title: What If I Never Get Over You
author: Paige Toon
publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
publication date: April 15, 2025
pages: 416
peppers: 3 (on this scale)
warnings: child molestation (in past), horrible parents, childhood death by accident and by drug overdose
summary: Ellie is about to give up on her Euro-rail trip when she meets Ash, who steals her heart in the three days they spend together. She has to go meet her parents, but they have a plan to meet in Madrid in a week. When he doesn't show up, she is left broken-hearted and has to follow the path (working at the family's furniture store) that her parents have set for her. Eventually, based partly on something Ash said to her, she navigates her own way to becoming a gardener, which is her dream job. Not surprisingly, since this is a romance, the job leads her back to Ash.
tropes:
- instant-love
- second (and third) chance romance
- childhood friends' deaths
- controlling families
- surprise royalty
what I liked:
- their attempts at being together
- all the minor characters
- how each follows dreams
what I didn’t like: sometimes, they were quick to assume
overall rating: 5 (of 5 stars)