book provided by NightOwlEmily was born and raised in her home town. She has carried a secret from everyone for 21 years. No one knew, not even her ex-husband. When her past starts to catch up with her she tries with all her might to keep her secret. The thing is she is given a small gift in her parents’ house. She has to decide if keeping her secret is the best thing for everyone. Or to tell it before everyone finds out on their own. Ben came back to town after almost 21 years of being gone. He was hired to fix up a house so that it could be put on the market to sell. He did not know that his past would come back to bite him in the butt. He did not know that he would have to face some very upsetting things. He had to decide if being lied to was less than losing the one he loved for a second time. He had to decide if love was worth fighting for. The whole book was about family and dealing with the past to move forward. Being able to move forward from hurt and lies is what the book was about. Ben and Emily were both hurt because of a major misunderstanding on both of their parts. They both needed to decide if they could move forward again or have broken hearts forever. I was completely surprised by the little twist that the author threw in. At first I did not know if I liked it, but the more I read, the more I understood why it was there. I actually looked forward to those parts. It gave more insight on what happened. It also helped Emily realize what she had and will need to fight to keep. I was blown away on what and how the author wrote. I was amazed by her descriptions and how she threw things in the book that made you fall in love with the characters. She wrote a book that made y9ou feel for the characters and made you think. She made you think about how your life was and what is worth fighting for. I am defiantly going to look for more books by this author. I would love to read what else she as written. I loved Sharla Lovelace's first book The Reason Is You, and she did it again. She manages to pull you into the story with her main character who is telling it in the first person partly because Emily is just so darn down to earth and real. This book is not YA, Emily is 40 and has a grown daughter. She is divorced and a fairly successful realtor who works out of her home. Her ex is rather a jerk and she caught him cheating on her some years ago.The story begins when Emily finds out that her mother's house is up for sale and not only that, is listed with the woman her husband cheated with. The discussions between Emily, her sister Holly, and her mother are priceless, and of course we know Em's feelings throughout. This is the home where they grew up, the home where their now deceased father lived with their mom, and they expected mom to live there forever. Surprise surprise when mom actually would like a different life for herself. They experiene so much shock that all those old memories are tied up in a home they all shared. But there is much more to this story, because Em has a secret that only she and her sister share. Enter the man her mom has hired to fix up the house for the sale, Ben. Emily is in total shock when she sees him because 20 years previously he simply walked out of her life and she had never seen him again. They were childhood friends - best friends even though she was dating her ex back through high school. Then right when she needed Ben he was gone. I just do not want to do spoilers here because so much of this the reader needs to find out as they read. So I will say this much about Emily and Ben. Their relationship is very shaky and both are harboring some kind of resentment, but underneath it is sizzling. Em can not get past her anger at his leaving for a reason she does not understand, but that does not stop her from wanting him. As I said, this is not YA but a book about adults. There is a sensual scene with the two of them dancing that is really hot. It is not smutty but there is sex - I described it to a friend as a YA book about adult emotions and actions. Not sure that makes sense but it did to me. Ben is a worthy book crush and Emily's story is often sad and frustrating, but she has a journey to make to find what she really wants. Her secret which I am not going to go into here is a big one and many people can be hurt if it is revealed. Okay, but there is also a supernatural twist too. When Emily is in her mother's house she feels like she may pass out, and suddenly she is in the past. The first time she observes her parents as newly weds. She can see and hear them but they can not see her and she can not move from the spot she was standing in. When she comes out of the trance only ten seconds or so have passed and yet it seemed like over half an hour. This happens a number of times as she learns things about her family as well as about herself and Ben. All in all it is the writing that makes this a great read and that makes you want so much for Emily and Ben to figure all this out and be together. And I loved that this is a stand alone book just as this author's previous book was. I'll read whatever she writes next!
What do You think about Before And Ever Since (2012)?
It was a great rainy weekend read. Brings back memories of first love.
—jaymiller
OH. MY. GOD. This book made me teary! I loved it so much. WOW.
—Juan
The book was good but the ending left to much unresolved.
—eyesaucer
