Evvie Drake Starts Over
Evvie Drake is packing her bags to leave her husband when she gets a phone call: he has died in an accident. As her small Maine community grieves their beloved doctor, she finds herself in a confusing swirl of regret, grief, and anger. Her best friend Andy offers some small financial relief in the form of a tenant for the apartment attached to her house.
Dean is a professional baseball player, recently sidelined with a case of the “yips”–unexplained inability to pitch. He needs some downtime, and an escape from the spotlight.
While the arc of this story is predictable, its execution is absolutely delightful and charming. The romance wasn’t instant, but hard-won as both Evvie and Dean worked through their own difficulties. Evvie’s platonic friendship with Andy is wonderful and realistic. I enjoyed every minute of listening to this (and Julia Whelan narrates, so you know the narration is good!).
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Publisher’s Description
In a small town in Maine, recently widowed Eveleth “Evvie” Drake rarely leaves her house. Everyone in town, including her best friend, Andy, thinks grief keeps her locked inside, and she doesn’t correct them. In New York, Dean Tenney, former major-league pitcher and Andy’s childhood friend, is struggling with a case of the “yips”: he can’t throw straight anymore, and he can’t figure out why. An invitation from Andy to stay in Maine for a few months seems like the perfect chance to hit the reset button. When Dean moves into an apartment at the back of Evvie’s house, the two make a deal: Dean won’t ask about Evvie’s late husband, and Evvie won’t ask about Dean’s baseball career. Rules, though, have a funny way of being broken–and what starts as an unexpected friendship soon turns into something more. But before they can find out what might lie ahead, they’ll have to wrestle a few demons: the bonds they’ve broken, the plans they’ve changed, and the secrets they’ve kept. They’ll need a lot of help, but in life, as in baseball, there’s always a chance–right up until the last out.