I really really wanted to like this book. When I read the synopsis, I got the impression it was a romance. But unfortunately it definitely isn't. Which is fine, just misleading. I had a hard time connecting to the characters, especially Clara. Who literally cheated on every man she ever dated. And after everything these characters go through, the ending was WAY to open ended. Just not the book for me unfortunately.

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

This was more emotional and dramatic than I anticipated! Would definitely not call it a romance book. Still a good read!

The One That Got Away
by Charlotte Rixon
Arc: NetGalley
Publisher: @Aria & Aries, Aria
PUBLICATION DATE: 02 Feb 2023
Genre:#General Fiction (Adult) #Women's Fiction

Benjamin and Clara met that fateful night 20 years ago.
When I first read this blur, I thought it would be a light-hearted read. It's ultimately the opposite. This book deals with many issues. I loved the idea of a second chance romance, but there are so many heavy triggers in this book that it rubies it for me.
The story started well enough, but the middle fell flat, and I lost interest quickly. I wasn’t loving the characters of Clara or Ben and found myself not entirely caring about how the story ended between them. This book just wasn’t my cup of tea.


#TheOneThatGotAway #NetGalley

I was fortunate enough to get my hands on Charlotte Rixon's novel The One That Got Away and I am so glad I did! It was a delightful romantic comedy that had me laughing and smiling from start to finish. The characters were so well-developed and the story was extremely engaging. I loved the chemistry between the two main characters, and the plot was so engaging I was hooked right away.

The One That Got Away by Charlotte Rixon
(book review - 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
Women's Fiction - Available on February 2nd.
448 pgs.

This very powerful novel by Charlotte Rixon will stay with me for a long time. The emotion of it touched me deeply. Rixon deals with very sensitive topics and some people may not find it suitable. Be sure to read the trigger warnings before proceeding. The One That Got Away will be added to my book collection in hardback. That's right, it's that amazing!

Synopsis:
Clara and Benjamin are meant for each other, but devastating events separate them. Several decades later, a bombing in the city where Clara met Ben and developed mutual feelings brings her back. Clara hopes to make amends for her regrets as she searches for Ben. But is it too late to fix what happened?

Thank you NetGalley and Aria & Aries for sharing this book with me. Your kindness is appreciated.

#TheOneThatGotAway

I tried several times to get through this book, but I never quite made it to the end. The story started off well enough, but the middle fell flat and I lost interest quickly. I wasn’t loving the characters of Clara or Ben, and found myself not quite caring about how the story ended anyways between them. This book just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher Aria & Aries for a ARC copy of this book to read and review.

i enjoyed the dual timeline chapters, as they slowly revealed the past of both of them and what happened between them. I emphasized with Benjamin a lot and I did not think his sentence was appropiate. I did not anticipate what could have happened between them and it made me want to read on. I liked Benjamin but Clara was very annoying and unbearable as a MC. I often could not put myself in her shoes and did not understand her actions, that made it a bit hard to read her chapters. Initially I thought, they have not met or heard anything about each other for 20 years, and they met again now. Nevertheless, I still liked it that they tried to be in touch with each other. The ending was a bit rushed, and I would have liked a HEA ending or more about their relationship at the end. It was a bit uncertain how they stand and whether they are together. All in all, it was a nice read and I would recommend everyone to try it out.

This book followed the storyline of Clara and Benjamin. It jumps around timelines, where it starts when they meet while they are at university, the present day, and then somewhere in the middle. You get a full view of their lives and their relationship, although there certainly are some holes and questions regarding their lack of communication at many points.

I think the one thing that really bothered me was the dangling the whole reason why they broke up. It was literally at the 88 percent mark that it was finally revealed. It wasn't necessary to keep this hanging - the book already starts with a "cliffhanger" where there is someone who bombs a soccer stadium and we don't know who it is (we do find out by the end).

Overall, I liked the story of Clara and Benjamin, even if I did not like the character of Clara at all. She made some questionable decisions and was hard to like throughout her chapters.

This was an okay story. Nothing that really made it special. It dragged at times and i just needed a little more excitement.

Thank you NetGalley and this published for this arc in exchange for an honest review.
The one that got away was a decent read it wasn’t too much of what I was expecting based off the blurb but I still enjoyed it even though the mc Clara wasn’t my favorite.

This was a fine story, just not what I was expecting. Looking back at the blurb, I don't know why I thought it was going to be a light-hearted, this-time-we'll-get-right second-chance attempt to reconnect and build a life with your first love. That's not this story. Nothing wrong with the realistic, darker story told here, just not what I thought I was signing up for.

Amazing book everything you want in a book is here thanks for the publisher and NetGalley for the arc of this book and wishing the author all the best with this book

The gentle pastel colours of the cover of “The One that Got Away”, and probably the novel’s title, leads you to believe you’ll be delving into a classic romance story, but this has a lot more grit than you might expect.

Read it if: you fancy reliving some of your most awful teenage decisions.

Don’t read it if: you want to avoid stories with triggers of sexual abuse and suicide bombing.

I finished this book in around a day an a half, and in a classic Charlotte Rixon style, the prose is unfussy, to-the-point and fast-paced. We follow the lives of two teenage lovers through three points in time, listening to how they individually experience the ups and downs of university life, through to adulthood.

Many have complained that one of the main characters, Clara, is deeply unlikeable, but I found her manic and unreasonable reactions very evocative of my teenage experiences with relationships! Some of the ways in which she allows people to treat her really hit home.

There are several disturbing twists in this book, and your sympathies jump around too. I still don’t quite know how I feel about it all, but I’m desperate for a sequel, please Charlotte?

With thanks for Netgalley and Aria & Aries for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 30%

I was really looking forward to this one, but it ended up making me dread reading. The characters were irritating, especially the female mc (I've already forgotten her name). Both sides of the relationship just felt so overdramatic. Even worse, there was no chemistry between them. I could continue reading this, but I don't want to spend any more time torturing myself

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review

Clara, a well-to-do girl from London, meets Benjamin, a working class boy from Newcastle in their first year at university. They quickly develop a profound, if not quirky, love, doomed to fail. Fast forward 20 years and Clara is a reporter in a newsroom, she hears of a bomb explosion at the Newcastle Football Stadium, and knowing that Benjamin would never miss a match, feels compelled to travel there to find him. Told from alternating time periods and alternating viewpoints, this novel does a nice job going back and forth between the present and the past. Clara and Benjamin’s love is tangible and seems so solid, we are left wondering throughout what could have happened to their love. I found this book very compelling and hard to put down. Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the advanced copy, which comes out next year. For romance fans, I would say this is a compelling read.

Wow, I loved this book and honestly raced through it in 48 hours.

Firstly, this book isn't a romance. It's about missed chances, what if's, and how our lives can change in a single moment.

Ben and Clara fell in love at university, but despite the fact they both felt the other was "the one" a freak accident kept them apart for 20 years.

Told in multiple timelines, we learn about events that have shaped each of their lives. Ben, a single father, and Clara in an unhappy marriage.

This book does contain some subjects that may be triggering; suicide bombing, sexual abuse, manslaughter. However for me, it's an absolute triumph with a hopeful ending that left me in floods of tears.

I mean i didn't hate it but it didn't live up to the expectation I had from reading the blurb. It was a pleasant read though.

I’m a bit on the fence with this one, I can’t say I didn’t enjoy it when I was reading it and I was intrigued to find out what was going to happen to the characters but I didn’t really like the main character which I always find difficult, it then makes the book feel just a little less exciting. Still an enjoyable read just didn’t quite hit the spot for me!

Despite some dark topics, the characters were well written and I found myself wondering what was going to happen with the two lead characters. Claire was hard to relate to, coming off as selfish, insecure, and possessive at times. There were characteristics that I could not relate to between the couple, but I still wondered what was going to happen with them.

Thank you to netgalley, the author, and the publisher for the copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

I gobbled it up despite there being triggering topics. I felt invested in the lives of Clara and Benjamin in a way I haven’t with a story for a good while. Whilst there are lots of sensitive subjects, the author deals with it in a manner that doesn’t put you off ultimately what the story is about. I thought it was superb storytelling and I’m glad I requested to read it.