Can’t Look Away by Carola Lovering just might be one of the most addictive books I’ve ever listened to. Wow! Before I say much more, I just want you to know that this book is definitely NOT a thriller. It seems to be marketed as one, but I’d have to disagree. Big thanks to Katie over at @basicbsguide for giving me a heads-up. Reading her review and a few others beforehand put me in the right mindset, so I knew not to expect a thriller. Hopefully this insight will be beneficial to you as well. So, how would I best describe it? Hmmm, a domestic drama, maybe? A cryptic love story, perhaps? A web of complicated relationships? All I gotta say is that it’s entertaining AF, and super juicy. I couldn’t stop listening! It’s a big ball of deceit, desire, obsession, revenge, and a bit of suspense all rolled into one! Honestly, I recommend skipping over the synopsis, just go in blind, and buckle up for a heck of a ride! If you do get the opportunity to listen to this one, I’d take it. With three different readers, the narration is PHENOMENAL. It was such a great listening experience. Can’t Look Away releases on June 14th, and I give it 4.5/5 stars! Highly recommend!

I absolutely LOVED Lovering's last suspense thriller so I was really excited to read this one. This one is along the same vein with it being part domestic thriller with some romantic suspense thrown in. I thought the character development in this was excellent and gave us a great view of how different (and unhinged) the two main characters are. I really couldn't figure out how this was going to play out and end for everyone but I loved watching it unravel. This was full of twists and suspense. The last bit twist regarding Molly's child was really excellent. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Lovering delivers a smash hit for the Summer of 2022. When young Molly is 23 she locks eyes with musician Jake and it is instant love. She thought it was a one off, but he tracks her down and they both fall hard. As Jake's band takes off Molly feels the distance growing.

Fast forward to the current time, Molly is happily married and living in the suburbs working as a yoga teacher. She doesn't quite fit in with the "yummy mummies;" until Sabrina walks in. She somehow feels connected to her and they become the best of friends until Sabrina reveals a major bombshell. ( No spoilers will be given).

Told in multiple POV between past and present through Molly and Jake's eyes. A story of young love, one that may never be forgotten.

This is one book you will not want to miss.

This book was not what I was expecting, but I loved it. I stayed up too late reading because I couldn't put it down. For me it was not a suspense thriller or a psychological drama. It was more of a romance/ chick lit with a small mystery.
It makes you think about the what could have beens in life and the regrets of a 20 something's life. I found it emotional and happy and sad and all the feelings in between. It was told from multiple characters POVs and spanned different timelines.
This is the second book I have read from this author and both have been 5 star reads so I look forward to continuing to read her work !

It’s 2013, and Sabrina, aka Sisi, dreams of building a life with Jake Danner, the lead singer for band on the rise, Danner Lane. The problem is Molly - at least that’s how she sees it. It’s not the fact that Jake isn’t in love with her. No - it’s that ever since he saw Molly at one of his gigs, he’s convinced SHE’S the woman of his dreams, and now those two are planning their future together.

That’s OK. Sabrina knows how to play the long game and a little “creative meddling” will solve the Molly problem. You see - it’s now 2022, and a LOT has changed. Maybe she can have exactly what she wants after all. What’s the old saying? Keep your friends close and your enemies closer? Molly may not know Sabrina, but Sabrina knows SO much about Molly.

Molly is now happily married to Hunter and mom to five-year-old Stella. In her affluent town of Flynn Cove, where she hasn’t been able to connect with the other snobby wives, she’s so happy to have befriended one of its newest residents … Sabrina. Molly is sure they’ll be best friends. They have so much in common. More than she realizes.

So, basically this is another jilted woman story where the “jiltee” (making up words) doesn’t like getting the raw end of the deal and sociopathically manipulates people and circumstances in an attempt to get what she wants and keep it. I actually found the story quite engaging, even if not overly original. I’m not sure I can wrap my brain around why female characters always seem to be vying for the affections of a man not worth vying for, but whatever. I thought Lovering did a great job humanizing each character, so their motivations, no matter how misplaced, at least made sense. Here’s where it lost a couple stars:

• An OTT dramatic event towards the end led to an overly tidy denouement. It didn’t feel realistic, nor did some of the related conversations that happened afterward.

• Lovering apparently LOVES the “F” word and its variations. The word doesn’t scare me a bit, but close to 100 uses? Pick a different word already.

• Speaking of counting things, there were more than 130 specific product/brand name references. Are these brands sponsoring the book? If not, it’s distracting.

• Disney’s Frozen was referenced 19 separate times. I get it. The little girl loves Frozen. For the love of everything, please stop mentioning it.

• The fact that I noticed things so much that I felt compelled to count them. That’s a problem for me.

All that said, I did actually like this book for the most part and the story kept me turning the pages, so no complaints there!

★★★ ½ (rounded to 3)

Thanks to St. Martins Press, NetGalley and author Carola Lovering for the opportunity to review this ARC honestly. It’s due for publication June 14, 2022.

Molly lives in a quiet, CT suburb with her husband and daughter when someone from her past unexpectedly reappears and inserts herself into Molly's life. I'm in the middle on this one. It was good but not something I'll remember in years to come. Dual narrators successfully add a great deal of tension. The chapters narrated by Sabrina were well-written and gave good insight into her warped mind. Other than that, I don't have a lot to say. It wasn't particularly original and there weren't any exciting twists.

Can’t Look Away is another angsty, can’t tear myself away, multiple point of view piece of work by Carola Lovering. Three and a half stars from me! I kept flipping pages to find out what was going to happen next to Molly, Jake, Sabrina and Hunter. While I figured out part of the twist on my own, it was satisfying to see I was right about it and all the while I was just so damn intrigued by the characters. It does have some Lifetime sort of vibes along with lots of obsession and miscommunication. I definitely could see it being a movie or short tv series.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.

Another winner from Carola Lovering! Can't Look Away is more on par with her debut, Tell Me Lies, which also happens to be one of my favorite books of all time & CLA offers up a look into a less than perfect relationship. I devoured this one from start to finish and cannot wait for more from Lovering!

I was incredibly excited to get an ARC of this book after having read Too Good to be True and LOVING IT and I will say this one did not disappoint! I also love that it was set in my home state.

Can't Look Away is a great stalkerish suspense. (Though I will say for some reason I thought this was a thriller, and I wouldn't categorize it as that but definitely suspenseful!)

Molly and Jake had a rollercoaster of a relationship. I got MAJOR Almost Famous Stillwater vibes from Danner Lane and I was loving it. I did NOT like Sabrina's character at ALL but you're not supposed to. The twist at the end I figured out but it didn't take away from my enjoyment. I read this book start to finish in a day because I needed to know how this triangle plus one was going to unfold.

I will definitely be picking up everything from Carola Lovering in the future!

Thank you Netgally and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love Carola Lovering's novels and this was no different. I was surprised at the conclusion, but won't give it away here. The characters were developed, as were the relationships, and I didn't put it down! Always looking forward to reading whatever Lovering writes next.

I’m not sure how to classify this book. It’s not a thriller and not quite a romance. There’s a bit of mystery and maybe some women’s fiction. It follows a dual timeline and multiple characters through their early twenties in Brooklyn to their early thirties in a coastal suburb of NYC. I found this to be engaging, and I read it quickly, but it didn’t have quite the striking ending I was expecting. It basically just fizzled out into a “why did I read all this to get here?” ending. Carola Lovering does a toxic love story like no one else though so if you love that story type, you’ll like this one.

Can't Look Away is the story of Molly Diamond, an aspiring writer, Jake Danner, lead singer for the Danner Lane band, and the mysterious Sabrina. Molly and Jake fall quite passionately in love but forces beyond their control conspire to drive them apart and Molly is left to figure out the rest of her life. While I believe this is listed as a thriller of the psychological persuasion, it really felt more like women's fiction with a touch of obsession.

I found this author's writing to be quite moving and I felt totally immersed in the story. I would definitely recommend this book. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this advance copy.

The story was pretty good but I wouldn’t call it a thriller. It moved so slow and didn’t hold my attention. It took me forever to read because I kept getting bored and moving on to something else.

I really enjoyed the author's first novel, but I didn't like this one at all. It felt very rushed and the ending was ridiculous.

Thank you to Carola Lovering, NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review,

This will be published on June 14th.

Holy cow I loved this book!!! I did not look at the description of what this was about but I was a fan of Carola Lovering's 2021 Too Good To Be True so I knew what I was in for but didn't know I was going to be this invested.

In similar fashion to Too Good To Be True, this was told from 3 point of views - Molly, Jake and Sabrina. And within those 3 point of views it goes from past to present.

Molly a young aspiring writer who falls for an upcoming musician Jake and they embark on (what I think) is an epic love story that last for approximately 2 years but 6 years later after they broken up, Jake emerges back into Molly's life through her new bestie Sabrina.

Sabrina is the most complex character that I read in a long while! She was the villian right off the back and I hated but loved her at the same time. She definitely kept me on my toes & wondering what she was doing to do next.

"Everything about him intoxicated me."

I absolutely love Molly and Jake together. They had such a connection and you could really get a sense of how much they loved one another. That first love that just never goes away, that is buried deep within you but then something sparks that memory. In the same vein, I also love Molly and Hunter. Hunter was the man that Molly needed & is such a strong good person.

I really connected with this book as I have fertility issues and thought Lovering did a great job with digging into the emotional toll fertility has on a couple without making it too graphic and triggering. And also with my love of music and going to concerts, that also kept me intrigued.

I really thought the 3 point views going between the past and present really worked for this. And I hope Lovering continues to do more 3 point of view storylines in her future books.

The reason why I did not rate it a solid 5 is that I wanted something else big to happen. Maybe Hunter somehow be involved in Sabrina's scheme (even though I was glad he wasn't)? Or had Molly get pregnant with Hunter's baby during the hookup?

I am pretty certain I will be thinking of this book for quite sometime and recommending it to my romantic thriller friends. Also on a book note, I think I really am into romantic thrillers.

4.75 though I may change it to 5

Wow. I LOVED this one! I was hooked from the first chapter & finished in under 24 hours!

From the first time Molly and Jake lock eyes, they can’t look away from one another. They fall fast and hard, but have a very tumultuous relationship. Jake clearly loves Molly but doesn’t prioritize her as his musical career takes off, basically ghosting her while he’s on tour. Their rocky relationship hits a wall when he falls off the radar and she realizes that no matter how much she loves him, she has to walk away. Years later, she is happily married with a five year old daughter, living in an upper class suburb, when she makes a new friend, Sabrina. Molly is blindsided when she and her husband, Hunter, show up to dinner and meet Sabrina’s husband, Jake. Basically shit hits the fan after that, but I don’t want to give anything away.

I loved Molly & Hunt’s relationship! He is such a stand up guy who just swoops in to take care of Molly, and together they build a very real and lasting relationship. Young Jake and Molly is so swoony, and grown up Jake is amazing! He has a LOT of growth in the years between, seems highly aware of his flaws, and loves Molly enough to truly put her happiness ahead of his own. It seems like Sabrina gets away with a lot, but honestly I love the way her part wraps up, too. Can’t Look Away is more romance with thriller/suspense woven in. I loved the dual timelines and multiple POVs. This one is a ride from the first chapter to the last, and you’ll stay right on the edge of your seat.

why my nose was in this book:
- i am a big fan of carola lovering's work and this was another stellar story with a unique plot that kept me on my toes
- i enjoyed the past and present parallel stories between the main characters
- i love a good twist! i saw the first one coming, but the second one shocked the socks off me

Can't Look Away will capture not only your attention buy your heart.

It is a story of first romance, of love, of obsession and even revenge.

It is part happiness, part sadness and part craziness. Loved it.

The story is told from the past and the present and it works very well.

It is the story of 4 people really : Molly, Jake Hunter and Sabrina.

Oh Sabrina. Revenge does not suit you well.

When the 4 meet up in the town of Flynn Cove there are secrets just waiting to explode.

The pages turned quickly and the lights stayed on as I raced to see what would happen.

Well worth the read. These characters will stay with me for a long time.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an intriguing read.

Can’t Look Away didn’t quite turn out to be the suspense filled novel I was expecting. I think I would categorize this more as a woman’s fiction read. That being said, I was quickly drawn into Molly’s story and pretty much finished this book in one sitting.

Oh, to be young and in love, especially with an up-and-coming rock star! Molly and Jake’s love burned fast and bright, like a shooting star. But we all know that shooting stars fizzle out as some point. Now years later, we find Molly married to someone else, with a little girl, living in a town she doesn’t feel she belongs in, at all. How did Molly end up here, and what happened to all those dreams she was pursuing?

Ms. Lovering does a great job of fleshing out these characters. Between past and present chapters, she rolls out the lives of Molly, Jake and Sabrina. Sabrina, well she was a little on the unhinged side, her actions being what I am assuming is supposed to be the suspense part of the story, but for me, really was just a woman obsessed with getting what she has always wanted.

I was impressed with how Ms. Lovering delves into both Molly and Jake’s characters, not only to familiarize the reader with them, but paint a picture of what their lives were like growing up, what their dreams are, and what their hopes, fear, insecurities and weaknesses are. Those last two are really what tore these two apart and set their lives on very different trajectories than where they initially started out. This is a little depressing, to be honest, but then Ms. Lovering finishes out the story showing the growth and healing that has occurred for both Molly and Jake. Sabrina on the other hand? Ehhh… not sure there’s any salvaging that girl.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review

A lackluster thriller. Frustrating characters. The book wasn't all bad but it was nothing special. Forgettable.