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I was rather unsatisfied with the ending. Georgie goes to Omaha for Christmas and now everything is supposed to work out? What about her job or Neal's lack of a job? She is either stuck doing the lowbrow show she is embarassed about or something else, like staying at home and moving to Omaha so Neal can be happy. I'm just not sure Neal has shown enough character to deserve it, he just seems like an anti-social passive aggressive guy who doesn't lift a finger because he's pouting his wife won't go to Omaha for Christmas. Can all the things that make her marriage suck magically change just because she goes to Omaha?

I loved the ending. I really liked reading Neal's point of view. I think the ending really made sense. I don't think things were supposed to magically get better. I think it was just Georgie making the effort to make things better, to make choices that put her family first.

Ralph wrote: "I was rather unsatisfied with the ending. Georgie goes to Omaha for Christmas and now everything is supposed to work out? What about her job or Neal's lack of a job? She is either stuck doing the l..."

I completely agree. I honestly couldn't see the point in the book -- and I really tried, because I love this author. It all built up to...nothing. Besides Georgie going to Omaha, absolutely nothing changed...it spent the entire book talking about all of their problems, and then it ended with nothing resolved whatsoever. And the whole book was centered around the relationship's need of fixing -- there wasn't really anything else going on. And then...the relationship didn't change at all... and the book ended. I'm still confused.

I think that the lack of resolution is exactly the point: in marriage--as in the rest of life--there is no end. Things don't magically get better with a happily ever after; making the effort to get to Omaha was Georgie's grand gesture, her "I'm going to grow up and put my family first" moment.

All any of us can do is say that we will start being better people from here on out. It doesn't solve every problem, but it it's a start.

Well said (typed), Pamela! Nicely put.

I got the feeling that the conversation happened for Neal, and then he made the "grand gesture" of traveling to propose to Georgie.

Then, the same conversation happened for Georgie, before making the gesture of her own. Perhaps, it was what each needed to hear to make their relationship a priority, and decide to keep working at it. Did you get this impression?

Disappointing read, which sucks as I really loved some of her other books. It is nice to see that others have the same opinion

Derek, yes! And it ties in nicely with the "fate" conversation: was this "meant to be" or not?

the problem I had with the book is that I had no investment in Neal and Georgie working things out. I thought they were mismatched and that Georgie would be much better off with her writing partner, Seth. Overall, found this a rather disappointing read.

Oh, Good Lord, YES! The ending knocked a star off my review and went from marginal recommendation to generally not recommended. The ending really resolved nothing. Neal was so wooden -- I had no sense of him as a character. And it made no sense that she wasn't with Seth -- this was never really explored.

I got bored reading the book. I'm more than halfway through but it seems that there are too many unnecessary details Rowell could have just skipped to make the plot concise but instead she kept expanding the details to showcase her writing prowess. I was a huge fan of Fangirl, I read all three and have all of her books (softbound) and I think she writes best when she writes YA. The characters talk alike too, they use "god" too much it's annoying. The characters do not come alive when you read the book, they remain as ideas or conceptual characters representing a single scenario of married couple having marital problems. I find Rowell too attached to her personal life that her fantasy self is in the person of Georgie while her admiration ot her husband and kids shows with Neal and the two girls. What I mean is the lines between Rowell as an author and Rowell as a mom/wife were not drawn. It could use more detachment and creative inputs, and less of association.

I liked the ending a lot because it was realistic. Georgie sacrificed the show she thought was important in an attempt to patch things up with Neal. Neither of them is perfect but they're trying and as long as they keep sight of the fact that they have to continue working to keep the marriage together, they'll work. Georgie took her first step in working toward a solution, which she had been stubbornly refusing to do for years. Neal just needed to see that she still cared about the relationship.

I loved the ending to this book. It is something that could actually happen and totally not out there. I love this book and everything about it. It has been about 3 months since I read it but I remember it taking just 20 hours to read because I did not want to put it down at all.

I really liked the ending. I generally don't like it when books end with a nice, perfect bow to wrap up all the loose ends. An open ending lets the reader think of all the possible outcomes and choose their favorite. As for the rest of the book, I did enjoy it, but I didn't really care for Neal. A guy who almost never smiles, even with his wife? He has absolutely no ambition, which I wouldn't mind as long as he was passionate about being a stay-at-home parent. But even that wasn't directly his choice. The character just felt flat and I couldn't persuade myself to care about their relationship much.

I liked the ending. This book should have a companion.

Well the ending is fine with me.

One thing that I was put off by was the fact that Neal couldn't understand why she had to work. Being an adult sonetimes means doing things we do not want to do. I know many people who have towork during week-ends and holidays. Should you really argue with your husband/wife over one day?

I think i'm the only one that rooted for Seth!

Ralph wrote: "I was rather unsatisfied with the ending. Georgie goes to Omaha for Christmas and now everything is supposed to work out? What about her job or Neal's lack of a job? She is either stuck doing the l..."

This is 100% how I felt throughout reading the book and until I finished. I love the book though.

Almostfamous wrote: "I think i'm the only one that rooted for Seth!"

You're not alone there! I like Neal but he can be really difficult to understand and unlikeable. Seth however, is so overt and caring and ambitious. I'd love to see Georgie to be together with Seth but I think that would make the storyline quite trite. I admire their marriage (14 years to waste? NO!), Georgie ending up with Seth would probably make me upset and unsatisfied! I loooove the book though, some scenes really make me swell and flutter.

Cest La'Vie wrote: "One thing that I was put off by was the fact that Neal couldn't understand why she had to work. Being an adult sonetimes means doing things we do not want to do. I know many people who have towork ..."

Well, it's Christmas, right? And I think there is implication that Georgie is a bit of a workaholic. Neal sacrificed quitting his job to take care of Alice and Noomi. Of course, Neal would be upset by this.

The most annoying thing for me was that nobody changed. Usually, that's the point of writing this type of book. To show how the characters grew/changed. That just didn't happen here. I get the relationship between the phone calls and the travel. I get that they are in love and they want to make it work, but I honestly didn't get that there was an actual book in all this. It seemed more like a "Dear Abby" letter.

Hazel wrote: "Cest La'Vie wrote: "One thing that I was put off by was the fact that Neal couldn't understand why she had to work. Being an adult sonetimes means doing things we do not want to do. I know many peo..."


Yes, but even so -- the unusual circumstance was acknowledged within the book - that is, that it is Christmas, but the network needed the script by a certain date, etc., and they acknowledged that it sucked that it was over Christmas. And adults would understand that sometimes sucky things happen.
Yes, it's implied she's kind of a workaholic, but it comes with that job, and again, the unique circumstance was explained.
And then, after all, she ends up blowing it all off anyway, which is pretty immature.

I don't believe there should have been a happy ending. The big problem between Georgie and Neal wasn't a lack of love. It was that Georgie wasn't working to keep the marriage good. As someone married more then forty years I know marriage is hard work but with a lot of effort love can last. With the trip to Omaha we see that finally Georgie realizes this.

I liked the ending a lot, what's not to like. IT. IS. A. HAPPY. ENDING! At least she didn't die in the end(unlike some books, you know what book i'm talking about).

I liked the ending, but leave it to Rainbow Rowell to have unsatisfying endings.

Leah wrote: "I liked the ending a lot, what's not to like. IT. IS. A. HAPPY. ENDING! At least she didn't die in the end(unlike some books, you know what book i'm talking about)."

I'm sorry, I don;t know what book you're talking about. I do know that sometimes an unhappy endings are the most realistic and are important to the moral of the story.

I listened to the audiobook and at the end there was an interview with the author. She said she LOVED writing dialog. I got so bored with the phone conversations because it really WAS like listening to someone else conversation, and there is nothing more boring than that.

Maozamom wrote: "Leah wrote: "I liked the ending a lot, what's not to like. IT. IS. A. HAPPY. ENDING! At least she didn't die in the end(unlike some books, you know what book i'm talking about)."

I'm sorry, I don;..."
I don't know what book she's talking about, either. Sometimes an unhappy ending makes the book -- they can be very powerful.

I think she is referring to The Fault in Our Stars, unless she means Eleanor and Park which is not an unhappy ending.

Ralph wrote: "I think she is referring to The Fault in Our Stars, unless she means Eleanor and Park which is not an unhappy ending."

Perhaps, although "she" doesn't die at the end in that story. Although you're told she will. But there are lots of stories where characters die at the end -- that's hardly the only one.

I was hoping the ending would resolve, somehow, the mystery of the phone calls. Instead, it leaves me hanging with more questions.
However, on a side note, i have to admit that i m more into the 'magic phone' than any other elements of the story.

I liked the ending....not everything ends neatly in life, not every chapter in life is wrapped up with a pretty ribbon and a bow on it. Not everyone gets a perfect job, gets to live where they want, gets a perfect husband and perfect children.

Real Life is messy, and one of the things that makes Rainbow Rowell's books so great is that she recognizes this, and her characters always spring from the pages of her books as real people in real situations.

The ending was okay. I did like seeing that the phone really WAS magic. How her phone calls really WERE to Neal in the past. But I didn't like how it just kinda ended in the middle of everything. I felt that more could be written. Like, where will their money come from? What is happening with Georgie's mom? She didn't know that Georgie even left! And what about that whole scene with Seth! He loves her and she just leaves! How will they work that out? It was a good book, all in all, but more needed to be added to the ending.

I felt VERY disappointed with this book. Nothing changes georgie is just dominante woman and can accept the fact of that. NEAL DO NOTHING and bla bla bla. I dont see the point of talk to him in the past..............sucks

I loved the ending. I think it was the perfect ending for a kind off "christmas book", I couldn't help but think about those christmas movies . Even if I wanted them to speak about the phone and stuff. It was essentially about the journey Georgie had getting there. It's about Georgie and past Neal doing that grand gesture for eachother , in a way at the same time even if it is fifteen years appart
(I don't know if what I'm trying to say is clear , also forgive my bizarre english, as It's not my mother language)

Allow me to put my two cents in.
I really liked the ending. At the start of the book Georgie is focus on what she is getting out of the marriage. She loves Neal, of course as she says but she is focused on how her marriage is affecting her and about making it as good as possible from her perspective. Even when Neal starts drifting apart from her it's not about what she did wrong, she's more focused about how she feels like he's drifitng away. About how She's so close but this is in her way. She get's so obsessed with her life being perfect she can forget how she is affecting the other people around her. Even Seth acknowledges that her obsession on making this show perfect is a tad much.
The lesson that Georgie learns is that Marriage is not just about you. She learns that Neal has already given up things for her and was waiting for her to do the same. Her going to Neal's house is not just her surprising Neal in the hopes that he'll forgive her. It's her saying that she's going to change. That it's no longer about her. It's about Them. Sometimes you don't need to state your intentions. Sometimes you can be metaphorical and have your reader decipher what you meant. This ending spoke more about her development then anything that the author could have had her say. And that is why personally I adore this ending.

Exactly. The story didn't have a happy ending or a sad ending. What it had is a realistic ending full of possibilities.

I remember the scene, but did not find it significant of anything. Who are Kath and Levi?

From the book fangirl. I think you are right.

From the book fangirl. I think you are right.

yeah, that is so unsatisfying. and rowell did not finish well like the relationship georgei and seth. and so the landline. like i cannot justify how the landline effect the relationship.

but i think, romantic story better be like this. its unperfect. not perfect story is the best for love story.

I love the story.It is like in real life,nothing is really can be predictable.I think the final of the story is quite consequential and vague.And again,it is the same in real life,there is nothing unchangeable. However, I would like to ask to Rowell the question.I suppose in the end she was just frozen to death?Of course,I would prefer the happy end,but something suggests that it is too good to be true.

I did feel like it was an 'Unsatisfying ending' but mostly because of Neal. I get that by Georgie going to Omaha she showed that she is willing to do whatever it takes to make it work; that is not only Neal that is trying but her also.

My problem is that even though they love each other, Neal has bigger problems with himself. He hates his life and not because of Georgie, but because of himself. He doesn't like where he lives, and he does not have a job. He has been unhappy all along, and that is not going to be fix by Georgie going to Omaha.

Arleen wrote: "I did feel like it was an 'Unsatisfying ending' but mostly because of Neal. I get that by Georgie going to Omaha she showed that she is

I agree, Arleen, the book did nothing at all to resolve Neal's problems, and they were really big problems. I think Rainbow completely lost that thread in the story.

I thought the ending was straight out of an 80's romantic flick, even though I did enjoy it, I can see where the part on Neal's side can be left unsatisfied. I can say that mostly through the whole book, I wanted to hear more from Neal's POV.

Ralph wrote: "I was rather unsatisfied with the ending. Georgie goes to Omaha for Christmas and now everything is supposed to work out? What about her job or Neal's lack of a job? She is either stuck doing the l..."

Here's how I saw the ending, Georgie never puts others first before her, she is selfish and too focused on her dreams and never compromises on them. So her going to Omaha meant that she did but herself aside and went back to her family. In the end, I don't think it was a typical fairytale ending as she still had some doubts. And the 'its not perfect' convo they had at the end there was different to the typical scenario, though this did end happily.

Ofcourse, what happened to the show,etc questions rises up, but I think the entire novel was a story of a selfish but likable person and whether they could be there for others .

Arlene (Urbrightside) wrote: "I thought the ending was straight out of an 80's romantic flick, even though I did enjoy it, I can see where the part on Neal's side can be left unsatisfied. I can say that mostly through the whole..."

Yes, me too. But I also wonder if his POV would have been too boring, I mean from how he was portrayed.

Susan wrote: "Arleen wrote: "I did feel like it was an 'Unsatisfying ending' but mostly because of Neal. I get that by Georgie going to Omaha she showed that she is

I agree, Arleen, the book did nothing at all..."

yes agree, but I think the book was more about Georgie's journey.

Arleen wrote: "I did feel like it was an 'Unsatisfying ending' but mostly because of Neal. I get that by Georgie going to Omaha she showed that she is willing to do whatever it takes to make it work; that is not ..."

Agree, they were real issues, the novel would have never ended had it been written :P

Galina wrote: "I love the story.It is like in real life,nothing is really can be predictable.I think the final of the story is quite consequential and vague.And again,it is the same in real life,there is nothing ..."

You said so eloquently what I was meaning to say. Agree.

hehheh frozen to death. Hilarious.
And.. those the couple who gave her the lift, I really enjoyed that scene, wonder if the characters are going to appear in any future novels.