Sorry but I have to DNF this one. The start was not engaging, the main character was annoying with boring monologues and there was too much info dumping. I didn't even get to the part where they won the holiday. Sorry but this book is just not for me.

I love a fun contemporary romance and this was helped me get out of a book slump! It was fun and engaging from the start and had me giggling in places especially with how the two main characters interacted with one another.

Natalie has just returned home after finding her fiancé with another woman.. I mean how rude she was also pregnant at the time with their child. Feeling downtrodden she returns home to her mum and sets up her life their with her daughter. All is going well her business is still going strong, her mum is supportive and she has a gorgeous baby daughter. Natalie then attends a charity event with her mum and things start to go wrong. I mean her daughter being sick on her before she bumps into her old crush Will Bramble for starters.

This book for me is what I would call the epitome of a summer read. It had the feel good vibe as well as the humour the romance and a bit of adventure. The book is aptly titled As Luck Would Have It! Natalie and Will win the grand raffle prize at the charity event when there should of only been on winner... the thing is not everything is as it seems. They get sent on a HONEYMOON.

I really liked Natalie and Will's character. Natalie was hurt by her ex-fiancé and taking a chance on Will after he broke her heart when she was younger is a big step for her. I liked that the romance was a slow burn and they didn't rip each others clothes off straight away (I also like books like this too but that is a different story).
You could feel the emotion at times coming off of the characters and I love this in a book, it makes me able to connect with them more which I did. I also found that the banter between the two characters had me giggling. I mean this is real life and talking about dodgy stomachs and being embarrassed just set me off.

The descriptions of Marrakesh were divine and I even went and looked up photos! It is absolutely stunning and I love how Zoe May has made it accurate so that you could close your eyes and picture the small markets and all the vivid colours of the shoes and spices. It makes me want to visit the country and bask in the ambience and sun.

Zoe May has created a great contemporary laugh out loud romance that was REAL it didn't happen in a flash and you could see the characters fall in love (again). Another firm favourite for me was the Epilogue.. I do love an epilogue on a romance book as I am sappy and I like to know what happens at the end of the book!

This was a fun, romantic summer read for me and recommend it to anyone that wants a smile on their face whilst reading the book and having a giggle at the characters expense.

In As Luck Would Have It, we follow Natalie who has moved back into her mum’s in the small village she grew up in. Life is not going to plan as her fiance walked out on her two weeks after she had their baby, but thankfully she is still a successful business woman. She attends the village raffle and when her ticket is drawn for a free holiday, she’s thrilled, but then her childhood sweetheart, Will, who broke her heart wins the other ticket.

As Luck Would Have It was the perfect summer read, a fantastic one to read by the pool on holiday. The Marrakesh back drop was beautifully described and it definitely made me want to take a holiday, so it would have been great to already been away when I read it! It was a light, fun and fast paced read.

Fake dating is one of my favourite tropes and I was really pleased to get that. I enjoyed Natalie and Will being forced together, they had both been through a lot and it felt genuine that they needed that push. They grew together and the romance was really sweet (and not explicit!). I enjoyed that they were open and honest with each other, as I’ve read to many romance books full of miscommunication.

I will say that this book could have been longer. If there wasn’t the epilogue/one year later chapter, I would not have been satisfied with the ending. That final insight into where the characters ended up was definitely needed.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this was a charming, clean romance with low intensity and no angst. Will and Natalie are childhood sweethearts who win a trip together. During their trip they have to pretend to be married and are forced into ackward situations. while I liked both characters I did feel many of the scenes and reactions were over done and exaggerated. Their dialogue felt forced and unnatural. nonetheless it was entertaining.

This book is fine. Although, some of the passages about foreign places and inhabitants came across as a tad intolerant. I didn't feel there was a huge spark between the characters which kind of took me out of the story.

As Luck Would Have It by Zoe May is a sweet contemporary romance, which I enjoyed. Natalie Jackson was dumped by her fiance, right before giving birth to their baby. Natalie is forces to move in with her mother, who helps with the baby. When Natalie and her mother go to a fair and Natalie wins the grand prize, an all expense paid trip. Unfortunately her childhood nemesis Will Brimble, wins the other trip. I really enjoyed this feel good book, perfect for a summer read. I will be reading more of Ms. May books. I recommend this book for all who enjoy contemporary romance.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and the publisher. Thank you.

I’m back in the flow of reading and am flying through books yet again. 🍀
This is the perfect summer/holiday read. It’s light hearted and an easy laid back read.
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On the surface Natalie gives this impression that everything in life is perfect however the truth is that she is now a single mum and back living with her own mother.
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She is really feeling low and never expected to be back living back with her Mum- her mother is trying to get her out and socialise. She goes out with her mum to the local village fate and bumps into her old boyfriend from her school days Will. 🍀
She enters the raffle with first prize being a holiday for 2- 🍀
Will anything be rekindled between the two old school love birds???
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This book made me smile and is a great read. The story is just fabulous. 🍀
There was however some parts of the story that I did struggle to warm to Natalie but for me it still works as a story.
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Well written ,the characters are well balanced.
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This is a book to pop into your case or to sit out in the sunshine with a cold drink.
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Thank you to @hqstories for inviting me to participate in this blog tour.
Thank you @zoe_writes 🍀
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As Luck Would Have It is a contemporary, heartfelt and entertaining read.
The scene setting is fantastic and I really got a sense of the 2 main settings in the story.
This book isn’t overly sentimental or unrealistic, it’s warm a fuzzy and delicious; it makes you root for Natalie and Will.
Also I want to go on holiday now!

'As Luck Would Have It' has, at its heart, a fun and interesting idea. Unfortunately the book left a lot to be desired.

Sixteen years after Natalie and Will ended their teenaged romance before it even began, the two end up on a romantic holiday together. A lot has happened since Natalie ran away to boarding school, she's a single mother and he's a divorcee, and now they are pretending to be newlyweds ultimately leading to those two words nearly every romance novel leads to: true love.

Fun and interesting. There were some funny scenes and even some relatable ones, but overall the execution wasn't great. Moments when the details should've been brief seemed to drag on while other spots felt rushed. Even though a majority of the story is told inside Natalie's head it was still hard to connect to her and of course, because it was mostly in her head it was hard to connect to Will. There would be these interactions where you're finally getting to see them as people then suddenly it's back to the internal dialogue where we get to see those few sentences dissected across three pages.

I think this could've been a four or five star book if it had just give through another round or two of drafting and edits.

*received free ARC from netgalley

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

I’m struggling with this one, I think I may have reached my fill of chick lit lately because this just didn’t do it for me. The premise was great, 2 long lost school lovers reunited, love it!
It was the details afterwards that I just couldn’t get into, all the lying to the hotel and their fake wedding? I guess I couldn’t just understand why they couldn’t go ‘oh we won this as a prize?’
As a light summer read that you pick up and put down it’s great, no heavy storyline to pay attention to, and could easily be read over 1 or 2 sittings.

Thanks for the publisher and NetGalley for Providing me with An ARC in exchange for an honest review .
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" Life Hurts . But life can also be brilliant , thrilling , funny , surprising and joyful. Sometimes you have to risk getting hurt to experience all the other good stuff "
Book : As Luck Would Have It .
Author : Zoe May .
Genre : Romance , Contemporary , Fiction .
Rating : 3/5.
Review in one word : Fine .
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When I always read a romance , I don't put high expectations as I read it just for fun and good feelings , I don't mind reading about tropes that I've already read about ( second chances , friends to lovers , enemies to lovers ….) , But I like to be able to connect with the characters , to feel the depth of the novel , to actually enjoy it and not feel bored .
As Luck Would Have It was actually a well-written novel , It got all the elements to make it an enjoyable read , the characters with difficult past , Second chance Romance , Vacation Vibes , Humor , great descriptions and amazing writing style .
But for me , I couldn't enjoy it AT ALL , I couldn't feel the characters , when they were hurt or feeling sad , I couldn't feel that , nor when they were happy , and don't get me start talking about the main couple's chemistry, the story was so cold , no spark at all between Nat and will .
In my opinion , this story lacks depth and feelings .
I would have loved it more , If we explored their relation more , how they developed feelings for each other the first time I was really interested in their past during high-school period rather than their pasts with their ex-s :P .
The story mentioned their working fields which are really interesting but we didn't have one scene where we see them actually work .
This novel wasn't for me , but it is not a bad one , it's well-written as I already mentioned , so people who likes fast , easy romance novels will definitely enjoy this book .

Review link on my blog : https://bibliomedico.wordpress.com/2019/07/06/as-luck-would-have-it-book-review/

New mother Natalie is licking her wounds.  Jilted by her ex fiancé, she's come back to live with Mum.  Juggling being a single mother and business owner isn't easy, but she's determined to make it work.  There's no time for distractions, though, and Will Brimble, the boy that broke her heart sixteen years ago, well he's certainly that.

            When they both end up winning a holiday at the town raffle they decide to be adults about it.  They both really need a vacation, surely they can stick together without....er… being together.  The more time she spends with him, though, the more she wonders if it might not be worth a second shot.

          For the most part this was one of those fluffy, feel good books that just make you smile without being one of the great modern classics.  I adored the premise and the fact that May did not shy away from the emotions her characters felt or the fact that they were dealing with some heavier issues, yet the book never felt heavy.  It was a quick, fun read with really charming characters.  Honestly I loved it-  it checked all my modern romance criteria!  I will be looking into more of her books. 

       Our main characters, Will and Natalie, have both been through the ringer and it really shows.  Natalie's a little gun shy, insecure and unsure of her footing where dating is concerned- she's a single mum.... does she even want to?  Will took the loss of his father hard and started looking at what he wanted from life- but can he have that with Natalie.  The issues made a lot of sense and watching them together was nice, it seemed... honest.  Even when I wanted to strangle them, I was rooting for them.  You get sucked into this story, the misadventures and snappy dialogue.  I couldn't put it down.  For me, this is a four star book.

         On the adult content scale there's some sexual innuendo, very light sexual content and language.  It's very tame, really and I would say it's appropriate for most 16+.  Let's give it a three.

        I was lucky enough to receive an eARC from Netgalley and HQ Digital in exchange for an honest review.  My thanks!

A great romantic summer read that had me laughing and swooning.
Will and Natalie were each other’s first loves but it ended on bad terms when they were teens. Now reunited after several years and a couple bad relationships the two are forced on a romantic getaway together.
I really enjoyed this book i found both characters very relatable and i was pulled into the story immediately. My only complaint is that the book ended very abruptly and left me wanting more. A quick light read everyone should enjoy!

An enjoyable summer read. I felt it took slightly too long to get to Natalie and Will's holiday but that the honeymoon side of things was a nice spin, although seems unlikely as a raffle prize. I went on my honeymoon last year and it brought back some fond memories. Some of the aspects of the book seemed a bit random...I got slightly annoyed about the passport name being an issue as most brides travel with passports in their maiden name and it isn't questioned at all. I was also a bit surprised when we had a sudden one year later chapter at the end. Overall it wasn't quite what I was expecting but it was a bit of harmless fun. I think once the kinks of repeated sentences and spellings are ironed out then the published copy should be a smoother read.

(Also posted on my GR account!)

To be honest, after 20% progress or so, I skimread the book till the end.
Author spent more than 10% to establish the background of the main character (hello, info dump!) and how she bickered with her mother about whether they'd attend a fundraiser in their village.
Below is my exact note from reading this book:

I tried to count how many times she wrote crackers and cheese (the snack that Natalie, her mother, and her toddler ate during the whole first chapter), wink (Natalie's mother did this <i>a lot</i>), shrug (also this), etc.

Info dump.

Author did tell when it was better to show and vice versa.

Adverbs
More adverbs
Adverbs everywhere

I dislike Natalie as a character and a person

Info dump

Smirk, smirk, wink, smirk

She won the holiday prize

yadda yadda yadda

Honeymoon suite

There was a monkey involved if i'm not mistaken

I forgot to check if she remembered her child even once
I don't think she mentioned her child during the holiday

This passage:
'How about we just get naked, but don't look at each other?' I suggest.
'Okay, I suppose,' Will replies.
' Which one of use is going to get naked first?' I ask, feeling a little anxious.
'Ladies first!'
"Let's both do it.'
'Okay fine,' Will replies.

Another monkey-related incident.

Aaand, I'm done.

This was a light, fun summer read. Natalie and Will and their adventures in Marrakech were cute and funny. I did find it weird how overly invested the hotel owner and his wife were in their being married and didn’t think explaining that they won a prize would have caused an issue.

The author did do a good job of reconnecting Natalie and Will after their years apart. Natalie’s wariness did make sense. The end did feel a bit rushed though and I would have liked to maybe see more of them officially together with Hera too.

Summary :

One holiday can change your life forever…
Natalie Jackson might keep up appearances on Instagram, but in reality her fiancé has just jilted her after the birth of their baby and she’s moved back in with her mum. Life isn’t exactly going to plan!

So when she enters the village raffle for the holiday of a lifetime, she thinks she has no chance of winning. But her name is pulled out – and, as luck would have it, so is a ticket bought by her childhood nemesis: Will Brimble.

Surely a romantic holiday for two is the worst idea ever…right?

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I like a good story that gives second chances for romance. Two childhood sweethearts(may or maybe) from a small town, now all grown up and individually settled in life (well, almost!). What happens when the universe decides to bring these together again in an almost romantic way possible. There's definitely ought to be some sparks, champagne and joy in the air. I was completely engrossed in Nat and Will's love story. Zoe May has written an excellent story and also provided an apt title for it. The book is a light, cute romantic read with an adorable ending to it.

I would like thank NetGalley and Zoe May for providing the arc in exchange of an honest review.

A light and enjoyable summer read , nice characters and lovely easy to follow low plot, felt a bit rushed to wrap it up at the end, but not a major issue. Entertaining read

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this book.
It was a nice easy read, and had several 'aw' moments, however it felt a little too easy. There was no complication of the father wanting to see his daughter (although not unheard of) or any left-over feelings of betrayal from Natalie. Maybe it didn't need drama, but maybe a little more 'will they or won't they?' between the main characters would've helped.

This was a light and easy read with some funny and relatable moments - the part where she got baby sick all over her made me laugh. I found the main character likeable and enjoyed the escapism of the holiday setting. The plot was nice, with a happy ending. However it did all feel a little rushed, with the epilogue wrapping everything up neatly and quickly. I would have liked to see a bit more depth to the love development. I would recommend this as a holiday read.