If You Ask Me Review

 Hello, all!

Big thanks to the publisher for the copy of If You Ask Me by Libby Hubscher!

Pub Date: 3-8-22
Adult - Contemporary

To the outside world, Violet Covington seems to have it all. A beautiful home, a happy marriage, and the most popular advice column in North Carolina, Dear Sweetie. But everything comes crashing down when Violet finds her husband, Sam, in bed with their lycra-obsessed neighbor. Furious and heartbroken, Violet vents her frustrations in her column and ends up going viral in the process.

When Violet burns all of Sam's belongings in a late-night bonfire in her front yard, she meets a handsome firefighter named Dez, who ignites something in her that she's never felt before. The pair have an instant connection, but Violet is torn when Sam starts trying to win her back. Violet finds herself pulled in all directions, and the more stressed she gets, the blunter and more bitter her advice seems to become. With everything hanging on the line, Violet will have to decide how she wants her story to play out.

I thought this sounded so cute, but it ended up not being for me. It was over-written to the point where it felt like it took five paragraphs to say one thing. The characters were one-dimensional and uninteresting. I didn't feel a connection to any of them, so I had a hard time rooting for them. Out of everyone, I liked Dez the most and found him so sweet. I loved how caring and thoughtful he was towards Violet. I liked them together, but they felt very surface-level. I needed more depth and connection between them for their relationship to be believable. I thought Violet was a bit messy, and even though it's justified given all that she was going through, her actions still annoyed me at times. I was hoping to love this, but sadly, it just missed the mark.

Rating: 2/5