I absolutely adored this book! I love books that remind me of Persuasion and this one does, especially of the love that still resonates in our hearts. The tears were there, as was the heat, and it was a great escapist read for these days.

I really wanted to like this book and based on the description, I should have but it just never came together for me.

Meredith Altman is a corporate attorney celebrating her engagement to a hot neurosurgeon who saves babies for a living but she starts to question her feelings for her fiancé when the chef at the restaurant where they're having dinner turns out to be the ex-fiancé who broke - and may still own - her heart. Got that?

The first half of the book is told in a dual timeline as Meredith's past with Wesley, the ex, during her college years is revealed parallel to her life now with Aaron, the superman neonatalogist. A series of unbelievable coincidences and over-the-top events ensue. Wesley is diagnosed with ALS, several people deal with cancer and two others die. I'm willing to suspend disbelief in service of good storytelling and character development but didn't find either in this book. What was toughest for me is that there was no reason for either guy to like Meredith let alone both of them. She's selfish and indecisive and not particularly nice. All of her choices seem to be made in her best interest without any thought for anyone else, which makes her final realization, which I won't reveal, even less satisfying.

Besides some gaping holes in the story (I felt like I'd skipped a chapter when all of a sudden Wes and Mer were not only engaged but kind of bitter about it), there are also multiple subplots that I got invested in that never pay off (her cousin Lana's relationship, her client Moe's asylum case, her parent's odd situation, WHAT HAPPENS TO WES!), there are characters that seem like they're important then disappear or pop up again in odd ways (Daphne, Lulu, and Nicola). and the ending was kind of ridiculous. Even the title never gets explained. I really wanted Aaron and Wes and Lana and Moe and Gladys and even Katie Sue to find happiness - I just didn't care if Meredith did which is the problem.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3

Thanks to NetGalley, Spark Books and the author for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley for the preview of this book. Unfortunately I wasn't a fan of the book or the storyline. It was all over the place & the characters were unsympathetic & annoying. I felt flashbacks in the book were unnecessary & the book was a struggle to finish.

This book was just one big, hot mess. I felt like this book had every plot line that could be used. I won't reveal them because what would involve spoilers, but this book just didn't work for me. Meredith just seems like a train wreck. I didn't feel an attachment to any of the characters, and the book just seems to end far too abruptly.

That’s Not A Thing by Jacqueline Friedland is about Meredith and how her life implodes but she manages to claw it back by working out what’s important. I think it would make a good film.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

This book had a promising start but the more it went on, the less I enjoyed it. It always felt like it was going somewhere but it never quite got there. It was very difficult to connect with any of the characters. They weren't unlikable, they just weren't particularly likable either. I was expecting a great love story but I never felt a great love between the characters. The story was just sad but in an unrealistic way. Overall, the story was fine. It wasn't great and it wasn't terrible.

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for a chance to read and review this book early.

This was my first book by the author and I went into this story completely blind except for the exciting plot. I had an idea about how this story would turn out but I was in for a surprise. It was totally unexpected surprise twist to an age old love triangle and it was a welcoming surprise. I absolutely adored this book. Meredith, Aaron and Wesley's story was warm, witty - full of second chances, lost relationship and what ifs. I really don't want to give anything away but I would definitely say that it's not a story to be forgotten. I fell in love with the characters. Laughed and cried in equal measures while reading it. It was a good one and I would love to read more of her books in the future. I was pleasantly surprised with the ending and it was definitely worth my time. I would recommend it to the fans of women's fiction and romance readers of all age.

Happy reading!

This is a beautiful story about first love and missed opportunities. I honestly didn't have much expectation while reading this book because I thought this was just another typical second-chance romance. There were so many scenes where I felt gutted by the characters. I won't lie Meredith made me wring my hands a few times and say, “Girl please use your brain!” but there was another part of me that also understood her dilemma. It was getting tense towards the end, and I wasn’t certain that it would end exactly how I thought it should be. Even though I felt like the ending was a bit rushed, i would say the story ended fairly.

Overall it's very much a tearjerker, forcing the characters to see what is truly important to them in the worst possible way. Sadly someone ended up heartbroken. In fact, before I read this book I already anticipated that whatever happened in the story, one of these people was always going to end up hurt and heartbroken.

This book will be released on April 14, 2020. Thank you to NetGalley and SparkPress for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review

3.75 stars- I thought this was going to be a romance, but it turned out to be more of a "woman finding herself" comedy/drama. This is one of my favorite types of books and original ones are especially hard to find.
Meredith seems to have it all- a high paying job and cute doctor fiancé- but she is stuck on her past when a hot chef ex-boyfriend reappears. She has lots of decisions to make and this story winds in ways I didn't totally expect. If you like this (made up by me) genre, check this one out.

Thank you to Netgalley for the free, advance copy

I honestly struggled with this book. When I first tried to read it I couldn’t get into it. The writing was just a little stilted, and sometimes seemed like it was trying too hard to be sophisticated. I picked it back up again 3 days later and this time I was sucked in. I was really enjoying it, and I liked the exposition of the flashbacks to explain their relationship. But then the flashbacks went right from their first kiss to fighting about weddings seemingly unhappy, his parents dying, and breaking up. Not even breaking up, just straight up ghosting her. We missed all the buildup of their relationship, so we could comprehend just how painful that break up was.

Another thing for me was that Aaron was just so bland I couldn’t route for him, even though Wesley was a dick to her, at least their was still emotion there. And the more I read, the more I disliked Meredith. She just became a worse and worse person as the story went on.

Finally, one of my least favorite things in books in unfinished endings. I hate not knowing how something ended, so all the unfinished subplots really bugged me. And most of all I hated not knowing what happened to Wesley. It was not the ending I had hoped for. Overall, while I still enjoyed this book, it could have been so much better for me.

I was not a fan of this one. For a romance novel, there wasn’t a whole lot of romance. I feel like the Wesley flashbacks barely delved into their relationship and immediately skipped to their breakup. Meredith was very unlikeable which made it hard to care about her decisions. Like a lot of other reviewers, I think the side plots were left unfinished and could have been eliminated.

Unfortunately, this book did not work for me. I don’t know what exactly I was expecting when I picked it up, considering that I don’t like love triangles or cheating, but it was not this. I probably would have DNF’ed this at some point, but seeing as it was an ARC, I had to finish it and write my honest opinion.

I’ll start by saying that I’m not sure how this book can be classified as a romance novel. I didn’t feel any romance or chemistry in either of the two relationships that are central to the plot, and I don’t think the ending qualifies as a HEA/HFN. You shouldn't have to talk yourself into believing someone is right for you or put yourself through any “tests”— that's not love.

Meredith’s relationship with her ex Wesley is told through a series of flashbacks. This is a great idea because in theory it’s supposed to show (as opposed to tell) us how they fell in love. Unfortunately, these flashbacks were very few, and lacked any important developments. In one flashback I was reading about their first kiss, and in the next it was how they broke up. This was insufficient for me to really understand the nature of their relationship and to feel Meredith’s pain over seeing him again. Another point that didn’t work in this relationship’s favor is how poorly Wesley treated Meredith, and the way that he broke up with her, which should have been enough to end all feelings Meredith ever had for him.

On the other hand, Meredith’s relationship with her current fiancé Aaron didn’t go anywhere either. Even before she reconnected with Wesley, it didn’t seem like she was over the moon rejoiced at the thought of marrying Aaron. And after she meets Wesley, she spends page after page comparing both men and feeling guilty. I wanted to see more conversations, more development in their relationship, but instead the pages were filled with unnecessary secondary characters, secondary plots that were not even resolved, and unnecessary drama (multiple characters got cancer, died in plane crashes, almost divorced…).

The ending was unsatisfying and not just because I didn't think the relationship worked, but also because it left me with several questions. What happened to the case Meredith was working on that was described in excruciating detail? What happened with Lana and Reese’s relationship? What was the point of Nicola? Most importantly, what happened to Wesley?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I did not know what to expect from this book and it definitely went to some unexpected places, which I really loved. Although Meredith was a bit of a mess, it was hard for me not to love and relate to her. Her deep level of love for the people that she cared about was very evident and it made me love those people as well. Such a great and heartwarming read. Thank you to Netgalley and SparkPress for the ARC.

I received a free E-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was about a woman named Meredith Altman, who was once engaged to Wesley Latner, which ended in a complete disaster—one that left Meredith completely destroyed and empty. As the years have passed since the end of her engagement to the love of her life, Meredith is about to marry Aaron Rapp, a former Ivy League football player and a doctor, Wesley reappears in her life at the engagement dinner at a new TriBeCa hotspot, which Wesley happens to own.
When Meredith learns that Wesley has been diagnosed with ALS, her past feelings for Wesley began to resurface and cause her to become all the more confused. As she spends more time with Wesley, she discovers what kind of man her new fiancé really is—and what kind of woman she wants to be. Who will she chose? The love of her life or the man that picked up her shattered heart and mended it?
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The story have a wonderful pacing as well as great use of language. The author did a great job of switching between the past and present in order to explain the inter feelings and actions of the characters. Meredith was a strongly written character. She had a wonderful journey throughout this book of self discovery as well as discovering the difference between being in love with what a person used to have and being in love with the present. The relationships throughout this story were all different and well developed. I loved Aaron and how stead fast he was with the connections of Meredith and Wesley. He was realistic and complex. I respected the decisions Aaron made and understood his actions throughout the story. I also could understand Meredith's actions with Wesley, even though I did not always agree with them. I loved the ending of the book and was well satisfied with how all the story lines were wrapped up. I would have liked to read more about Meredith and her mother. It seemed Meredith never really resolved her issues with her mother and father about her past relationship with Wesley. Meredith also never really talked to her family about her current issues with Aaron, which I think would have helped her grow and develop a healthier relationship with her family. I would recommend this book to those readers that enjoy a romance about the decisions one makes between a past and present love. I can't wait to read more books by this author.

Meredith is celebrating her engagement to Aaron when her first serious love, Wesley, unexpectedly reenters her life. And it turns out Wesley is battling a degenerative illness. Told in the past and present, we learn what happened to Meredith and Wesley's relationship, and why his reemergence is having such a strong impact on Meredith's life and the life she pictured with Aaron.

That's Not a Thing is an interesting and unexpected read. I found the story very well-written, and the characters engaging albeit Meredith, like many of us, was a bit self-centered at times. Before starting, I envisioned a lighter read; however, there was a lot more death, struggle, and illness throughout the story that took me by surprise. My one main qualm was the lack of resolution at the end with both the main story and the sub plots. An epilogue would have been incredible!

Thank you to SparkPress and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This sounded promising, but unfortunately it turned out to be a real slog to get through it. Had it not been an ARC, and were I not so conscientious, it would have been a DNF.

The main character, Meredith, comes across as utterly self-absorbed and unlikeable, and her behavior and terrible decisions make the obligatory happy ending completely unbelievable. And then the secondary ploth threads - so much of this book is comprised of these and none of them, not a one, have any resolution. This was a very unsatisfying read.

That’s Not a Thing wasn’t what I expected, and that is a good thing. Meredith Altman is in college when she first meets Wesley Latner. Meredith is already in a whirlwind of emotions because her Mom is battling cancer and her parents are in the process of separating.

Meredith is a lot of things but underneath it all she really wants to be there for the people (she loves) in her life, she doesn’t like getting shut of what she thinks she knows how to steer.

In the opening, Meredith is at a restaurant with Aaron, her fiancé celebrating with her friends Lana and Reese. They’re discussing if they should ask the restaurant if they would cater to their wedding (Meredith and Aaron’s). It turns out that Wesley Latner is the chef at this particular restaurant, and through some flashbacks, we are introduced to what, how and why Meredith has so much history with Wesley. It’s obvious that they both need closure on a time in their life that wasn’t ever really finished between them.

Does Meredith still love Wesley while loving Aaron as well, and how will she ultimately negotiate through this unresolved mess part of her life. These are questions that she wants to be answered but doesn’t know how to go about it.

There were times that I wanted to throttle Meredith because she seems to make these uninformed observations, never taking the time to think out the consequences and how they would affect those (Aaron) around her. However, you can see that she doesn’t make these choices because she’s selfish, it seem that she made these decisions because she needed to understand where her heart truly belonged. Yes, she did make a mess of things, but along the way, she begins to understand what it is that she wants.
My gratitude to NetGalley and Spark Press for a copy of this ARC. All the opinions expressed are my own.

I absolutely loved this gem of a book. My typical genre is mystery/thriller so this was not something I’d normally read but I am so glad I did. I adored these characters- all them! My heart ached for Wesley. I have 2 family members who have passed from ALS so this hit home. Aaron was someone I wanted to fall in love with and wrap my arms around- he felt like home. Meredith was lovey even though she was messy! The NYC setting was captivating and made me miss home!
Put this on your TBR for April! Thanks to Netgalley for my advanced ebook copy!

Oh boy. I wanted to like this book. I really hate leaving bad reviews, and honestly if I would have not had an ARC I would have just put it down pretty quickly and forgot about it, but I felt a duty to finish so I could leave my honest feedback.

The premise sounded intriguing, very Jojo Moyes I thought (I was wrong!) Meredith is such a spoiled brat the entire thing I couldn't get over it. I really hesitate to call a female character unlikable, because we normally accept the same sort of behavior from men without hesitation, but MAN was she unlikable. Every conversation she has she either gets angry, starts shouting, starts arguing, or starts whining. I don't know why anyone in her life, especially two dreamboats like Wes and Aaron, would put up with her terrible attitude. She makes appalling decisions when in comes to Wes. Truly, just awful.

Every secondary plot has no resolution. Half Meredith's time was spent researching a pro bono case that we never got to the outcome. Her cousin was going through a possible break up, but we never saw her end decision. What even was the point of Nicola? Most egregiously, we didn't find out what happened to Wes. I mean obviously I understand what was going to happen but it was totally left up in the air.

It was a promising concept but unfortunately the uneven characters and lack of resolution just made it hard to read.

I’ve never been yanked around by my heartstrings so much by a book before.

I didn’t remember anything about the synopsis before I picked up this book to read it, and I’m glad I didn’t. I’m glad I went into the novel blind, because I thought I had a pretty good idea about where this book was going, and I was so wrong.

I won’t go into detail here for that reason.

The first half of this book is told in a dual timeline. Sometimes when this happens, I find I’m more invested in one timeline than I am in the other, but that was not the case with this book. I was completely invested in both timelines from the very first page. I felt attached to the characters I was meant to feel attached to immediately.

I felt as torn as our main character, Mer. And that is not at all an easy place to be, not at all.

The first 30ish percent of this book seems like your typical novel. I thought I knew where it was going and I was comfortable with that. And then I was completely blindsided...and immediately after the first punch in the gut, I felt like I got hit again. And again. Up until the very end, I was on the edge of my seat, wondering how and if everything was going to be resolved. NEEDING everything to be resolved. And entirely unsure HOW I even wanted it to be resolved.

I casually read the first part of this book over a couple of days, picking it up whenever I had time. Little did I know that once I hit a certain part, I’d abandon my plan of getting to bed early and stay up all night reading fiendishly until I finished.

aside from the story itself, I loved the three main characters in this book.

Mer is not a main character I usually like so much. She’s almost overly self-sacrificing, greater-good kind of character that can be eyeroll worthy sometimes, but she isn’t perfect and she’s not annoying. She’s just a good person in a really heartbreaking situation.

Then there is Aaron, who seems like your typical almost-too-perfect rebound boyfriend and Wes, the magnetic first love.

There are a lot of typical romance tropes here, but I promise this book isn’t typical. It’s so much more and it’s a story that needed to be told.

I adored this book, these characters, and yes even the heart pumping, tear-jerking rollercoaster it took me on.

Keep in mind there are trigger warnings in this book for severe illness and loss of a parent. I’m not the best at spotting triggers, but I felt like I should mention the ones I did notice since this was an ARC.