Member Reviews
Rebecca Wiley has always been a pushover - she lives with a roommate who she's afraid to confront about his disgusting habits. However, she really wants a promotion at work, so when her mean no-nonsense boss Vanessa asks her to go manage the renovation of her house for a month in the countryside, Rebecca jumps at the chance to prove her worth. While overseeing the renovation, one of the workers mistakes her for Vanessa and she decides to go along with it so she can channel her inner Vanessa to ensure the renovations get done in time. What harm could a little white lie do, right?
While reading this book, I found myself skimming through a lot of it because the plot is so predictable. Most of it was just Rebecca talking to herself and trying to prove she's capable of doing bigger things. My favorite parts were of her bantering with Oliver while playing board games. The rest was just okay for me. I think if you want an easy read with a predictable plot, this is a good pick. If you want more substance, I'd pass.
Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Digital for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
A light hearted and engaging read. It's one of those books you pick up when you have a bit of "me" time, either in bed, in the bath or curled up on the sofa.
The plot is predictable, but not in a bad way. You can connect with the characters, you hate them, you love' em It's an easy story to read and it's really enjoyable. If you are looking for a deep and meaningful read then this isn't the book for you. This book is sheer indulgent escapism in it's finest form.
Rebecca has a degree in events management, but has been the general dogsbody a little bit in awe of her take no prisoners boss, who can’t even get her name right. That’s ok in Rebecca’s book though, as she’s certain to get the promotion that’s coming up – and then she can make the impression that she’d hoped for. But, being called into Vanessa’s office isn’t quite what she expected – she’s to ‘oversee’ the renovation of her boss’ country house – and Rebecca doesn’t bat an eye.
She arrives – people think she’s Vanessa, she’s justifying her not correcting them by “feeling” more confident and able to act in ways that are against her nature. Of course, she’s enamored of one of the builders – and even acts inappropriately – despite her own reservations, and we’re meant to think that a ‘harmless’ shot of the man’s rear-end, shared with a friend because it’s ‘so’ shareable is ok? Were it a male character – he’d be crucified – but there is still a way to go when the reverse is true, apparently.
Becca – for me – was hard to relate to and even harder to enjoy- from her mercurial switches to what she thought was “confidence’ but simply came off as a bad imitation of the much more bitchy Vanessa, to her lying about her identity and genuine belief that when everyone realizes she’s lied and duped them that it won’t be a problem. It’s just a few steps too far into suspension of belief. And while the story was easy to read, it was unevenly paced and full of contradictions in Becca’s personality that had me ready to put this down more than once. Many of the characters were stereotypical and flat for it, and while there were laughs, the story was so untethered to reality that it flew by with barely a squeak – some will love it – others won’t be so intrigued, but I’m not sure it would encourage me to read more of this author’s work.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-avN/:> <a> I am, Indeed </a>
I really enjoyed this book, even though I didn't expect to! It's quite far away from my original genre of crime and mystery, but it was a great nostalgic trip back to the chick lit days of my youth. I got really involved with the storyline of Rebecca, who starts off pretty hapless and with not achieving her potential, but as time goes on she really blossoms. The premise of the book involves Rebecca being thrown in the deep end by her (frankly scary) boss and having to project manage her boss' property development. An innocent misunderstanding leads the builders and the locals mistaking Rebecca for her boss, and she carries on with charade as it empowers her to act like her boss would! Although the ending is not unexpected, it's still a fun ride to get there, with plenty of near miss moments and the inevitable will-she won't-she.
This is a perfect holiday read or just for a bit of escapism!
Vanessa is the boss, and she sends Rebecca to oversee renovations at her house. When Rebecca finds the house, the builders mistake her for Vanessa, and she lets the lie keep going. She tells herself that "being" Vanessa gives her confidence. Most of the book focuses on the renovation, the new friends she makes, and her becoming more confident. There's a tiny bit of romance thrown in toward the very end, which I expected to be a bigger part. This had a cute story, but it was a little slow for me.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I could not stop giggling my way through this book. Whilst some of the characters are a bit stereotypical, I still enjoyed this tale of mistaken identity.
Rebecca was the complete opposite of Vanessa so seeing her behave like her tyrant boss was hysterical and how she managed to avoid anyone finding out.
The board game battles with Oliver were great and the fact the decider was Hungry Hippos was brilliant. I can't think of a better way to spend an evening, to be honest.
The Animal Sanctuary was lovely, and I especially liked the escaping donkey tag team, and the territorial chickens (Chicken Chow-Mein, what a wonderful name).
The only thing that irked me a bit was Rebecca’s flatmate. If someone was that disgusting to live with, and he really was disgusting, there must have surely been other places to live. Even if she was on a really low budget, there had to be other slightly less awful places to live then to put up with a Neanderthal like Lee. But as this wasn’t a major part of the story, I could get over it.
The ending was slightly predictable but most rom-coms and chick-lit are so that didn’t bother me in the slightest, the story is in how the hero and heroine get from strangers/enemies to that happy ever after.
A hilarious tale of mistaken identity leads to you finding your real self.
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 read, easy to get into, and had a lovely setting. The main character was a bit hot and cold though. Maybe the it was the continual lying without remorse which niggled at me, or the tepid romance, there was just something that held me back from admiring Rebecca wholeheartedly.
The plot was fun and the story was written well, but I'd have to say the animal sanctuary was my favourite part.
Rebecca Riley always feels she is worth more. Her glamorous boss doesn't appreciate her but Rebecca really needs to get a promotion. How can she convince Vanessa that she is the Events personnel she always needed? When she is sent to oversee a building project for Vanessa, a role that she feels totally unqualified for, she is somehow mistaken for Vanessa. But the builders take notice of her, if only she could have the same effect...
I throughly enjoyed the tale with enough twists to to make the story fresh and I couldn't put it down. I was rooting for Rebecca and squirming at some of the situations she find herself in.
I loved this book!! It has such a cozy fall feel to it. The description of the town wasn't so much you had to skim, but enough to make you feel you were there. I love books that come full circle and you fall in love with the characters and their new beginnings, as well as their surroundings. When a story makes you feel like it could be your story. Very cute novel!!
Super cute Light hearted chic lit read! If you are looking for something light and fun to read, this should be your next go to. It's a quick read that will have you hooked from the first page.
Thank you to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.
On the surface this book has everything I usually enjoy in a rom-com. A young-ish woman trying to figure out who she is, a handsome man with a guarded heart (made of gold of course), a beautiful location, and a series of oddball friends. However, as I read I just could not get into the plight of Rebecca, an event planner stuck as a personal assistant to a not-so-nice boss. Said boss sends Rebecca to oversee the remodeling of her new country home and due to a case mistaken identity, hilarity ensues. I found myself skim reading and losing interest in what is a perfectly fine story. I am not sure what the disconnect was, but this swap was not for me.
A wonderfully charming light hearted read. The Accidental Life Swap features a lovable heroine, a mistaken identity, a hot romance and ultimately HEA. Althought the storyline was a bit predictable I still thoroughly enjoyed the book.
#TheAccidentalLifeSwap #NetGalley
A case of mistaken identity, a surly love interest and a covetable rural setting, what more could you ask for! I really enjoyed this, thanks NetGalley!
In one moment, Rebecca made herself into someone she wasn't. Yep. She was so hopeful when her hateful boss Vanessa called her in, thinking she'd gotten a promotion, but no....Vanessa wanted her to oversee the renovation of her country home in Little Heaton. Talk about off the career track! When the contractor mistook Rebecca for Vanessa, she went along and set off a whole set of changes to her own life, including a new love interest. The village is fun, there's an animal sanctuary, and new friends. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This is light, fluffy, at times sort of silly but it's also a fun read that fans of old fashioned chick lit will relish.
Overall I quite liked this book; but it didn’t hook me like some books do.
The storyline was predictable, I guessed the ending pretty early on. I don’t mind this, but there was very little else going on, so guessing the plot and ‘twists’ was a bit disappointing.
I wish the author had spent more time explaining Rebecca’s relationship with her sister instead of just repeatedly sending her calls to voicemail. A happy ending isn’t as satisfying when there’s little background.
Rebecca’s flatmate sounds like a great character and I would’ve liked to know more about him. Again, there’s little background to this set up.
I liked the relationships with Stacey and Oliver, they were well written. I felt all the emotions described by the author around these two characters, and wanted to know ‘what next?’ at the end of each chapter.
I’ve rated this book as 3 stars. I enjoyed the style of writing, it was an easy read with a nice storyline and a couple of good strong characters.
Thank you NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Lovely feel good read. It was well written and flowed well. I enjoyed it very much. The plot was good and interesting. Hard to put down
The Accidental Life Swap was an adorable read. Sometimes predictable but always interesting. Rebecca really grew on me as the book continued- probably because she grew so much as a person. This book makes small village life in the countryside of England almost ideal!
Cute fun book! I enjoyed the characters and the setting of the book. Rebecca gets mistaken for her boss, and she starts acting a lot more confidant. But not owning up to it gets her in trouble. It is a little predictable, but a good beach read!
The Accidental Life Swap is a good (if a bit fluffy) novel about a woman named Rebecca who feels unappreciated at work. Her boss asks her to oversee a personal project of hers and eager to please- she agrees. Due to a misunderstanding, the people she will be working with assume she is her boss Vanessa and she doesn't correct them. Much in the vein of a Sophie Kinsella novel, this is quite charming and funny in places- though very predictable. It's definitely light reading and perfectly pleasant so would make an ideal beach read.
A light hearted read! At first I found it tricky to get into. Rebecca, the lead character was such a sap and I wondered if I could tolerate her through the book! However as she takes on her boss’s ‘life swap’, she discovers more about herself and becomes a more interesting character. A predictable read but really enjoyable.