MAYBE IT'S FATE by Heidi McLaughlin

 3* Worth a read for the decency that there is in people, still, but the tale missed the mark for me because Miri just faded away too quickly and emotionlessly. 

There's not been a book that I've not enjoyed by this author until now, sadly. It was still very readable but I expected to be in tears for most of it, yet wasn't. I found it far too lite on emotions, especially given that there were 2 kids who lost a mum here, but the focus seemed all Bestie's Feelings, Bestie's Feelings, Bestie's Feelings. And I didn't see or feel any spark between her and Weston, although I could see why the author paired them up.

For me, the teen-Miri part got hinted at then totally skipped some 16/17 years. I'd have thought being dumped by her boyfriend when she told him she was pregnant might have made her wise to him, but nope, she let him back into her life only for history to repeat itself and for her eldest child to be hurt, smd abandoned twice. Then, we found that she'd ignored medical symptoms until when she got a diagnosis, there was nothing that could be done for her, then she was gone. Quickly, quietly, without much in the way of emotion, except from Bestie and her Feelings. It was just too much 'Bestie and her Feelings' to be a healthy thing or a balanced thing.

Bringing in the estranged grandparents for that aspect to simply fade away felt unnecessary and just adding something inorganic. 

The tale does end well, fairytale-like, because both Bestie and Weston are pretty well off and can make it all happen. I'd still read more from this author but this one was a letdown compared to Heartbreak Hill and Before I'm Gone, both of which had me in tears knowing there wouldn't be HEAs for everyone.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Montlake for my reading pleasure. 


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