The Coincidence by Felice Stevens (audiobook) – Narrated by Kale Williams

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Nice guys always finish last, and Coby Epstein is sick and tired of being last. After his boyfriend dumps him, Coby vows to take it slow and not jump into another relationship, no matter what his 95-year-old great-aunt says. When Coby sees his ex has moved on, he goes on a series of disastrous first dates and swears off men, determined to be alone. His best friend disagrees and finds the “perfect man” for him online and arranges a date. The only problem? Coby has no idea what she’s done.

Since childhood, Eli Kaplan has been his father’s greatest disappointment, a fact he’s reminded of at every opportunity. For years, he’s struggled with the knowledge that dating women doesn’t work for him. A late-night confession to his brother changes everything and Eli realizes, maybe, just maybe, he can come out, find himself, and find love. Eli takes the plunge and creates a profile on a dating website, not knowing what to expect. One night he chats with an intriguing man, and despite his nervousness, they arrange to meet for coffee. No big deal. They’ll probably never see each other again.

On the day of their first date, nothing could surprise Coby and Eli more than to discover that they live in the same apartment building, on the same floor. In a city of eight million people, coincidences don’t get crazier than that. But as the two men begin to weave their lives together with cautious optimism and hope for a future, they find an even greater thread holding their families together – one born from the ashes of a final solution that couldn’t destroy their ancestors’ courage, leaving scars that remain almost a century later. Past lives torn apart can be pieced together by a future no one could have ever imagined, where love is more than fate or coincidence. It’s meant to be.

Rating: Narration – A-; Content – A-

My Felice Stevens glom continues with The Coincidence, a sweet, romantic and sexy standalone contemporary romance from 2019, in which two men – who start out as complete strangers – discover that their lives are more deeply intertwined than they could ever have guessed.

A year into his relationship with his boyfriend, Coby Epstein thought things were going really well and was on the point of suggesting they move in together – when the guy told him they didn’t want the same things and dumped him. Coby comes to see that he’d allowed himself to be treated badly throughout their time together, and decides that from now on, he’s going to take things slow whenever he meets someone he’s interested in – although right now, a new relationship is the last thing he’s looking for. His best friend Addie insists that the best way to get over the crappy ex is to get out there and have lots of hot, raunchy sex with other men – but that’s not really Coby’s style. He does, however, allow Addie to persuade him to sign up to a dating app, and even goes on a few dates. But they’re all pretty disastrous.

Eli Kaplan is single and has struggled for years to come to terms with the fact that women don’t really do it for him, but has never quite found the courage to act on the attraction to men he’s spent years trying to suppress. For most of his life, all he’s heard from his father is what a great disappointment he is, how he should have gone to law school like his brother Darren, and how his job as a court officer is a waste of time, so he dreads to think what the reaction would be if he actually came out as gay. But not being able to be himself is starting to take a toll on him; he longs to have someone in his life but has no idea how he’d even go about finding someone, even if he could work up the courage to actually date a guy. It’s Darren, who suggests that maybe Eli should sign up with a dating app (as opposed to a hook-up app!) – one where people arrange to meet for coffee or lunch, just to dip his toe into the water and see if there’s anyone he might be interested in spending time with.

Of course, Coby and Eli end up connecting via the app – but before they even get as far as their first date, they’re surprised to discover that not only do they live in the same building, they live on the same floor. Which is quite the coincidence, right?

The pacing in this one is fairly slow and I’ve seen reviews that point out that Eli and Coby don’t even meet until the 35-40% mark, but quite honestly, I was so caught up in each of their stories and situations and in getting to know them as individuals, that I really didn’t notice. The author does a wonderful job of building a strong emotional connection between Eli and Coby as they get to know each other and become part of each other’s lives, and the slow-burn romance is perfect given that Coby is getting over a breakup and has never been one to jump straight into bed with someone, and Eli has never had a relationship with a man (and is a virgin, to boot). Their gradual fall into love – as Coby confronts his fear of not being enough while Eli takes his first cautious steps into something completely new – is beautifully done, and even though Eli’s brother and best friend suggest that maybe he should play the field a little and not ‘settle’ for the first guy he dates, Eli knows that Coby is who he wants to be with, and I was so pleased when he decided to trust his heart and his judgment on that score.

The two leads are immensely likeable, and there’s a terrific cast of secondary characters here as well. Eli’s relationship with Darren is really well-written and I loved that they’re so close and get on so well despite the fact that their parents treated them in such an unequal manner. Coby’s best friend Addie adds some light-relief, but the real star-turn cameo is Coby’s ninety-five-year-old Tante Fay (his great-aunt), a sassy, tell-it-like-it-is woman who’s been through a lot – she escaped the Holocaust with her sister, but most of her family did not (her story is, incidentally, inspired by real life events) – who clearly loves Coby to bits and is dearly loved in return.

In fact, Tante Fay’s story factors into Eli and Coby’s in another layer of coincidence which, once again, neither could have foreseen – the connection is clear early on so it’s just a case of waiting for all the characters to work it out. I liked the way things played out, the possibility of healing and catharsis arising from something so terrible, and although I wasn’t completely convinced by one character’s last-minute change of heart, I suppose it’ s important to allow for the possibility of change for the better.

Kale Williams delivers another high-quality, technically accomplished performance that hits all the right emotional notes, and takes this engrossing and heartfelt story to another level. He communicates a strong sense of engagement with the material and a deep understanding of the characters so the listener feels as though they’re with them on every step of their emotional journey, and for me, that’s one of the most important things any romance narrator can do. I liked his interpretations of Eli and Coby, and their chemistry and the warmth of their connection comes through strongly. All the characters are appropriately voiced and clearly differentiated – from Tante Fay (Mr. Williams has a nice line in Jewish grandmother-types!), to Eli’s cold, unpleasant father, whose harsh, clipped tones suit him perfectly – and as always, his gorgeous voice is an absolute pleasure to listen to.

One of the things I’ve come to love about Felice Stevens’ books is her ability to write about ordinary people going about their ordinary lives and turn them into extraordinary stories. The Coincidence is one of them; it’s a beautifully written, deeply emotional story featuring flawed but loveable main characters, a gorgeous slow-burn romance – and more than a touch of fate.

This review originally appeared at AudioGals.