The One You're With
Fiction
Thomas Nelson
July 6, 2021
Advanced reader e-copy
368
Publisher via NetGalley
High-school sweethearts Mac and Edie Swan lead a seemingly picture-perfect life in the sleepy-sweet community of Oak Hill, near Mobile, Alabama. Edie is a respected interior designer, Mac is a beloved pediatrician, and they have two great kids and a historic home on tree-lined Linden Avenue. From the outside, the Swan family is the definition of “the good life.” And life is good—mostly. Until a young woman walks into Mac’s office one day. A young woman whose very existence threatens all Mac and Edie have built and all they think they know about each other.
Nineteen years after a summer apart, with a family and established lives and careers, the past that Mac and Edie thought they left behind has come back to greet them. For the first time, constants in their lives are called into question: their roles as parents, their reputation as upstanding members of the community, and the very foundations of their marriage. As they wade through the upheaval in both their family and professional lives, they must each examine choices they made long ago and chart a new course for their future.
First let's talk about how inviting this cover is. It just makes you want to open the door (cover) and discover what's inside. I thought this was an enjoyable read. I loved the way we ambled through the day to day lives of the main characters, even after the main plot point comes calling. The story centers mostly around Mac and Edie, but with some cameos from best friend Graham. We flash back and forth between present day and the summer they agreed to spend apart before their senior year of college. I much preferred the current storyline, but understand that the other needed to be written to add context to the main dilemmas the characters face as the story progresses. While I do think we were supposed to like all these protagonists, I had a hard time, particularly with Edie, who I felt was kind of a hypocrite. It's really hard to go into details more than this because of spoilers, but if you read the book I think you will get my point, although I certainly think every reader will have a different take on the characters' choices. The story is pretty predictable, especially the ending, but honestly I was okay with that.
A perfect light read that doesn't require lots of brain power, but is a much needed balm for the soul. The characters and writing are well done, and the family dynamics were refreshingly honest. This is a hard one to review without spoilers, so my thoughts and the synopsis will have to be enough. Oh, and then there is that cover........
