It’s always fun to discover new authors. Especially when you end up enjoying the book. Even though I don’t listen to podcasts myself, I do like seeing them incorporated into books, and that’s the case with Back After This. Today I want to tell you about this book and what I thought.
A big thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an eARC to read and review. This doesn’t affect my opinion in any way.
From the New York Times bestselling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over and Flying Solo, a podcast producer agrees to host a new series about modern dating—but will the show jeopardize her chance at finding real love?
Cecily Foster loves to make podcasts. She fiercely protects her colleagues, dearly adores her friends, and never misses dinner with her sister. But after a disastrous relationship with a colleague who stole her heart and her ideas, she’s put romantic love on hold.
When the boss who’s disappointed her again and again finally offers her the chance to host her own show, she wants to be thrilled. But there’s a catch—actually, two catches. First, the show will be about Cecily’s dating life. And second, she has to follow the guidance of influencer and newly minted relationship coach Eliza Cassidy, whose relentlessly upbeat attitude seems ready-made for social media, not real life.
Cecily would rather do anything other than put her singledom on display (ugh) or take advice from the internet (UGH). But when her boss hints that doing the show is the only way to protect a friend’s job, she realizes she has no choice.
To make matters more complicated, once she’s committed to twenty blind dates of Eliza’s choosing, Cecily finds herself unable to stop thinking about Will, a photographer she helped to rescue a very big and very lovable lost dog. Even though there are sparks between the two, Will’s own path is uncertain, and Eliza’s skeptical comments about Cecily’s decision-making aren’t helping. On the one hand, Will seems great. But on the other hand . . . don’t they all?
As Cecily struggles to balance the life she truly desires and the one Eliza wants to create for her, she finds herself at a crossroads. Can Cecily sort through all the advice and find a way to do what she loves without losing herself in the process?
Review
Even though I don’t listen to podcasts myself, it’s still an element I love to see incorporated in books. Cecily immediately had my attention, because I love her love for podcasts. It’s always interesting when you have a main character who is very invested in the job she loves. I even learned a few things about what not to do before recording with a microphone (like drinking certain things). That aspect was very entertaining.
Cecily has always wanted her own podcast, so reluctantly agrees to doing one about modern dating that has her going on twenty dates. An influencer takes over her dating life and is convinced she can find Cecily her perfect match. I loved the fact that after this our main character has her very own meet cute with Will and a runaway dog. This moment had me laughing out loud!
I really appreciated that Cecily and Will just can’t stop bumping into each other after that. Even though Cecily has been forbidden to date Will because of the podcast. Their banter and chemistry was there from the start. Both of these characters were fun to get to know. When Cecily goes on dates they’re awkward and show us all how dating actually goes. It had me laughing and feeling for Cecily as she goes through this whole podcast journey.
All in all, Back After This is just a feel good book that has us exploring the fact that dating can be messy. Life just isn’t perfect and we have to go with the flow. I can’t wait to see what this author writes next.
Back After This was a fast and fun read and I’ll definitely read more by this author. Do you listen to podcasts? What are they about? Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear from you!
