Maybe Next Time: A Novel

I was hesitant to start this book. I just joined Reese's Book Club in November (the end of November, at that!) and my first glance at the synopsis of the book had me feeling... well, hesitant. I'm not a big fan of romantic-type books. I do normally find the time loop trope intriguing: The way one seemingly innocuous variance in routine can have such wide-reaching changes. Or the stories where somehow, some future event is known, and someone tries like Hell to intervene. From that first letter, I was drawn into Jacob's family's life. While I have read other reviews that state that the main character was difficult to relate to with all of her rushing endlessly about and people-pleasing roles that she ultimately cast herself into; I found the opposite to be true. As a mother of three, a professional, and a Mom who wanted to be involved with stuff at the children's school, I find her character very relatable! From the constant pinging of the phone to the character of Dan's color-coded calendar, I got it. I was in it with them. It took me having a stroke at a pretty young age to slow down. Emma awakens every morning to the Hell of an actual "SSDD scenario." I found several of her, "Why not? Who's it going to hurt? repeats, " hysterical and considered what I would do in the same situation. I found the mystery surrounding the kids' behaviors that day intriguing. (It's the Mom in me that wanted to know!) The Unknown Caller missed message drove me bananas until I knew who it was. The ending... Sadly, I believe Dan is dead. I believe Hattie being there was to help Emma and the children just as much as she was there for them to help her. That final day was perfect and he got the extra time with his family. Sad. Yes, very! (Oh, I cried!)Emma finally learned to slow down. She even stopped to smell the literal roses. She learned all the things she would need for the next chapter of her life and the "gift" wasn't to change the outcome. The "gift" wasn't even really hers. It was always his. 10:17 PM - Fade to black.