Title: Before We Were Strangers
Author: Renee Carlino
Rating: 4/5 stars
Date published: August 18, 2015
Date finished: March 25, 2017
Goodreads
Synopsis
From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist “missed connection” post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City.
To the Green-eyed Lovebird:
We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House.
You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more.
We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other.
Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding…
I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello.
After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half?
My thoughts
I really am a sucker of first love, separated for a long time and how at some point in their lives, they realize that they still love each other. Matt and Grace’s story started from their current lives, continuing to their past, and ended on making things right for their future. Throughout the whole story, the attraction between the two is clear. Yet, they remained unattached from each other. It’s sad to know that two people who love each other loses everything just because of a simple miscommunication.
There are a lot of things to be loved from this story. Matt chasing after his dreams; Grace, and her passion for music; Matt’s mom who was always supportive of him;including the ups and downs of the story. I guess, another thing that I like about this story is how it makes its twists and turns. I never did expect that Ash would come in the end, and how she openly welcomes Matt into her life.
For me, the story finished well, finding the hearts still meant for each other. $/5 stars for this, and will recommend to everyone, who still has feelings for their first love (this might not be the end) *wink*
Books and Misadventures 