Barbara Delinsky has done it again. She has taken the modern topics of distracted driving and cyber attacks and woven them into a story of rebirth. After a moment of distracted driving led to the death of her daughter and break-up of her marriage, Maggie moved to Vermont to rebuild her life. After four years in Vermont, her life was going along quietly until her friend's son gets into trouble and she ends up back in the public eye that she has been avoiding since the aftermath of her car accident. This is a well written story and definitely worth reading.
I received an egalley copy of the book to review from St Martin's Press through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Once again, Delinsky does not disappoint. I laughed and cried my way through the book and loved the love that lasted.

This book was absolutely amazing. It started out tragically sad, with the untimely death of a child, but moves on to the healing process and the wonderful people who helped along the way.

I was drawn into this story from the very beginning and then got completely hooked. I didn’t want to put this down, and only did when I absolutely had to. The ending came way too quickly for me!

The writing was vivid and well detailed, I felt like I was right there in Vermont with Maggie and her wonderful friends. These characters were so wonderful and I loved them as though they were real. The strength and love they all showed was inspiring. I couldn’t help but root for a happy ending for everyone.

This is a book I will read again and again. I would recommend it to anyone!

*I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher. A positive review was not required. All opinions are my own.*

This was a heartwarming novel about tragedy, grief, and rebuilding a life. With the strength out heroine gains thru the process she is able to start her new life in a new location with old and new loves of her life. This author does an excellent job of weaving the new and old together. Could not put it down.

I don’t normally read books that deal with tragedies about children. However, this book was filled with so much hope that I found I couldn’t put it down. The author accurately describes the feelings that so envelop us when faced with life’s issues. The pain of loss this mother felt, her anxiety and despair came through in spades. So, too, did her strength in rebuilding another life for herself albeit while an burying her grief.

Classic Barbara Delinsky novel of the emotional responses to tragedy and overcoming loss to a better life ahead.

Maggie Reid, makeup artist, has made a life for herself in Devon, Vermont, a town that attracts a lot of people who need a fresh start, no questions about the past ever asked. Her best friend, massage therapist, Grace Emory works at the Spa with Maggie and has her own secrets.

Maggie's unraveling begins when Grace's 15 yr old son, Chris, is charged with hacking, forcing Maggie chose to hide to protect herself or to stand with her friend and risk exposure. Complicating the issue is the arrival of Ned Cooper, head of the group who just purchased the Devon Inn & Spa.

Maggie must confront her past actions, and forgive herself as well as those who abandoned her in her darkest days before so she can face trying again to have a full life that includes the love of others.

It seems like it has been years since I last read Barbara Delinsky novel with her unique stories dealing with family tragedies and redemption. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the characters.

Wasn't sure when this started- but I was captivated once I got started. The horror the the accident and the repercussions, lasting for a painfully long time. As I learned about Maggie, her love for clay sculpture and makeup, I learned a lot about what she did, how she tried her way for a terrifying and crushing reality. I loved the way the first part of the book was written.

I really didn't like the second half of the story, though. It was unrealistic in way too many ways. The obvious set up of her friend, and her son, the skanky probation officer and for God's sake, the utterly unrealistic once and future husband. That guy does not exist, sorry to say. That lack of credulity did spoil the rest of the story- I sped through it to see what happened, who was the good guy and who was the enemy.
Fairy tale happy endings are normally great, but I felt as if I needed a shot of insulin for all the sugar in this one.
A talented writer, and a strong opening to a fascinating concept- a disappointingly banal ending.

Barbara Delinksy does it again! This page turning drama reminded me of why I love Delinksys writing and why she is one of my one click authors.

I have always enjoyed this author’s books, great storytelling, and wonderful characters. But this book seemed deeper, more emotional, really touching the heart, thought provoking and with amazing characters. I fell in love with Edward who was so real, honest, charismatic with a loving heart and a pure soul. A tragic start to the story, with the death of a five year old girl. Maggie was distracted for a moment, missed a stop sign and there was a crash and her daughter was killed. But this story is not just about the death. It starts with Maggie eventually moving away, hiding and building a life for herself that had nothing to do with her previous life. Maggies grief is deep, constantly there along with guilt and blame. But the story builds, eventually allowing accceptance of the death, forgiveness of herself and her ex-husband and her mother. This is a wonderful moving story that I truly loved and it moved me to tears more than once.

I tried and tried but I just couldn't get into the book , I didn't like the way it was written and the lead character Maggie just annoyed me.

3.5 stars for me.

This was a great book for me to just slow down and remember why I enjoy reading. The pace was perfect and I enjoyed the story. I have gotten used to books being fast paced and filled with so my drama so I forgot what is was like to really slow down and get sucked into a story. The plot was well thought out and the characters, main and side, were well developed. I loved seeing the growth and forgiveness in this book. It was a great reminder that we all could use a little forgiveness in our lives.

Before and Again is Barbara Delinsky at her best. The title, Before and Again intrigued me. The “before” I understood to be the bad events. The word “again” though made me think that the “before” would be happening a second time. This I did not want. I looked up the definition of “again,” a word I thought I knew. One definition is “anew.” That is when I understood the title.

Other reviewers have written about the plot and characters, so I will not spend much time on them. You can read those reviews. What I will say is the character development left me wanting more, especially with Edward and Maggie’s mother. Maybe we will see more of those characters one day.

Delinsky fans will be quite happy with Before and After. I certainly was.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for my honest review. Thank you.

A woman starts her life anew after a tragic event, leaving behind her family. When the son of her best friend commits a crime, she becomes part of the investigation and is unable to continue to hide. She finds that running isn't the answer and things aren't always what they appear to be.
A predictable title with just enough intrigue to make it appealing to most audiences. Not a deep read, but definitely a title worth the time..

I am finally allowing myself to not finish a book that I am not enjoying. BEFORE AND AFTER is going in my new DNF pile. There is a vast readership for this type of book. It's just not my taste.

Being able to start over again is something that a lot of people wish they could do. If you get the chance make sure you don't waste it. Maggie and Ned took advantage of their second chance and made it better than ever.

I've always loved Barbara Delinsky and she scores again with this story of redemption and healing. Mackenzie Cooper suffered great tragedy and loss. She rebuilt her life as Maggie Reid in a town where many of the residents are hiding from losses and/or events in their past. Eventually, she and those closest to her find their way to forgiveness and learning to celebrate life, not dwell on loss. They come out of their heartaches stronger, both individually and in relationship.
It's a powerful tale, told through realistic, flawed characters (just like all of us) and carries a message that most of us can stand to hear, even if our tragedies aren't as profound as Maggie's. I finished the book in one sitting. Even knowing that a HEA was going to be the outcome, I couldn't wait to see how it all worked out.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press in exchange for a honest review.

This was the first Barbara Delinsky novel I’ve read and while I did enjoy it the book was not one I would normally choose. Her books are very similar to Nicholas Sparks novels (romance plus tragedy) so it’s not really the type of novel that will throw you for a loop with a plot twist but it was a comfortable read. Honestly, I won’t say I’ll never read another Delinsky book again but i probably won’t reach for another of her books anytime soon.

This is the first book that I have read by this author. It was a heartbreaking, thought provoking, hopeful, and romantic read. I have read about real life people who have had the children die in accidents. I have heard about how many marriages and families are broken up after that happens. This story starts off with the accident, and then jumps ahead five years to show the aftermath, offer insight, and ask what if after time passes they get a second chance.

Margaret Cooper is now Maggie Reid (her maiden name), divorced, remaking herself in a small town, where no one knows her past. She meets other people also drawn to Devon to remake themselves, while keeping their secrets hidden. No questions asked, until a hacker is identified and a trial about to begin that will shake up the town and Maggie's secrets.

Maggie can only sculpt teapots and other knickknacks now, but has become a makeup artist involved with her clients, and a friend to Grace, the massage therapist. Grace is fearful since her son was identified as the hacker and a trial is underway. But as the story continues, Maggie's secrets are threatening to come to the surface as are Grace's. Their worst nightmares might be their chances to finally be free after years of hiding.

This was a story of resilience, of being willing to change, of learning to forgive, of romance, and of second chances. I appreciated that her loss was faced finally and not swept aside or minimalized in this story. Mothers and daughters. Mother and son. Broken families.

When past relationships resurface, it added another dimension to the story. The relationships have been tempered by time, the initial grief has worn off, and new perspective has been gained. The lack of communication that stifled her marriage, strained her relationships with her mother and brother, now get a chance to be looked at. Her guilt and remorse for her role in her daughter's accident is her cross to bear as is the scar from it. At some point she has to decide whether she is stuck in the past, or if she is willing to create a future that includes her daughter's memory and allows her to live and love in the present.

The title fits perfectly. There is the before and now there is the again. With an 80% divorce rate for couples after a child dies, Maggie and Ned have to figure out whether they will remain part of the stats and finally move one, or find a way to grieve and move forward together. I enjoyed her brother, Liam, showing up the way he did. But the secondary character that offered the most insight for me was her mother.

This had a lot of depth, gave me a lot to think about, had me in tears at times, and left me satisfied at the end that a terrible thing can happen, but it is up to you whether it ruins your life or you choose to find a way to save it.

Note: I received an advance reading copy from NetGalley. This is my honest review. I would like to read more from this author.

I really didn’t know what to expect when I started reading this, I thought ok, this is a story of a devastating loss of a child and how the main character overcomes her grief.’ But, what I got was so much more.
Maggie lost everything and started her new life in a new place just to exist not expecting anything from anyone. After a few years, she gains the respect of people who know nothing of her past and due to a massive media frenzy which surrounds a new friend, her past comes to the forefront. This is how she survives her unimaginable loss and at the same time shares her ability of understanding other people’s feelings and acceptance of who she is now and gradually letting family, her ex and friends from the past back into her life. A thought provoking, emotional journey of loss and forgiveness.
One negative; I found in the beginning, the descriptions were too long winded and at times repetitive and I kept losing interest, but I’m so glad I stuck with it. I look forward to reading more of this author’s work.

Great read by a great author. A mystery of sorts, a heartbreaking loss,a shattered marriage and picking up the pieces. A new life, an old love, loyal friends and a family coming together. This story offered a bit of all these things and so much more. This book was hard to put down.