In this touching tale of love, loss and figuring out your future, we meet Ella Flynn and Blake Hunter who are both at a crossroads in their lives. Ella's husband of seven years has recently left her for her best friend's sister, leaving her distraught and destitute.

Not only has she lost her husband and her home, but her best friends have disappeared, and her job as a sales person for a wedding shop is soul sucking. Everything is falling apart around her and she doesn't know what to do.

Blake Hunter is a hugely successful screenplay writer but his last two movies have been a flop and he is under pressure to come up with an original story with that extra spark. His ex- wife hates him and his daughter wants nothing to do with him so his personal life is as messy as his professional life.

Pretending to be writing a tourist book in the small town of Watersend, in the hope of finding inspiration, Blake and Ella stumble into each others lives. And with the magic of being strangers, they both present a version of their lives that they wish existed. But as their friendship becomes important, and their lies begin to unravel around them, will they be able to find their way through all of their pain and find the real meaning of love?

THE IDEA OF LOVE by Patti Callahan Henry is a thought- provoking contemporary romance, with interesting characters and fascinating dialogue. Ella has lost everything she has ever wanted - her husband, her home, her dream career as a designer - but as she is forced to really look at her life, it was inspiring to see her being truthful and honest about what she truly needs, and she is my favourite character in this novel. With moments of hilarity and mishaps, and the loveable secondary character of Mimi, THE IDEA OF LOVE by Patti Callahan Henry is an enjoyable read and I look forward to reading more from this author.