Death can make you react in funny ways. Alice Murph Murphy is fulfilling a promise to her mother. Keeping the family bakery running means staying and waiting for the one that got away for Murph. Nash has finally returned and is soon to be married. Enter Harley, a local bartender who agrees to help Murph in her plan to show Nash that she is the only future for him. A series of incidents open Murph’s eyes to the treasure that is Harley and a question she must answer . Who is her future?

This has been on my TBR list for years now, and after several starts, I just can't seem to make myself finish it. Sorry!

I've never been a fan of the fake relationship trope but this one takes a nice twist. Murph has carried a torch for Nash since high school but now he's getting married. So what does she do? She invites Harley to pose as her guy and attend the wedding. Turns out,. fans of this type of novel. know, that Nash isn't really the guy for her. This has good characters, spritely dialogue, and a great setting. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A fun read.

Thank you netgalley for allowing me access to this. I absolutely adored this story! The writing was great, the characters were easy to fall in love with and the story was fabulous! 4 stars & I highly recommend it!

I had such a blast reading Where We Belong. Literally, I read it cover to cover (well that part is figurative because digital) in an hour and a half right before bed.

The characterization's a bit iffy. Murph goes from being entirely not over Nash and wanting him back to suddenly having the drunken revelation that it's been Harley all along, and that really wasn't particularly believable. HOWEVER, I was totally on board for these love triangle shenanigans. And, in the end, I was pleased with the way McPherson handled Anna's character, because she'd been the generic mean girl love interest until the end.

Not particularly deep but fast and fun, if you're into fake dating and love triangles.

I liked this storyline and the characters were amazing! This is definitely a story that if you start it you won't want to put it down.

I loved this book! The author is new to me and I look forward to more of her work. The love triangle made for a good plot and it was fast paced.
Many thanks to HQ Digital and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

*I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

A contemporary that is also a bildungsroman in which I found it impossible not to connect emotionally from page 1.

This book got 4.5 stars from me, which is pretty high.

Page 1 got me into the skin of our main character, Alice Murphy. Chapter 2 had already made me cry twice. 51% of the book meant I was not able to stop at all, despite my continuous tears rolling down my cheeks without previous notice. It was one of these books that has you yelling at her every other page to do or refrain herself from doing something.

You can picture the settings perfectly, thanks to incredible descriptions not only of the places themselves but also of the feelings they produced on the people who lived and visited, their traditions and how they felt live in general.

The characters are so well rounded and real that it is impossible not to clearly imagine them and feel close to them in a way. It has been, in fact, the first book that makes me live the story from the perspective of several characters!

I found, however, a couple of aspects that I personally disliked. The first one was the fact that they all seem alcoholics. None of the main characters -except one- are mature enough to face their issues without a drink (or a couple of them), and get drunk regularly, even if it's morning time.

The second issue I had with the book was the message that one who loves you will necessarily hurt you somehow or that women will play dirty on each other to obtain a man's love.

What did I like the most? That despite being a contemporary romance, it is not at all focused on the romantic side of it, but it shows how different events in life will change you view of things to come and your behavour towards whatever comes your way next; real life issues that affect you and any living person would, in a way, be able to relate to.

This book is, definitely, a must if you like contemporary romance. Highly recommended.

A good book. Nicely written and well executed.
A feel good book.
Thank you to both NetGalley and publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book

First love, first kiss and first salary are the things that remains etched in our memories for lifetime.
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Alice is on cloud nine to see her love Nash after a long time in her bakery but soon all excitement goes down the drain when he intimates her about his wedding.To add on injury, his would be bride is everything that Alice is not.But instead of giving up, she fakes a relationship with handsome hunk Harley to makes Nash jealous.But with time, many secrets spill out of the closet, the fine line seperating love and friendship threatens to blur dangerously. 🌻
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The narration is engaging since the very first chapter.Written in a lucid language, the story strikes a chord with the readers beautifully exploring the themes of friendship, love, passion, jealousy, faith and responsibility.It moves at a fast pace.Characters are well drawn and relatable.Told from the perspective of Alice, a number of incidents takes place which make her realise Where She truly belongs.The book ends on a happy note.
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It will make a Lovely light read, recommended for all fiction loves especially romance lovers.It makes the perfect read for the love month.

The book was kinda like the movie My Best Friend’s Wedding, it was a rom-com where Alice Murphy wanted Nash back by pretending to be in relationship with their other best friend Harley. Ah, love was so convoluted, so were the games played.

My first book by author Shann McPherson, the story had fun moments along with confusing ones where all of them didn’t know what they were doing. The story told me past of their lives together along with the present moments.

The writing kept to a fast pace and gave a free hand to Alice. The story told to me in her POV, I felt bad for Alice, knowing the love of her life was marrying someone else. But she played mean tricks on the would-be bride. I didn’t understand her reasons. Ah well, she did say she was unleashing her inner psycho.

Overall, love succeeded and things settled down. Alice got a few revelations. Happily Ever After was the theme song which played beautifully in the end. Friendship was the bond which held them together. Overall, a fun read.

Damn, love is so confusing!! And the games people play!!

Alice is ecstatic to see her first love Nash right there in front of her. Has he finally realised what he left behind? Err, nope. He is there to invite her to his wedding. He has found his Mrs Right and wants Alice to be a part of the celebrations.

She isn’t going to just accept the new status quo and starts meddling in the happiness of the wedded couple to be. Her ‘pranks’ make her look like a tiny psycho and often end up punishing the wrong person, especially when she spontaneously decides to cast Harley in the role of her boyfriend. It creates friction between the three tight friends.

To be completely frank Alice doesn’t always come off in a great way. It’s sometimes hard to feel empathy for someone who whines about not succeeding in life the way they wanted to because their mother had the audacity to become terminally ill. How dare she stop Alice from being with her one true love. Yeh, that didn’t always gel well for me.

That vibe comes and goes as Alice aka Murph is caught between her first love and the man who always had her back. She has to leave the past behind and figure out which one is her future – if either of the two fits that description at all.

It’s a turbulent romcom with a focus on loyalty and friendship. This very much has the feel of the popular My Best Friend’s Wedding. McPherson creates the same kind of emotional turbulence, which is combined with humour and compelling characters. It’s a feel good read where the reader is routing for the main character, even when the character has completely given up.

This was a nice read. The characters are nice, the town is nice, the writing is nice and I enjoyed reading it. Is it one that will feature in my Best of 2020 list? No, but it kept me entertained and was a quick read and both of those count for something.


Murph is a nice woman whose been dealt a not so nice hand but is holding her own. In some ways she seems a little emotionally stunted. Her life fell apart when she was 21 and it felt a bit like she was still stuck at that age with the same dreams without realizing that time had passed. So when it is made incredibly clear to hear that not only has time passed but everyone else is now in a different place with their hopes and dreams she comes apart a bit. Because she came off as stuck and not incredibly immature I never found Murph annoying (well at least not very) but instead felt sympathetic. I did like Harley quite a bit and it was fun seeing he and Murph spend more and more time together without Nash being the focus.


I had two issues with this book. The first is I found it a bit hard to believe that Nash would really waltz in and expect Murph to be excited about his wedding. It isn't that they were old friends and he didn't really know she had a thing for him. They were together and had actually had a bit of a fling not that long before he met his soon-to-be wife. His attitude just seemed especially clueless. The second was how quickly Murph jumped from Nash to Harley. I definitely thing Harley was the better choice but her thinking that didn't seem to evolve but was more an instant switch. Neither of these kept me from enjoying the book and this is an author I will read more from in the future.

When I read the book description of ‘Where We Belong’ on Netgalley a little while back, I was immediately fascinated by this read. So I requested it and was super excited when I got approved to read it. Not only did this book sound interesting, did you see that cover? I loved it! And as soon as I could I started reading.

In ‘Where We Belong’ we meet Alice ‘Murph’ Murphy. When Murph found out her mom was dying, she left everything behind to stay with her and to help out in her family’s bakery. After her mom died, she stayed, determined to make the bakery great again. But for months all she wanted was for her true love ‘Nash’ to come home and tell her he was ready to spend the rest of his life with her. What she didn’t expect was him to come by and give her his wedding invitation and marry someone else. Determined to make him change his mind, she decides to try and make him jealous by telling him she has been in a relationship with their other best friend Harley.

This book definitely didn’t have a slow start. Right after starting this book we read about Murph working in the bakery and Nash coming in with the invitation. And although I don’t like slow books, the start of this book was so fast it took me a little while to really get into. But when I did get into this book I started to enjoy myself. There were several moments when this book made me laugh out loud.

The main character Murph definitely made me laugh several times. She really is just kind of weird and a bit crazy to be honest. She did things to make Nash jealous, that were just so crazy I found myself thinking several times ‘No she didn’t… ‘ and well she did. LOL! Murph was a little weird, but I also enjoyed reading about how tough she was. She lost her mom, but still managed to keep on going and keep the bakery going too. Impressive!

The two other main characters Nash and Harley where these fun handsome best friends, who have always loved the same girl. They are both very different, but both very good guys. But the whole romance thing between them and Murph.. I didn’t get. The first part of this book Murph is all about Nash, and the second part she suddenly realizes she is all about Harley. I mean really? I didn’t want to stop reading, so I kept going but I didn’t really get that part of the book at all.

So, I’m honestly a little bit confused about this book. It was funny, the characters where fun to read about.. but I didn’t get the whole romance part.

A romcom of basically Sweet Home Alabama meets My Best Friend's Wedding and I LOVED it. Now, you know what, if you're going to get into the details, I wouldn't say the writing style was a literary masterpiece but it was fun and funny, and I think just the perfect sort of book to break up longer heavier reads. I don't usually read romance but I'm really glad I read this one, Harley, Nash, and Murph are really great characters, and I like that Murph is aware of making the wrong decisions even as she makes them, haha, made her more relatable in my opinion. I would definitely recommend this to any romance/romcom fans, 3.5 out of 5 for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher HQ for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Three friends, Alice, Nash and Harley. When Nash comes home with a fiancé, it crushes Alice who secretly was in love with him. Harley is in love with her too, so a dog chasing a tail story. Overall I enjoyed this one, but may be my age of over 50, but the angst of a 25 year old was hard to relate to. Would recommend.

In her debut novel, Where We Belong, author Shann McPherson weaves a lighthearted romantic tale of friendship, love and second chances.

Set in Graceville, Georgia, the reader is easily drawn into this entertaining story as they follow three best friends as they navigate the trials and tribulations of life and love.

Alice "Murph" Murphy, Nash Harris, and Harley Shaw have been best friends since the age of nine. They've been through thick and thin, but for Murph, Nash has been her everything: first crush, first kiss, first love. As childhood sweethearts, Murph thought that their love would last forever, but life got in the way, and changed everything in their relationship. They went to NYU together, but when Murph got the call that her mom had Stage 4 Breast Cancer, she came home to Graceville to take care of her dying mom, and to run their bakery, Piece O' Cake. When her mom died within six months, Murph took over running the bakery, while her relationship with Nash came to an end because of the long distance between them.

Five years later, Murph's bakery is doing well, and she still holds out hope that she and Nash will find their way back to each other when he finishes medical school. When Nash unexpectedly shows up at the bakery, Murph thought that he came home to her, but alas, he's come to give her an invitation to his wedding, and if that wasn't bad enough, he wants her to make the wedding cake! Shocked and completely heartbroken, Murph is determined to win back his heart at any cost. So with a week to put her plan in motion, Murph fabricates a story that she and Harley are a couple just to make Nash jealous, and engages in an all-out plan that is filled with enough crazy antics that brings out her inner-psycho! So what's a girl to do when she finds herself in a twisted love triangle? Should she give up on her lost love, move forward with her life, and maybe get a chance to realize that true love has been under her nose the whole time?

Where We Belong easily keeps the reader engaged as they follow Murph's story. Told in the first person narrative by Murph, the reader follows along as Murph struggles to accept that Nash has moved on, and slowly comes to realize that the true love of her life has been in her corner the whole time. There was a great mixture of emotion, drama, angst, humor, and crazy antics mixed in this story. The author does a great job of describing the history of the childhood friendships between Murph, Nash, and Harley, especially with the flashbacks to their childhood memories throughout the story. You can't help but feel compassion for Murph as she faces the changes in her relationships with Nash and Harley, finds unexpected love, and discovers herself along the way.

Where We Belong is a heartfelt story that has enough emotional depth, drama, romance, comedy, and witty banter, that makes it a delightfully entertaining debut romantic tale that romance fans will certainly enjoy!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from HarperCollins Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event.

https://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2020/02/where-we-belong-by-shann-mcpherson-vbt.html

I loved everything about WHERE WE BELONG by Shann McPherson and devoured this captivating romance in one evening without coming up for air.

'It's a truth universally acknowledged that inside every woman is an inner-psycho, just waiting to be unleashed' and Alice Murphy, known as Murph to her two best friends, is living up to this statement. Ever since she was nine it has been Nash, her, and Harley - always there for each other, protecting each other, and being each other's shoulder to lean on. But Alice knew instantly that it was her and Nash who would end up together, living happily ever after. And for a while their childhood friendship grew into love but when tragedy struck and Alice had to return home to take over her mother's bakery, Nash and her broke up, but Alice knew he would come back to her eventually. So when he walks into her shop one day, she knows this is it. But Nash is there to invite her to his wedding in a week and Alice is blindsided. How could he love someone else when she has always been there for him? As Alice goes into crazy mode (flag football and laxatives is all I'm going to say here!), she struggles to let go of her vision of what her future should be and even ropes Harley into pretending to be her boyfriend, even though that is simply laughable. Or is it? Because as Alice starts to see the changes in Nash and herself, she cannot help but notice how handsome and caring Harley has always been, and how he has always been there for her when she needed him. Could she have been looking in the wrong place for love all of this time? And as Nash starts to have doubts about what he is doing, will Alice fall for her first love again or go after the new feelings that are beginning to bud for one of her oldest friends?

I instantly connected with Alice and while I wanted to shake some sense into her on so many occasions, I could relate to her and her dreams that had been taken away from her. Learning about the three main characters and their very special relationship gave me all of the feels, knowing that they were all that each other had through some very harsh times, and I could see why Alice clung on to her relationship with Nash. There are plenty of laughs and drama along the way, and a certain sizzling scene that will have you fanning yourself to take down your temperature, and as I watched Alice figure out her feelings and recognise other peoples, I desperately wanted her to make the right decision for everyone's sake.

WHERE WE BELONG by Shann McPherson is an addictive romance and I cannot wait for more from this very talented author.

Alice Murphy (Murph) is a small town girl working at her deceased mother's cake shop, trying to maintain the legacy. The book begins with the return of Nash, Murph's first everything-kiss, love and best friend. Nash returns to town with news- he has proposed to his new girlfriend Anna, and wants Murph make their wedding cake. Murph is shocked, confused and upset, and in a moment of vulnerability, declares that she is has been dating Harley- the third person in the best friend triangle, in an effort to gain a reaction from Nash. Harley decides to go along with the lie, and what results is a hilarious, heartfelt story of love, loss, friendship and discovering ones' true self.

This book kept me reading, it was super sweet- a light, fun read. I was constantly rooting for the characters. My only wish was that the book was longer and the story didn't begin so suddenly-I think the book would've benefitted from more background, especially between Harley and Murph and their friendship. This would've made their relationship throughout the book seem less sudden and more naturally progressive. I loved the writing, it was deep and emotional, yet light when it needed to be. This book kept me in suspense. The story touched on many profound realizations one comes to within themselves. I love how everything came together at the end. It was a great story, a perfect beach, feel-good read.

Could not connect with the heroine at all, sadly. Kept wanting her to get out of the self-pitying, pathetic 'why me' mentality after the first chapter, but this didn't happen, and it just didn't make sense to root for her to get the hero as she was really so hung up on a man who had discarded her throughout.