Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it.
So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it.
And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again.
Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future.
Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed.
After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing.
Release Date: Jun 27, 2023
Series: Love on Cue
Book: 2
Heat Level: Sensual
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Berkley
Price: $10.99
‘When did you get this?’
He looked down at the tattoo, and then sheepishly back to me. ‘About seven years ago. It’s a bit faded now—’
‘It’s a lemon flower.’
‘Yes,’ he replied, looking up into my eyes, searching them. He’d gotten a lemon flower tattoo over his heart.
‘What do you tell people, when they ask about it?’
His shyness melted into a smile, warm and gooey like chocolate. ‘I tell them about a girl I fell in love with at the right place, but the wrong time.’
A knot lodged in my throat. ‘And what are you going to tell them now?’
‘That we finally got the timing right.’
Clementine West is grief-stricken after her aunt passes away and moves into her magical apartment that can transport the tenant back into the past seven years. The apartment transports her to seven years in the past, where she meets aspiring chef Iwan, and they begin a friendship that turns to love. Her aunt always warned her there are two rules to the apartment, and the biggest one is to never fall in love because no one stays the same. When a serendipitous chance meeting in her time pushes these two back together again, sparks fly.
This book is hard for me to rate because while it is extremely well written, it deals with some very heavy topics like grief and suicide. I wasn’t expecting that. I did find that Clementine’s friends provided some much-needed comedic relief. I just wish there had been more of it to balance out that darkness that we see in Clementine.
Her aunt always said that the apartment would take you back to when you were at a crossroads, and I believe that Clementine absolutely needed that version of Iwan. He was kind and funny and brought her back to life a little bit. Ashley Poston didn’t shy away from discussing hard topics, and for that, I commend her. Be prepared that this is not a light and fluffy read, and you will want to make sure that you’re in the right head space when you do.
If you’re a fan of Libby Hubscher and Chloe Liese, then you will probably enjoy this one!
~ Michelle
Amazon | iBooks | B&N | Kobo | Google Play