A journey into the what-ifs that haunt us all, The Stuff That Never Happened is an intricate, heartfelt examination of modern marriage that brims with truths about the nature of romantic love.What if you were married to someone for twenty-eight years but in love with another? What if you were in love with them both? Annabelle McKay knows she shouldn’t have any complaints. She’s been in a stable … complaints. She’s been in a stable marriage that’s lasted almost three decades and has provided her with two wonderful children, thousands of family dinners around a sturdy oak table, and a husband so devoted that he schedules lovemaking into his calendar every Wednesday morning. Other wives envy the fact that Grant is not the type of man who would ever cheat on her or leave her for a younger woman. The trouble is Annabelle isn’t sure she wants to be married to Grant anymore. The trouble is she’s still in love with someone else.
In the early tumultuous years of her marriage, Annabelle carried on a clandestine affair with the one person whose betrayal would hurt her husband the most. When it ended, she and Grant found their way back together and made a pact that they would never speak of that time again. But now years later, with her children grown and gone, and an ominous distance opening between them, she can’t help but remember those glorious, passionate days and wonder if she chose the right man.
Then, when called to New York City to help care for her pregnant daughter, Annabelle bumps into her old lover. Offered a second chance at an unforgettable love, she must decide between the man who possesses her heart and the husband who has stood squarely by her side.
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It hit quite close to home.
Like all her others, Maddie Dawson’s book is a joy to read. I highly recommend it!
I was intrigued by the title and blown away by the story. In this world of lightning fast communications and the availability of so many ways to communicate with others, I was just plain astonished at the total lack of communications in this decades long marriage. From the beginning of the story we recognize that the female lead character has …
I really enjoyed reading this book. Good character development, well-written. Interesting storyt.
A compelling story of a woman who is navigating her life as she enters grandparent years, and is the spouse of a workaholic, and the mother of children who are making life choices (some good, some a little more questionable) and she’s trying to figure out her role in all of it. She relates a story of an old lover and wonders how the choices she …
My third Dawson novel, and once again she proves reliably entertaining, with a charming and witty narrative voice and a well-constructed two-timeline story of a marriage threatened by adultery. If you have a sense of humor and appreciate imperfect heroines and realistically flawed heroes, you’ll enjoy it.
Really couldn’t get into characters.
It was good , but a little slow at times.
Good, interesting read,wanted to not put it down
I really enjoyed this book. When I wasn’t reading it, I wished that I was…it kept me reading much later into the night than I should have. I would really like to know what happened to all these characters….
Different, entertaining, hard to put down!
An author willing to dive in and take on some of the nuances and realities of affairs and the difficulties in relationships that lead to them as well as the issues that arise from each character within these storylines. A hidden reality in our ‘idealized, monogamous, single-marriage” society that few are willing to tackle without demonizing. …
I LOVE this book! It’s very relatable and true to human emotion. It was an easy read that was easy to follow. The story switched back and forth between past and present and the story was revealed so perfectly. The ending wasn’t my favorite, but it’s still a great book.
Interesting premise, a married version of the what-if or one-who-got-away fantasies many have of previous relationships. Additionally speaks to the corrosive powers of issues we refuse to discuss.
A fictional but true account of the Depression era and the hardships experienced by the “regular” folks of West Virginia who endured and helped each other. This story is engrossing, informational, uplifting and downright enjoyable. This is not about the rich who became poor but about the mid-level Americans who had been comfortable in their …
I thought the premise of this book was interesting. It held my interest and I really liked the main character, even though she was certainly flawed.
This was one of the best books in terms of pulling me back to it, I’ve read in a long while. I loved it. Perfect ending, great characters, excellent writing, funny in places. I couldn’t wait for the ending to see how the writer would handle it, on the other hand, I didn’t want it to end because I wasn’t ready to “give it up” yet.
Very well written. The characters are well-developed and realistic. I liked the way she shifted between the present and the past to create the suspense. Good ending! I really enjoyed the book.
Ended with a thud.