When I shifted from solely reading fan fic to les fic I was a solid Beers fan. Most of her stuff was 5 star material to me. Even her Puppy Love Romance Series, even though I began to notice her tendency to repeat her scenes to eek out the book, was still enjoyable. But maybe that was because of the animal farm being such a fun subject, I don’t know.

I didn’t like Right Here, Right Now. The repetitive actions really bothered me then and it seems she is continuing this trend with her latest Calendar Girl. There is a lot of Addison Fairchild stubbornly working herself into an early grave. The people in her employ dislike her. The people closest to her (her family) tell her she needs to slow down but she doesn’t listen. Addison gets a health scare and her mother appoints her a personal assistant to lighten the load so her daughter can ease up a bit and recover. Addison just keeps doing what she did before.

Katie Cooper has a lot of talent but they are underused because of reasons. She is a likeable character where Addison is not. She tries really hard to make the best of things but Addison treats her like a serf through most of the book, until she briefly gives in to this attraction she feels towards Katie. Then we’re back to square one.

Side-plot is Katie’s dad suffering from dementia - and what impact it has on her and her mom - which was sad. That part was well written. To be honest, it’s not that Beers can’t write. There were some parts that I enjoyed but it’s not enough to make this a good book. It meanders, it babbles, it’s predictable, nothing much really happens. Or maybe I’m too harsh and have just outgrown Beers and her formula.

f/f

Themes: Addison had potential to be a real ice-queen but her character lacked spunk, rinse repeat plotline, dementia is a bitch, one meager love scene, a cameo for June bug Farms, forgettable read.

3.3 stars

* A free copy was provided by Netgalley and Bold Strokes Books Inc. for an honest review.

I have been waiting all week to write this review. This is the first chance I have had, it has been a hectic week and I needed time to process my thoughts around this book. I will start by saying that I am a huge fan of Beer's and her novels. I have read most of them at this point, and I find that the earlier ones were much better. This one fell flat for me for a variety of reasons. I thought that the characters in this book were really one dimensional, I thought that Addison was a little bit of a brat, and she had no real reason to be such a jerk. She went around acting like an ice queen for no real reason and that is what annoyed me most about her. Katie was a doormat plain and simple and I cannot believe she would take Addison back, there is no way someone would treat me like that and I would be okay with them wanting to then date me, after getting me a job with her sister. So she was basically paying her off. The overall synopsis of this book is that a woman needs a job, so she can help pay bills for her mother due to her father being sick. She gets a job as an assistant to a woman who has zero manners and in the most ridiculous of situations they fall in love, despite the fact that the book starts out with Addison firing someone for sleeping with a subordinate. When Addison loses her dream job to her younger sister she gets all depressed and fires Katie, This all happens after she sleeps with Katie, which Addison's mother figures out and there are zero consequences for this for Addison. She gets away with breaking a cardinal rule of her business and there is zero resolution about that. That is what really makes this book terrible is the inconsistency for convenience sake and to have a happy ending. I just think that if you make something a huge deal like the author did with not dating subordinates, then there should have been a consequence for that and then perhaps they could have gotten together afterwards, not that there was no consequence and everyone now gets an amazing job out of it. It was incredibly annoying and it made me really dislike this book. The last wot that I have read form Beer's have both been very disappointing. She should go back re-read her early books and get back some of that magic, because I fear that she is writing too many books in quick succession and is not spending enough time building good characters and believable story lines. So this was a miss for me, I hope her next one isn't. I am going to go and read one of her older books.

Addison Fairchild has it all. She’s believes she the only one suitable for running a division of Fairchild Enterprizes, a company that is owned by her mother. Even though she has a younger brother and sister who also work in the family business, she firmly believes she the most deserving of the position. Now she just has to wait for her mother to make the announcement. Her biggest problem is she’s a grumpy workaholic and her health has become an issue. She is forced by her mother to take on a assistant she doesn’t want. Katie Cooper needs to find a second job because her father has dementia and need full time care. Her mother just can’t do it by herself anymore. For all her problems Katie is a smart, and cheerful morning person. Opposites they are. Ms Beers has written a lot of really good books so when you get a chance to read her work it’s a given you will, like myself find each one an enjoyable read. Calender Girl has it all. Well paced sweet, fun read. Very, very enjoyable.
ARC via NetGalley

I liked it.

This is a story about how opposites can attract. Katie, who have an outgoing and happy personality, and Addison with pretty much no life, but rather are in the progress of working herself into an early grave. The evolution of their relationship was warmly written and wonderful to read.
It was clear that the author likes her characters, and they are created with lots of depth and love.

I rather liked the fact that it didn't end with everything being miraculously solved, but rather a more real life like ending with a happy-ever-after where there still is "work" to do.

3.5 Stars. This book was good but not my favorite Georgia Beers novel. This story had some weird story line points. This book was about Addison Fairchild, an executive in her family's company, Fairchild Enterprise. She works too much and suffers from it and she passes out and winds up in the hospital. The family then hires Katie Cooper as her assistant when she needs a new part time job. Her best friend already works for Fairchild Enterprise and tells her boss about Katie and they hire her. Katie's father has dementia and Katie needs the money to help out her mother as much as she can. Addison is adamantly against her new assistant and does not want to give Katie any work. Katie eventually breaks her down and starts to help Addison little by little.

This book felt just okay. It was not that memorable for me. I read it in a couple days and I love Georgia Beers, but the character development in this book was not as good as I would have liked. I also felt like some of the development happened too quickly for my liking and I didn't really feel the romantic relationship of Addison and Katie at first. It seemed like their feelings developed very quickly from professional to romantic. Granted, it was not a bad read, I would still recommend it, but it was not my favorite or even in my top 5 Georgia Beers.

It was a nice book. That's what I'd say is the best description I could give. Georgia Beers always writes well, it's just a matter of if the book pulls me in and I fall in love with the characters as much as they do with each other. This is one that's in the middle of all of that.

I read the whole thing and wasn't bored, but I probably wouldn't read it a second time. I liked the characters, but they also felt at times boring. It could be that Addison was a bit of a stick in the mud and Katie was pretty average.

The part that I enjoyed the most was Katie dealing with her Dad and talking with her Mom about his dementia. I wish it had focused more on that, as opposed to Addie trying to run her Mother's company. That was where all the emotion and depth came from. I thought it was a missed opportunity to not have Addison be around Katie's home life more, to really put into perspective the things that really matter in life.

Overall, not the best from Beers but not the worst.

A NetGalley review
There is no doubt that Georgia Beers knows how to write a good romance, but there is one crucial reason why this story isn't at par with her other novels. It lacks enough emotion. Everything is told rather than shown — friendships, relationships with parents and siblings, and even the romantic relationship. There are a few key conflict situations that Beers sets up but then shies away from engaging with them in any real depth. These conflicts woven more intrinsically into the lives of the protagonists would have made their attraction to each other, their struggles and the final coming together more believable.

I enjoyed this book very much and wasn’t ready for it to end. Georgia Beers sucked me into the story in the 1st chapter and it got better after that. I love the thawing of the Ice Queen stories. I think that Katie’s fathers illness struck a note with me because I also am going through this also. It was a good read and I recommend it if you like office romances.

Surprisingly, this is my first Georgia Beers book and I loved it. Addison is a workaholic and is aiming to take over the family business, Kate starts working for Addison and proves herself more than capable, then the sparks fly. It's easy to find empathy with the characters, the storyline is believable. I'll be looking out for more Georgia Beers books.

I’ve read several of Ms. Beers books before and I frequently recommend her to others as a reliably good and prolific f/f writer. Unfortunately, while there was plenty of the usual goodness I expect from her, there was also one particular plot point that detracted from my enjoyment of the book.

Katie has moved back in with her parents to help – financially and otherwise – her mother cope with her father’s quickly deteriorating Alzheimer’s. She’s currently nannying for two twins, but when her best friend recommends her for a job as a part-time assistant for four months – at an amazing pay rate – she can’t turn it down, even if the woman is rumored to be a complete bitch. And Addison, the oldest daughter of the founder of Fairchild Enterprises, is without a doubt not easy to get along with. She’s a workaholic control freak, and even an emergency hospital stay isn’t enough to sell her on the idea of delegating, especially with her mother retiring at the end of the year and her successor still unnamed. Katie picks away at her, however, in more ways than one, ending up with a kiss in the office. Addison’s mother is very firm about even the appearance of sexual harassment to the point of banning fraternization, however, and Addison, as the assumed heir to the company, needs to follow all the rules to a tee. Is their chance at a relationship worth sacrificing both their futures with the company?

“Would you mind if I came up with some ideas?”
“Are you kidding? I’d love it. One less thing for me to worry about.”
Katie feigned a gasp and sat forward.
“What?” Addison asked, confused worry on her face.
“I think you actually, finally just used your personal assistant. To personally assist you. There may be hope for you yet.”


I’m a pretty huge fan of the thawing-the-ice-queen trope in f/f, and Addison and Katie are adorable together. Addison is completely thrown off balance by her feelings for Katie, and Katie is such a breath of sunshine in Addison’s lie. They blatantly ignore their feelings for each other, and even after the kiss, they don’t talk about it. Their relationship, though, changes for the better, with Addison finally letting Katie help her, and her personality starts shining through. There’s a particular scene with goats (I know that sounds weird, just trust me) that had me grinning and really sold me on how good they would be together. While normally I’m not a big fan of books where the main characters don’t communicate, I found it understandable here – Katie is overwhelmed with her father’s illness, and Addison is so repressed emotionally I’m surprised she recognizes she has feelings at all. It’s sweet watching them open up to each other, and it was thoroughly enjoyable.

Katie’s wide grin was everything. “See you on Monday. Have a great weekend.”
“You, too.” Addison watched as Katie left and felt conflicting emotions as she did so. A warmth and comfort she hadn’t felt in longer than she could remember, and a sense of abject terror, of dread.
With a hard swallow, she pushed it all down and refused to deal with it. Any of it.
After all, that’s what Addison Fairchild did best.
And she knew it.


Honestly, everything was going along quite swimmingly until almost near the end of the book. Addison’s mom, Meredith, had made several appearances earlier, and oof, she’s a piece of work. She praises Addison for her cool distance from her employees – that fact that her brother is friendly with his employees is seen as a weakness. The big announcement of her successor – what Addison has been pushing herself so hard to prove that she deserves – is made at a “family” dinner that includes several non-family long-term employees, who clearly already knew about the announcement beforehand. When Addison is understandably hurt and calls in sick to work the next few days – something she’s never done before – and ignores her mom’s calls and texts, Meredith refuses to visit her own daughter in person because, in her words, “I didn’t get where I am today by kowtowing to anybody who doesn’t like my decisions.” When Addison finally gets herself together and goes to talk to her, it’s Addison who’s apologizing for running out of the dinner – which, admittedly, was less than professional, but, dear God, you just ripped her dreams away from her AND she’s still sick after being taken to the hospital in a freaking ambulance. Her mom even admits the only reason she didn’t chose her was because she works too much, along with some hints of fraternization with Katie, and Addison AGREES WITH HER!

Ignoring the judgmental looks from others in the open office setting was something she was used to. She could hear her mother’s voice in her head. “You’re not here to be their friend. You’re here to run this company.”


Needless to say, the ending was unsatisfactory. While Addison admits and apologizes for her workaholic ways, and that she was more concerned with what her mom wanted than what she herself wanted, it happened so close to the end of the book that, while I really wanted their relationship to work out, I was left wondering if Addison would abandon Katie the next time her mom side-eyed her. I desperately wish we could’ve seen Addison stand up to her mom, instead of seemingly tacitly approving of her nonsense. The book seems to lay the blame squarely for Addison’s physically and mentally unhealthy focus on work on trying to please her emotionally distant mother, and instead of Meredith accepting her part in it, she shames Addison for it. I just honestly don’t think it’s a good idea to portray this extremely unhealthy sort of relationship without also portraying a more authentic and healthy reaction to it. Goodness knows plenty of people struggle with feeling “not good enough” and having it reinforced without directly and emphatically exposing how wrong it is and having the character stand up against it feels harmful to me. In contrast, though, we do have Katie, who’s reacting as well as could be expected to her father’s deteriorating health – accepting the bittersweetness of his lucid moments while still enjoying them, allowing herself to experience her emotions, and gently pushing her mother to accept more help, while her mother is simultaneously trying to ensure that Katie has as normal a life as possible.

Overall, while I loved the women and their relationship, the dynamic between Addison and her mother affected my enjoyment of the book. I think readers who are not sensitive to that issue will probably still enjoy the book for what it is.

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Really enjoyed this light, heartwarming 'opposites attract' romance. The main characters were warmly written (even the 'difficult' one) and I wanted to know more about them almost immediately. The supporting characters had substance and the setting was described in a way you felt you were part of it.

Sometimes in romance novels, the crisis point is so bad it's inconceivable the characters will be able to overcome it, but this book struck the right balance between tension and believability. The ending was set in realism rather than a complete happy ever after, leaving the opportunity for the author to develop the relationship further in future books.

I'll definitely be reading more from Georgia Beers.

Again, I've been saving this book for after a deadline because I knew it would be a sweet reward. I raced though this book. It was just lovely. Sweet and sentimental and heartwarming.

Kate has recently moved back home to help her mother with her father's decline with dementia. She's working a few part time jobs to help her mum make end meets with the extensive medal bills they're facing. When a part-time assistance job lands in her lap it sounds too good to be true - flexible schedule, great pay, and something that actually has to do with her college degree. She doesn't expect every day to be a battle with the formidable Addison Fairchild. Addison works herself to the bone, determined to become the next head of Fairchild enterprises. Her determination lands her in the hospital with an ulcer. Her mother saddles her with a new assistant, aka babysitter, who forces Addison to take time to recuperate. Will Kate be out of a job when Addison recovers or will the two women find a way to make it work, in and out of the office.

I'm thankful for the representation of Katie's father's dementia. Its a reality now more than ever that even as young as in our twenties we experience parents getting older, and the way they can our heroes can change so drastically over just few years. It's representation I haven't really seen before and I'm really glad to see it.

I love a good ice queen thawing and Katie was a beautiful match for Addison. I loved seeing Addison's vulnerable side as the book went on and I loved seeing Katie stood her ground for what she knew she deserved. They were so so good together.

This book had so many surprises, so many unexpected contradictions. Usually in a business dominated family, theres a lot of hatred or indifference between family members, but business aside they were loving and supportive. It was out of the ordinary from what we usually see in book, but lovely and refreshing to read. I loved Addison's mom, she was business savvy but also fiercely protective of her daughter. I loved how strong the theme of family was in this book. Family can be messy and complicated but beautiful and loving all the same.

Damn and the love scene was incredibly sexy and fierce, I loved it. It was a perfect example of creating and keeping the emotional connection between the two women and not letting up on the spice.

I have only recently been reading books by Georgia Beers and I've been enjoying them immensely. I haven't read many of her early books though, I must get on that! I did like seeing Junebug farms pop up in here!

I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Read this book in just a couple of days. Had a plot that was easy to immerse myself in. Enjoyed all of the characters! Well written.

Addison Fairchild is a workaholic with the bleeding ulcer to prove it. Forced by her mother to take on a personal assistant to help reduce the load, she sees just one more obstacle to overcome on her path to take over the reigns from her mother. Katie Cooper is the bright and bubbly woman tasked with helping Addison back on track. Her family is having troubles and she could use the money, though this part time assistant may be just the medicine Addison needs.

I enjoyed this latest novel from Georgia Beers. Katie is a well rounded character who is immediately likeable. Addison however, has a few more barbs keeping you at bay. Unlike her previous novels, the pacing felt a bit off with the relationship between the leading ladies moving at different paces and without the interaction that would feasibly lead to the emotional connection.

This was enjoyable to read, and I certainly would not skip it. However, it was not my favourite work from Georgia Beers to date.

Georgia Beers is one of the best-selling lesfic authors out there, and for good reason. Readers can always count on well-written books, nicely fleshed out characters, and crisp editing. I always enjoy opposites attract or ice queen romances, and this one also combines the office romance trope to the mix. Addison and Katie seem to have quite the chemistry, so I admit I felt cheated by the single love scene. The ending felt rushed to me, but this is still definitely worth the read.

Georgia Beers never disappoints her readers and once again she has knocked it out of the park with Calendar Girl. Who doesn't love a romance between a good hearted worker who stays happy even while her world is crazy and a boss that is all work and no play. A great light hearted romance for all to enjoy.

Georgia Beers is back with another sweet romance. I'd suggest giving it a read if you want something to take your mind off...whatever is happening in the world. In the latest book, we follow the relationship between Addison Fairchild (good name!), a workaholic businesswoman of a family empire of sorts, and Katie Cooper, a highly competent new assistant whose dad suffers from dementia.

The layer of the sick dad was a nice, albeit sad addition. It definitely changed the stakes of why Katie needed her job. Addison's issues were understandable, too, even when she was working herself into a very unhealthy state. I'm into the boss/employee taboo subject and I'm kind of relieved the product of that wasn't as problematic as it could've been, taking into account this should be a pleasant read.

Overall, I enjoyed this. It could've been a stronger story. Certain aspects felt forgotten Katie's best friend sort of disappeared, even the Calendar Girl nickname that could've been mentioned a tad more. Addison had the ability to be SQ fic's Regina Mills-level hot, but sadly, she wasn't built up as attractively as I'd hoped. More push and pull would've elevated Addison and Katie's relationship.

Big complaint about the sexual nature of their relationship: One scene?! And it fades out before we saw the reciprocation? How disappointing.

Good, yet not amazing book. I anticipate the next because Georgia Beers is great.

ARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I should have liked this more than I did. Usually I’m a fan of Beers books, but the last few have been kind of meh. This one had an interesting premise (and usually I’m a fan of workplace romances) but it never really lived up to its promise.

Addison is a workaholic hoping to earn the right to take over the family business. Due to what can only be called sheer idiocy on her part, she works herself into a health situation that requires her to take on an admin assistant. This seemed stupid to me because it’s just so ridiculous that a woman running the rental arm of a huge company wouldn’t already have an asssiant, workaholic or not, but whatever. There’s also a lot made of the no fraternising at work rule, for obsious reasons.

So, enter Katie, she’s moved home to help her mother with her father because he’s ill with dementia (I admit to skimming the home scenes for the most part, having experienced this with both of my parents, I didn’t want to relive it). She’s also working two jobs, so only helps Addison in the afternoons (this also seemed unrealistic for a woman in Addison’s postition, but again, whatever).

So, Katie shows up to help but despite EVERYONE telling Addison to get over herself and accept the help, she still acts like a tosser and refuses. Seriously, she’s a real jerk of a character. I was kind of disappointed that Katrina wasn’t the gay sister, she’d have been a much better match for a Katie. Eventually Addison and Katie come to terms but there’s still a lot of one step forward four steps back (although I was glad that Katie had a backbone and didn’t mind calling Addison out when she was acting like a jerk). Katie and Addison grow closer (though this was handled so superficially that I didn’t buy into it) and they get together. There’s also some tie in to the previous books by Beers about the animal shelter, but I only read one of those, so it didn’t really add anything for me.

All of this leads up to the drama portion of the book, which seriously could have gone no other way, and Addison is a jerk some more. We then get somewhat of a happy ending, but it was a bit too easily rectified and didn’t feel like they’d earned it. Like I said, superficial.

So, Katie was interesting, the supporting characters were good (Sophie also would have been a better match for Katie, hell, even Addison’s mother would have been better) but Katie and Addison together just didn’t grab me. It’s Beers, so it’s well-written, but I think less time spent on Addison and her self-centred whining and more on them as a couple would have made this a better book. 3 stars

Very sweet. Extremely light. Beers always delivers great romances but usually the stories are a little fuller. This one was as cute as always but didn't have any depth. A nice, quick and light read.

I’m not a big romance fan, but I do like Georgia Beers books, which contain (fairly) realistic and believable characters and situations. The two leads here are Addison (sorry Addison, but I don’t like your name), who is literally working herself into an early grave in a bid to be the chosen person to take over her mother’s business empire; and Katie, hired as a temporary assistant to Addison in an attempt to stop the latter working herself to death, who is dealing with trying to support her mother in caring for her dad who has early onset dementia. Katie is lovely; Addison, apparently not so much, and doesn’t think she wants or needs an assistant.

I’m sure it’s not a spoiler for anyone to say sparks fly, and attraction and feelings are denied but ultimately acted upon. Inevitably predictable as it may be, I loved reading it; Georgia Beers writes well and has the knack of making you care about her characters. Katie’s dad’s dementia is very well conveyed and the reality of this and awful toll of the condition on a family is not glossed over at all. I do like how Georgia’s characters are professional women who don’t generally act like utter idiots as seems to occur in many romances. Well, maybe Addison does a bit (she’s stressed, ok?) but you can still see things from her point of view.

Maybe the ending was a bit rushed - but actually, I didn’t mind that and thought it worked.

A lovely warm read - comfort reading for me.