Member Reviews
This was a book I didn't finish as the writing just didn't grip me. I'm probably in a minority as she's a very popular author but I found that the characters were just not engaging.
Multi award-winning author Sarah Morgan continues to establish herself as one of the brightest and most talented stars of contemporary romantic fiction with New York, Actually, a fun, flirty and feel-good read that is absolutely delectable!
When it comes to relationships, New York’s number one advice columnist Molly is the person everyone turns to to solve their romantic dilemmas. But while Molly is an expert when it comes to solving other people’s emotional dramas, when it comes to her own relationships, she tends to steer clear of affairs of the heart and lavishes her time and attention on her gorgeous Dalmatian, Valentine. Valentine is the only man in her life and Molly is determined to keep it that way. Relationships are strictly off the agenda for Molly and keeping her heart firmly under lock and key is her number one priority. But while Molly is determined to stay single, hotshot divorce lawyer Daniel has got other ideas…
When Daniel sees Molly in the park with her dog, he is enraptured. Determined to find out more about this beautiful woman he simply cannot get out of his head, Daniel borrows a dog from his sisters’ dog-sitting business and begins his quest to get close to this mysterious girl whom he cannot wait to get close to. With his dashing good looks, charm and charisma, Daniel is a man who has women falling at his feet and although he has no qualms about sharing his bed, he draws the line at sharing his heart. Daniel likes to keep his relationships short and casual, but when he begins to get to know Molly, he finds himself unwilling and unable to picture spending the rest of his life without her by his side.
Daniel has got his own reasons for giving relationships a wide berth. His parents’ marriage was an acrimonious mess that had ruined his childhood and his job as a divorce lawyer exposes him to so much bitterness, hatred and anguish that he never thought he would change his relationship stance – until he finds himself falling head over heels in love with Molly.
Is Daniel about about to take a chance on love? Can he convince Molly to stop living in the past and take a leap of faith? Or is Molly going to continue to let old mistakes ruin her chances at her own happy ever after?
Engaging, emotional and hugely enjoyable, New York, Actually is a wonderful read that I simply couldn’t bear to put down. A delightfully witty, poignant and compelling tale that touches the heart and tickles the funny bone, New York, Actually has as at its heart a gorgeous hero readers will adore and a fantastic heroine they will cheer for and oodles of love, laughter and enchantment to keep them riveted from the first page till the very last.
An exceptionally brilliant read from one of the best writers in the business, New York, Actually is contemporary romance gold!
I loved the first 3 books in this series which focused on three women who start an event’s and concierge service and when I heard we were going to be treated to even more in the wonderfully romantic universe that Sarah creates in all her books.
In the new additions to the series, we follow 3 siblings, Fliss and Harriet, and their brother Daniel. This one focuses on Daniel, and we also get Molly, his love interest’s, perspective. You learn what makes them laugh, what makes them tick and hints as to why they’re so scared of relationships.
Like previous books from Sara, the scene is perfectly set with locations in New York, where the scenes come to life thanks to the writing style being friendly and atmospheric. This trilogy is clearly going to have lots of doggy friends for us to meet as well as humans, and while I am a cat person, the two dogs in this book Brutus and Valentine, are totally adorable and complete characters in their own right, especially Brutus. It appears that it’s not just Humans that Sarah can write well.
I completely fell in love with Daniel, despite his wedding photo comment which I disagreed with. Even then it is hard to resist someone so charming and a complete gentleman, which is why it wasn’t hard to forgive him when he was less than honest about Brutus. The bond that grew between them was lovely to read.
I also liked Molly, but during part of the times she did annoy me with her insistence that she couldn’t fall in love. She loved Valentine, and while that is completely different, her lack of even consideration that she could fall in love with another human being, was frustrating. I understand she had bad experiences, but she was younger than me, or at least the same age, and there are plenty of people that haven’t found love yet. It is clearly obvious to see this from the outside though, whereas if I was in Molly’s shoes, I very may well feel the same. You are always your harshest critic.
I loved getting to know Fliss and Harriet a bit more, we did briefly meet them in the first three books, but getting this little deeper sneak peek at them make me sure that I will love the next two books in the series.
As if you couldn’t tell, I adore this book. It’s fun, romantic and the ideal book when you want to lift your mood and completely lose yourself in a book.
5 stars out of 5 for this book for me! I am totally in LOVE with this "From Manhattan with Love" series. Each book of this series is a page turner, and this one "New York, Actually" is soooo good! I fell in love with the characters, with the setting, with the story, with everything! I could read the whole series in one go but those books are so good that I prefer to savour them. I really recommend this book from Sarah Morgan. Also if you haven't read the 3 first books of the series, you can read this 4th one without no problem, but it's always better if you read the 3 first ones first as it's always fun to recognize other characters from previous books. Sarah Morgan has become one of my top favorite author!
I quite enjoyed this story and it makes a good holiday read. Molly is English and moved to New York to escape heartbreak and humiliation. She is an agony aunt who writes an extremely popular column as Dear Abbey. The love of Molly's life is her dog Valentine who she takes for runs in Central Park. Molly has been noticed by American lawyer Daniel who borrows a dog from his sister and pretends to Molly that the dog is his. Can Molly learn to trust again? Read on!
Meet Molly
New York’s most famous agony aunt, she considers herself an expert at relationships…as long as they’re other people’s. The only love of her life is her Dalmatian, Valentine.
Meet Daniel
A cynical divorce lawyer, he’s hardwired to think relationships are a bad idea. If you don’t get involved, no-one can get hurt. But then he finds himself borrowing a dog to meet the gorgeous woman he sees running in Central Park every morning…
Molly and Daniel think they know everything there is to know about relationships…until they meet each other that is…
New York Actually by Sarah Morgan is a delightful and fun contemporary romantic read but with a serious message. I always love Sarah Morgan's writings as they put a smile on my face and leave my heart feeling warm.
New York Actually is a wonderful read on so many levels. Characters from a previous novel were on the peripheral which made the read feel familiar from the start.
The characters were drawn realistically and with warmth - they included two big bouncy dogs who took on their own personalities and were as much a part of the story as the humans.
Within the novel Sarah Morgan explores how our past can affect our future if we let it. Everyone has a past. Everyone has a hurt. Everyone needs to deal with their past hurts before they are able to move forwards into their futures.
Linking with this theme are those themes of hiding and secrets. Secrets are never good. Sooner or later they emerge with the power to destroy. Hiding prevents people from truly living life to the full. "Hiding has a downside... It means you live a small life." Erecting walls to protect can have the opposite effect and instead of keeping one safe, the walls keep others out. The walls need to come down.
Good friends come in all shapes and sizes. Everyone needs good friends. Friends who know us intimately inside and out. "No one knew who I was underneath... it made me feel alone and isolated." Friends who will stick by us no matter what. Friends do not always have two legs, sometimes they have four. "No matter how bad your day is, it's pretty hard to be miserable when you have a dog." Four legged friends will love unconditionally and extravagantly. They will love us for who we are and not for what they can get out of it.
New York Actually was such a fabulous fun read. As a pet lover, I adored getting to know the four legged friends. Sarah Morgan writes such wonderful warm and witty novels that just ping straight to my heart. Her stories make my world brighter and warmer. I love her writings.
Pick up New York Actually today and put a smile on your face.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.
I have come to really enjoy Sarah Morgan’s books and so when I saw I immediately wanted to read it alas it didn’t completely work for me.
Daniel is a divorce lawyer whose current job and a lifetime of being a child of parent who had a awful relationship doesn’t see relationships as anything but a bad idea. Molly on the other hand even though believes in love and relationships wholeheartedly just not for herself since all her relationship have ended up in heartbreak for the other person.
Daniel is really attracted to the woman he sees walking her dog every morning and she just give no indication of even noticing his presence let alone talking to him so he decides to get a dog to finally get attention which is achieved easily since his sisters own bark rangers. Daniel or shall we say his dog manage to get the attention of Molly and soon their morning runs turn to dating and more even though Molly is adamant that she doesn’t want a relationship all the while Daniel is falling deeper in love with her. Both of them are hiding things from each other that could end their relationship.
I liked them together, I also liked Brutus and Valentine. The pacing and the development of their relationship is done quite well.
Quibbles: The role reversal that happened where Daniel the commitment phone wanted the whole nine yards and Molly with her own issues and then all the secrets and lies which continued on for almost the entire book made my enjoyment go down. Molly’s realisation of her feelings just felt very anti-climatic and so did their reunion.
Overall, it was enjoyable but it missed something that Ms. Morgan’s books usually have. I’m really looking forward to reading Fliss and Harry’s books they completely won me over in this book!
Here is my full review of the book on my blog. I absolutely loved this book and I'm a really massive fan of Sarah Morgan's writing. http://www.isthisreallife.co.uk/2017/03/book-round-up-3.html
DNF at 51%
Molly is a psychologist who wrote a best-selling book and is now a famous online agony aunt. She has had a series of bad relationship break-ups, in each case the man fell madly in love with Molly but no matter how hard she tried.
Daniel is a divorce lawyer, disillusioned about love and relationships he cares only about helping the helpless. When he spots Molly running in Central Park with her dog Valentine he decides the best way to get to know her would be as a fellow dog owner so he borrows a dog from his sisters who run a dog shelter/ dog day care service. Guess who looks after Valentine for Molly?
How sad is it that I threw in the towel on Valentine's Day? Frankly I found Daniel to be borderline stalker and his insistence on coming round to Molly's and not taking no for an answer was creepy, not romantic. I thought that Molly's insistence that she was some kind of bad news for relationships, that falling in love is impossible for her because of her DNA was batshit crazy - she's supposed to be a psychologist? Talk about physician heal yourself. If that's the claptrap she believes about herself can you imagine the appalling advice she gives people online?
Sorry, not for me.
Rating: 3*
Chemistry: Low Boil
One-Sentence Summary: “Must Love Dogs” with secrets
Review: This was a bit of a schizophrenic read for me:
+ I love dogs
– I frown upon dogs being used as props
+ Using a dog as a Meet Cute is cute
– Using someone else’s dog to stalk a woman is frankly scary
+ Dogs are cute
– Molly have erotic thoughts whilst watching Daniel stroke a dog made me want to throw up
Molly watched, transfixed, as those long, strong fingers caressed her dog. Her pulse sped forward. Her insides tumbled and turned. And still she stared at those hands, watching as he seduced her dog with easy, comfortable strokes
+ I like New York
– The first few chapters with the repetitious stalking in Central Park made me want to stop reading
+ I loved it when Molly turned up at Daniel’s office to call him on his lie
– There were just so many lies/hidden truths between them
+ I LOVED Daniel’s sisters and Molly’s gay best friends
– I liked Daniel/Molly
+ I love Sarah Morgan
– This book didn’t completely win me over
Overall, what I took away from this book was that it was a bridge to Fliss and Harriet’s stories that I am really looking forward to, especially Seth/Fliss’s.
This is the first Sarah Morgan book I have read and I adored it, I really enjoyed the writing style and the characters are so endearing. I will definitely be picking up more books by Sarah Morgan and I hope to enjoy them just as much as I did this one. I have posted reviews on Amazon and on Goodreads.
Molly is a psychologist who writes an agony blog under the name of Aggy giving relationship advice...even though her only relationship is with her dalmation dog Valentine, and we soon start to find out that Molly is not interested in a relationship herself because she is running away from a disastrous one in England
Daniel is a hotshot divorce lawyer, not interested in relationships - he has not even had a woman stay one night in his apartment - but he likes to play the field and his current interest is woman who runs with her dog every morning in Central Park but does not even look at him
Determined to get her attention Daniel decides to "borrow" a dog from his twin sisters who run a dog walking business and also foster dogs from the rescue centre while they are looking for new homes, and so every morning starts walking a german shepherd in the park
With both of them keeping secrets and not being entirely honest can this relationship ever go anywhere - especially when they are both determined that they do not want a relationship!
I loved this booked - to me it was the best of the series so far but then I am a dog lover and the dogs added so much to the story - definitely one worth reading and lovely to catch up with the characters from the previous books - although absolutely fine to read as a stand alone
*Book provided by the publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
Another Sarah Morgan book set in New York as part of the Manhattan With Love series, all I need!
This story follows Molly, a successful agony aunt, who is originally from the UK. She loves her dog Valentine and has basically started a new life in New York, leaving everything behind.
Daniel is a divorce lawyer, who thinks relationships are a bad idea. You can’t get hurt, if you are not dating right?!
Well, he borrows a dog to meet tis woman in Central Park. So they meet every morning and they start spending a lot of time together. There is an electric chemistry between them and the way their relationship develops is very interesting and intriguing.
We also get to meet Molly’s best friends Gabe and Mark, as well as Daniel’s sisters Harriet and Fliss. These characters add a lot to the story and it’s great how they are always there for Molly or Daniel. Sarah included them in a wonderful way and it’s clear that these people are very important in their lives.
What I really enjoyed was reading about Eva and Lucas again, they were in some of the scenes and it was great to see how their relationship developed and how their lives are.
They both don’t want a real relationship, just fun, but of course things change. Both of them are suppressing their feelings though and then there is Molly’s secret, which is about to be revealed. Their story is full of ups and downs, obstacles, passion and love.
Sarah Morgan’s stories are always full of sparks, romance, charm, passion and life . This time though the excitement didn’t get through as much, I needed some time to get into the story. After a while I was hooked, but the beginning didn’t flow for me.
As always, I absolutely adored Sarah Morgan’s descriptions of New York, she really has a way of including these beautiful settings.
And then there are these sexy, steamy and passionate scenes, which add something else to the story, Sarah Morgan is really talented when it comes these moments.
Excellent book. Another great read by Sarah Morgan. Would recommend.
Sarah Morgan has outshined herself once again with a 5 star read in this outstanding series , with the way she writes I am in the story I'm living in there and I'm seeing and feeling everything the characters do ....totally amazing , I couldn't put my kindle down I had to finish in one sitting.
I have nothing other to say but New York actually is probably my most favourite romance novel so far in 2017 .
New York, Actually was an utterly charming and romantic read that will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy with a big smile.
The characters were likeable and well developed.I loved how Molly and Daniel, for different reasons, had never experienced love before, but together develop a deep friendship from their initial chemistry. The secondary characters were equally likeable and really added depth to the story (I can't wait for Fliss and Harri's books).
I really enjoyed this feel good story!
I received a copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley; there was no inducement or obligation for my voluntary review.
A story full of sparkling wit and romance. Daniel only does superficial relationships and Molly doesn't do them at all. I loved Molly and Daniel, both of them being afraid of commitment but learning about each other on a deeper level just because Molly refused to go on a date. Valentine and Brutus are delightful; If you are a dog lover you will adore this book and if not you will be converted!
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.
I always look forward to Sarah Morgan’s next book and this one, the fourth in her From Manhattan with Love series, didn’t disappoint.
It’s funny, romantic and kinda hot. There are some definite sparks in this contemporary romance and I’m loving the New York setting. Perfect for a lazy day spent reading.
It’s not the most original of stories, man pretends to be something he’s not to catch the eye of someone he fancies, but Morgan does it so well. It’s an addictive and fun read that I read from cover to cover in the space of a day. Molly is a very likeable character and, while she has a troubled past she was trying to get away from, it wasn’t at all what I thought it would be and definitely brought a unique twist. I loved how she was both vulnerable and also quite fiery. She doesn’t take any nonsense and is very able for the supremely charming and persuasive Daniel.
Daniel, well he’s determined to get what he wants and will go to any lengths to get it (even if it means borrowing a dog and pretending to be a dog person) but you can’t help but like him. He also hasn’t had the best past and despite the charm and the polish there’s a very kind and caring man underneath it all.
The relationship between the two is brilliant. Morgan knows how to create some real chemistry between her characters and there were some definite sparks. There’s a lot of banter and teasing (and one hilarious moment of revenge) but there are a lot of quite sweet moments too. They were definitely a couple I was rooting for.
The supporting characters were well developed and I loved how heavily the dogs Valentine and Brutus featured although I do now want a dog. This book did introduce a few new characters who weren’t in the original trilogy and for me they were welcome additions.
Overall a great story that I’d recommend to any one looking for a fun and romantic read with a few surprises along the way. I should also add that while it is the fourth in the series it could quite easily be read as a standalone as there isn’t too much of an overlap with previous books.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC. All views are my own.