The Good Part by Sophie Cousens

 

4.5 *

Possible spoilers

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One of the things I like about the time travel trope is the various ways authors manipulate it. Will choices the character makes rewrite history? Will travel back and forth through time land you in the same place and time when you return? Will you remember your past or future life after you move between times? In The Good Part, Cousen’s female lead, Lucy Young, is a 26-year-old living in a cramped and damp flatshare in south London who has been struggling to gain a foothold in the competitive television industry all while watching her 3 best friends find success. In addition to her frustrating employment, she’s fed up with the dreadful dating scene and dealing with thoughtless roommates. So, after one especially difficult day when she wakes up to water dripping from the upstairs flat, is relegated to gopher duty by her boss despite her new promotion, gets into an argument with her best friend, and then encounters a flasher, she enters a shop to escape the rain and finds a vintage wishing machine. Her wish? To skip over all the messy, dissatisfying bits of her life so she can just get to the “good part.” Of course, it’s another case of being careful what you wish for.

When she wakes up the next morning in an unfamiliar bed with a gorgeous man who seems to know her, she has no idea how she got there. All of a sudden, she’s 16 years older with two kids and no memories of the time she’s missed. Her precocious son, 7-year-old Felix, thinks she’s an alien and encourages her to find the portal so she can leave and he can get his real mummy back. Her wonderful, loving husband Sam thinks she had temporary amnesia and makes it his mission to fill in her lost memories (both good and bad) and, in the process, she easily understands what made her fall in love with him in the first place. She also realizes that she’s become a very successful producer, but without her memory, doesn’t feel equipped to navigate the demands of the job.

So, if there is a chance to find the portal that will transport her back in time, will she take it and risk losing the family she’s come to love or will she give up trying to get those sixteen lost years back?

Cousens writes lovely stories with likable, fallible characters. This is one of her best. I found this story totally captivating and fell a little bit in love with Sam and the kids. I was going to give it 5* but I didn’t like the choice the FMC made in the end. Like her, as a reader, I’m hopeful it will all work out in the end, but I guess I’m just more risk-averse. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from G.P. Putnam’s Sons through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch by Jacqueline Firkins

4*

Ever since age six, when Imogen’s mother (who can predict the future) tells her she’ll never be first in anything, she has set out to prove her wrong and break the curse. In childhood, it was everything from sports contests to academic pursuits, and from art school onward, it was trying to find a man who wouldn’t eventually leave her for someone better. However, overshadowing it all, is her lifelong friend and high school crush Eliot who took their mutual best friend Franny to the prom and then left town permanently after graduation, eventually ghosting her despite his promise to keep in touch and leaving her heartbroken.


Just after her 17th boyfriend tells her he’s leaving her for his co-worker, Imogen’s mother has a premonition and Eliot’s father dies. In the ten years he’s been gone, quiet, sweet, kind but tortured Eliot has wandered the globe, amassed four million followers on his YouTube channel, and kept his vow to never return to the home where he was raised and neglected by his cold parents. When he’s called back for the funeral, he isn’t just confronting his mother and the pain of his childhood, he’s also having to come clean with Imogen. Once he share his fears with her, he commits to helping her win at something, knowing that this curse has held her back from living her fullest life and following her dreams. In the process of competing in everything from corn-shucking to cupcake baking contests, is there a chance that Eliot will decide to stop running away and, instead, run towards life with Imogen?


Although this has all the elements of a second-chance, friends-to-lovers, small town romance, it fits more in the women’s lit genre with complex family situations, an enduring friendship between three friends that isn’t the love triangle it appears to be at first glance, a small town citizenry that is predictably all up in Imogen’s business, and two lovely, kind people who are great at helping each other face hard truths but whose baggage might keep them from ever forgiving themselves and the people who wronged them so that they can be together. Firkin keeps readers in suspense up until the final moments. Fans of Kristan Higgins, Katherine Center and Abby Jimenez will want to check this one out.


I received a complimentary ARC of this book from St. Martin’s Griffin through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Christmas with the Lords by Hannah Langdon

 

4*

Sweet friends-to-lovers, grumpy/sunshine, small town romance set in the English countryside of Dorset.

After being cruelly dumped by her boyfriend of 10 years and, at 38, facing the prospect of never fulfilling her dream of a husband and children, primary school teacher Penny decides to spend the Christmas holiday taking care of four-year-old twins. Shortly after she arrives, she meets their Uncle Lando, a handsome, grumpy, troubled man who spends his days whittling a nativity set in his studio. Like Penny, he’s running from a life that he thought was what he wanted, but turned out to be soul-destroying. They both have plans to leave what’s familiar and to escape, Penny to an international school position in India and Lando to a secluded cottage in Greece. However, as feelings start to grow and their arrogant, awful exes try to rekindle relationships for selfish reasons, these two insecure but kind souls have to decide if running away will really solve their problems or if they’re willing to risk following their hearts.

Despite the baggage they’re both carrying, Langdon doesn’t allow it to drag down the story. The antics of the eccentric Lord family are funny and endearing, the twins are adorable, and everyone from grandfather William to the twin’s mom Bunny to the surly but caring cook Pilar open their arms and hearts to Penny. If you’re looking for a heartwarming Christmas story that includes chosen family, a quaint English village, and a mature, slow burn romance, this is it!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Storm Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Five Gold Rings by Kristen Bailey

 

5*

If you’re looking for a perfect Christmas pick-me-up, this book is for you. It’s chock full of romantic proposals, fanciful weddings, family and community gatherings, British wit, and love, so much love!

 

Eve, who embodies kindness and caring, is shocked to walk in on her boyfriend of three years being serviced by a co-worker in their apartment. In a rage, Eve begins throwing things out the window - Christmas gifts for his family she purchased and wrapped, his cellphone, and a cheap engagement ring she finds under the tree. Then she runs to the jewelry store where she works part time to be comforted by the elderly owners who treat their employees like family. In the meantime, her colleague Joe is working a raucous hen party in a risqué elf costume when he gets a call from Mrs. Casper asking him to come comfort Eve. Given that he’s crushed on her for almost two years, he doesn’t hesitate. 

 

In a fortuitous series of events, it turns out they gave a courier five gold rings by accident and the Caspers task Eve and Joe with retrieving them and delivering them to the correct customers by Christmas. Deliveries that should take no more than a few hours stretch into two days as the two get roped into attending weddings, taking a river cruise, witnessing a flash mob proposal, and playing Joseph in a nativity play, all while observing examples of true, enduring love and commitment. Along the way, people ask if or assume they are a couple, and as the clock winds down on Christmas and Eve gets satisfying closure with her cheating ex, she begins to wonder if all these people are seeing something that has been right in front of her all along.

 

Joe is the absolutely perfect book boyfriend. Not only is he handsome and protective in a non-alpha way, but he also listens, puts Eve’s needs and happiness first, shows empathy, has ovaries exploding as he cradles a baby, and puts his medical school training on hold to take care of his ailing father.  When he looks at Eve, he sees a heartbroken woman who still champions love and, because of the goodness in both of them, they are able to be their authentic selves (including seasickness, snoring, and snotty tears) without fear of rejection. This London-based story is a sweet, clean holiday romance that tackles some heavy subjects without becoming maudlin, and Bailey does a wonderful job of bringing both main and secondary characters to life and painting vivid backdrops of all the places they visit along their journey. Highly recommended.

 

I received an ARC from Storm Publishing through NetGalley for an honest review. Opinions are strictly my own.

The Twelve Dogs of Christmas by Susan Wiggs

4*

It’s been awhile since I’ve read a Susan Wiggs book and now I’m remembering why I enjoy them so much. This heartwarming Christmas romance is set in a small town in the New York Catskills which has all the qualities you’d find in a Hallmark movie. It’s also hell on earth for a woman like Brenda Molloy who associates the holiday with only pain and suffering. When she is cajoled into transporting a van full of shelter dogs to their forever homes in Avalon, the last thing she expects is that a accident will bring paramedic Adam Bellamy to the rescue. She also can’t anticipate how just spending a couple of weeks delivering the dogs (or chasing them down), being understudy for her injured colleague in a Christmas play, and sharing everything from a holiday work party to sledding to dog training will start chipping away at her protective shell. The question is, will the over-the-top spirit of Christmas be enough for her to take a chance on love even if it means loss sometime in the future?

If you love Christmas, cute dogs, small town charm, and sweet romances, you’ll love this story. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from William Morrow through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Dragged to the Wedding by Andrew Grey

 

4*

Fake relationship, forced proximity gay romance that goes well beyond the typical tropes to highlight the process of coming out on your own terms. 

James is a Chicago-area cop who has spent the last 13 years of his life living as an out and proud gay man, except to his ultra-conservative, Christian family back in Montana. When his older sister announces her impending marriage, he is desperate to find a female beard rather than show up solo, having to fend off his mother’s matchmaking efforts. No one is more surprised than he when he enlists the help of drag queen Lala Traviata (aka Daniel) to play his fake girlfriend Daniella. During the week of pre-wedding events, Daniella saves the day more than once, all while the two of them are struggling to remain platonic while sharing a bed, investigating the creepy pastor who’s officiating the ceremony, fending off the scummy best man, and trying to avoid exposing James’s sexuality. The question is, is anyone being honest?

Although there’s plenty of lightheartedness and humor as well as kindness and caring between James, Daniel, and his sisters, there is also an exploration of the stages a gay man works through to fully come out, especially facing the fear and pain of rejection by those who are supposed to love him unconditionally. James’s overbearing mother, with her cross-stitched 10 commandments for how her children should behave hanging prominently on the wall, goes to extremes to force her concepts about what her grown kids need, going so far as to almost sabotage her daughter’s wedding. At times, it’s difficult to witness how misguided and blinded supposed good Christians can be, but author Grey does a great job of balancing the highs and lows of family expectations.

As a straight, older, agnostic white woman, I can’t speak on the authenticity of the portrayal, although I believe Andrew Grey is gay and knows what he writes. However, I can say that he has written a unique story that evokes a range of emotions and had me reading it in one sitting. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Carina Adores through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Escape to Starshine Cove (Starshine Cove #1) by Debbie Johnson

5* 

Escape to Starshine Cove (Book #1) is a beautifully-written story that, at its heart, is about the many faces of grief and the power of a loving community coming together selflessly and without judgement to nurture and help wounded souls heal. In true Johnson style, though, it’s also full of laughter and light, quirky characters, romance, and vivid descriptions of the setting. On the surface, Starshine Cove on the Dorset coast is like something out of a fairy tale with its cobbled streets, thatched roof cottages, a beautiful beach surrounded by turquoise waters, and the magical cave full of colorful stones. 

 

Ella Farrell flees her home after discovering her partner of 13 years in bed with his assistant. It’s the final straw, but it’s the miscarriage she suffered three years prior and endless hours working at the hospital during the pandemic that have left her broken. When her car breaks down, she discovers a magical place with handmade fairies in the trees and a welcoming community of kind and caring citizens.  It is, as Ella says, “wild and beautiful and free – it is the absolute image of the happy place I have spent so many hours conjuring up...” Like Ella, it seems to be a place where lost souls find themselves again, many of whom are struggling with their own profound grief. 

 

One of these is Jake Hennessey, aka Pub Daddy, the owner of the Starshine Inn. As Ella and Jake spend more time together and start to share the reasons they escaped from their previous lives, Ella begins to confront her trauma and start the healing process. One step is to accept the townfolk’s offer to become their new doctor. However, when faced with a near-tragedy she blames herself for, she flees Starshine Cove and her budding romance with Jake. As she says, “I’m a doctor who can’t cope with stress, who can’t cope with caring, who can’t cope with life-threatening situations. A doctor who can’t even control her own mental health, never mind her patients’.” It will take a miracle (or maybe just some long overdue therapy) for her to find her way through her grief to acceptance and the embrace of her newfound family.

 

Johnson is an exceptional writer who captures the essence of the human experience by illustrating the many types of grief while showing that, despite the pain, there are still many moments of loving, laughter, friendship, and wonder. There’s always the chance the talk of the pandemic will quickly date a book, but I applaud the fact that Johnson doesn’t shy away from illustrating the profound effect it had (and continues to have) on both the physical and mental health of healthcare workers. I highly recommend this heartwarming, magical story that is the first in a series. 

 

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Storm Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

 

Faking Christmas by Kerry Winfrey

 

4*

Laurel Grant has always struggled to find her passion and her place in the world. She also has an unfortunate habit of engaging in workplace romances which invariably go bad, the most recent of which left her homeless and jobless. So when her best friend suggests she apply for a social media position at Buckeye State of Mind, an Ohio magazine and website, she gives it a shot and is offered the job. The only hitch? Her new boss Gilbert, who she’s at no risk of falling for, thinks she’s a successful farmer thanks to the Meadow Rise Farm Instagram account she moderates for her twin sister Holly and her husband Darius. Fearful that the job offer will be rescinded if she sets him straight, she keeps up the ruse by writing a monthly column highlighting her life on the farm as a fabulous cook, custom furniture maker, and goat tender. So when Gilbert invites himself for their traditional Christmas Eve Eve dinner, she conspires with Holly to switch places, complete with playing Mom to her niece and nephew. How hard could it be to pull off?

Turns out it’s a lot harder than Laurel thinks when her nemesis, Max Beckett, shows up at Holly’s invitation to play her husband. When a blizzard turns an evening’s dinner into a weekend gathering, it’ll take a Christmas miracle to pull it off, especially since she’s hated Max ever since Holly’s wedding when she overheard him trying to convince Darius to call it off. Is it possible that she’s misjudged the grumpy, Christmas-hating killjoy who’s doing his best to help her fool her boss since she has no clue how to cook or milk a goat or why she suddenly finds herself fighting an attraction?

This sweet slow-burn, enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, fake relationship Christmas romance is the perfect recipe for a holiday treat. Combining plot elements from the classic movie Christmas in Connecticut with The Parent Trap, blended together with favorite Christmas songs and movies, Winfrey offers up a great escape for readers looking for a heaping helping of holiday cheer. 

I received an ARC from Berkley Books through NetGalley for an honest review. Opinions are strictly my own.

Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews

 

4*

Bright Lights, Big Christmas is a cute, Hallmark-worthy, sweet romance with a cast of characters that runs the gamut from a precocious little boy and curmudgeonly, eccentric old man to a burly, Southern mountain man, a wide swath of quirky NYC denizens, and the adorable, kind couple at the center of it all.

At its heart, this is the story of chosen family in a quaint West Village neighborhood that annually welcomes the Tolliver family when they set up their Christmas tree stand. Since patriarch Jock has suffered a heart attack, recently-unemployed art director Kerry is roped into taking her father’s place with her older brother Murphy. What starts out as begrudging acceptance turns into a life-changing experience as she befriends 5-year-old Austin and starts to fall for his kind and handsome dad Patrick. While not interacting with customers, she’s busy rediscovering her creative side by fashioning elaborate wreaths and illustrating a story imagined by Austin. Aiding in the process is the mysterious Heinz who appears daily to offer constructive criticism of her drawings and add his own artistic touches. As weeks pass, Kerry begins to feel more and more like she may have found a place she belongs. Will she be brave enough to open her heart and trust in her art?

Although most of the action centers around the corner Christmas tree lot and the rundown, vintage camper she and Murphy use as their temporary housing, it’s Heinz’s story that really grabbed my attention. When he falls ill and fails to show up for a few days, Kerry searches the neighborhood trying to find this man who is either homeless or just really good at hiding. When he is found, the story that unfolds is heartbreaking, fascinating and ultimately redemptive. It’s a capsule in time that, in my opinion, overshadows the central love story.

If you’re looking for a Christmas romance that warms your heart and leaves you yearning to be warmly embraced by family, both by blood and by choice, consider this novel. You won’t be disappointed.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

The Wish by Lena Gibson

 

5*

Blending elements of romance, magical realism, mystery and science fiction, Gibson has crafted a unique story that grabs your attention right from the start and never lets go. 

Autistic-coded Elizabeth Bergstrom has suffered from selective mutism for 2 years following the death of her abusive ex-husband in a car accident she survived. She met him shortly after her ex-boyfriend Brandon broke up with her and married him on the rebound. As the story opens, we meet Brandon’s brother Christopher who works with her at the Portland Museum of Natural History where he takes pleasure in charmingly goading her, in the hopes he’ll get her to talk. Soon after, she learns that Brandon died many years before and wishes for a do-over. Be careful what you wish for because she wakes up five years in the past. Almost immediately, Elizabeth begins to see past events from a different perspective, but she also has to decide what actions she’ll take to rewrite her future. Surprisingly, she’s still mute, but when she reconnects with Christopher to try to save Brandon, she learns that he can read her thoughts and believes that she’s from the future, making the entire process easier. 

There’s never a dull moment in this story, from the ex-husband who is so much worse than she ever knew to her sister who acts as if Elizabeth is incapable of rational thought because she can’t speak (and makes selfish, damaging decisions as a result). The reason behind Brandon’s coma reads like a combination of science fiction and a bloody, psychological thriller, but there’s also a beautiful romance and a few dashes of magical realism with an invisible cloak, time travel, and mind-reading. Gibson also sensitively tackles grief, guilt, scientific ethics, ableism, and domestic violence without these heavy topics weighing down or stalling the narrative.

If you’re looking for a complex story that will keep you riveted and at the edge of your seat, pick this one up. This would be an excellent choice for a book club given how much fodder there is for discussion. I only wish that a major publisher was behind this book because it deserves a wider audience. Highly recommended.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are strictly my own.