Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Not Since Ewe by Susannah Nix [Review]


Not Since Ewe (Common Threads #4) by Susannah Nix
Format: ebook
Source: provided for review
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: September 16, 2022

Common Threads
1. Mad About Ewe
2. Give Love a Chai
3. Key Change
4. Not Since Ewe - Paperback | Kindle
5. Lost Track
6. Ewe Complete Me
7. Meet Your Matcha
8. All Mixed Up

Susannah Nix
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):
Tess McGregor doesn’t need anyone.

So what if she doesn’t have any close friends or family anymore? Her successful consulting business keeps her so busy she barely has time to be lonely. She’s got her life organized exactly the way she wants it.

Until the daughter she gave up for adoption 30 years ago tracks her down.

Tess doesn’t know anything about being a mother, but now that she’s met Erin, she’ll do anything to stay in her life.

Even if it means facing the life-ruining jerk who got Tess pregnant in high school and broke her heart.

Donal Larkin would do anything for a second chance.

He’s divorced, his kids hardly talk to him, and he works so much he barely has time to eat. But when he’s united with the daughter he never had a chance to know, he vows to make up for past mistakes.

Step one is proving to Tess he’s not the same unreliable kid she knew 30 years ago.

And maybe if he’s lucky he can win back the heart of the girl he never got over…
Thoughts on Not Since Ewe: Second chances (after the first chance borked itself so hard it probably saw stars) and family, man. That's what we have going on here and I like it. You know, now that I'm thinking about it, the family here comes in all shapes and sizes and is in different places for each of them. Tess is light on family and what she has is slowly fading away. Donal has kids he's having hard time connecting with, but a solid support group in his extended family. And then they have a shared child who wants to see about being a part of their lives.

So, yeah. Family. Donal's family readily welcomes Tess into the fold (even his kids) when they reconnect, which is something she sorely needed even if she didn't realize it. Erin is hesitant and takes things slow with Tess and Donal, but she's willing to see where they can go with their potential relationship. And Donal? He's remembering all the reasons he liked Tess back in high school once they get past the roadblock of old hurts.

Tess is slower coming to terms with being part of a couple. With the things she's had to deal with (both recently and in the past), she's learned to rely only on herself and opening herself up enough to trust someone will be there for her when she needs it isn't easy. There was also A LOT of miscommunication that happened when they were in high school that both Tess and Donal have to put to rest. Usually I'm not a fan of the miscommunication thing, but I thought it worked for who they were in their teens (because knee-jerk reactions aren't uncommon when you're 18 and hormonal). These two had baggage they had to get rid of so they could start fresh, but old hurts don't magically disappear when you've been living with them a big chunk of your life.

A fair amount of heartache, a straight-talking nerd, loss, new beginnings, and two people reconnecting after years apart. *thumbs up*


Excerpt
“I’m just nervous.” Admitting that to Donal took a lot of effort. “Opening up to people isn’t exactly my strong suit, and I’m taking my insecurity out on you.”

He surprised me by pulling me into a hug.

Wow. The man really knew how to give a hug. I wasn’t generally a big hugger, but just like the other night when he’d held me in his arms, I didn’t hate it.

In fact, it felt amazing. A few more hugs like this, and I’d be a dedicated convert to the holy sacrament of hugging. I’d be going door to door proselytizing on the spiritual benefits of embracing physical embraces.

“I promise I’m on your side.” Donal’s voice was low and rough, his breath a warm caress against my hair. “I’m not going to say or do anything to damage your relationship with Erin. You’ve got to trust me on that.”

It was difficult to talk with my heart lodged in my throat and my face pressed against his astonishingly firm chest. “I want that for you too. I’ll try to be a better teammate.”

He pulled back to look at me, and my stomach did another one of those unsettling flips under his up-close scrutiny. “We’re really bad at this, aren’t we?”

I was so flustered, I thought he was making fun of my poor hugging skills and stiffened. “I—what?”

“Being friends.”

Oh. There went my heart, right into my throat again. “Is that what we are?”

“I’d sure like us to be.” His eyebrows notched up a few millimeters. “Wouldn’t you?”

Damn the man for being so likable. How was I supposed to protect myself when he kept being all vulnerable and appealing?

And handsome. Don’t forget the handsome.

Shit, did I really want to be friends with Donal Larkin again?

Yes.

Even with our poor track record, I wanted that. Maybe it could be different this time. We were both mature adults now. Surely we could handle it. We wouldn’t make the same mistakes.

“I’d like that too.” I sounded out of breath, like I’d just done a hill ride on the stationary bike.

“Good.” Donal’s shoulders sagged in relief. “Can we go sit down and eat now? Because I was too nervous to eat much at lunch, and I’m seriously hangry.”



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About Susannah Nix
Susannah Nix is an award-winning author of contemporary romances featuring smart women and swoony men, including the Chemistry Lessons series of romcoms about women who work in STEM fields and the Starstruck series of movie star romances.

Susannah resides in Texas with her husband, two ornery cats, and a flatulent pit bull. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, knitting, watching stupid amounts of television, and getting distracted by Tumblr. She is also a powerlifter who can deadlift as much as Captain America weighs.

Find Susannah Nix online
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