From USA Today best-selling author, Marni Mann, comes a haunting new romantic thriller. At forty-two, I’m married to my best friend, and we have two beautiful children. Everything about my life is perfect until my father gets sick. Before: I owned and operated a massively successful women’s shapewear company.After: I stay home with my family because I’ve learned the importance of time. Before: … learned the importance of time.
Before: My husband could rely on me to take care of everything.
After: I hire him the perfect assistant.
My entire life can be summed up in before and afters, but something happens in the middle.
A meeting.
And it changes the course of everyone’s lives forever.
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I love Marni Mann’s writing, she’s one of my favorite authors and spins an awesome tale. But, this book took me completely by surprise, I ran a gamut of emotions while reading it. She took my expectations and just ripped them apart.
This story started out simply enough but by half way through, it was clear the lines were being blurred, it made me uncomfortable. It made me wonder… is this what I want to read?
I can’t tell you anything more than that, because I agree with everyone else. You need to go into this book with an open mind. You have to live it, experience it. Feel it.
That’s all I can say without spoilers. And that’s all you can do too.
Read this book and make up your own mind.
After watching her father slip away due to illness, Jesse Black began to realize just how precious time really is, and that she had been spending way too much time away from her family. She also decided that it might be time for a change. She owns a successful shape wear company which eats up most of her time, which means she has been neglecting her duties at home, so she makes the decision to step away from her business. Now her sole focus will be on her family, and helping her husband further his career, and with his new project.
But she can’t do that alone, he needs an assistant that can travel with him when he extra needs help, and she needs someone to also chip in around the house and help with their children. Which brings Charlotte to the their doorstep, the moment they welcome their into her home, things start to fall perfectly into place… she is a blessing to them in more ways than one.
The Assistant is an emotionally rich tale that will reek havoc on your heart, and rattle you to your core. I don’t think there is anything that could have prepared be for what I found between the pages of this one, Ms. Mann completely blindsided me with a few unexpected surprises that had my jaw on the floor, and my heart in my throat. It’s hard to write this review without giving away too much, so I will just say this, stay away from the reviews, and go in with an open mind. Let the words lead you, give into the feelings stir up, and embrace the places that they will take you. I absolutely loved this one, the words spoke volumes, the characters found their way into my heart, and the journey was unforgettable. Highly recommend!
I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, and I am voluntarily leaving my honest opinion.
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I am !! Marni Mann continues to amaze and enchant me with each and every one of her stories. She is one of the indie authors and a that should be on everyone’s list. If you think for a minute that you know how this romance will play out, you are gravely mistaken. There are twists and turns, triumphs and tragedies that will keep you guessing until the last word of the last chapter — and even then you’ll probably turn the page to make sure there isn’t another terrifying surprise hidden somewhere in the epilogue.
I cannot put into words the brilliance of this story. All I can say is the reviews, I advise you go in blind and get lost in this author’s beautiful poignant tale of love and life. And whatever you do, get complacent because when your emotions are high and your defences are down, Mann throws a bomb at you that will detonate your whole world and leave you shredded.
is a cleverly crafted novel and an enthralling story: the heartbreak genuine, the research brilliant. A plot that is immaculately executed. The characters multi layered and incredibly fascinating. Marni writes with such complexity in this tale, the story filled with such compelling significance. The love and heartache that pours from the pages will leave you breathless and reduce you to a blubbering pile of goo.
The conclusion is a theatrical and astonishing finale, and is completely unexpected, but will have you reflecting on the story and the intricate details that have led you to that point.
5 Star Excellence!!
WOW! I hardly know what to say. This was a brilliant, captivating and unique read. I was hooked from the prologue and from there I devoured this book. I wasn’t expecting anything like this. I’m speechless.
This is one of these stories you should go blind and just enjoy the ride. Describing The Assistant as a contemporary romance would do this book a disservice. It’s an epic love story that for me crosses genres. It’s edgy, gritty and really makes you think. Not just about life, but also about yourself and your own capabilities. I would even go as far to say that The Assistant has thriller vibes which I absolutely loved. I love that this book kept me on my toes and kept me guessing throughout its entirety. It’s extremely powerful and unpredictable, complex and emotional, as it was intense.
I loved how much this book took me completely by surprise, the twists and turns that I never saw coming, the ending that left me gobsmacked and with love came heartbreak. A sublime combination which made for a riveting read.
My feelings are all over the place at this moment. I don’t want to give much away but this is a complex and emotional story. I had so many feelings running rampant where I admired then detested then pitied then got all sorts of frustrated with these characters. Jesse and Emery had a marriage that most would envy and that part of the story really was beautiful. Definitely feel this was a great story to go into blind and see where you end up on the final page. It evokes some strong emotions…I promise you that!
The story is amazing with a little twist I didn’t see coming but should have expected, after all, it’s Marni Mann that is writing. It’s heartbreaking and brings to question what would you do? There are so many questions but if asked here it might spoil your experience. So all I will say is read it, live it, experience the read, you may thank her later.
I never ever in my wildest dreams would think that this author could knock down my all-time favorite book of hers from first place to second place. Memoirs Aren’t Fairytales has officially been bumped to 2nd place. The Assistant is now the one to beat!!! I’ve recommended Memoirs Aren’t Fairytales to so many people over the years but this one needs to be read just as much!!
The one thing I will HIGHLY RECOMMEND is that you turn away now from reading reviews. This book needs to be read without any knowledge of any part of the story. Plain and Simple. Heed this warning and you will devour this journey with the upmost satisfaction available to mankind.
Read the blurb, that is all you need to know.
This book is a freaking masterpiece from the get go. Perfectly woven and spun so beautifully that when you are sucked in completely, It will hit you like the Black Widow of all time!
Only this author can write the books that have so many different stories. From the ultra-dark to the sweet fluffy to the heart shattering. All with different tones, different characters, different all around. No one will find a cookie cutter with this story! It deserves a cutter all of its own!
This book has left me speechless, in a wonderfully emotional way. The further along you get you, as the reader know that something is going to happen that will be life altering in this story and I bet you will figure some of this very intrinsic puzzle out as did I. However Marni does such a wonderful job with this story that you will not see the full extent of the plot coming until it’s over! This is going to be a story that sticks with me many years from now and I would recommend that everyone read it too.
Oh my goodness, I don’t even know what to say about this book! Except maybe, Marni Mann has done it again! She wrote a book that will stay with you, you can’t just put this book down and walk away, and not think about it again. It was absolutely brilliant! It was sexy and sweet, and heartbreaking and mysterious. If you’re reading this review, that means you’re looking at reviews. My advice, if you haven’t read this book yet, is to STOP! Don’t read any more reviews, this book would be best enjoyed if you go in blind. You won’t regret it! I loved every minute of this book, could not put it down. It was absolutely amazing!! Just read it!!
What a phenomenal story! When I first started the book I had no idea what I was in store for. The blurb was a bit mysterious, so at the beginning I got an idea into my head of what I thought was going to happen. How wrong was I?
The Assistant jumps from ‘before’ to ‘after’ leaving us trying to guess what the middle was. I was confused and I was desperate for Jesse and Emery’s story to conclude happily. I wanted to hate Charlotte right from the start, because I had an idea about her and I felt like I shouldn’t like her, but I couldn’t hate her because she is so likeable.
It’s such a thrilling story and I couldn’t have guessed the ending at all. Not one of my guesses was anywhere near what actually happened.
I did cry buckets at one point. Big ugly snotty crying and I wanted a hug. I wanted to put the book in the freezer and maybe not get it back out. I didn’t do that, I carried on, and I’m so glad I did.
This book put me through the emotional blender and spat me out a little bit broken. It’s amazing and it’s definitely left me with a major book hangover. I’m not sure anything can compare to this one now! In fact I’m going to read it again because I feel for sure I may have overlooked parts.
Five stars is not enough!
Wow just wow!!!!
God I really don’t know where to start with this review. I’m not long after finishing and I feel like these characters are goin to be with me for a while. This author really knows how to get your emotions going. I’m all over the place right now I was happy, sad, crying and angry without this book. I really luvd Jesse from the start of this book she is a great character and such a strong woman. By the end of the book I luvd her even more. This woman isn’t like anything I have ever read she is the most unselfish person ever. Do I think what she did was right in not sure to be honest. But I really do understand why she choose to do it. So she did what she had to do. But this woman is a great mother wife and best friend. She is a true protector and is just amazing.
Emery ok this guy is great but I’m a lil on the fence about him. Ye he’s sexy a great husband and dad. But there is just something that I didn’t get about him. It really kills me to say it but it could be that I was just so sucked in by Jesse that she took over for me. I did love that he loved his wife more than everything she was his world they were college sweethearts and even after having 2 children they were still got for each other. I really do luv them as a couple.
I don’t want to really say to much in my review cause it would spoil the story and you really don’t want to have this book spoiled you HAVE to read it. This author alway puts so much emotion in her books. They are so well written and the twist his the twist is just crazy brilliant and so do unexpected Marni Mann your amazing. I would highly recommend this book this story is beautiful, emotional, deep, engaging and brilliant.
Jesse Black is the CEO of Cinched and a mother of two children, Viv & Tommy. She’s married to her best friend,Emery Black, who’s an architect. He just got the offer of a lifetime designing a new high rise and they both decided he is going to need an assistant & that Jesse is going to step back from work to be home more. That’s where Charlotte Scott comes into the picture as the new assistant. Not everything in life is always black and white and sometimes what you think is a perfect life has secrets that can change everything you know forever. This is told in multiple POV and is NOT a cheating book. You will have to read for yourself to find out what is really happening but this was a touching story that I believe you will enjoy. I can’t say too much as I don’t want to spoil anything.