“Evvie Drake Starts Over” by Linda Holmes

At the age of 43 years old, I decided to start my life over. I had been trying to talk myself out of the decision for months, worried with fear that getting a divorce was a mistake. But then, as if hit by lightning, it dawned on me that starting my life over would be hard, but a game changer. “Evvie Drake Starts Over” by Linda Holmes is the story of a young woman in a small town in Maine, who has her bags packed and is about to leave her husband, when she is hit with unexpected news: Her doctor-husband died suddenly in a single car accident. The lack of love she felt for her late husband is overshadowed by the sympathy that is showered upon her by her family and friends. Her best friend Andy suggests a distraction for her -- taking in a temporary roommate who just happens to be a major league baseball player. The pitcher Dean Tenney is suffering from a case of the “yips,” and he cannot throw the ball straight any more. When he moves into an apartment at the back of Evvie’s house, they make a deal: He won’t ask her about her late husband, and she won’t ask him about his baseball career. What opens as a cute-meet romantic plot, turns into something more when they start talking to each other about common worries and fears. I loved the characters and the pacing of this book so much that when it was over I wanted to turn back the clock and start it again. Evvie and Dean weren’t just flat characters on the pages of a book, but rather real people with modern day struggles and dreamy aspirations. Are you listening Hollywood? Please make this a movie soon. Maybe Gwyneth and Brad? To purchase this book on Amazon click here.