Publication Date: April 15, 2025
One Day meets a contemporary Bridgerton in this high-drama, escapist wonder of a love story, Paige Toon’s best yet.
Three days to fall in love. Six years to try to forget.
Ellie didn’t expect to fall in love while interrailing through Europe. But she also didn’t expect to meet a man like Ash. Three blistering days in Lisbon is all it takes to form an unforgettable connection—a bond deep enough for them to scrap their itineraries and plan to meet again in Spain. But Ellie arrives late, and Ash is nowhere to be found.
Six years later, Ellie has landed her dream job working as a gardener for a viscount and viscountess on their sprawling five-hundred-year-old estate in Wales. She finds peace amongst the towering topiary hedges and colorful gardens, but her idyll is shattered when Ash crashes back into her life. And when it becomes clear why he didn’t show in Madrid, her heart breaks anew—for what the truth means for their fate.
But they have never been able to resist each other, and when the sparks of their attraction fly, Ellie’s life will catch flame. She will have to make a choice.
What If I Never Get Over You by Paige Toon is a story in four parts, and it was a nice way to differentiate the book’s timeline. This is only the second book I’ve read by this author, but I do look forward to reading more of her books.
Ellie and Ash are the two main leads who unexpectedly meet at a hostel in Portugal, and their lives unfurl as a result. They have a strong connection and spend three days together before they go their separate ways once life gets in the way for Ellie. However, they plan to meet again in a week. But of course, things go astray from there. The two go on about their own lives until they unexpectedly meet up once again many years later, this time in Wales, where Ash is from. During those six years, neither of them forgot the other.
We learn about Ellie and Ash’s dreams and their family dynamics, expectations and history, friends, jobs, and how being together for only three days had impacted both their lives. They also come from two separate worlds and were raised very differently. There is a romance brewing between them, but in Ellie’s eyes, it can’t go anywhere, so they end up losing more time together. Throughout, they always seem better together than apart.
The title is spot on, and there is an unexpected happily ever after. However, part four is more of an epilogue and really needs to be explored more since there are a lot of holes.
What If I Never Get Over You is set in stunning locations with many details, color, and history. The characters are complex, but we get to know them bit by bit until they finally get their happy ending.
Paige Toon grew up among England, Australia, and America and has been writing emotional love stories since 2007. She has published sixteen novels, a three-part spin-off series for young adults, and a collection of short stories. Her books have sold more than 2 million copies worldwide. She lives in Cambridgeshire, England, with her husband and their two children.
