Some things are easily forgiven. Other things… not so much.Lenny DeMaio made herself a promise: she was done.Done thinking about him.Done worrying about him.Done reaching out to a man who clearly didn’t want to be found. Too bad no one gave Jonah Collins the memo.
Let me start by saying… I LOVE this story!
One of the things that I adore about Mariana Zapata her stories is that they are always unpredictable predictable. What I mean with that is, that as a reader of her books, you know that any story of hers will be a slow burn romance story, told from the female’s POV. That’s predictable. BUT until the book is released you never know what the book will be about. Will it be about an athlete, a mechanic, a biker or……?! That’s the unpredictable side of this writer because she isn’t afraid to go from one theme to another. Every story is a fresh start. And if you’re lucky, it will be a long story too. I love that = more pages to enjoy!
So ‘The best thing’ is one of her long stories (not that she has many short stories) and it is about Lenny and Jonah. Lenny is an American girl and Jonah is from New-Zealand. They met in France where Jonah was playing rugby at the time. But something happened and they lost contact with each other. And then after many months of hearing nothing from Jonah, he’s suddenly standing before Lenny in America. Lenny doesn’t know what to do with Jonah’s sudden presence but she does know that a lot has happened in the time that they were apart and she isn’t the same girl anymore that fell in love with him in Paris. He broke her heart by leaving her. Can he convince her to give him another chance?
It took me some time to get into the story because the story starts when Jonah visit Lenny in America, it didn’t start when they first met in Paris. But that isn’t unusually for a story of Mariana Zapata. She doesn’t always start in the beginning of a story, I didn’t mind it because I knew from experience that the more I read the more information I would get and the more I would get involved into the story.
I don’t want to give too much away about this story but I will tell you that I loved both characters very much, Lenny is this strong woman (who likes to curse a lot) and Jonah is like this gentle, big teddy bear who can change in a grizzle bear when needed. He also wasn’t afraid to show his vulnerable, emotional side. I loved this character very much!!
The second characters in this story were hilarious, especially Lenny’s grandfather. He was special, there is no other way to describe him. There were a few surprises in the story that I didn’t saw coming and a few that I suspected early on. I’m very grateful that the writer gave us an epilogue at the end.
So…In short ‘The best thing’ was a great read and I loved every minute of it.
The title says it all — this book is The Best Thing
Lenny is an unusual heroine, so tough and yet with such a beautiful soft side. Her world — competitive judo — again, so unusual, along with her upbringing.
And I love a hero who’s done wrong, sees the error of his ways and is ready to do anything to fix it.
I just finished this book and am crying like a baby about the absolutely most heartbreaking ending of a book ever
I wanted to begin with less emotional words, but damn if I can.
Mariana Zapata is not only the queen of slow burn, but also a queen of the best ugly cry at the end of a book ever (Before you ask this book ends with a HEA )
This book is just WOW! I don’t even… I’m speechless, but that happens after every book that she wrote.
I call it the Zapata-Effect
Have you ever read a book and immediately afterward wanted to begin to read it again? That’s what this book does to me
This funny, at a times hilarious and a beautiful story about a unbelievable family bound, that is more like friendship and a love story that’s so emotional that I don’t even know how to describe it, has given me stitches from laughing and a heartache from the heartbreaking struggle that Lenny went through at the same time.
Lenny is a unbelievable strong and charismatic woman that knows what and when she wants.
Jonah is a gentle and patient giant with a beautiful face and shy character, that wants only one thing and that’s the feisty woman, that hates him more than anything in the world.
And that’s only the beginning of this crazy, fantastic, beautiful and exciting story that has so many twists and surprise developments, that you can’t stop to read it.
It’s damn ridiculous good written, captivating and gripping. OMG! I love this book so much
I was constantly laughing and crying wondering what the hell will comes next.
I don’t know how my unicorn author does it, but her books makes me so embarrassing emotional, that I’m all over the place the whole time I’m reading them and a long time afterwards.
My recommendation is: WHEN YOU LIKE ROMANCES AT ALL AND WANT TO EXPERIENCE THE ZAPATA EFFECT, READ THIS BOOK! THIS IS A MUST READ FOR ALL OF YOU!
You’re going to love it and I can guarantee you that
6 Simply Amazing Stars!
The Best Thing is literally the BEST THING I’ve read this year! I’ve fallen in love with Jonah and Lenny, these main characters had me under their spell immediately, and I don’t know if I’ve ever loved a secondary character as much as I have Grandpa Gus! Oh, and just a friendly warning: you’ll need a box of tissues for the beautiful epilogue.
This one has so many incredible surprises; each one left me amazed and awestruck. Every time I’ve read a new book by Mariana Zapata I think ‘This is my favorite!’ and the next one surpasses the previous, as The Best Thing does. I know that if I ever write down my all-time 100 Favorite Books all of Ms. Zapata’s books will be on the list. For anyone who’s never had the pleasure of reading a book by this author…what are you waiting for? She has mad writing skills, her characters are so realistic and the stories simply phenomenal! They suck you in, like a ripetide, and you’ll lose yourself in her wondrous storytelling, she’s a true master of her craft. This is one you’ll want to read it over and over again, and each time you do, I know you’ll love it just a little bit more than the first time. This book is going to be my #1 book on my #TopReads2019 list; I can’t imagine anything else knocking this one off the pedestal I’ve placed it on.
“We outgrow clothes the same way we outgrow people, Len. We change inside the same way we do outside.”
This is a first for me; I’m not writing anything more about the story or the characters, you need to experience and savor this one without knowing too many details about it. I went into the story completely blind, and I recommend you do, too! Be very careful reading some of the reviews, especially those that have spoiler warnings, please don’t read them! You really want to enjoy this story, let it flow and allow yourself to be swept away on a beautiful and heartfelt journey.
“He was just a reminder that appearances were only skin deep. Beautiful people were good. They didn’t do the kinds of things that he had. They didn’t show up and rub salt on a wound that had healed, hoping to reopen it.”
The Best Thing: . 5
Mariana Zapata
“I want to see you too. I want to be your friend again. I want to be more than your friend. I want to be more than any other friend you’ve ever had before or ever will.”
Lenny DeMaio is done with a capital D with Jonah Collins, the man who straight ghosted her and left her with… a little present to remember him by. (view spoiler)
This was a good book with a good story but it just took so so long for me to get into the actual plot because of all the build up and by the time I got there I was lowkey tired oops.
I would have been there, here, wherever you are.
For the most part, I liked Lenny & Jonah though at times Lenny kind of irked me in the beginning because she wouldn’t even give Jonah a chance to explain himself. She grew on me a lot though because she’s so forgiving and understanding and she’s so sweet.
All books with misunderstanding trope should just be burnt to the ground in my professional and correct opinion.
Peter & Grandpa Gus were honestly the highlights — I genuinely loved them so much and think they made this story so much better. The Noah storyline, I could give or take honestly, because I don’t know how much it added to the story.
This story just didn’t connect with me as well as other Mariana books have but she’s still my fave author forever and always. Slow burn QUEEN.
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Not worth it
I had high expectations for this book from the synopsis and raving reviews, but this was not the book for me. I could not get into or relate to any of the characters. The MC annoyed me and the plot was… non-existent at points. I DNF’d the book at 25 percent.
I defy anyone to read the epilogue without crying. Classic Mariana Zapata!
Zapata is a whimsical storyteller. Her female protagonists have strong voices while men don’t speak much- GOOD. In this narrative there was too much redundant dialogue, but her use of figurative language was “on point ” creating humor especially with Gus. 350 pages would have been adequate. 480 pages TOO LONG!
Gus, Peter, and Lenny are memorable characters . Jonah – NOT SO MEMORABLE
Wonderful, second-chance, contemporary romance
In Paris, 19 months ago, Elena (Lenny) DeMaio fell deeply in love for the first time in her life at age 29, in the midst of what she considered to be a very serious affair with 28-year-old Jonah Collins, a sweet, kind, considerate—and utterly ripped and gorgeous—New Zealand rugby star. Their relationship was like a romantic dream. Until the day that Jonah ghosted her.
Lenny tried desperately for nine months to get hold of him in every way imaginable, first because she was worried about him and, later, because there was something vitally important that had happened to her that he needed to know about. Finally, however, she had had enough. She gave up on ever getting a response from him, and for the past eight months, she has angrily assumed that the jerk who abandoned her is gone from her life forever.
Until the day, out of the blue, that Jonah shows up at her place of work, her grandfather’s mixed-martial-arts gym in Houston, Texas.
I really enjoyed this classic, Zapata, “slow-burn,” contemporary romance. I loved Lenny and Jonah, as individuals and as a couple. They are extremely likeable, sympathetic, romantic protagonists. I was also impressed and very moved by the three main, significant supporting characters in the story, including Lenny’s grandfather, Gus, her surrogate father figure, Peter, and a third character I will leave as a surprise since we don’t officially meet her until just before Jonah shows up.
As is frequently the case with Zapata heroines, Lenny is extremely foul-mouthed. Every other word out of her mouth or thought in her head is an F-bomb. But that is the only part of the book that is at all crude. And, after a while, I kind of got used to it and ignored it since I liked Lenny and Jonah and their relationship.
I found it fascinating that Lenny is a former Olympic-caliber martial arts star, and her grandfather is a former Olympic-caliber boxer, and Peter is a superior athlete and personal trainer as well. That, in combination with running a gym, has given the three of them a focus on maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including eating a vegan, all-natural diet and avoiding booze.
As is typical of Zapata, there is only one sex scene in the whole book, toward the very end, and it is not at all coarse. It is very loving as well as passionate.
The HEA epilogue in this book is quite unusual in that it is set 22 years in the future, and it is so lovingly poignant, it made me cry.
I experienced this novel as an audiobook, and I absolutely loved how it is handled. As is the case with all of Zapata’s books, the story is told in first person from the point of view of the heroine. Usually, for the audiobook versions for her novels, there is only a female narrator, and for almost all of them, including this book, she is the excellent voice actor, Callie Dalton. But in the case of this particular novel, all of the dialogue for New Zealander Jonah is narrated by an extremely talented, New Zealander actor, Calum Gittins. He does a fabulous job and adds tremendously to the quality of the audiobook.
Overall, this book is a real keeper and is one of my favorite novels by Ms. Zapata. I will definitely revisit it many times in the future.
I rate this book as follows:
Heroine: 5 stars
Hero: 5 stars
Subcharacters: 5 stars
Romance plot: 5 stars
Setting: 5 stars
Writing: 5 stars
Audiobook Narration: 5 stars
Overall: 5 stars
The Best Thing by Mariana Zapata is one of those books I was DYING to read and had really high hopes for, but unfortunately it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. I seem to be in the minority with my rating on this one based on almost all of the reviews being 4 or 5 stars.
I will say I REALLY enjoyed the characters and the family dynamic included in this book. That is the main reason this book received 3 stars from me. Without the comedic moments and great characters this book would have received even less stars.
The plot was also enjoyable, but I felt the story was dragged out so much that it moved too slow. This book is LONG at 480 pages. I don’t mind long books if the story moves at a steady pace and doesn’t have too much unnecessary filler moments in it. Unfortunately, that is not this story in my opinion. I don’t mind a slow burn romance, which this one definitely is, but even at the 75% mark there hadn’t really been any romance at all.
Like I said though, I seem to be in the very small minority of readers with this book, so if you enjoy a slow burn and long read, this may be one you enjoy. It just wasn’t the book for me.
Even though Mariana Zapata is one of my all time favourite authors, I waited a long time to read this book. One of the reasons is that one of my best friends didn’t like it as much as the others and I was afraid I would too.
Turns out I enjoyed reading it, but it wasn’t my favourite Mariana Zapata book.
I didn’t like Lenny much at the beginning of the book, but after a while I started to like her more. I especially love her conversations with Grandpa Gus. They are the best. He is one of my favourite secondary characters of all time.
One of the things I missed in this book is Luna. I would have loved to see a more closer relationship between the two best friends. I know Luna isn’t the focus this time around, but I also think friendship is important. I would have loved to see them bond more. On the other hand it was portrayed well that sometimes life happens and it becomes in between spending time with your friends.
That been said I still really liked this book. Mariana Zapata’s writing is on point as always. She writes the best banter. I can’t get enough of it. It is just that it’s hard not to compare it to some of her others books that I loved even more.
My giddy, fickle little stupid heart just fell in love again!
Mariana Zapata does that to me! It’s her soft and gentle giants. I don’t need that alpha asshole badassness. I don’t need that tosspot who thinks he can tell me what to do, when to come, what to wear. No, I just need a man who does that slow blink, runs that finger along a cheek. Let’s out a big sigh. SHE DOES IT TO ME EVERY FUCKING TIME.
I am mush. A pile of emotional goo on the floor. And I love Jonah. And I love Gus, the best grandpa in the world ever. The vampire, cranky, grandpa who loves his beautiful Lenny. And I love Peter, the protective, caring surrogate dad.
Lenny is all kinds of strong. A brilliant lead character. She’s funny but most of all she’s real. She knows what is important in life. She can forgive. Move on. Make the best of the cards she has been dealt without whining about it. I want to be more Lenny.
Jonah! Gulp! I think I might come up to his belly button. Now that would be handy! He’s the book boyfriend of dreams. I loved that Mariana got those tiny NZ inflections in his speech – eh! He’s just perfect. Can you imagine that mountain of a man doing the Hakka? Praise Baby Jesus, I’m melting.
A beautiful book about beautiful people who are as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside.
Off I pop to google the shit out of the New Zealand rugby team. Hakka all the way!
Oh my goodness, the epilogue! This was a solid four stars for me up until that point, so just be prepared for all of the feels at the close of this novel. And a fair amount of tears.
I would recommend reading Luna and the Lie before this book, because a lot of characters in that book (including this book’s protagonist) are also in this book. Additionally, I think going into this story blind (beyond reading Luna and the Lie) is a good idea. Spoilers would kind of mess with the narrative arc of this story, and take away some of the impacts. In my opinion, the greatest achievement in the book are its beautifully interwoven relationships. And that’s all I’m going to say beyond the following: READ. THIS. NOW.
Some things are easily forgiven. Other things… not so much.
Lenny DeMaio made herself a promise: she was done.
Done thinking about him.
Done worrying about him.
Done reaching out to a man who clearly didn’t want to be found.
Too bad no one gave Jonah Collins the memo.
Isn’t that blurb the most intriguingly vague thing you have ever read? I was dying to know what Jonah Collins did to Lenny DeMaio. Why is she done with him? Why was he hiding from her? Why must it be so unclear!?
The Best Thing is a slow burn romance – in true Zapata fashion. However, the author does a lot of unexpected things with this novel. Our protagonist and hero have a history. And while our couple are both athletes, it isn’t the main focus of the book like some of her previous works. There is also another surprising element that I can’t talk about because of spoilers, but just know that Mariana has some tricks up her sleeve.
If you haven’t taken the hint yet, go into this one blind. It is a second chance sports romance that will have you hysterically laughing, melting into a giant puddle of goo, and then sobbing by the end. Lenny’s tribe is full of wonderful supporting characters that will have you wishing fictional characters were real. The Best Thing is the best thing. *winks*
4 Stars!
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That old vampire is my new bestie! (4.5 stars)
No, this isn’t a vampire book however, the oldest living vampire is in this book. Lol. Grandpa Gus is a mother flipping superhero in my mind. He’s also one of the coolest characters I’ve ever “met”.
The Best Thing is a different kind of book for Mariana Zapata. It is definitely her usual slow burn but she attacked a different angle this time. Readers will pick up on the surprise and enjoy the big reveal- some at different times. The clues are there you just have to listen.
I feel terrible because as much as I love our badass heroine and enjoy the soft spoken man who stole her heart…Grandpa Gus stole the show with his sarcasm and name calling. Who else could get away with calling you Edward!?! Also his choice of reading had me wanting to follow him to the library for a book group! This man could do no wrong. Hence the title of this review!
The Best Thing in this book is subjective. The “little demon” would say one thing, “Jasper” would probably tell you something else but in my mind….it’s the cranky old man who loves more fiercely than any other, who protects like a mama bear, and will never let you down.
So for me…I vote the old guy. Who would you say?
I am a huge fan of this authors works, and as I’m am caught up on her books, I wanted to savor this one for when I had time to just sit and escape into Lenny’s world. Just so happens one of my book buddies was ready at the same time, so we read it together which made it even more enjoyable.
I went into this novel blind as I anticipated I’d love it no matter what the subject was. I knew it was Lenny’s story whom we had met in Luna and the Lie. She’s one of the most sassiest characters with a heart you could meet. I also heard that it had a hero who played Rugby Union which is an exciting game to watch, so I was hooked just from knowing these two facts. I adored Jonah with a little j just as much as Jonah with a big J!
This book has a different feel to other stories from MZ. One of the elements is that it’s a second chance romance, but the reunion has that delicious slow burn component that makes MZ the Queen. There were other twists and surprises in their tale that made me smile and cheer. Another sure essence to a MZ story is her secondary characters. Luna made a few appearances which was fab because I have missed her but my favorite in this book hands down is Grandpa Gus! That guy got some amazing lines which will crack you up. The one that will melt your heart the most is Mo but Peter will forever have a place in my heart with his devotion.
I will be adding this to my annual re reads with all of my MZ books.
Rating: 2.5 stars
I’m no stranger to this author’s work, folks. I’ve read all but one of her books, Lingus, and I’m a huge fan of hers. So I do really get and usually like that thing she does when she weaves a romantic tale.
The best thing for me here was how committed Jonah was to accepting and being 100% committed to doing right by Lenny (aka Elena) when he discovered what she had been trying to tell him months ago. I honestly did feel the author made their initial separation too long. Face it, the more time that passed the harder it was to justify his reasoning for dragging his feet and not tracking her down earlier. If he truly felt the way he claimed, wild horses wouldn’t have kept him from fixing his big knucklehead mistake. His misery outweighed his new found love for this sassy woman. He should have run to her instead of putting her on a long list of people to avoid. At least they both were celibate during the 18 month separation. A big bonus point was earned for showing up before he knew what had happened. It was a stretch of my imagination to think somehow one of the contacts mentioned did not relay any messages.
I did find myself skimming through large sections of this book because too much time was spent rehashing the same thoughts/sentiments. Lenny lived in her head a lot, folks. Told only from her point of view was likely why it came across that way. Subcharacters stole a lot of the story line, as well. The second chance romance was there but was constantly getting sidetracked and evolved every so slowly. Lenny’s anger was OTT (mentally cursing Jonah constantly) in the beginning. That got old for me, too.
At 63%, I was still waiting for a relationship breakthrough. Enough so I thought about not finishing the book. Yeah, go ahead and gasp because that was a shocker for me, too. I LOVED Kulti..every single word of that close to 500 page book. I’m left wondering here if 40% could have been edited out and not overly affected the story line.
I knew some other man drama was going to come out of the woodwork, because the stage had been set for that very thing. You definitely had to wait for it also. Not to worry though. It didn’t go in a direction that will ruffle your feathers. It was well done and added to why Lenny felt so hurt/abandoned by Jonah.
Overall, I liked the bare bones of this story line and the main couple interactions.I just wish more meaningful content had been added in between instead of long drawn out Lenny mental mantras.
Title: The Best Thing, Author: Marianna Zapata, Pages: 493, stand-alone, not an ARC review, kindle unlimited edition, VERY s-l-o-w paced, slow burn, second chance, both stayed celibate during separation, romance safe, heroine POV, only one steamy scene near the end, emotional epilogue almost two decades into the future. Rating: 2.5 stars
(These comments are based on a Kindle Unlimited edition. This is not a detailed ARC review.)
I love Mariana Zapata’s writing and The Best Thing was not the exception, I really felt so immerse and captivated by her words and characters, the whole story was great. I’m so glad I went completely blind and didn’t want to know more before even start.
This is the story of Lenny and Jonah, a story that begins a few years back while they were working in their dreams and projects.. but dreams don’t have to be shattered sometimes they are postponed even if everything seems like they were destroyed, life always have an agenda to make them eventually happen at their own time and pace.. now is just about the right time for these dreams to begin to unfold..
“We outgrow clothes the same way we outgrow people, Len. We change inside the same way we do outside.”
Lenny is an amazing heroine, she was really strong and didn’t care about anything more than protecting what she loves the most her family and friends. she was funny but at the same time someone who will stand an fight for what she cares.. Lenny didn’t hesitate to say what she had in mind and gave a hard time to anyone who wasn’t loyal or made a bad move.
“My entire life, I had never known how to be anything other than how I was. Even if it made other people uncomfortable or mad. That I was too mouthy, too bossy, too determined, too blunt, too much.”
Johan is also a great Hero, he is strong, quiet and Huge which make him super hot and sexy but also he had some sides that will make you smile and laugh. Johan’s life changed so drastically that he thought he would have to sacrifice his dreams one way or another. making decisions that without knowing he was hurting his life and someone who needed him the most.
The chemistry between Lenny and Johan was amazing, the laughs, the jokes, the anger everything made these two perfect for each other no matter the circumstances and the past..
so many great characters that made this story even greater, Grandpa Gus was amazing, I laugh so much with him, he really was a great character as well as Peter and Mo. characters that you will love and make you want to know more about them.. they really made me cry.. they were a great team and a great support for Lenny.
“Fine. Welcome to the Mo League. You can be the vice president if you’re willing to fight Grandpa Gus for the spot, but he fights dirty, so you’re probably better off being the secretary, I guess.”
favorite quote:
“It’s easy for people to love you when you’re doing things for them when they get something out of it. But it isn’t so easy to find people who will still love you when you’re down and need help getting up. That’s when you really find out who’s with you for the right reasons.”
Overall it was a great story, the slow burn was amazing, the characters, the dialogues, everything I love them!! I laugh so much and cry so much with them. these are the stories worth re-reading and enjoying.
“And it was totally fine that I hoped someone tripped and landed face-first into a pile of warm, fresh dog shit at some point in their near future, wasn’t it?”
Lenny is tough as nails. She isnt your typically girly girl- and she is perfectly okay with that. She is an MMA expert and held a title or two. She is also momma now to Mo, a mini replica of the dad who ditched her and doesnt know he has a child.
Jonah, one of the two top-paid rugby players of his time. Plays a a game, injures himself badly & leaves everyone behind, including his girl.
This story y’all. There isnt enough stars for a proper rating. Emotional rollercoaster- get ready.
It’s a tale of love and loss, of real life problems, and the way we cope. Lenny’s perspective and attitude toward life is amazing. She is sass personified and wont hesitate to tell ya to F off. She is also supremely level headed and has the best outlook their could be. She is inspiring. Then there is Jonah- big, manly, protective, and….shy. The plans he made and wanted for his life changed and he had to learn to compensate and move on. He is a lesson to learn from, he is grace and humility.
HEA with lots to keep you guessing.