Rowena’s review of The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins.
Lucy Lang isn’t looking for fireworks.
She’s looking for a nice, decent man. Someone who’ll mow the lawn, flip chicken on the barbecue, teach their future children to play soccer. But most important: someone who won’t inspire the slightest stirring in her heart…or anywhere else. A young widow, Lucy can’t risk that kind of loss again. But sharing her life with a cat named Fat Mikey and the Black Widows at the family bakery isn’t enough either. So it’s goodbye to Ethan, her hot but entirely inappropriate “friend with privileges” and hello to a man she can marry.
Too bad Ethan Mirabelli isn’t going anywhere. As far as he’s concerned, what she needs might be right under her nose. But can he convince her that the next best thing can really be forever?
I’ve been in a contemporary mood lately so it’s not surprising that I picked this book up. I’ve wanted to read this book for quite some time now and I’m glad that I did because I ended up enjoying this book.
This book follows Lucy Lang as she goes through her life with the Black Widows. The Black Widows are Lucy’s Mom and her sisters. They run a bakery that is losing business everyday to the Starbucks down the street and no matter how much Lucy tries to get her Mom and aunts to expand the bakery and open up a café, where customers can sit down with a cup of joe or whatever, they always push her ideas aside. So Lucy contents (not really) herself with baking bread for the bakery.
Lucy is a widow herself after losing her husband, Jimmy to a car accident almost six year before. Lucy met her husband when her best friend, Ethan, Jimmy’s brother introduces them when Ethan brings Lucy home to meet his family. Ethan and Lucy have been best friends for a long time and after Jimmy dies, Ethan becomes Lucy’s rock. Ethan is there to help her grieve and to be the friend that she needs. He also becomes the friend that she sleeps with from time to time and though that can come off as gross because umm, she’s sleeping with her dead husband’s brother, I think Higgins did a good job of making me “okay” with it. I think because the issue of Ethan being Jimmy’s brother was brought up and dealt with in this story, it was easy for me to get over that and cheer Ethan on.
Ethan Mirabelli was flat out, the bomb. I loved him. I thought he was a fantastic hero and the love that he had for Lucy was sigh worthy. He was so good to her and he was so patient with her and goodness, you just felt for him. He was that perfect hero that kissed all of your worries away and you just wanted him to win in the end. The love that he showed for his son, Nick and then the friendship that he had with Nick’s mother, Parker was great.
Lucy on the other hand was all over the place. First, she exasperated me then I understood how she felt and then she went back to annoying me with all of the back and forth with Ethan. She loved him then she just wanted to be friends with him and then with her not telling anyone about their relationship irked me but what really chapped my hide was when she wore her good underwear for her dinner with Jimmy Light, like she was going to do something with him. WTF? At that time, she was still seeing Ethan and yet she wore her good underwear for this guy that reminded her of her dead husband? Oh hell to the no. The back and forth got on my nerves from time to time but I didn’t hate Lucy.
Overall, the book was good. I enjoyed the story and I think Higgins did a good job of not grossing me out with Lucy sleeping with her dead husband’s brother. Usually those kinds of things turn me off but it didn’t register with me while reading this book. This book isn’t my favorite of the KH books but it was still an enjoyable read. I’d recommend this book to those readers out there who are looking for a good, light contemporary romance. This book definitely delivers.
Grade: 3.75 out of 5
This book is available from HQN. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
I liked it too and agree Ms. Higgins “did a good job of not grossing me out with Lucy sleeping with her dead husband’s brother”. I was rooting for them!
I really enjoyed this book. The heroine getting together with her former brother-in-law wasn’t a big deal to me. The pastries featured in the book were mouth-watering.
Diana
I don’t think it’s gross – they are not blood relatives, and if two people fall in love – in fiction or in real life – I’d like to think people would accept that.
It’s extremely narrow-minded to imply someone who gets in a relationship like this is disgusting in some way.
It didn’t even occur to me to think anything of it.
@Patti- Thanks for stopping by and yeah that kind of stuff makes me think of my BIL’s and yeah, not my thing but KH did a fab job of sucking me into this book.
@Diana- I agree! The pastries in this book made me want to break out my Better Crocker apron and get some baking done.
@Anonymous- Good for you.