Partially told in flashbacks, Adam gets to a cross road that is truly ludicrous and felt very unrealistic. I was a fan of Simsion's two first books Rosie Project and Rosie Effect, but this book approached a subject that I wasn't particularly comfortable with and it got a bit weird. Though the ending warmed my heart a little, I had to keep pushing through to even make it to that point.

It's not really fair to Simsion, but this does not compare favorably to the Rosie books, which were just so charming. I initially quite liked Adam but his musings turned me off about half way through and I began to find this tedious. Simsion's writing style holds up, which is a plus and the main reason I kept reading. Thanks to net galley for the ARC.

I enjoyed reading Adam Sharp, but the story is fairly light-weight and didn't leave much of an impression. Doesn't hold a candle to The Rosie Project!

This book took me a long time to read, I just couldn't get into it. I found the characters shallow and unlikable and the narrative choppy. The musical references got to be too much and I found myself skipping them which I think made it even harder to follow. The characters were just sad and their lives too depressing.

I was really enjoying the book until the trip to France - too much 50 Shades of Grey meets Harlequin Romance. The books premise of music and the people and places you connect with was a winner. Execution really disappointing for me.

Simsion packs quite a bit into his love story: infidelity, infertility, confidence (and lack thereof), broken marriages, passion, memories, regrets, the need for approval and pub quizzes all feature. There is some clever word play (music keys, the names of imagined offspring), also quite a lot of sex, and food, and wine, and while there is humour (some of it quite dark), The Best of Adam Sharp is a thought-provoking and entertaining read.

The best thing I can say about The Best of Adam Sharp is that it is nothing like The Rosie Effect.

Graeme Simsion writes about Adam - a middle aged man (nearing 50) in a relationship with Claire. When, boom - Angelina (no, not Jolie, but think Jolie - this one's a blonde bombshell from his youthful first love days) gets in contact via email. Out of the blue. Completely. Hmmm.

So part one is should he, shouldn't he get in contact again? Claire is perfectly lovely, the IT job is what all jobs should be - manageable and sufficient, the life lived is, well, ordinary. I should mention that Adam is a music buff of note, and there are references to his loves - some of which I recognised, and those I did, I hummed, affectionately. I also kept meaning to look at the soundtrack, which is a fantastic idea - to listen as you read - but didn't.

Then part two. Let's just say part two gets interesting. So obviously, and this isn't a big spoiler, he does. He gets so much more than he bargained for - in every sense.

I liked this book. I loved the musical references. I thought the examination of Adam's emotions and relationships was interesting. It was mildly funny too, and cleverly written. The sexual content is not for the prude, and I blinked a couple of times and wondered if my eyebrows were disappearing into my (receding) hairline.

So what's not to like, I hear you ask. Well, for me, the unending tone of cynicism that just pervaded everything about this book. Poetic, I suppose, but not enjoyable. In short, nothing like the Rosie effect.

I recently read The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect by the same author, and I really liked them so I had high expectations for this book. I wasn't disappointed!

On reflection, I realise not very much actually happens in the story. By that, I mean it's not action packed and fast-paced. It's a tale of lost love and rekindling it again, heartache and bitter sweet memories. It wasn't particularly a story I could relate to, as a 22-year-old who hasn't experienced life-long love and marriage, but I loved reading the character's stories all the same. It was tense, dramatic and had me on the edge of my seat, for want of a better phrase. I wanted each and every character to have the ending they deserved.

One thing I love in books is characters who are three dimensional, so you learn about their history and feel like you know them. In this book, Simison has done that amazingly, even with the minor characters.

I really enjoyed this book. Maybe not as much as The Rosie Project/Effect because I love those books, but I still liked it a lot.

The Best of Adam Sharp is a unique story of middle age and lost loves that will especially appeal to music lovers. I adored Simsion's "The Rosie Project" and "The Rosie Effect", and wasn't sure what to expect with a new standalone title from this author. However, this book delighted me in its simplicity, dry humor and accounts of growing older but not really actually growing up. I was familiar with the majority of the musical references, but if you aren't, there is a Spotify playlist that you can enjoy along with the book! Adam's IT world is one familiar to me, and I really enjoyed this story and the settings in Australia, England in France.

A quirky book that may not appeal to all, but for readers like me who love something different and appreciate dry and unexpected humor, this is a perfect fit.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an eARC of this book.
This is the story of Adam Sharp. Unlike most romance novels it is told from the male perspective. It is a love story.....a love found, a love lost amid many regrets, a love that haunts for 20 years, a love found and then allowed to slip away again. There is sex. In the last part really quite kinky sex. Yet it doesn't offend because......the entire story is told with almost clinical coldness. It seems that Adam Sharp stepped outside of himself to tell his story, detached from any emotion. Oh, he talks about emotion but he doesn't express his feelings so this reader, at least, did not engage emotionally.
And yet, I found it very readable. I liked the book. Even though I am not sure that it has socially redeeming value, I gave it a lot of stars. More than a beach read? Maybe. Finished it a day ago and it is still with me. So probably.

The writing is lovely but by the middle of the book I was desperate for something to change. I didn't have a whole lot of sympathy for Adam Sharp who was pining for a woman he'd had loved in a three-month relationship twenty years earlier. He met her while on location for a job and then left her behind when it was finished, a situation echoed in in his current relationship in which he didn't seem to be too invested. He does grow up finally and learns the difference between an open marriage and open communication. Certainly there are points of wisdom for couples on commitment, but the music thing didn't really resonate with me.

I have not previously read anything by this author, but I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It dipped a bit in the middle, but picked up again, hence why I couldn't give it the 5 stars. The book considers a subject most can identify with; dreaming about the "what if", this book tells the story of Adam Sharp and what happens when he receives an email from an ex-girlfriend of his youth. I also enjoyed the musical references in the book. It is an easy read book, I couldn't put the book down and I would highly recommend it, a good holiday read or for other times when you don't want anything too taxing,

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. I loved The Rosie Project, so I had this author on my radar for future books. Unfortunately I didn't love the character of Adam Sharp. The music aspect of the book was interesting, but I couldn't connect to his character or really any of the characters and the "Love" story just didn't work for me. I more felt sorry for him. I know that is personal preference, but overall this book wasn't one I liked or would recommend. I'll consider future books by Graeme Simison in the future, and wish him the best.

The Best of Adam Sharp by Graeme Simsion is a tale of young love revisited. Adam and Angelina first meet in Australia while Adam is there for work. After a fast and furious affair they part ways in order for Adam to continue on with his work commitments. Fast forward to over two decades later when Angelina begins to communicate online with Adam and then they agree to meet in France for a week. While in France Adam and Angelina explore the idea of re-opening their relationship but there are some major stumbling blocks for them to cross. This book weaves in a great list of music to help set the mood of the story. Read and enjoy!

St. Martin's Press and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Best of Adam Sharp. This is my honest opinion of the book.

Adam Sharp has a passion for the piano which, one night, leads him down a short lived path to happiness with actress Angelina Brown. Two decades after the relationship becomes a missed opportunity, Adam receives an email that could potentially change his life. Will Adam give up a stable relationship with his girlfriend Claire to chance after what might have been?

Adam should have learned his lesson after Angelina slipped away from him the first time around. The Best of Adam Sharp is the story of lost loves and second chances. I was not really a fan of the progression of the book, as the constant shift in time threw off the pacing. Adam is a guy who could never quite get over the fairy tale, but decades later, he was given the opportunity to explore what he lost. I thought that the ending was a cop-out, as the author wrapped everything up too neatly. The Best of Adam Sharp was a quick read and a good one, but there was really nothing that set it apart from other books in the genre.

4★
What’s a fella to do when the Love of His Life suddenly emails him saying “Hi”, and eventually “Do you want to live dangerously”? In their 20s, English visitor Adam and Aussie soapie actress Angela had a blazing, but short-lived, affair in Melbourne while she was trying to save her marriage.

What? Save her marriage with a hot affair? Mm-hmm.

There are a few times in this book where I needed to suspend disbelief, and mostly I didn’t mind – too much. Fast forward to 20 years later, and Angela is married with teen-aged children while Adam has been partnered for 20 years by Claire, no kids, but not for lack of trying.

This is Adam’s story. He’s an IT consultant of sorts (the author’s ‘real’ field) and Claire’s some kind of business guru with an important career. I didn’t pay much attention to that, nor did Adam – not really (bit of a problem, that). They had a nice life, friends for dinner, pub trivia nights, but they’ve moved into separate rooms at home (the house Claire inherited from her mother).

So, what to do?

“The day might come when I had nothing but memories, and the choice of whether to indulge my romantic side and wallow in them, or my cynical side and reflect on their reliability.”

But then he gets the emails from Angela and gets a bit reinvigorated, begins to jog, to watch his diet, and take a renewed interest in life, which includes some nice Friday night get-togethers with Claire. She’s not sure what’s triggered his enthusiasm, but it’s all good and she enjoys it.

Music has played a major role in his life – connecting him with his father, a musician, and with Angela, who met him in a piano bar where she joined him in song.

“Some musicians lose their love of music, particularly popular music, or it loses its power to move them. They are like comedians who understand how jokes are constructed or magicians who know, literally, how the trick is done. Music never lost its power for me, though I moved from playing to listening.”

If you would like to enjoy the suggestiveness of song titles and lyrics, the author has provided an extensive playlist to accompany the book, since so much of the story relies on who played or sang which songs when and to whom. For me, it was very much a case of 'You had to be there' to appreciate it. I would have missed the significance of the musical references, but he's made a point of explaining, which kind of spoils the mood a bit, I think.

As in The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect, Simsion spends an inordinate amount of time on food and liquor (I think the characters tended bar in those) in France. The many croissants made me drool, and I should be impressed by his knowledge of vintages, but when they drink bottle after bottle from before dinner until the wee hours of the morning, I really can’t keep up.

There’s also a business current through the story. Adam has a pretty successful IT consultancy in England and sometimes overseas; Claire has an invitation to move her business to the US (will Adam go with her or not?); Angela has a career as an Australian equal opportunities commissioner; and Charlie (Angela’s husband, don’t forget him), is a skilled business negotiator, full of advice.

“If there’s one thing you learn in my job, it’s that more information is always better. Always. People think they’ll win a negotiation by holding back stuff, but a lot of the time there are things that you want that the other party is able to give you relatively easily. Sometimes in a way you don’t realize.”

There were a lot of sideline issues like that in the story, and I’m afraid I never cared about any of the characters or felt the passion, in spite of some colourful sex romps and some tender hand-holding. But I did actually enjoy the book overall.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the copy for review from which I’ve quoted (so quotes may have changed).

I was very disappointed in this book, as I loved the Rosie Project and the quirkiness of the characters. The over abundance of music referenced was a little too much for me even though it fit in with the main characters love of music. The main problem I had was this was that it was very cliche mid-life crisis drama.

Adam has a fling with an actress for three months and then it's over. They both go their separate
ways, but when she reaches out Adam can't decide if he let the only woman he has loved go or if his marriage is worth saving.

Turning 50, Adam Sharp's life is nothing special or unusual-he's seemingly happy with his partner Claire, does occasional IT work and otherwise enjoys music trivia at the local pub. But something is missing and not forgotten and that was a torrid affair that took place over two decades ago withAngelina Brown, and his memories of the love and lost love that emanated from that affair. Out of the blue he receives an email from her wanting to reconnect with him. Sound familiar? I can't count how many similar stories happen regularly in real life. Call it a mid-life crisis for Adam-interesting but not exciting.