The Long Run

Written by Ruby Lang

Narrated by Cindy Kay

Harlem stalwart Monroe Webb is reluctantly drawn to cheeky newcomer Annie Wu, who has moved in across the hall.

Annie knows that Monroe opposed her bid for a space in his building, but she can't help but be fascinated by his style and his dedication to local causes.

Can these neighbors mend fences or are they better off breaking them down?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryant Street Publishing
• Release date: Feb 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094414041

Ruby Lang

Ruby Lang is the author of the acclaimed Practice Perfect series and the Uptown series. Her alter ego, Mindy Hung, wrote about romance novels (among other things) for The Toast. Her work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Walrus, Bitch, and other fine venues. She enjoys running (slowly), reading (quickly), and ice cream (at any speed). She lives in New York with a small child and a medium-sized husband.

Reviews for The Long Run

[Megan Denise Robinson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a sweet middle aged/multicultural romance between a Black man and an Asian woman. It’s a novellette, so it’s pretty short, but I still got a strong sense of the characters, and enjoyed watching their relationship develop. Monroe Webb initially didn’t support Annie Wu’s bid to join his Harlem building; she symbolizes encroaching gentrification and unwanted change to Monroe. He’s ready to dislike her but secretly finds her fascinating. Annie is attracted to Monroe but knows he doesn’t like her, so tries to avoid him, which is impossible because they’re both runners training for the same marathon and have similar social activist interests. Monroe gets over his grumpiness as he notices how much Annie cares about her new community. They become friends and then more.

[Alice Stocks · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I did not like this very very short book at all. It wasn’t even a novella. The book was so short that the characters didn’t have an opportunity to develop. I missed what it was supposed to be about other than an older man and woman falling in love. It was anticlimactic. I am not giving it any stars because I am giving it one star because it won’t allow me to post a review otherwise.