A review by readerette
You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle

emotional funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This story starts out really painful as you watch two basically redeemable people act viciously toward one another for no apparent reason, for the first half of the book. But please, give it time. Read through all the stuff that makes you sad and frustrated about them and their behavior, and you will be rewarded. 

I liked that this was wholly from Naomi's perspective. I certainly like novels where you get multiple characters' perspectives, but there was something empowering, and humbling (as someone who's made their fair share of mistakes in relationships), about being in Naomi's shoes and still seeing Nicholas's strengths and failings too. There's still plenty of character deepening for Nicholas; he comes to life in three dimensions just like Naomi.

Some of the scene setting and character descriptions are too hyperbolic for my taste, and they talked about having the "kids or no kids" discussion and didn't, but those are really my only (minor) complaints. I also didn't get a sense of what really drove them apart in the first place but I didn't consider that critical. Sometimes relationships just get rocky and it's not clear why.

There's some kissing and a sex scene but it's all pretty tame (and still highly enjoyable because of all of the tension building).
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