I would describe Not Until Noah as the quintessential 2020s romance novel - not too light, not to dark, a mix of drama and romantic comedy. Joyful/sad. Follows a conventional story arc but the devices, trope, etc are artfully blended to disguise these conventions sufficiently that you are not conscious of being manipulated.

The trope here is celebrity meets nobody, and celebrity who wants to be seen for himself falls for the guy who is an innocent in the world. Noah isn't out for what he can get from the famous person - not a bit. Australian, Noah works as a nanny while he finishes university. American movie star, Carter is living temporarily on the Gold Coast, Australia, making a film; he needs a nanny for his 9? year old daughter. Noah's family is from the Solomon Islands and touching upon this culture adds to the story.

I loved this novel from the get-go, and if anything the novel at 7.33 hrs was too short and I found myself hoping there was a sequel for these two - but I don't believe there is.

Actor Carter being closeted made me wonder if in 10 years? 20 years? we'll read these novels that revolve around the angst of "being closeted" and find them boring and dated! If so, it will be a better world by far.

I feel sure I've read more than 2 Lisa Henry novels, but my records show otherwise. She's written 83 novels across several genres. ( )

I wanted to feel bad for Carter for being closeted but couldn't. Things will only get easier when more people come out and we become more visible. I liked Bennett and Olivia. Emerson was okay but her character wavered from young to older too much. Dylan was maddening. All in all this was a nice read but nothing special. ( )