Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
4.5 stars!
This book gutted me! It was so well done, and I loved the main characters so much. Maggie was hilarious, and I absolutely recommend listening on audio because I loved the narration. I adored the sporadic Taylor Swift references and laughed out loud at some of Maggie's one-liners. Asher was a swoony boyfriend and Garret sounded irresistible as well. I was drawn into this story at once and loved the dual timelines, and even though they jumped around a ton, it all made sense.
The emotional parts of the story were so well written, that I was practically crying through each tough part. Yet the happy moments were so uplifting. This book was just perfect, minus a half star because the ending was tough to swallow! Read this gem of a book!
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy of Maybe Once, Maybe Twice in exchange for an honest review!
This book gutted me! It was so well done, and I loved the main characters so much. Maggie was hilarious, and I absolutely recommend listening on audio because I loved the narration. I adored the sporadic Taylor Swift references and laughed out loud at some of Maggie's one-liners. Asher was a swoony boyfriend and Garret sounded irresistible as well. I was drawn into this story at once and loved the dual timelines, and even though they jumped around a ton, it all made sense.
The emotional parts of the story were so well written, that I was practically crying through each tough part. Yet the happy moments were so uplifting. This book was just perfect, minus a half star because the ending was tough to swallow! Read this gem of a book!
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy of Maybe Once, Maybe Twice in exchange for an honest review!
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Maybe Once, Maybe Twice by Alison Rose Greenberg is a contemporary women's fiction novel with romantic and humor elements.
Shout out to my local library, where I was able to pick up the audiobook version. The narrator Katherine Littrell does a pretty good job, including one point where she sings a little bit.
It took me a minute to get into this book, but it eventually hit its stride for me. It's told in a very non-linear narrative with multiple flashbacks between our main character and the two main guys she made a marriage pact with at very different points in her life. This got a tad confusing to me even though each chapter header tells you what age Maggie is at that point.
The book leans more into chick lit than rom-com, because the focus is on our main character's growth throughout her life (and especially in her 35th year) and how she processes trauma, while the many romances she finds herself part of are solidly present but not in the forefront. There are a LOT of heavy topics in this book, please check the CWs at the bottom of this review if you need them.
One of the strengths in this book is the diversity. Maggie is Jewish and has synesthesia (which is mentioned a few times and then mostly dropped), one of the main love interests was born in the Philippines, her best friend Summer (probably my favorite character) is a lesbian, and there's tons more casual queerness throughout. I also laughed out loud several times, and I cried once, so it easily evoked tons of different emotions in me while I was reading.
As a very musical person, I appreciated all of the references in here. I have had Deanna Carter's "Strawberry Wine" stuck in my head since I read that particular mention. If you were listening to music in the 90s and aughts, there will be a ton of callbacks here for you.
Overall, I think this needed another editing pass to tighten the story up a bit, but I still enjoyed the read. It was a little long and meandering at points, but you can see the strength and depth in many of the relationships here, including between Maggie and her best friend Summer. It sticks the landing pretty well, but I would have loved an epilogue.
Tropes in this book include: love triangle, second chance, friends to lovers, found family, angst, main characters in their mid-30s
CW: infertility, fertility treatments, rejection sensitive dysphoria, suicide (off-page, mentioned), infidelity, anxiety, panic attacks, PTSD, sexual assault, survivor's guilt, depression, grief, absentee parent
I received a copy of this book to review. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin. All opinions contained herein are my own.
If you want to see more from me, check out my blog, Bookstagram, TheStoryGraph, Bluesky, Facebook or Twitter.
Shout out to my local library, where I was able to pick up the audiobook version. The narrator Katherine Littrell does a pretty good job, including one point where she sings a little bit.
It took me a minute to get into this book, but it eventually hit its stride for me. It's told in a very non-linear narrative with multiple flashbacks between our main character and the two main guys she made a marriage pact with at very different points in her life. This got a tad confusing to me even though each chapter header tells you what age Maggie is at that point.
The book leans more into chick lit than rom-com, because the focus is on our main character's growth throughout her life (and especially in her 35th year) and how she processes trauma, while the many romances she finds herself part of are solidly present but not in the forefront. There are a LOT of heavy topics in this book, please check the CWs at the bottom of this review if you need them.
One of the strengths in this book is the diversity. Maggie is Jewish and has synesthesia (which is mentioned a few times and then mostly dropped), one of the main love interests was born in the Philippines, her best friend Summer (probably my favorite character) is a lesbian, and there's tons more casual queerness throughout. I also laughed out loud several times, and I cried once, so it easily evoked tons of different emotions in me while I was reading.
As a very musical person, I appreciated all of the references in here. I have had Deanna Carter's "Strawberry Wine" stuck in my head since I read that particular mention. If you were listening to music in the 90s and aughts, there will be a ton of callbacks here for you.
Overall, I think this needed another editing pass to tighten the story up a bit, but I still enjoyed the read. It was a little long and meandering at points, but you can see the strength and depth in many of the relationships here, including between Maggie and her best friend Summer. It sticks the landing pretty well, but I would have loved an epilogue.
Tropes in this book include: love triangle, second chance, friends to lovers, found family, angst, main characters in their mid-30s
CW: infertility, fertility treatments, rejection sensitive dysphoria, suicide (off-page, mentioned), infidelity, anxiety, panic attacks, PTSD, sexual assault, survivor's guilt, depression, grief, absentee parent
I received a copy of this book to review. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin. All opinions contained herein are my own.
If you want to see more from me, check out my blog, Bookstagram, TheStoryGraph, Bluesky, Facebook or Twitter.
4.5 ⭐️ This gave me vibes of Every Summer After, with the timeline jumps and story!
2.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.
Some words and expressions were used too much. Example : pound or pounding (chest) Pacing of the story is strange.
Meeting Asher about halfway? Weird.
Timeline between 35-39 was way too short. This could have been fleshed out.
The back and forth of time made sense some of the time. Kinda drove me nuts.
In the space room : Asher told her to bring her lyrics notebook but she types in her Notes app?
I did enjoy the characters. They were flawed and real and human. I wish had a bit more of Summer. And Asher’s parents’ reaction to a mental health article.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.
Some words and expressions were used too much. Example : pound or pounding (chest) Pacing of the story is strange.
Meeting Asher about halfway? Weird.
Timeline between 35-39 was way too short. This could have been fleshed out.
The back and forth of time made sense some of the time. Kinda drove me nuts.
In the space room : Asher told her to bring her lyrics notebook but she types in her Notes app?
I did enjoy the characters. They were flawed and real and human. I wish had a bit more of Summer. And Asher’s parents’ reaction to a mental health article.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 ⭐️
I loved the storyline behind this book and I truly felt the chemistry between Maggie and her two men. The structure of the book, going back and forth to different impactful periods in Maggie’s life, was very unique and made for a more enjoyable read. I also loved all of the music lyrics and mentions of songs throughout the entire book. I actually found myself singing a bunch
I loved the storyline behind this book and I truly felt the chemistry between Maggie and her two men. The structure of the book, going back and forth to different impactful periods in Maggie’s life, was very unique and made for a more enjoyable read. I also loved all of the music lyrics and mentions of songs throughout the entire book. I actually found myself singing a bunch
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced