The One That Got Away: A Novel
By: Bethany Chase
Rating: 5 of 5
“The One That Got Away” is an excellent debut novel by Bethany Chase. I was extremely surprised to find that the author did not have an existing back list of books as the plot, characters, and the dialog of the book were so smooth and well polished that I expected it was from long experience. As that is not the case, I was blown away by the skills shown by this new author.
The book is set in Austin, TX and as someone who lived in Austin for many years, the story sucked me right in and put me in places that I knew very well. Another expectation? I felt sure that Ms. Chase was from Austin but apparently, she actually does excellent research and has a great hand at putting the right references in the right places to make the book feel like home to me.
The story is about Sarina Mahler. Sarina is an up-and-coming architect who has been in a relationship for the last four years. She has always pined a little for the “one that got away”, Eamon Roy (a now retired Olympic gold medalist) that she had met years ago and fell for and found that she was only a one-night stand for Eamon. Sarina is roommates with Eamon’s best friend and has been avoiding him (and apparently he has been avoiding her) for the ensuing eight years. Eamon has returned to make Austin his home and wants Sarina to do the architecture work on his fixer upper. Sarina’s boyfriend, Noah, has taken a work assignment which means a year apart for the couple – she in Austin and he in Argentina.
The story has to do with looking for what is important in life, seizing opportunities, learning to value oneself, and dealing with almost unbearable grief. The last was the most surprising part of the book for me and also one of the ones that rang incredibly true. While I enjoyed and could relate to much lighthearted parts of the book, how the author described the continuing pain of grief really struck to my heart. Not to be mistaken, the book is very fun and funny but the author deals with serious issues, so it is not a light fluff novel. Due to the subject matter, I would suggest that it is really for adults.
It was after reading the book through that I discovered to my dismay that there were no other books by this author to immediately purchase and devour. I will wait, somewhat impatiently, while she finishes her next book. I recommend the book to any adult who wants a really look slice of life book with a romance thrown in and can enjoy having a little slice of Texas thrown into the mix.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the publisher.
“The One That Got Away” is an excellent debut novel by Bethany Chase. I was extremely surprised to find that the author did not have an existing back list of books as the plot, characters, and the dialog of the book were so smooth and well polished that I expected it was from long experience. As that is not the case, I was blown away by the skills shown by this new author.