It was o-kay. The story developed well the characters developed well, and the ending brougt the story to completion I just don't think it is a story I would seek out again. ( )

... But It Actually Does. Pagan once again creates a great story of a woman finding herself through a difficult and unexpected situation. In this particular scenario, it happens to involve a situation I've lived a version of, as a science professional leaving a job unexpectedly and forced to pick up seemingly menial work. Mostly light hearted with just enough punch to make things interesting, this is one that long time fans will love and new readers will quickly become fans. Very much recommended. ( )

An engaged woman's fiance runs off to Paris for a month and asks for 'space.' Trouble? Ya think?! Annie vows to hole up and hunker down through this unexpected, unwanted exile. She vows "no new people." This, of course, means lots o' new people enter her life, including a free-spirited single woman and a oh-so-cute Private Investigator (can anyone top their meet-cute story?) Annie finally boards a plane to Paris where the descriptions are cliched and hackneyed (think: lots of dappled sunshine, wine, and cafe sitting). Oh well. The character growth is handled well and the dialogue is at times humorous. It ends as it should, with everyone a bit better off. Harmless, fun, forgettable. Points for being set in Detroit. ( )

This Wont End Well by Camille Pagan is a charming tale of love, friendship, endings, and new beginnings.

“Why would I open myself up to new problems? By problems, of course, I mean people.”

Things aren’t going well for twenty-seven year old, research chemist, Annie Mercer. A little more than a week after she is forced to resign from her workplace after being betrayed by her lecherous boss, her fiancé, Jon, calls her from the airport to announce he needs some ‘me’ time and is on his way to spend a month incommunicado in France. With her best friend, Leesa, too busy with her new career as a LiteWeight™ Brand Evangelist, and her mother, with whom Annie lives, too emotionally fragile, to lean on, Annie decides to avoid further complications in her life by keeping people out of it.

“I wanted to tell him that I already knew it would end badly—there’s really no other kind of ending, if you think about it.”

Told in an epistolary format through a series journal entries, texts, and emails, This Won’t End Well is a well written and pacy read.

Annie is a delightful character, she has her quirks (her thinking and behaviour suggests she is on the autism spectrum) but she’s honest, loyal and sweet. Quite sensible and serious, Annie is bewildered by the rapid changes in her life but faces them with a quiet dignity. I really enjoyed her character development, which I thought was both realistic and relatable.

Annie’s resolve to avoid new relationships makes perfect sense to her, but is soon tested when Harper, a glamorous but seemingly vulnerable young woman moves in across the street, and Mo, a charming P.I., asks for her help. Her burgeoning friendships with these two very different characters, and some well timed advice from her dear friend Violet, and her mother, prompts Annie to re-envision her plans for her future.

It’s not all fun and froth though, Pagan briefly raises the issues of workplace sexual harassment, racism, grief, and PTSD. These subjects are effortlessly worked into the story however and don’t pull focus away from Annie’s personal journey.

Witty, warm, and winsome I enjoyed This Won’t End Well, and I would like to read more of the author’s backlist.

“If you’re willing to look for joy and open yourself to new possibilities, the end is not an ending at all. It’s a beginning.” ( )

This is a story that happens every day. A fiancée/boyfriend needs to “find himself”. A workplace situation becomes untenable and unemployment is the result. A best friend doesn’t’’ “get it”, doesn’t apologize and a close friendship is put on hold. The perception that a parent’s needs are paramount or is it an excuse?! And what about the wedding favors and a cake tasting appointment?

Told in an easily identifiable, logical, and very humorous narrative, I admired Annie’s desire for predictability and her inability to obtain it. Her journaling was the perfect mechanism to allow us into her inner most thoughts and her self-assessment. Her “no new people” theorem was as ridiculous as it was hilarious as she trips over a new neighbor and a peeping tom.

This was a very clever book by a very talented writer. Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for a copy ( )