While No Chance Meeting is a slow, meandering read with a lot of daily minutiae and internal pondering, it plumbs emotional depths.

Jaye Elliott’s debut focuses on two people who are doing their best to move forward with life. While Alex is smothered by grief and darkness, meeting Riley leads her to open up with him and with the other important people in her life. Riley is a support for Alex but is by no means perfect. He’s made mistakes he regrets and has some broken relationships scattered in the landscape of his life.

Elliott tackles the difficult topic of depression with grace and gentleness, never glossing over the internal battle that Alex wages on her emotions. The faith element of the book is also authentic to the story. I'll be watching for more from this author.

Disclosure statement: I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own. ( )