Review of ‘There You Are’ by Robin Alexander

Thirty-something-year-old designer Brett Bishop is the manager of all things Alex, 24-year-old daughter of a famous designer. Rather than pursuing her own career, she ends up being in charge of Alex’s business as well as filling in for her estranged parents. Evangeline Scott, known as Scotty, is a designer looking for a fresh start after getting burned out in the cut-throat fashion industry. When Alex brings Scotty on board, Brett’s hackles go up as she’s used to having people go through Alex in order to be noticed by the more successful designer in the family. The trio goes to get angry Cass, Alex’s 18-year-old sister, and their uncle on the way to Montana for a vacation. When the plane crashes they all have to put their differences aside to find help and get out alive.

I was looking forward to this lesbian rom-com book but unfortunately, it did not meet my expectations. The highlight of the book is the Brett/Scotty relationship. Their chemistry is undeniable and simply great. Although a little different, their sense of humor and take-charge personality do make them a good pair. Funny how the secondary characters all saw this while I found myself enthusiastically echoing their assessment. These interactions were the funniest in the book. The story was bordering on boring until they got on the airplane and there was a bathroom scene. Not the mile-high thing that quite frankly I find gross, but something else equality gross but funny!

As I mentioned above, I found the story lacking whenever Brett and Scotty were not sharing the pages. The sisters’ bickering got old, as well as their constant swearing (and that is not something I cringe about). Now, I will admit I may be primed as my 2 daughters also bicker constantly. I understand that part of the story was geared towards establishing Brett and Scotty as parent figures, but the opportunity was missed towards more relationship development. Scotty is almost 40 years old, yet the decision to be with a woman for the first time came and went without fanfare. In fact, the entire relationship was without conflict. The rest of the supporting cast was good, Mark was the gay uncle with a fabulous dog that walked all over him, so naturally, I enjoyed it. 3 stars