This has been a quite entertaining story of this author. The two protagonists are Spencer and Rebecca. Spencer is a somewhat passive woman, who seems to have no personality and until the middle of the book we do not know the reason for this. This is why as a character it is a bit unpleasant, although not knowing why she acts in this way also makes her behavior incoherent in some occasions. The character of Rebecca is not presented as very nice, also, prejudging future assistants to her class of brides to be, and then despising Spencer without having real reasons to do so.

<spoiler>
It does not play in favor of this story the fact that there is an infidelity. Maybe Spencer's situation could have been treated differently, but she is always so undecided and always goes with the flow that even the outcome of her relationship with Marti she lets it go without getting honest. I do not think it's a good ending to a serious relationship.
</spoiler>

So without going into detail or moral dilemmas, this has been a book that I read quite easily, in which I thought that the role of the secondary characters could have been more important, with a controversial story that can make some people disinterested . It is not the best book by this author but it may be recommended.

<i>An ARC was sent to me from Bold Strokes Books through NetGalley for an honest review </i>

I was given this book as an ARC by NetGalley and BoldStrokes Books in exchange for an honest review.

Georgia Beers is one of the most consistent and good writers that boldstrokes books has. Her books are always good and I always enjoy them. Until his one. One of my biggest pet peeves is cheating and then getting away with it. It’s not cool under any circumstances. I do not like when people cheat and then excuse it by saying they were unhappy and so that makes it okay. It is NEVER okay to cheat not even in a book. I hate cheaters.

So now that I’ve said that I actually liked the premise of this book until the cheating. I thought Spencer was a good character who had a fantastic character arc, but I thought Rebecca was a bit flat and one dimensional. She seemed very shallow. Like she was there, but there was nothing memorable about that character. I’m not sure where the chemistry between them came from, it just really didn’t seem like hey should be together. I couldn’t even enjoy the one sex scene because Spencer was cheating on Marti who seemed like she meant well. Like why should Marti suffer because Spencer had no backbone.

I like the idea of getting in shape and being healthier just for you, which is where Spencer got to eventually. I liked that. I did’nt like the Angina scene, it seemed forced and unnecessary. It didn’t add much to the story.

Not a terrible book but definitely not one of my favorites and I was so looking forward to a solid romance. This one really disappointed me.

I did not get why she became a follower really but I enjoyed the rest specially the humor in this book and all of the authors books. I'm not that comfortable around cheating yet it did not feel that way only because i felt like the author "intentionally or not" made us read the minimum when it comes to her real relationship and from the get go she was so distance not even trying. Around the end there was a moment where it did not make sense to me I really was saying " what ! why now !! Where did this come from !" out load. Otherwise I think everything was quite enjoyable and nice. As usual I find the writing beautiful but I'm used to Georgia so I always find her writing that way.

5 stars. I really enjoyed this book. This book is about Spencer, an assistant in a real estate office, who starts to take a bride fitness class that her fiancee, Marti, had signed her up for. Marti did not even ask Spencer if she wanted to take this class, she just signed Spencer up since she though Spencer could use a workout. She goes to the class where she meets Rebecca, the trainer who is teaching the class. Rebecca is replacing the trainer, Kara, who normally teaches it as Kara is sick. Rebecca does not treat Spencer well, as she is upset the Spencer's fiancee is the one who signed her up for the class. Spencer notices that Rebecca treats her poorly and she in turn, quits the class in a week. Rebecca gets her to come back and their relationship changes as well. Their relationship evolves and changes and both of them are unsure what to do with the change.

This book had a good evolution of story and character development. Both Spencer and Rebecca changed throughout the book with their feelings and actions for each other. You could feel their relationship changing and evolving as the book goes on. There was a point in the book where I could not stop reading and read late into the night because I did not want to put it down, which is typical for Georgia Beers novels. This book felt a little like another Georgia Beers novel I read, Thy Neighbor's Wife. I also enjoyed that book a lot so I will happily make the comparison. It's a great novel with a lot of great tension between the two characters. I love the tension.

The only criticism I could give is that I wished there was more of it, it ended in a good way. I would have liked to see more of the ending and what happened, but even with the current ending, I loved this book.

This book I would definitely recommend. Another great one by Georgia Beers. I love her books.

Yikes, just the book synopsis gives you a hint that it is going to touch a not-so-comfortable topic like infidelity, which I think the author handled very well, or as well as it could be handled in a romance novel I guess.

I really liked the story and the characters who felt like real people to me.

Another great book from Georgia Beers. Even with the subject of infidelity playing a major part in the story, I would still recommend this to any lesfic fan.

Georgia Beers is one of my favorite authors so I was really looking forward to read this one. Now, I liked the book overall speaking, but I’ve been having some issues with it while reading it. Firstly, I haven’t really felt any chemistry between the characters until about 40% of the book, nor was the book especially interesting up until that point- and that’s where it all goes better in my opinion. Things really got much better after Spencer and Rebecca started conversing more. I have to admit, even though it’s a good book, I definitely have other favorites of Georgia Beers.

Gloriously messy lives, no characters here that have it all.

This had the potential to go very wrong on several levels, but I hoped Beers could contain annoyances, I didn't expect to really, really like it.

Delightful lack of forced conflicts, well-developed characters, fun set of secondary characters. All in all very relatable.

4.5 stars

A wonderful story by Georgia Beers. It was simple yet interesting and well written. This author hates writing epilogues or any sort of chapter where the readers get an indication of what the couple did after finding domestic bliss. So yes, this one ends leaving you wanting more.

Ms. Beers’ recents books have either been a hit or a miss. This latest one, unfortunately, was a definite miss…mainly because the main character, Spencer, seemed to be so self absorbed. It was very difficult to like this character. At times, she took on the persona of a teenager complaining that the workout was hard, the instructor was mean, the instructor didn’t make eye contact with her, the instructor didn’t like her. It felt like teenage drama! Then a short time later, Spencer morphed into a hormonal teenager with lustful thoughts, acted on those thoughts, and caused the ultimate betrayal of her commitment to Marti, her hardworking lawyer fiancé, when she initiated sex with Rebecca.

Spencer also exhibited minimum commitment to her relationship with Marti. When her partner had to work late on a case, Spencer was overjoyed to have her alone time. She didn’t want to be around Marti, have conversations with her, or enjoy her company. Yet, despite her indiscretions with Rebecca, Spencer thought she had made a commitment to Marti and it was only right that she should honor it by going through with their marriage. Spencer seemed to be living in two different realities! She long ago tossed away commitment and honor by the wayside, with only a slight afterthought, by getting involved with Rebecca in the first place.

Even though the author kept pushing the reader to see her main character as being the victim of her past relationship and current one, I saw Spencer as someone who needed to grow up, be responsible for her actions, and own up to the truth to Marti about her infidelity, and lack of commitment to their two year relationship. If I saw this growth throughout the story, I might have felt differently about Spencer. However, there was not, except of course, she liked going to the gym, ironically thanks in part to Marti. I might be in the minority, but after reading this story, I felt it was Marti who deserved someone better than Spencer.

I found this book to be very drawn out and boring. There was too much dialogue, but internal and out loud. It took a lot for me to finish this book,

'ARC generously provided by NetGalley and The Publisher in exchange for an honest and fair review'

**'Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing..'

Moderate read!
2.5stars
Who needs to try reading a novelist's "major works" or "when to get married fast" when you have a book that gets deep into your head? Well,'THE SHAPE OF YOU' is not only a little bit entertaining,gym-rat readable for anyone who might be willing to also accept some snarky,criticism,little nostalgia,frustrating storylines,blah chemistry and do not mention the sad romance. Throughout the book,Ms.Beers offers practical ideas and her views during her storytelling about many women,she believes wrestles with their partner being uncommitted,unemotional or insensitive which really reflected on both Spencer & Marti's relationship. Another section in the story she also wrote as a viewpoint: misstep common to most couples is assuming that one partner should demonstrate care to her fiance in the manner she most appreciates.A woman wants a partner who is willing to put all her emotions on the table & talk straight from the heart,a caring companion,want her to risk as much as you do with intense interest in only you and not an insultated robot. Her assumption i think undervalue most women in this story because they are dealing with self-esteem,body shaming etc in their relationships. At least Rebecca did admit that she had her own lifelong battles with a fear of commitment and emotional vulnerability towards other women in her past. Some readers may feel put off with a few sudden changes or the abrupt switch of the storyline because i was. Yet the overall tone of the book is one of optimism and hope for both Rebecca & Spencer.

I really liked this one. I was hooked into the story from the beginning and found myself really caring what happened. I do want to mention though, I’m not sure this book will appeal to everyone. For one it deals with infidelity, which is not always a subject people want to read about. Also, there were some character traits that might bother some people, heck they would normally bother me, but it worked for me in this instance anyway. My point, while I really enjoyed this personally, I can see this book being a hit or miss with other people.

Spencer is getting married. When her fiancé signs her up for a bridal work-out class, Spencer goes along even though she is dreading it. At the gym, Rebecca is the trainer in charge of the class. She believes in making women strong and healthy. Spencer and Rebecca immediately get off on the wrong foot due to some of Rebecca’s personal prejudices. Rebecca can’t get over the fact Spencer is such a pusher over to go to this class when it clearly wasn’t her idea. While they continue to butt heads a spark of attraction develops; a spark that is clearly off limits with Spencer being engaged. Will these two women follow their hearts or remain only friends?

When I realized the majority of this story would be about working out in the gym, I did a little eye roll. Not that I am against exercise or being healthy, I just honestly thought I would be bored. Beers has a tendency to write about some jobs that are a little boring. In her book Right Here, Right Now, it was all about an accountant at tax time. I must admit that book really bored me at times. I have to say I was surprised how much I didn’t mind the mildly repetitive gym scenes. I was so into the story I didn’t care. I liked seeing the progress Spencer made and how the relationship between Spencer and Rebecca was changing. Heck, I’m even tempted to go sign up for a cycling class now.

When it came to the characters this is where I found a surprise. Spencer is a real pushover. Due to her life experiences she is a follower and doesn’t like to take control. She would rather appease someone than fight. Spencer is the opposite kind of person I am. And because of this I normally do Not like characters like this. But again for whatever reason her character worked for me. I understood why she was the way she was. Yes, I yelled at her multiple times while reading, but I understood her. And frankly if we only read or care about character like us, we would end up not liking stories about more than half the population. Rebecca had her own issues. She would go from moody to a sweetheart. I didn’t like these shifts but it was because she could not deal with her feelings for an engaged woman. It made sense to me and I grew to understand her character.

I can be real up or down on stories about infidelity. I just don’t always think it is handled well. Either a character that cheats is this evil character or they cheat and it is just swept under the rug. I don’t like cheating but we all know it happens and it isn’t always black and white why. I felt this book really hit that grey area. The character that cheats in this book is far from any cheating character I have read about before. And trust me as crazy as it sound, her choosing to cheat almost felt like her character was taking a step forward. Since I’m personally very against infidelity it was a little shocking the book made me feel like this.

The whole dislike to potential lovers storyline the characters went through in this book really worked for me. I enjoyed this unusual romance. I liked how the chemistry built and built. The sparks and connection were heavy at times. The first major sex scenes was pretty intense and hot because of it. The conflicted feelings I had as a reader, the whole this is wrong but it’s right, just worked for me.

Sorry this review was a little long. I know this book won’t work for everyone, but it will some. I really wanted to try to explain so you reading this can make an informed decision for you. Beers pushed the envelope a bit on this one; infidelity and not always the most likeable characters. I’m happy to say for me it worked.

I love Georgia Beers last book. Loved it! This one I was a little more skeptical of. Infidelity is a super duper hard subject for a romance novel. You know going into this book that one of our leading ladies is in a fitness class to prep for her walk down the aisle. Red flag, dangerous waters ahead! Ruh-Roh!

Spencer Thompson is just going through the motions of life. She is unhappy but unmotivated to do anything about it. Not endearing qualities, I must say. When her fiancée tells her she enrolled her in a 12 week, three times a week, bridal boot camp, Spencer is pissed, hurt and annoyed. She internalizes all of her emotion, buys a pair of sneakers and goes to class. Come on Spence, yell a little.

Rebecca McCall is the personal trainer who gets handed the 12-week bridal class after another trainer falls ill with mono. She loathes the creator of this program and is not a huge fan of the concept of the program. No matter what she is stuck with it and it's five brides-to-be. Rebecca is headstrong, confident and it totally throws her for a loop when she finds out one of the brides, Spencer, was told to take the class by her future wife. Throws her for a loop so much, she asks like a jerk for a third of the book.

Needless to say, Spencer and Rebecca totally get off on the wrong foot. They both think the other is smoking hot but Rebecca cannot get past Spencer being a doormat on taking this class. Therefore, Rebecca is overtly hostile to Spencer and everyone notices. Another endearing quality by a leading lady, yeah not so much.

While the book is good and it holds your attention, there is a spark missing. At times you feel like you're in Groundhog Day because the majority of the time the two leads interact in a fitness class. Lots of gym talk, lots of she's off-limits, plank here, a plank there and off to do it again. Plus Spencer is engaged and she is too lethargic and apathetic to stop the train wreck of a marriage. I like Spencer but at times you as the reader wanted her to wake up. I needed more passion, more heat and more qualities to endear the two characters to my heart. It just wasn't there this time. A good book, I enjoyed it, I am glad I read it, but it is not one I will come back to.

The Shape of You is one of those very rare books by this author that didn’t quite meet expectations of what she is capable of. This story would have worked much better at a lesser word count as much of the book narrates either character’s inner dialogue and musings. I kept waiting for something to happen, and it just ... didn’t. This story also contains infidelity and while I’ve read a few stories where it works and makes sense, it just didn’t for me this time. Typically this author finds angles I’ve never thought of before, and nuances in emotion regarding relationships, and while I eventually was rooting enthusiastically for their happy ending, Rebecca and Spencer’s flaws didn’t justify the means to their ends. Still, we can always expect a polished story that exceeds in quality over most in the Lesfic genre and I would rate this a satisfying read, but not the best in her catalogue.

I’m a huge Georgia Beers fan and I really liked this book. I thought Spencer, with all of her idiosyncrasies, was a great main character. Rebecca was the perfect compliment to Spencer. I do have to say that the synopsis did not really do enough to tell the reader what this book is about. After reading the synopsis, I felt that one kiss between them would solidify Spencer breaking her engagement, but that was so not the case. The entire book was about Spencer’s struggle because she wasn’t strong enough to do something about her situation. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the book but I was under the impression that I would get a different story. I would have liked more of Spencer and Rebecca, not Spencer and Marti. This is a cute read that I didn’t want to put down.