Then There Was You by Mona Shroff

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The wrong man never felt so right.

When helicopter medic Daniel Bliant answers an emergency call at Phil’s Bar, he can’t believe who the bartender is: the beautiful woman he saw in his ER months before and hasn’t been able to stop thinking about. He should forget her. After all, he knows he’s damaged goods. But Annika is intelligent, fun and totally stunning—the breath of life he desperately needs after the incident that left him shattered.

Annika Mehta is doing just fine. She loves her job as a kindergarten teacher, even if the pay is low and she has a side gig working at Phil’s. At least the bar owners are more like family. Sure, she’s reeling from a bad breakup and the terrible event that caused it, but she’s fine. Really. What she doesn’t need is Daniel. He’s wrong for her in every single way—so why is their chemistry off the charts?

Source: Netgalley; ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Goodness, Shroff has written an achingly tender story about two people who have experienced the kind of pain you don’t wish on anyone, and each has dealt with it differently. It's not for the faint of heart and my review will contain some spoilers.

From the onset, Then There Was You seems like a sweet romance. Annika is excitedly preparing for her first day as kindergarten teacher and Daniel is completely immersed in his work. Beneath the surface, though, lies immense pain. Annika suffered a miscarriage months ago and her fiance at the time broke up with her shortly after. Daniel was working in the ER that day when Annika was brought in and helped comfort her, though she doesn't remember him there. Her pain echoed everything that Daniel had lost years before when his daughter was gunned down during a school shooting. It so happens that the school is where Annika currently teaches. Where Annika has been working at processing her loss and grief, Daniel has simply resorted to shoving it away somewhere and instead, drowns himself in work. Daniel has often thought of Annika since that day in the ER and when he finally sees her at a medical emergency he's called to, he feels relief but also curiosity. There's an inexplicable pull there that he can't ignore, and so he quietly inserts himself into her orbit by starting to frequent the bar she works at part time.  He knows he should be upfront with her about their previous meeting but he's not sure how to approach that. Meanwhile, hanging out together brings a bit of sunshine into their lives. 

I liked that the story dealt with personal pain and guilt on a very real level. It didn't feel like Shroff rushed to resolve lingering anguish to get to the romance, particularly in Daniel's case as he suffers from PTSD as well. If anything, I think it's all handled rather sensitively. Also tucked into the plot is Annika's parents push to see her settled with a proper man as they try to set her up with someone they think would be a good match. This would see her taken care of and also stop the endless gossips who've been muttering unkind things about her. The guy they're not so subtly setting her up with is great but Annika hasn't caught feelings for him the way she has for Daniel. But Daniel has so much to deal with on his own before they can move forward together, if that's what they actually want to do. 

Then There Was You is genuinely moving. My one criticism is the misleading blurb which makes the novel out to be a cutesy romance when it is clearly delving into some heartbreaking storylines - ones that need  content warnings for some readers. Despite the sadness that permeates the romance, I liked this even more than Shroff's debut mainly because of how cautiously she tread with Annika and Daniel's emotional baggage. Had she not done that well I think it would've been a different reading experience. Shroff is only getting better and I'm looking forward to reading more from her!

~ Bel

Content warning/triggers:

miscarriage, school shooting, child death, PTSD, passing racist remarks, brief racist incident 

Then, Now, Always by Mona Shroff

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She needs him. But does he want her?

Maya Rao has made her own dreams come true: she’s the owner of a bustling café and bakery in New York and the mother of a beautiful teenage daughter, Samantha. But when Samantha lands in legal trouble over a misdemeanor she didn’t commit, Maya is desperate. Desperate enough to call Samantha’s dad, Sam Hutcherson, whom Maya left abruptly many years ago, and who is now a successful lawyer. The problem? Sam doesn’t know he has a daughter.

Sam has put Maya firmly in his past, despite how shattered he was when she broke his heart. So he’s both dumbfounded and furious to find Maya outside his office asking for his help—with a picture of a girl who looks just like him. But as Sam reconnects with Maya, those old sparks begin to fly. Can he even picture a future with the woman who wrecked his past?

Source: advance e-galley provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Told from two different viewpoints in the past and present, this sweet and charming second chance romance is a heartwarming treat. 

Maya and Sam met at a poignant time in their young lives. Sam had been a kinda-sorta player, hardly serious about any of the girls he dated until Maya showed up one summer as a babysitter for his cousins and he was knocked off his feet. Maya didn't exactly lead a sheltered life but she had always been cautioned by her skeptical mother that men were not to be trusted. She felt Sam was different though and defied her mother by secretly dating him. Sam's mother viewed their relationship as a temporary distraction from his academic and professional ambitions and so tolerated their time together. Reality crashed their bubble when Maya found out she was pregnant. When forced to contemplate what this would mean to their respective futures she decided to keep the pregnancy a secret and bow out of Sam's life without explanation. Years later, single mother Maya is desperate enough for Sam's help when their daughter is in trouble. It's not ever how she wanted Sam to find out but she has no choice, consequences be damned.

Then, Now, Always explores the joys and excitement of young love and what it feels like when you know you've found "the one". Back then Maya's innocence and idealism drew out a different side of Sam, a side that felt more like the real him. They were ridiculously cute together. Fast forward a few years and the sudden reunion is surreal. All the questions, the hurt, confusion and bitterness come rushing to the surface. Sam has a hard time keeping his thoughts together as he helps Maya with their daughter, Samantha. It's clear they still care deeply for each other but it's not something either can declare out loud especially when there are so many complications. I liked that Sam and Maya reunite at a later point in life. Being older and having gone through considerable personal development makes a huge difference in how they handle things now. I also appreciated that Shroff didn't just thrust the two of them back together to pick up from where they left off. They had the time to get work through all the unresolved issues and make peace with the past and what transpired. 

I enjoyed my time reading this book and frankly was rather surprised by how much Maya's mom reminded me of my own. Suffice it to say that it led me to feel a little bit of kinship with Maya. The story also touches on a significant reality for children of immigrants - living up to parents' hopes and dreams. Both Sam and Maya's mothers had specific ideas in mind for their children's futures and being respectful, Sam and Maya accepted what was expected of them. But Maya's reemergence in his life forces Sam to examine his life's work and makes him wistful for the idealistic ambitions he had as a young lad. 

Then, Now, Always is the kind of second chance novel you want in your life - a second chance at love, at family, at a career. It's a second chance at fulfilling lifelong dreams and that is just the sweetest feeling.

~ Bel