Two Across, Jeffrey Bartsch
Two Across, Jeffrey Bartsch
List: $27.99 | Sale: $19.59
Club: $13.99

Two Across

Author: Jeffrey Bartsch

Narrator: Andrew Eiden

Unabridged: 9 hr

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/04/2015

Synopsis

Highly awkward teenager Stanley Owens meets his match in beautiful, brainy Vera Baxter when they tie for first place in the annual National Spelling Bee-and the two form a bond that will change both of their lives.

Though their mothers have big plans for them-Stanley will become a senator, Vera a mathematics professor-neither wants to follow these pre-determined paths. So Stanley hatches a scheme to marry Vera in a sham wedding for the cash gifts, hoping they will enable him to pursue his one true love: crossword puzzle construction. In enlisting Vera to marry him, though, he neglects one variable: she's secretly in love with him, which makes their counterfeit ceremony an exercise in misery for her.

Realizing the truth only after she's moved away and cut him out of her life, Stanley tries to atone for his mistakes and win her back. But he's unable to find her, until one day he comes across a puzzle whose clues make him think it could only have been created by Vera. Intrigued, he plays along, communicating back to her via his own gridded clues. But will they connect again before it's all too late?

Reviews

Goodreads review by Drucilla on May 04, 2015

This book had so much potential. The characters were fun and setting it in the 1960's was a neat idea. My problem was, as much as Vera and Stanley are great together, I never really connected with them. It was like someone was telling me this story after the fact. The emotions were muted. (view spoiler)[When Vera (hide spoiler)]......more

Goodreads review by Licha on September 28, 2015

DNF @ Chapter 8, page 150 Crossword puzzles, spelling bees, intelligent kids. I was so ready to fall into the spell of a quirky love story. But it dragged and never got anywhere. I thought it was just me since I seem to be going through a reading slump. I tried to stick with it but after a while, I'd......more

Goodreads review by Nada on October 24, 2017

This book is a little slow at times but oh my God it’s so beautifully written. It felt like the novelization of an epic, romantic poem! The story is gorgeous and although the characters are extremely flawed, their flaws are slowly reconciled as the plot progresses. That ending was perfect as well, a......more

Goodreads review by Kelly on July 06, 2015

I am a huge fan of crossword puzzles and spelling bees, so the synopsis made me really excited for this book. It's easiest to compare this to One Day, probably. We keep checking in with Stanley and Vera throughout their lives, but it kept feeling like I was missing major chunks of the story. (Also,......more

Goodreads review by Dick on January 07, 2016

I am a lover of words and enjoy reading, writing, working crossword puzzles and playing word games online. I even bought three copies of this book before Christmas, two for relatives who are also word lovers and a copy for myself. In the early parts of the book, it was hard to feel much sympathy t......more

Quotes

"I fell in love with TWO ACROSS twenty seconds into the first page, and I swear-with my right hand raised and my left on a Jane Austen novel-that with this book you'll meet your new favorite author. His warmth and wit remind me of Laurie Colwin and the other best practitioners of smart romantic comedy. I wish I'd written this wonderful novel. Well, first I'd have to be as good as Jeff Bartsch."—Elinor Lipman, author of The View from Penthouse B and The Inn at Lake Devine

'What a quirky, witty, wonderful read. I ignored my family for the better part of a beach vacation because I couldn't bear to put down this gem of a book. Jeff Bartsch is an immensely talented writer, and I plan to be first in line to buy whatever it is he publishes next."—Cristina Alger, author of The Darlings

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