Now and Again

By: Jennifer Ellision

Narrated by: Piper Brown

Length: 5 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Unemployed. Broke. Maid of Honor.

All (unfortunately) words that describe Em Hayes.

Without any job leads, Em caves to her mother's promise of free rent and returns home. Her best friend, Nikki, couldn't be more thrilled. Em's degree in Event Management is gathering dust, and what better way to put it to use than planning Nikki's wedding?

There's just one flaw in that plan: Cole Connors. The girls' former roommate. And part of the reason Em hasn't been back since college graduation.

Em's never been able to forget Cole - or how close they were before she pushed him aside and ran for the hills. Cole's never forgotten Em either - but in the past two years, she hasn't given him much choice but to try.

And, according to Nikki, there's no better pair to plan the wedding of her dreams.

Em's usually good at squashing messy feelings, but being around Cole again brings them all rushing to the surface.

And this time, she's not sure she wants to run.

©2015 Jennifer Ellision (P)2016 Jennifer Ellision

Confusing

Although the author made the changes in the present and the past as separate chapters or sections it got hard sometimes to know when we were in the past of the present.
The love story between Cole and Em was great though. They fell in love at first sight but faught it for over thirteen years.
They would circle around each other but never act on their feeiling. Cole knew that Em was his one and only throughout college but they were best friends and he did not want to mess that up with the L word. Especially after Em lost her father during their Junior year.
Em moved all the way to California to avoid the feelings that she had. But after losing her job she came home to Florida to work for her Mom. It took all of the presistent of her best friend Nikkie and Em's Mom to get Em and Cole on the same page.
It was a fun listen to as long as you kept up with what was then and what was now,

I was provided this book through Audiobook Blast.

Great story, but it involved a pet peeve of mine

I really enjoyed this book, especially at first. At the beginning, I was enchanted by Em's somewhat snarky sense of humor and I empathized with her awkward pain when it came to seeing her Cole again - the boy she'd been in love with all through college. I have to confess, though, that as the book went on, I had less and less sympathy for Em. The more of the story of their past unfolded, the more I realized that this was one of those cases where the only real obstacle was Em's refusal to admit to her feelings and her inability to truly connect (one of my pet peeves). I started to get frustrated with her about midway through the book (maybe even a little further?). BUT, I will say that Em had reasons, and by the time I got to the end of the book I understood her fears and motivations a lot better.

On the other hand, I LOVED Cole - he's one of the absolute best book boyfriends of ever! He was sweet and caring and understanding, even when Em pushed him away. He never gave up on her, but he didn't push her either.

This was a really quick listen for me because I was really engaged in the story and just wanted to keep listening (again, especially the first half to three-quarters of the book). I liked how everything was wrapped up, but would have liked if it hadn't happened quite so quickly - things were resolved on pretty much the very last page of the book!

Even though this wasn't my favorite of Ellision's books, I now officially know that I love her writing, and I plan to read all of the rest of her books (this is the third I've read).

The narration - I loved the narration for this one. I thought that Piper Brown did a fantastic job capturing Em's tone and I just wanted to keep listening and listening!

Overall, I give this one 3/5 stars (bordering on 3.5 stars).

***Disclosure: I received this book from the author via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

Try As I Might I Couldn't Get Excited About Book

I listened to 3/4ths of this book. I was expecting the best at the beginning, but I found my mind wandering as the meandering story went along.

Kudos to Jennifer Ellison for putting the time, effort and investment into this book. I admire anyone with the confidence to write. A lot of people really enjoyed it, maybe I was off.

I've listened to Piper Brown before. Her performance is very, very good.

*I received this work in exchange for my review; good, bad or meh. I've written all 3 kinds.

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Heartfelt Story About Best Friends

I really enjoyed this beautiful story. Many stories portray guys as shallow and uncaring but it was refreshing to read about a strong caring guy that falls in love with his best friend in College. It is nice for a change to have the male character as the devoted one.

The characters were well developed and I really immersed myself in the story. Even the flashbacks between past and present were not difficult to keep up considering I was listening to it on audiobook form.

Cole totally stole my heart. He is such an amazing character. Even after all Em put him through, he still loves her.

Em totally lost her way after some major life events shook her to her core. She decided to run and leave behind her best friends.

The narrator did a great job bringing the story to life. I love the dual POV and HEA. The past flashbacks were well placed and I could easily kept up with what was happening in the past and present.

I loved the drama, suspense, and romance!!!

This audiobook was provided free of charge in exchange for my honest unbiased opinion.

An surprising story.

--I was given a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was refreshing. Normally you find the commitment level of the man to be low, but in this case, the opposite is true. Em unexpectedly loses her father sophomore year in college and from taht point on is emotionally removed from her relationships. Cole, a guy she met freshman year and became best friends with never gave up hope. Years after graduation, their friends are getting married and the two are thrown together to plan the wedding. While their friendship never blossomed past best friends, it didn't mean they did not love each other. The question now is can Em get passed her obstacles and see Cole? I know I could when listening to the book! He is an awesome man. Listen and find out how they work out.

Piper Brown always provides us with an amazing performance and this book does not disappoint. She gives us the emotional journey these characters(as well as the wonderful secondary characters) the visual you can see in your mind as they progress.

Review: Now and Again

Was ready for the ending, story could have been tightened up a little, but overall pretty good. Narrator good.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

I wanted to love this book

Any additional comments?

I loved the idea of this story. It's being told in a non-linear, now and then format and it was very refreshing. The narration was great and for the most part, it was a good story. I didn't like Em.

To be honest, I hate angsty main characters and Em had that in spades. I was over it.

I didn't think Cole deserved Em's crap and quite frankly, he deserved better. So did her Mom. So did Nikki.

Many people liked this story so I know I'm in the minority. Still, I couldn't wait for this listen to end so that I could get out of Em's head and out of her world.

Great Book!

Any additional comments?

This is a great book written by Jennifer Ellision and narrated by Piper Brown. This book can be listened to in one sitting if you have the time, once I started listening to it I didn’t want to put it down until the end. Without any job leads, Em caves to her mother's promise of free rent and returns home. Her best friend, Nikki, couldn't be more thrilled. Em's degree in Event Management is gathering dust, and what better way to put it to use than planning Nikki's wedding. There's just one flaw in that plan, Cole Connors. The girls' former roommate and part of the reason Em hasn't been back since college graduation. Em's never been able to forget Cole or how close they were before she pushed him aside and ran for the hills. Cole's never forgotten Em either but in the past two years, she hasn't given him much choice but to try. And, according to Nikki, there's no better pair to plan the wedding of her dreams. This is a great book with a wonderful story and well developed characters. This book will keep you reading long into the night. This was such a great read and full of surprises.
The narrator Piper Brown did a great job with this book. She did a great job with the different voices of each character in this book. It was very easy to listen to in one sitting. I didn’t want to stop listening until the end.
If you are looking for a great book with great characters then you need to listen to this book. I am looking forward to listening to the next book by this author and narrator.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast

Well written. Excellently narrated!

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved the rawness of Em. I think her struggle of letting people in is one that many people face and I thought the author did a great job of showing her growth and the ups and downs in her relationships. That being said, Cole was my absolute favorite! I loved his devotion to Em and the deepness of their friendship. He is funny and steadfast. Just the kind of guy you want by your side.

Which scene was your favorite?

I loved the final scene! I don't want to give anything away, but just know that you will not be disappointed.

Any additional comments?

This audiobook caught me by surprise. I'm normally not one for stories that jump around from past to present, but this author does so expertly and I found myself enjoying it. Each past scene is perfectly placed between what is currently happening in Em and Cole's lives.

Piper Brown's narration is smooth and so easy to listen to. I found myself longing for somewhere to go (I normally listen in my car) just so I could hear more of the story. The narration does a great job of delineating the different characters and their personalities without going over the top. I will definitely be looking for more from this author and this narrator!

I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The Story Lacked Depth and True Conflict..

Any additional comments?

** Slight Spoilers**

Em was unemployed, broke and seemed to feel sorry for herself.
It's unfortunate about her father but I kept asking myself what did it have to do with Cole, it just seemed like an "excuse" to push him away.
I didn't like Em or Cole that much and I kept asking myself, so what's the problem?
Exactly.. there really wasn't a problem or conflict in this story.

The book went back and forth with Present Time and the Past but it was almost like filler clues.
The relationship between Em and Cole was too strained and it took to long for the author to get to the point.
When Em and Cole were in college, they attended a Halloween Party, her mother tried to reach Em, something happened to her father. None of that was Em's fault nor within her control.

**This book was not for me and reminded me of another story that
I recently read, Undeniably You by Jewel E. Ann. It Felt like the same Author with the same "fake" dilemma and conflict. Even the author's names look similar.

The narrator did well but the story lacked depth and true conflict.

Note:
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in
exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."