Insignificant others A novel

Sarah Jio

Book - 2025

"From New York Times bestselling author Sarah Jio comes an escapist timeslip contemporary book club novel following a young woman stuck in a "time loop" of one-day relationships with romantic partners from her past, perfect for readers of Rebecca Serle's In Five Years and Josie Silver's One Day in December. "An ingenious and heartfelt love story. I absolutely adored this novel!" -Emily Giffin, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Pact What if you could have a second chance to say "yes" to the one who got away? Lena Westbrook, a perfectionist and workaholic, has carefully planned and orchestrated every detail of her life. So when her boyfriend of two years breaks up with her on the n...ight she expects him to propose, she's heartbroken and confused. Lena flees to her beloved aunt's home on Seattle's picturesque Bainbridge Island to lick her wounds and recalibrate. That night, she falls asleep in the guest house. But when she awakens the next morning, she's no longer in a cottage nestled on the Puget Sound, but rather in a chic Parisian apartment-wearing an expensive silk nightgown in bed with a handsome French man who seems to think that Lena is his wife. From the elegant neighborhoods of Paris to the charming landscape of Kinsale, Ireland, to the sparkling skyline of New York City, and many other unexpected destinations in between, each time Lena awakens, she finds herself somewhere else with someone else. In each experience, she's given a glimpse of what life might have looked like had she chosen the "road not taken." And as she becomes more clear-sighted about her past decisions, Lena begins to wonder, were any of these former romantic encounters actually...significant? Marrying the wish-fulfilling romance of Emily in Paris with the high-concept premise of Groundhog Day, Insignificant Others is a lively, surprising, and enchanting novel that explores the relatable and resonant "what ifs" of life, but most especially, love"--

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1 copy ordered
Subjects
Genres
Romance fiction
Time-travel fiction
Novels
Romans
Published
New York, NY : William Morrow 2025.
Language
English
Main Author
Sarah Jio (author)
Other Authors
Chris Goldberg (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
pages cm
ISBN
9780063371156
Contents unavailable.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

A clever conceit enables the heroine of this uneven rom-com from bestseller Jio (With Love from London) to explore the roads less traveled. Lena Westbrook has always been determined not to follow in her unlucky in love mother's footsteps, but her perfectly planned life implodes when her boyfriend fails to propose on her expected timeline. She heads to her aunt's house on Washington's Bainbridge Island to recalibrate--only to wake up in Paris and find herself married to a man she flirted with once at a wedding. It's stop one on an 11-day Quantum Leap--like journey that offers her glimpses of what her life would have looked like if she'd chosen a happily ever after with any of the potential lovers she's overlooked. Soon, she's in Kinsale, Ireland, with a man she met while backpacking, and then on a yacht off the coast of Santorini with another man from her extensive travels. It's a fun and whimsical concept, but even in the context of magical realism, it strains credulity that almost every man Lena's ever glanced at would have been willing to marry her. Lena also doesn't really learn much from her alternate reality adventures; she evaluates each man to determine who might be the one that got away, but never turns that scrutiny inwards. This falls short of its ambitions. (Apr.)

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