4.25 STARS

FUCK. MY. LIFE. The Idea Of You by Robinne Lee gave me way too many feels and I’m 100% sure if that was a good or bad thing yet.

Can I say one thing before we really get started? I almost had a twenty-year-old BAE (Before Anyone Else). I mean it. Hayes may only be twenty but he almost had me rethinking my previous life choices of not dating younger men. He’s even a Brit who rocks #BlackLivesMatter T-shirts. How can I not want to sit on his face? – Okay. Let me stop before I get ahead of myself.

I’m going to be honest with y’all, I’m a little bit salty at the ending. Don’t get me wrong, I still loved the book and I don’t feel like it was a waste of my time but I didn’t appreciate that ending at all. The ending had me on the pissed off side for a minute but I stopped to think about it was the most realistic ending I’ve read in a long while.

I’m going to be a little bit messy here but it’s not because I didn’t enjoy the book, it’s because I did.

Let’s hear with the author has to say, shall we?

Synopsis

Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of an art gallery in Los Angeles, is reluctant to take her daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band. But since her divorce, she’s more eager than ever to be close to Isabelle. The last thing Solène expects is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things.

What begins as a series of clandestine trysts quickly evolves into a passionate and genuine relationship. It is a journey that spans continents as Solène and Hayes navigate each other’s worlds: from stadium tours to international art fairs to secluded hideaways in Paris and Miami. For Solène, it is a reclaiming of self, as well as a rediscovery of happiness and love. When Solène and Hayes’ romance becomes a viral sensation, and both she and her daughter become the target of rabid fans and an insatiable media, Solène must face how her romantic life has impacted the lives of those she cares about most.

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At some point, this story stopped being cliche or taboo and became a pure love story. The author takes us on the same path as Solène and Hayes as though we were living it right along with them. Their love, their passion, their pain, their heartbreak become the reader’s same love, passion, pain, and heartbreak. This story goes far beyond the stigma of age, it’s a true and pure love story. It just happens to be a love story of an older woman and a younger man. When an older man becomes involved with a younger woman, it’s accepted. When an older woman becomes involved with a younger man, it’s frowned upon.

Solène is beautiful, smart, and sexy. She is also 39 years old and someone most 20-year-old pop stars are quick to look past. Except for Hayes, a sexy British boy band member who finds himself gravitating to Solène.

They say opposites attract and if we are going by age differences here Solène and Hayes are complete opposites. Plus, Solène has a 12-year-old daughter who happens to believe she is in love with Hayes herself, like many other young girls around the world.

So, what’s a woman to do when she finds herself in that situation? Of course. . . sleep with him – too bad that decision was going to change to course of their lives that no one could have predicted. The real question here was, how much would that decision affect those they loved as well?

“You afraid?” He asked.

I nodded.

“So am I. But I’m all right with that. If I get hurt, I get hurt. It happens, right? Someone always gets hurt. But I don’t want to miss out on us because I was afraid.” – Hayes

I can’t remember the last book I read that made me want to find a way for two people to be together when the odds were stacked against them so much. The author does such an amazing job of creating the world of Solène and Hayes. I honestly felt like I was there with them as they traveled throughout the world getting lost in themselves together – or in the idea of each other.

I’m to keep it real with you. If I saw a world-famous twenty-year-old rock star with a thirty-nine-year-old divorcee with a 12-year-old kid. . . I might judge for a minute. But let me point out that that judgment was only for a minute. I make it a point never to assume I know what’s going on between two people. I would also be of the mindset that it won’t work out in the long run and creating an opinion would be a waste of my time and I don’t like wasting my time.

I’m just being honest here. I know that’s a fucked up thing to say but I’m just keeping it real.

So look-it – I’m 34. I’m a mom. A wonderful mother BTW. Just a quick FYI. I’m married. I’m immature and I fucking love it. I have one life and I refuse to spend it like an old hag who takes everything too seriously. With that being said, if I were to date a man twenty years younger than me I would go to prison and that’s nasty as he would be fourteen. But if I was a thirty-nine-year-old woman and dating a twenty-year-old (which I couldn’t see happening because I’m not into younger guy) the perfect 20 years old would be Hayes.

Hayes is my inner cougar’s BAE.

But sometimes age isn’t just a number, sometimes it’s just a life fact. That same life fact caused a lot of hurt and turmoil for the ones around Solène and Hayes. . . and each other. At times, The Idea Of You was so painful to read. I shed real tears.

“How did we get here? This was only supposed to be lunch, remember? This was only ever supposed to be lunch.”

“You,” he said, his voice frayed, foreign.

“Me?”

“You. You let me unfold you.” – Solène/Hayes

It’s time for the big questions.

Do I recommend this book? Yes, but not to everyone. You can listen to my 5-minute quick book review podcast to find out why here.

Will I read another book by this author? Yes and no. You can listen to my 5-minute quick book review to find out why here.

I actually didn’t get messy at all with this one. I kept it all the way pretty. I’m so proud of myself. *happy dance*

TTYL, lovers. . .

Remember to follow all things messy. . .

Subscribe/Listen to my podcast

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If you’ve already read The Idea Of You by Robinne Lee, test you knowledge in this 1 minute quiz.

Test Your Knowledge – The Idea Of You by Robinne Lee

 The Idea Of You by Robinne Lee is one of my favorite reads of 2018. If you have read the book and enjoyed it as much as I did let's have some fun with it. 

Test your knowledge of all things Solène and Hayes in a 10 question quiz for a little fun.

Take this quick 1 min quiz to test you knowledge.

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