Julie Hammerle
July 27, 2021
Entangled Amara
Blurb:
Don’t drink and text.
Even on the cusp of forty, I had to learn that the hard way. After discovering my best friend, who I was supposed to grow old and single with, got engaged, I drowned my loneliness in one too many Old Fashioneds and woke up with thirty-nine responses from every available man in my phone. Yup, I even texted my plumber…and he turned me down.
Apparently, my liquor-infused text said that while I don’t need a man, maybe I’d be down for a constant sidekick for movies, plus-one invites, and dinner on the table after my grueling shifts as a concierge doctor―till death do us part…and was anyone in?
Through the absolute mortification of thirty-seven rejections, shockingly, I realize two men have said yes. Behind Bachelor Door #1 is Rob, my old high school crush: the comfortable, dependable boy-next-door. Behind Bachelor Door #2 is Darius, the exciting, flashy news reporter about to hit it big. Does this mean I’ll have to get out of my yoga pants and actually go on dates now?
Dax, the local bartender who got me into this disaster in the first place―remember the Old Fashioneds?―can’t believe I’ve given up on finding true love. What does a tattooed, broody twentysomething know about carving out a future for yourself, anyway?
Too bad the further into this hot mess I get, the less I know about who I am. And I’m going to have to figure out exactly what I need if I ever want to find a true happily ever after.
Purchase Links:
Amazon | Shop your local indie bookstore
I picked up Julie Hammerle’s It’s Raining Men based on the fact that I’ve loved her YA novels. Clearly, writing a good YA does not always translate to writing a good adult novel but sometimes it does.
Annie is at a crossroads in her life. She’s been without her best friend and roommate, Kelly for months, but Kelly is expected back and life will go back to normal and Annie won’t feel as lonely as she’s felt for these months. Kelly returns, but the Kelly who returns is not Annie’s close friend but someone else, and someone who is evidently about to be married.
Nearing forty, Annie feels like she is totally alone. She gets drunk, sends a regrettable text to far too many men offering marriage. Two respond. But there’s one not on her radar, a younger bartender/musician who couldn’t be right at all, could he? Annie being the wonderful, or completely naïve woman that she is, invites Dax, a young bartender with a loveable dog, Joanne, to move in with her. And right there I am lost.
So, I gots to tell ya right off the bat that I’m an ageist judgmental poopoo head. Younger men are taboo. You are a cougar. They are verboten. I don’t know who told me that. My granny? Anyway, I’ve never gotten over some pre-ordained notion that older women should not lust after younger men. Until now. I think Julie Hammerle just got me over that notion, 100% completely.
Julie Hammerle nailed this one. I completely understood Annie. She’s all over the place and I understood that. She wants to be everything to everyone. She wants to heal everything. She wants everyone to feel good and better. She wants to be their saving grace. She not only wants to heal body, but she wants to heal soul. She’s a wonderful, flawed character, and I understood and loved her. Completely.
ETA: I made of note of the fact that Annie didn’t want to have kids and I am completely on board with that, although I imagine that there are readers who think that is a freakish thing. I admire the fact that Annie knew she didn’t want to have kids. There are many women who don’t want to have children for a myriad of reasons. Go forth, Annie, and don’t procreate!
Dax, bartender, musician is the thing of dreams for nerds like me. Centered on his music, kind, sensitive. Argh. Yes!
This book talks sincerely about relationships and marriage. Passion or pragmatism? Living your life to the fullest or settling? Are any relationships devoid of roadblocks? Is there ever an easy way?
Emotions run thick. I will tell you that I absolutely laughed (lots of laughs!) and then cried, and I can’t share with you why I cried because: spoiler.
Also, this book hit home with a dog diagnosis….and heartbreak for me. Argh. 💔
It seems too infrequent now that I tell you that a book designated as a romance is a must read, but, you guys, this one is. It gave me all the feels and intelligently. I love it. It wrangled with all of my emotions. Must read!
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
rating:
5 out of 5 butterflies