Readers who enjoyed "The Girl He Used to Know" and "Normal People" will probably connect with this book as well. Twenty years later, there’s a bombing, bringing Clara to look for Benjamin, worried that he was affected.

I felt for him all the way through and I actually agreed with what happened to him, but still felt bad for him.Benjamin and Clara are written as realistic characters, which meant at numerous times within the book I didn’t really like them.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this copy of The One that Got Away in exchange for an honest review. Clara and Benjamin have the most toxic relationship but I feel is not unrealistic for some in young love. This is the first book I've read by Charlotte Rixon and I just simply fell in love with the writing style. For the next two years, they are inseparable- experiencing the highest of highs and lowest of lows together until one tragic night severs their ties.We follow the lives of two teenage lovers through three points in time, listening to how they individually experience the ups and downs of university life, through to adulthood. Thought-provoking and with heavy topics weaved throughout, I found this an intense but enjoyable read. I can say about the book that I had an idea of ​​the possible story from the beginning, but was surprised again towards the middle of the book.

Maybe this is the magic of the book, we see them as individual people rather than part of a couple and we root for the happiness of both of them, either with each other or with other people. I wasn’t a huge fan of Clara, in all honesty, I found her self-absorbed, entitled and a rather petty, jealous person who allowed her insecurities to run her life. It is a truth universally acknowledged that anyone who reads this book will find it absolutely stunning and unforgettable! There were a lot of heavy topics and I think some trigger warnings should have been given or for the book not to sound fully like a romance lovey-type novel.I think if you have ever been in a relationship where you loved the person, or ended in a strange fashion, the book – at least on the “one that got away” part – will be relatable. This isn't the type of book I normally gravitate towards, but I wanted to shake up my routine a little bit. Charlotte Duckworth is one of my favourite authors so it makes sense that Charlotte Rixon is her pen name for this book.

Most importantly that no matter how much we plan, fate can step in and flip our plans upside down putting us on a different path to learn and grow up. Relationships have huge ups and downs and with each encounter be they romantic, friend or family, nothing was sugar-coated. There were a lot of serious and tough topics in the story that I enjoyed reading about, although I first thought this would be a lighter novel. There are some pretty great twists along the way that are cleverly hidden in plain sight, which keeps the momentum of the story going right when it could start to get predictable. Ben can’t get through to Clara to let her trust him but Clara also can’t trust Ben, she has a secret that is influencing how she’s acting but she just can’t tell him.

This is an emotional multiple point of view story between two people, over the course of the present and the past.