Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
Macy Sorensen is getting used to her ambitious but emotionally reserved routine: put in a lot of effort as a brand-new paediatrics resident; arrange her wedding to an older, well-off man; and keep her head down and heart hidden.
But when she crosses paths with Elliot Petropoulos, her one and only love, the meticulous bubble she had built starts to burst. Before he broke her heart the night he confessed his love for her, Elliot was once Macy’s entire world. He had evolved from being her gangly, bookish buddy to the man who helped her heart heal following the death of her mother.
The story of young Elliot and Macy, who spend weekends and leisurely summers together in a house outside of San Francisco reading books, sharing favourite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs, is told in alternating timelines between Then and Now. Prior to their unexpected reunion, they were strangers to one another as adults. Elliot will learn the truth behind Macy’s ten-year quiet, despite the pain of what happened that night so many years ago clouding their recollections. He will have to battle his own past and his own self to restore Macy’s trust in the potential of an all-consuming love.
The heart’s history cannot be undone.
Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
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In this book, Macy’s adult life and her juvenile years alternately appear and disappear. It follows the young woman’s entire relationship with the love of her life and alludes to a significant incident that tore them apart for 11 years until a chance rendezvous as adults, at which point they must choose whether to continue on their current course or try to put the pieces back together.
When searching for a home to utilize as a weekend getaway, Macy and her father attend an open house. At the open house, Macy discovers a boy named Elliot sitting in the closet of her future bedroom. They learn that they both enjoy reading, and a friendship begins. Every time Macy visits the house, she and Elliot spend hours reading in the closet that has been converted into a library and developing a close connection. They also ask each other probing questions that they would never ask anyone else. The narrative switches between different time periods in each chapter, starting 11 years ago in the weekend getaway home and ending in the present day in San Francisco, where Macy and Elliot have recently crossed paths. Despite the obvious hurt on both sides, it is clear that the two of them still really love one another.
It’s not that simple though, as Macy is currently engaged to freelance writer Sean and Elliot is unaware of the whole circumstances surrounding why Macy shut him out of her life 11 years ago.
