In a Nutshell Reviews

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Eddie Winston Is Looking for Love by Marianne Cronin
Published by Harper Perennial on December 31, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Fiction

Goodreads

The author of the beloved international hit The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot returns with a funny, uplifting story about the power of friendship and finding love in unexpected places.

Eddie Winston is 90 years old. He has lived and loved, but he has never been kissed.

A true gentleman and incurable romantic, Eddie spends his days volunteering at a charity shop, where he sorts through the donations of the living and the dead, preserving letters and tokens of love. It is here that he meets Bella, a troubled young woman who, at 24 years old, has just lost the love of her life.

When Bella learns that Eddie is yet to have his first kiss, she resolves to help Eddie Winston finally find love, sparking an adventure that will take them to unexpected places and, they hope, bring Eddie Winston to the moment he has waited for all his life.

A tale of friendship and kindness that reminds us that those we love are never forgotten and it is never too late to try again.

Eddie Winston was a lot of things. He was a ninety year old retired professor who now passed his time in a charity shop. He was the caretaker of an antisocial guinea pig named Pushkin. He was a romantic who enjoyed reading romance novels. And now, he was looking for his first kiss. After a young women donated her dead boyfriend's belongings to the charity shop, Eddie was inspired to find love, and this was his journey.

I jumped at the opportunity to read this new release from Cronin. She gutted me in the best way with The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot, and I wanted to experience more of Cronin's storytelling magic. Rest assured, Cronin has once again won my heart with Eddie Winston Is Looking for Love.

The star and heart of this book is Eddie Winston. I immediately fell in love with this kind, gentle soul who was brimming with compassion and warmth. The whole concept of his "Eddie Shelf", a space where he stored items donated to the charity shop by those grieving a loss which they may want again someday, perfectly illustrates the way he cared for others.

When Bella arrived at the shop one day to donate some items, Eddie could sense her pain. He gently offered her comfort and a beautiful friendship was born. Eddie may have been older than Bella's grandparents, but they were still able to connect with each other in such a meaningful way. Their friendship was one of the highlights for me.

There were also flashbacks which chronicled Eddie's first, and perhaps, only love. It helped me understand why Eddie was 90 and never been kissed, but also left me aching for him and what could have, should have been.

Cronin penned a spectacular tale of love, friendship, and connection which really touched my heart. She has a true gift for writing cross-generational friendships and older characters who are multi-dimensional. Eddie's story put so much sunshine in my heart, and I can still tap into it just thinking about him. Eddie Winston is a true treasure who I felt so compelled to protect at all costs. I hope everyone will take this opportunity to meet Eddie and root for him while he searches for love.

*ARC PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER

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Pictures of You by Emma Grey
Published by Zibby Books on November 12, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense 

Goodreads

If you knew then what you know now, would you make the same choices? Imagine having a second chance with the one you never forgot.

From the author of the global breakout bestseller The Last Love Note comes the story of a young woman struggling to piece her life back together in the wake of a tragic accident, and the man who gives up everything to help her.

When Evie Hudson wakes in an unfamiliar hospital room, she thinks she’s fresh out of a teenage party with her best friend, Bree. Except, Bree isn’t around anymore and high school was years ago. Evie had just survived the crash that killed her husband, Oliver—whom she can't remember either. After suffering a traumatic loss of memory, she’s left to connect the dots. But how?

Drew, a promising photographer whose chance encounter with Evie unravels the elusive details of her marriage and her husband’s death. As Drew watches Evie stitch the story of her life together, secrets emerge that might shatter both of their worlds.

This tangled second-chance romance leads Evie to question every decision she ever made. This time around, she’s seeing all the things she missed–and the life she gets to choose...again.

This book started with a warning about the sensitive topics it included. I wasn't sure what I was in for, but once I started reading,  I was immediately engrossed in this tale.

I couldn't imagine what it would be like to wake up and find thirteen years of memories missing. This was the challenge Evie was presented with. After an accidental reunion with someone from her past, Evie embarked on a journey with him to piece together her past.

The story alternated between past and present until we have the full picture of Evie's situation. It ranged from wonderful to sad with many promising moments and bad choices in between. My emotions were definitely all over the place, but there was plenty of plot to enjoy along with some few interesting twists to keep me on my toes. And I have to mention how interesting Evie's field of study was. Forensic linguistics is new to me, and the bits that were incorporated into the story drove me to learn a bit more about it. My one criticism would be that I wanted the story to go a bit further at the end. I got my answers, but I would have liked to see a few things play out on page.

Otherwise, this was a story that hooked me from the get-go. I was truly invested in seeing Evie recover her memories, and I was emotionally invested in her mending her broken relationships. My heart ached for everyone whose life was affected by Evie's husband, and I was glad they were gracious and willing to give Evie a second chance.

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