The Plan, by Ella James

Publication: HEA Press, LLC; November 26, 2017

bbcbc-the2bplan2bebook2bcover About the book:

You’ve heard this story before. Woman feels her biological clock ticking and gets someone to knock her up.

Not for love, for baby.

Crazy, right?

That’s what I thought.

Then I found out my fiancé had a vasectomy. The life I thought I had? Nope. Suddenly I’m 33, and I don’t even have a kissing buddy.

When my mom’s health takes a turn and I wind up back in my hometown of Fate, Alabama, I tell myself to leave things up to…well, you know.

Then I see Gabriel McKellan. He’s Fate’s most famous son, a bestselling author who is beautiful, complicated, and living just below me. In addition to his plus-sized brain, Gabe’s well-endowed in other ways and great in bed to boot. I would know. He’s my ex-husband.

When I suggest The Plan, I don’t imagine that he’ll take the bait. It’s been ten years, and we don’t work. But Fate has other plans for both of us.

My Review:

The Plan is an emotionally charged, second chance romance between Marley and Gabe. After a whirlwind Vegas wedding, the two ended up divorced and went their separate ways. Years later when Marley decides to move home to Fate, Alabama, she finds herself renting space in the same house as her ex, Gabe. Over the years, Gabe has become a successful writer, but also suffered hardship involving an ex-girlfriend. Marley has become a doctor but has been unlucky in love and especially unlucky in achieving her true dream – to become a mother. After some serious nastiness and hate between Marley and Gabe, the ice starts to thaw a bit as their relationship changes.

First of all, I really enjoyed this unique novel, primarily because it touched on so many different situations and emotions. I have to admit that I struggled with both characters at first, and especially some of the plot structure. A lot was left to the imagination regarding how they came to be married and the reasons for their divorce. There were also various things that popped up throughout the story that came out of left field or just didn’t make sense. Like the jet and the shopping experience in New York – who knew Gabe was so wealthy? Where was the older woman that owned the house that they were sharing? Even some of the steamy sex scenes were confusing at times, which probably sounds silly but I honestly had to re-read several of them because I felt like I missed some significant turns in the events, lol. Despite these things, as I said before, the story was unique and different from anything I’ve read, so kudos to Ella James for shaking things up a bit in the world of contemporary romance!

Marley’s character was hilarious at times, but she also confused the hell out of me at times. Gabe’s character was not likable in the least in the first third of the story, but he came to really grow on me. Don’t get me wrong, I truly loved both characters after getting into the story and it I effortlessly became invested in this couple as things changed and progressed. I couldn’t help but root for them long before there was any glimmer of hope. They just had this certain, special something between them that felt like a mix of unfinished business, unresolved feelings, and something new altogether.

I can’t say this is the best novel I’ve read lately, but it was good and I’m certainly happy to have read it. As I said before, it’s different in a lot of ways, so if you’re feeling in a rut lately with your reading, give this one a try!

*Thanks to Give Me Books Promotions for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!