I have two books that I absolutely adored and one book that I sort of wish I would have DNF’d, but I decided I didn’t like it at the very end, so… Here we are! With no hints, I’m just going to tell you that the good news is that you can read each of these books right now if you choose to because I am so late to getting these reviews posted. I received e-ARCs from the publishers via Netgalley of each of these three books: Maybe This Once by Sophie Sullivan, In Her Spotlight by Amy Spalding, and Happy Ending by Chloe Liese. I read the final audiobooks of both Maybe This Once and In Her Spotlight through copies I purchased. I read both the e-ARC and the audiobook via Spotify of Happy Ending. Now let’s dive in, shall we?
Maybe This Once
by Sophie Sullivan
This book is about Grayson, the third of the siblings that we’ve been reading about in this Rock Bottom Love series. He’s divorced and got this random plot of land in his divorce settlement that he’s used to create this lodge situation on an island in Michigan. Joining us for this installment is Charlie, who we know at the beginning got into some kind of argument that has gone viral and cost her a job as a psychologist/counselor with children in California. She’s coming out to the lodge because her great uncle who she’s never met actually owns a cabin on the land. She and Grayson have some chemistry, but neither of them initially feel like they have anything to offer the other, but they can’t quite resist one another either.
What I have loved about this series the whole time is the way this is a family giving found family vibes and that truly shines here. The small town community on the main island are so great, as are all of the people that work with the lodge. So I was really vibing with this book for most of it. I didn’t necessarily like that Charlie was so almost reluctant to ever open up, especially the further we got in, but I was dealing with it and assumed that at some point, she would let Grayson know her. And then…
The third act conflict in this book TRULY ruined this book for me. I don’t know if I’m just in a mood or what, but I would have DNF’d the book at 80%, but I forced myself to finish it. I may have skimmed a little, if we’re being honest, but I gave it a fair shot. Here’s the thing, as an avoidant person, I get running from your problems and avoiding talking about the things you don’t want to. But when you’re all set to have that conversation, but instead you flee (again) and then when you come back you STILL don’t have the conversation and then everything blows up in the morning? Yeah, I’m just not here for that. It was one step too far. So, needless to say, I found myself not at all in love with this book at the end. I try not to let a third act breakup ruin a book for me, I really do, but this one? It just didn’t work for me.
Happy Ending by Chloe Liese
A couple of weeks ago, when I first devoured this book, I had anise with the end of this book, but sitting here writing this review, all I can tell you is that I absolutely adored this book. Every time I walk into a bookstore, I find myself looking for Happy Ending on the shelves because I do want to bring a physical copy home with me to live forever on my bookshelves. I fell head over heels for Thea and Alex and Mia and Lauren. This book is funny, it’s sweet, it’s melancholic, basically a recipe for perfection for me.
Essentially, this book follows Thea who faked her way into a friendship with her ex-husband’s new girlfriend’s ex-husband and somehow that relationship has become the most important relationship in her life. Their friendship is everything to Thea and she does not feel capable of risking the friendship even though she knows that she has feelings beyond the platonic toward Alex. I loved everything about this, honestly. I do wish that I had someone in my life who wanted to cook for me and keep me fed all the time because that would be so useful. Thea is a bookstore manager at a local indie shop, while Alex is a professional chef. I like the way their jobs are balanced, even though I think the idea that Alex would have found this level of work life balance questionable. But that is why we read fiction. I also love Mia, Alex’s daughter. She’s such a fun addition to the book. Anyway, yeah, I think you should definitely read this book! It’s so soft and charming and funny and cozy. I just loved it.
In Her Spotlight by Amy Spalding
I’ve enjoyed Amy Spalding’s Out in Hollywood books so the fact that I procrastinated actually picking this one up is just silly, but also, I feel like I saved it for the perfect time! I’ve had a stressful couple of weeks (and that will be continuing), but listening to In Her Spotlight on my long commute made me genuinely so happy. I was so invested in Tess and Rebecca and the two of them getting their HEA! But mostly, I was really, really, really invested in Tess figuring out how to live her life true to herself after spending so much time in a box that was partially of her own creation.
Basically, Tess and Rebecca met at an acting summer situation after college and they fell in love in secret. But something happened and now Tess is a working actress in Hollywood, including a very well performing superhero movie franchise, and she is not out. She has even dated men, despite being uninterested in them. And not even her best friend or her brother know about her sexuality or the love that got away. Now though, she has managed to convince her team to make the time for her to be in a theatre show. She is stunned when Rebecca turns out to be the play’s new director. And so it goes from there.
There is so much to Tess and she wound up feeling so real to me. She has so many flaws. There were times I wanted to scream at her because GIRL!! But underneath the performance of Tess the Actress, Tess the human is actually so worried about losing everything. I just really loved getting to know Tess, but also, Tess and Rebecca. And also seeing Max and also Ari. I really love the universe that Amy Spalding has created.
DNF: Just Friends by Haley Pham
I really wanted to love this book and I think I should have loved it, but unfortunately, the writing style left me feeling a little disconnected from the book and the characters were young enough that the flashback chapters were in high school, which also wasn’t working for me. I appreciate the ARC copy I received so I could try this book out. Hopefully Pham’s next book will work better for me. If you’re curious, this is about Blair and Declan who were best friends in high school, but some kind of accident causes them to stop speaking. Now, post college, Blair is back in her hometown for the summer because her aunt is receiving hospice care and she wants to be there, when she runs into Declan working at the local coffee shop where she applies for a job. That’s about as far as I made it into the book, but I presume, these former best friends will find their way back to one another except as more than friends this go around.
Closing Thoughts
I did have such a great time with (most) of these books! I can’t wait to eventually have a physical copy of Happy Ending on my physical shelves. There are a surprising amount of yellow spines on my shelves, but I think adding another will be really lovely. Have you read any of these three books? I know they’ve been out for several months at this point. But if you haven’t, I hope my reviews have helped you decide if they might be for you!
xx
firewhiskeyreader 