The In-Between Bookstore

As I was reading Edward Underhill's first adult novel, I started noticing that the plot was moving rather slowly for a romance. Eventually I realized that The In-Between Bookstore is a not actually a romance. It uses small-town, second-chance romance tropes, but they're primarily employed in the service of the MC's personal journey. Darby Madden left his small Illinois hometown for New York City as soon as he graduated from high school. Eighteen years later, New York is home. It's where he came out as trans and found a friendship group of other queers. But he's newly unemployed and at loose ends, so when his Mom tells him she is moving from their childhood home to a condo, he drives 13 hours to Oak Falls so he can help her. He'll stay long enough to make sure she's settled, while he brainstorms a new place to live and new job opportunities back in the Big Apple. He almost immediately runs into Michael Weaver, his childhood BFF who inexplicably ghosted Darby right before their senior year. It's not surprising that Michael still lives in Oak Falls and teaches high school. But Darby is shocked to learn that Michael holds him responsible for for the demise of their friendship. Darby's favorite place in Oak Falls was always In Between Books, where he worked and hung out with Michael. But it's more than nostalgia when he steps inside the shop and realizes that the familiar-looking salesclerk is himself - the 17 year old version of himself back in 2009 - when Darby was deep in the closet and Michael was still his bestie. Darby wonders if he's been given an opportunity to rewrite history. If he can get enough information out of “Young Darby” to figure out where it went wrong with Michael, perhaps he can change the future and preserve their friendship. I'll try to avoid spoilers but I will say that almost none of the assumptions I made about the plot were accurate. Yes, Michael turns out to be gay and yes, Darby realizes that even a small Midwestern town can have a close-knit queer community. But if you're feeling Sweet Home Alabama crossed with 13 Going on 30 vibes, you need to stop watching so many rom-coms. The choices Darby makes about his future feel very true to the character. Looking back at my 2023 review of Underhill's debut YA novel, [b:Always the Almost 60784592 Always the Almost Edward Underhill https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1652393694l/60784592.SY75.jpg 92834586], I noted that the trans MC was fully developed, but the Love Interest was bland. So maybe Edward Underhill's heart really lies in exploring trans journeys, which may or may not include the romance novel version of HEA. ARC received from Net Galley in exchange for review.