Second First Impressions

If I were Sally Thorne, I would have published this book under a pseudonym. No other author I can think of has had a smash hit debut novel, followed by an almost universally reviled sophomore effort. So inevitably, her third book is being weighed against either extreme. I'm trying to forget her backlist and reviewing Second First Impressions it on its own merits. And my conclusion is that it's pretty good, but not great.

I found both MCs to be incredible, as in I couldn't quite believe they were real. Ruthie was so repressed, shy, and obsessive that I couldn't even see her functioning in her administrative job, and Teddy was so disorganized that I couldn't see him remembering to feed himself. So their romance-0f-opposites had a fairy tale feeling to it, which wasn't necessarily bad. The secondary characters, most notably the wondrous Melanie Sasaki and the senior living residents who employ (torture) Teddy are more grounded, surprisingly. I found their interactions with Teddy and Ruthie to be more interesting than those between the would-be lovers. Thorne notes in her afterword that she is not planning to write Melanie's story, but I bet it would be a hoot.

I'd say the turtle metaphor is a bit heavy-handed, except for the fact that when I was a 9-year old girl I started drawing turtles everywhere as I tried to make sense of the world around me. So if I felt like I needed a protective hard shell, I'm fine with a fictional character learning to come out of hers as well.

Thorne's writing style is distinctive and quirky. It made me laugh several times, although even after reading through the last few chapters a second time, it didn't quite make me say “awwww” the way I do at a satisfying HEA. I'm glad Ruthie found the courage to fully live her life, and that Teddy found someone who made him feel safe, but I'm not sure I believe they will be together forever.

“There's no heavier burden than a great potential,” cried Linus from the Peanuts comic strip once upon a time, and I wonder if Sally Thorne would agree with him. Let's give the poor woman a chance and just appreciate the fact that she writes enjoyable contemporary romance. She doesn't need to be the genre's savior; all she needs to do is entertain us for a few hours. And she's doing that quite well.