Unlikely Story

By: Ali Rosen

Narrated by: Carly Robins

From the author of Recipe for Second Chances comes a swoonworthy romance bursting with wit about a therapist who falls for the wrong man…but perhaps the right one was hiding in the margins all along.

As a relationship therapist, Nora helps patients explore their feelings honestly. But she’s hiding an embarrassing relationship secret of her own: she’s in love with someone she’s never even met.

J edits the advice column Nora’s been writing anonymously for the last seven years. He’s in London, she’s in New York, and they communicate solely through shared files. When he confides that his girlfriend’s out of the picture, and her boss asks her to come to London, Nora takes both as a sign.

But that’s not the only thing on her mind. A client’s ex-boyfriend just moved into her co-op, directly beneath her. Eli blames Nora for his breakup and seems determined to make her life miserable, gleefully planning a noisy renovation.

Yet despite all his bluster, Nora eventually starts to see the softness behind Eli’s brusque, charming exterior…and after a slipup reveals a startling secret, Nora wonders whether someone can be two things at once.

©2025 by Ali Rosen. (P)2025 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“A swoonworthy romance reminiscent of a Nora Ephron movie. Rosen’s enemies-to-lovers romance is a delightfully modern take on You’ve Got Mail, mixed with the kind of will-they, won’t-they sort-of love triangle that’s the bread and butter of all rom-coms…Readers will be eating it up happily.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A swoon-worthy romance.”—Hey Alma

“A sweetly angsty, heartwarming, and swoony novel that blends the best of romance and women’s fiction, dresses it with the flair of NYC and London, and leaves you sighing with pure satisfaction.”—Priscilla Oliveras, USA Today bestselling author of West Side Love Story

I saw it coming

4.5 Stars. A modern comedy of errors and misdirection in this sweet romance set mostly in NYC. As a Gestalt therapist, it's always fun to read about well written fictional therapists. I did have the plot twist figured out really early so some of the anticipation was waiting to see how the author chose to resolve the story.... and no, unlike our protagonist, I did not read the end first.

52BookClub 2025 March Mini-Challenge (Spring Cleaning)
Prompt #2: The last book you acquired but haven’t read (acquired Feb 3)

Unlikely Story

Unlikely Story by Ali Rosen
Contemporary romance.
Nora is a relationship therapist during the day in New York. She also has a part time job writing a weekly advice column for the London Tribune. She and her long time editor for the column have become online friends through the process trading notes and conversations in the app. He’s intuitive, open with his own feelings and entertaining to chat with. When an opportunity to travel to London comes up, Nora admits to herself and her own therapist that she has feelings for J.
At the same time, her co-op has a new resident and he’s driving Nora crazy with his noisy renovation happening directly above her. His ex was a client of Nora’s and he blames Nora for their breakup so he’s not too upset about disturbing her.

🎧 I alternated between an ecopy and an audiobook. The narration is performed by Carly Robins who does a fantastic job with keeping the reader engaged and listening. The characters were distinctive and emotions clearly expressed. I did listen above a speed of 1.5 to more closely match reading and local conversation speed.

Nora loves her job as a psychiatrist and being able to help people. She also needs her downtime. “Being able to build a life where I get to introvert alone is one of the greatest advantages to aging.” Hear, hear!
Beyond that comment, I loved how she had feelings for both men and she didn’t just ignore those. Also loved how intuitive and free J was in his writings.

Ease of listening

Easy listening, sweet story
Warm and fuzzies all day long
Great to listen to- difficult to turn off

Excellent!

The characters express emotions that most people experience, but can’t articulate. The relationships are interesting and captivating. It is wonderful to read a story that keeps you guessing and has such a happy ending.

Very cute story but…

I generally enjoyed this, and enjoy Ali Rosen’s books in general. But, it makes me crazy that authors trivialize that therapists cannot date previous clients. It’s not an ethical dilemma you can use as a plot device. So, enjoy this book, but remember that’s it truly an “unlikely story”.

Cotton candy

Shallow and empty. Sorry I wasted my time and money on this nothing book. I will not read this author again.