Review Detail

‘Missing the Beat’ by Cait Marie tells the story of Maya and Xander, two people who once knew each other and only recently reconnected. Their relationship is filled with plenty of ups, downs, and misunderstandings. Shared trauma and issues that torment them each individually are what keeps them apart, but the chemistry and care that the two show each other when they’re together dispels enough of their past to give them hope for a brighter future—hopefully one that they can spend together.

It’s not easy when Maya sees Xander again, especially when he seems to not remember her from summer camp all those years ago. The fact that he’s her co-star Lucas’ best friend doesn’t make matters easier. She can’t escape him—and even worse, she’s not sure she wants to. She doesn’t want to fall for him again, because the last time she fell hard, and when he acts like he doesn’t remember her, it stings far more than she cares to admit. With her best friend Eliza by her side, who happens to have just started to date Lucas, she tries to come to terms with the demons that haunt her from her own past, as well as the one she had with Xander, or as she remembers him, Alex.

Xander’s pop star personality often gets in the way of what could be real between them, but Maya sees past the flash, even though it frustrates and puzzles her since she remembers a sweet, kind boy so unlike the Xander she’s seeing so many years after their last meeting.

Cait Marie has done it again, sorting together the pieces of a puzzle made up of two people who think they’re so wrong for each other, but find that they just need to find the right fit and then everything will hopefully turn out okay. While this particular novel in the Bennu series has topics that can serve as triggers for some readers, including a past assault, terrifying weather, and family abuse, there is also a hearty dose of kindness, truth, love, and goodness that prevails despite the odds. Maya and Xander will keep readers invested in their stories, waiting to see just how they will intertwine.