It takes just seconds to change your life especially when your driving. A missed stop sign results in a car crash and tragedy strikes. Mackenzie Cooper's young daughter is dead but the punishment of her death doesn't stop there. The media is reltensless, legalities ensue and her marriage falls apart.

Mackenzie, reinvents herself and moves to a new city and changes her name to Maggie. Devon, Vermont seems like the perfect small place for her to live out her life . She had a job she loves, has her own home and a handful of friends.

Her bestfriend's son is accused of hacking, making the media descend on the town , she fears that her probation might be at risk and soon her life becomes more complicated than ever.

I felt very indifferent about this book. I didn't love it or hate it. There was way too much going on, it was as though Delinksy took a handful of story ideas and threw them all into one. They were all good ideas but put together it all became a bit too much and soap operas like.

The ending is predictable and cheesy but if you like books similar to this style you will be enterained by this one.

* I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Fun and fascinating. I love all of Delinsky's books, and this ranks near the top for me. I look forward to reading her next ones.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this ARC of Before and Again.

Mackenzie lives in the shadows after a tragic car accident (technically her fault) killed her daughter and lead to her divorce. She changes her name to Maggie and moves away, content to do makeup for others who are looking to hide their tragic flaws and sculpt when the occasion arises. Surrounded by new friends, Maggie is contented in her smaller life.

But everything gets turned upside down when her ex-husband comes to town to buy the town Inn. On top of that, her best friend's teenage son has just been arrested on charges of criminal hacking. Maggie now needs to be there for her friend, while needing to protect her identity.

Gosh this was a hefty read. I didn't mind the story, but it was soooo belabored, and there was just too much going on. I didn't like all the different side stories and what I felt was unnecessary drama. It was also obnoxious how all of these unlikely events were all tied up far too neatly at the end. Just not my cup of tea.

This started a bit slow for me, but in the end it was a really moving story that kept me engaged. I love that Delinksy’s characters are believable and no different than the average person. That’s what makes their plight, reactions, and experiences so realistic and relatable.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this review opportunity.

Before and Again is one of those get-lost-in-a-book reads. Perfect for vacation, commuting--any tune out the world moment. The characters are believably flawed and the story is current and fresh. And while I started this one convinced I knew how it would play out, the story still held surprises. It's entertaining, but also a realistic reminder that our lives can change in the blink of an eye.

Delinsky always gives us characters to like but who are also with faults. This is a good read and keeps the reader guessing.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Barbara Delinsky for allowing me to read and review Before and Again. This novel devastated me to my core. It brought up so many deep emotions, and I had to fight to power through, which is not necessarily a negative thing in this case. Ms. Delinsky is a terrific writer, and her ability to awaken such emotion from within a reader is a testament to her talent.

Seemed like it took me forever to get through this book, and I'm not sure why. It was pleasant enough, decent story about hidden secrets and figuring your way through life after difficulties. But overall, I didn't really connect with the characters very much and kept finding other things to do rather than picking up the book.

This was a tough book for me to review. Parts of the book were emotionally heartbreaking yet other parts were so painstakingly detailed and slow. It was a bit hard to get into and to connect with the characters. But I will definitely try something else from this author in the future.

Love it! It's a page turner. I would definitely recommend this to my friends. This is a wonderfully sweet and story. The author perfectly captured the best of life that I will most remember.. So overall, I give this book 4 stars.

I found this book relatable and scary. How many times have I taken my eyes off the road for just a few seconds and been lucky enough not to have anything happen. This book is full of emotion and gripping. A great read!
#BeforeAndAgain #NetGalley

Thank you for the opportunity to read Before and Again for review.

My book club met with the author several years ago, reading 'While my Sister Sleeps'. I have been a fan ever since.

I have come to know what to expect when reading a book by Barbara Delinsky, lovely women's literature that is full of emotion, and a story I will immediately be captivated by. This novel is full of loss, grief, forgiveness, and trying to build a new life that let's one survive.

From Goodreads: [When a friend’s teenage son is thrust into the national spotlight, accused of hacking a powerful man’s Twitter account, Maggie is torn between pulling away and protecting herself―or stepping into the glare to be at their side. As the stunning truth behind their case is slowly revealed, Maggie’s own carefully constructed story begins to unravel as well.] This storyline felt like something right out to the news cycle! It kept the pass moving quickly.

A great summer read.

Barbara Delinsky knows how to get into a reader's heart and pull on its strings! Not only does a mom lose a child in "Before and Again," but she's forced to relive the agony as her hard-felt shell crumbles. When her friend's son is accused of computer crimes, Mackenzie Cooper is forced to deal with her past and present lives, including the unexpected reappearance of her ex-husband. Grab a box of tissues, a glass of wine and prepare for a good read!

I wasn't able to finish this book. I kept trying and struggled for weeks before I finally gave up.

From its blurb it sounded good but the writing was weak. Too much time spent describing actions or scenes (like putting on makeup or making pottery) that didn't move the story forward. And all the characters could have had a lot more depth.

While this was a well written book, I did not love it. This was mostly due to the women reacting to situations in a manner that did not ring true to me. My inner brain was screaming “why?” constantly. There were some delightful characters and a charming town. Thankfully, a great ending.

This was a good read. A young girl has a unsavory photo taken of her at a rich kids party and it goes viral. When the rich kid who's involved in the taking of the picture is outed. He thinks it no big deal. He has an entitled father and his mother has a conscience (she didn't come from money). This books shows how the wealthy use their wealth to their advantage when they can and how they pass it on to their children. They don't have to work. Just give them cars, money and anything they ask for. However, the young boys mother, did not come for money, and she does try to keep him grounded. Good read.

3.5 stars, rounded up! A nice read about love and loss and starting over! I liked this one, but didn't love it. Not sure if I just couldn't connect with the story or if its because my own life is so busy that I wasn't able to devote my usual amount of time reading? Either way - it was sweet at times and I am thankful to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

I have complicated feelings about this book. I thought it had a fantastic premise- Mackenzie Cooper is publicly shamed for having taken her eyes off the road for a minute to check her GPS. Her 5 year old daughter is killed, as was the other driver, and her name was dragged through the mud. So much so that her name is now synonymous with distracted driving and the Mackenzie Cooper law is created. She loses everything- her child, her husband Edward, and reputation and moves to Devon, a small town in Connecticut to start over. She's working as an artist and a makeup artist and things are going well, until she sees her ex-husband in town. He, along with her best friend's son who just got into major, public, trouble, threaten to destroy everything she's worked to rebuild.

I liked Mackenzie (Maggie). She was an everyday person who was facing the impossible. This story was very character driven and I feel like we got to know Mackenzie well. Her decisions sometimes irritated me (some decisions that seem obvious to the reader take her for-ev-er to realize) but I walked away being invested into her story. The character that I didn't feel invested in was Grace. Grace is Mackenzie's best friend and the mother of the son who has been accused of hacking. The plot of the story hinges on her being this damaged yet lovable character, but I didn't get any of that from her. We eventually find out why she comes across as erratic and what happened in her life before Devon, but that comes so late into the book it felt rushed and thrown in as an afterthought.

My biggest problem with this book was that it was LONG. Over 400 pages, and there is not that much going on. The author takes her time going places and adds a ton of information that I didn't think was necessary to the characters or the plot. In one section, it took us 3 pages for Mackenzie to travel to the post office. In another we meet a character from Mackenzie's past and talk about his clothing for two pages. It does give you a very vivid picture of the town of Devon and its residents, but in places I found myself fighting the temptation to skim. What dialogue there was was realistic, but there were a lot of internal musings in between. I debated putting the book down about 30% in, but I found I was too interested in knowing how things were going to work out for Grace's son and with Mackenzie and Edward to let go. Their relationship was what saved the book for me. Overall, 3/5.

Mackenzie Cooper's life changes dramatically when she's involved in an auto accident that kills two people but five years later she has moved to a new town, changed her name, and becomes a makeup artist instead of a sculptor. More changes are on the way when the fifteen year old son of her friend is charged with hacking and the media descends on the town. Mackenzie (now known as Maggie) has been estranged from her ex-husband, mother, and brother for years and now they are suddenly all coming back into her life. Maggie begins to accept that the hurts of the past are going to always be with her and that they can make up the fabric of her identity. She can move on and be a much better person, friend, sister, daughter, wife than before the accident that changed everything.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an ARC; all opinions are my own.

I love character driven stories and this did not disappoint. I loved Maggie's support system and how everyone protects each other. This was a little long and surprisingly not as emotional as I thought it would be after such a heartbreaking beginning.