One Month of You
“All we can do is keep loving each other one day at a time.”
One Month of You is the poignant, emotional debut from British author Suzanne Ewart. Despite being classified as a romance, Ewart pushes the boundaries of the genre by delving into hard topics, most notably the lifestyle of someone diagnosed with Huntington's disease. This more mature element to the romance made Ewart's novel more attractive to me as a reader; I quite enjoyed Ewart's debut.
Summary:
Ever since Jess' mother was diagnosed with Huntington's disease, she has lived by nine key rules: 1) Do not fall in love, 2) Stop thinking about men altogether, 3) See as much of the world as possible, 4) Save money for traveling instead of wasting it on magazines and tops, 5) Stop pretending to like Prosecco; just drink wine instead, 6) Keep going out, even when I don't feel like it, 7) Never miss doctors' appointments, 8) Tell no one else, 9) Keep smiling.
At only 28, Jess knows what her life is going to look like, because her mother has already lived it for her. The first symptoms of Huntington's will start setting in for her in probably less than a decade; after that, she'll have maybe another good ten years before she deteriorates to the point where she can't recognize her closest loved ones. And then she'll die. Because of her first-hand experience with Huntington's, Jess refuses to let anyone else feel the pain and sorrow she has with her mom--thus, no dating.
But when Alec, the hot, kind, funny, local bartender (with whom Jess shared a wonderful, drunken night) proposes the crazy idea of One Month, Jess finds herself agreeing. One month to date. One month to live. One month to fall in love.
And thus begins Jess' only chance at normalcy. She and Alec set six dates where she dresses up and plays the doting girlfriend. Alec continues to give her the best sex of her life, and Jess continues to draw comfort from his warm, secure body. But, of course, as the month progresses, Jess quickly realizes her feelings for Alec span more than a month, and with the health scares her mom keeps having, Jess has to decide what's more important––letting herself live, or protecting Alec's heart.
Thoughts:
Although I've never read or watched A Walk to Remember, this book reminds me of the concept. Set in dreary England, the rainy gray skies reflect Jess' mood throughout the book, with bright spots of sunshine only truly appearing when she's with Alec. I was desperately rooting for both Jess and Alec to be fully communicative with each other the entire time, and kept growling with frustration as both chose to "protect" the other.
Beyond Alec and Jess' relationship, I loved the side plots and characters. Debs was the heart and soul of the novel, and made so much of Jess' pain regarding her mother's deteriorating state feel real and impactful. I also enjoyed Olivia and the work girls, but I found that Olivia's side plot didn't add anything to the story or Jess' journey. I think if Olivia had just been a close friend who encourages Jess to be with Alec and is a shoulder to lean on, that would have made for a smoother read.
Another critique I had was that the dialogue and prose was occasionally repetitive. Jess often had the same inner monologue––her mom is getting worse, she can't date Alec but loves him, she's afraid of her future, etc––which does emphasize her fears, but at a certain point becomes filler text.
I also didn't understand the sporadic time jumps backward. I know they were meant to show Jess and her mom before Huntington's, but since there wasn't a set pattern for the flashbacks, those chapters seemed, again, like filler text rather than planned parts of the story. I think they would have worked much better if they were every other chapter, or every third chapter, rather than being triggered by something that happened in the present timeline.
Finally, I wanted more of Alec. From Jess’ point of view, the reader knows he is kind, genuine, attractive, and attentive, but beyond the small chapter where we meet his family, we don't know a lot about him. Focusing on Jess is important to the story and its emotional impact, but as a reader, Jess falling in love with Alec seems quick and a little forced. I would have loved to know more about Alec's dream of opening his own pub, or more about his past with the ex-girlfriend and rude friends.
Overall:
At the end of the day, I did enjoy this book and felt strong emotions while reading it. However, I think this should be classified as fiction rather than romance, as my main takeaway from the book was Jess and her mother's relationship and Jess' feelings about her future with Huntington's, instead of her romantic relationship with Alec, which was just icing on the cake. Comparatively, I felt as a reader that Jess spent more time with Debs than Alec, yet the main plot revolves around their one month plan. I think I would have been more satisfied when I finished the book if the preface focused more on Huntington's and Jess' personal journey instead of the romance.
My rating: 4/5
Goodread's Average: 4.08/5
Information:
One Month of You by Suzanne Ewart (Sourcebooks Landmark)
Publication Date: February 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781728257129