This was a fairly easy read, it was a sweet romance with low angst and a bit of comedy. There wasn't anything annoyingly wrong with this book nor was there anything memorably right either. Even though the main characters basically instantly fell in love, they really had great chemistry that developed into great intimacy. Humor played a big part of the story and while it has its funny moments, quite a few times it was bit too much and was just really corny and irritating. Less would have been more.

4.25 stars. Very enjoyable fated-love novel. Small-town setting. Bisexual lead. Excellent pacing; never felt this book dragged and was engrossed from beginning to end. Past and present collide in this excellent book.

Lindsay Hall is relatively content with life. Despite her recent divorce and raising an aggravating teenager, Lindsay enjoys her art (painter), her small town, and her BFF Patty always has her back. But Lindsay cannot escape memories of her past life: her lost love, Roo, and a mysterious boy, Timmy. Ren is spending a couple of weeks visiting her best friend in Salt Creek before she goes to take her dream job in Paris.

When Lindsay sees Ren, she literally passes out. The two begin an affair knowing it has to end when Ren leaves, but also feeling a draw far deeper than either anticipated.

Enjoyable cast of side characters as well. Best friends for both women, Lindsay's daughter Brooke, and old Mrs. Stokley are all well done and add to the story.

I've been waiting for this book - and was not disappointed. I've really enjoyed Ms Spencer's writing and she has a deft hand with humour - both through physical situations and banter. She keeps the tone light and fun and her characters are particularly engaging. There's some familiar tropes in this one but there's enough originality in their presentation that it made the overall story fresh. The story is well paced, with lots of secondary action and characters that propel the main characters and the romance along.

Lindsay Hall, recently divorced and questioning her sexuality, is a successful artist in a small town who is haunted by memories of a past life and love. When Ren Christopher blows into town to visit an old friend before she jets off to a new job in Paris, she isn't looking for a relationship, but her quirky interactions with Lindsay begin to chip away at her resolve. The romance has a good build up and the big reveal/drama isn't quite as angsty as I had expected (and a good thing ... a light bit of angst is all this needed).

There's a well developed chemistry between the two and the dialogue is bright and snappy - add to that the utter likability of the two mains and you've got a winner. The supporting characters provided an added layer of humour but they are all well developed beyond just being comic foils.

Overall, a great read.

I love the books Elle Spencer writes. Ever since her first novel Casting Lacey, I have gravitated to everything she has written. BIG FAN! Spencer does a great job with this book, the story reels you in and holds you captive chapter after chapter. 

Lindsay Hall is a renowned artist that paints the portrait of a boy she has never met. Over and over again. She knows him, she feels him, but who he is and what he means to her is something she cannot explain. As a teenager, Lindsey and her bestie hypnotized themself, and Lindsey saw herself in another life. A life where she had a son and a wife, but there is trauma and pain in that life she cannot explain. This moment as a teen has defined her life. 

Ren Christopher is stopping for a few weeks to see her best friend before she moves to Paris for a new career opportunity. She is escaping from a stage 5 clinger in her past relationship and needs a clean break and quick getaway. Stopping in to see her college friend, she is mesmerized by a painting at the local Main Street art gallery. The portrait of the boy moves something inside of her, and she has to have it no matter the price.

Ren and Lindsey have this connection in this world and in a "past life". Lindsey knows it the moment she sees Ren but knows she can't just divulge that info because that's a lot and could be seen as crazy. How it plays out is really interesting and will keep you entertained throughout the story.

The supporting characters really add dimension and depth to the story. They are absolutely the gems of this book. Angst and drama, but so is silliness and good humor. You get a lot of emotions are wrapped up in a delightful package. This book is your go-to for drama and fun.

This book was a surprise! I read the abstract of Waiting For You and have read and enjoyed several of Ms. Spencer’s previous books. What I was not ready for was how intriguing I found this story.

Lindsay Hall is an artist living in a small town called Salt Creek, Massachusetts. She has developed quite a reputation of being able to paint portraits which truly depict the individual’s personality and make the subject come alive. Lindsay is a divorcee who has a teenage daughter, Brooke. The ex-husband is not a nice man and has turned his family against her. Lindsay’s friends and town folks know her as a talented, sensitive, and kind person. What they do not know about her is that, since she was a young teenager, she has been having reincarnation dreams about a woman and has started painting this woman.

Ren Christopher is an extraordinarily successful businesswoman. She has received a promotion and will be
moving to Paris. Before she leaves, she decides to take a vacation, get some rest, and visit her best friend who lives in Salt Creek. When Lindsay runs into Ren, she faints because Ren looks like the woman of her past life.

Ms. Spencer has created a fun and interesting plot. She has developed all the characters, both the main ones and the supporting characters, so well. There is depth to all of them which will cause the reader to develop a connection. You will find the book hard to put down. In addition to writing a great romance, but Ms. Spencer has infused a wonderful element of humor.

Waiting For You is definitely one of pure pleasure and fun. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Elle Spencer has become one of my favorite authors and her latest book is no exception. Waiting for you is a 'bit' different plot in that you will need to expand your imagination to past life belief. Lindsay Hall believes she has led a past life with a true love (and as we learn later, a child) and that she believes Ren Christopher is the reincarnation of Roo (the past life love of her life).

The characters are fun to take the ride with, the dialog in the book is so Ms. Spencer with lots of it and funny as hell. With the support of the small town community (and some loveable characters there), Lindsay and Ren fall together (Lindsay in a very physical way :-)) and work through the 'issue' of Linday's belief with some twist and turns along the way.

Loved this book, a fun read for the summer, and a must have if you are a fan of Elle Spencer's writing.

I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, but would have written the same opinion if I had come across this author on my own.

To see my Amazon review, it is under CC-A summer fun read

The book is about Lindsay Hall, who saw her past life’s lover in a dream and since then she can’t forget it. Her ex husband and even her daughter tries to make her realize that she should leave it behind. But everything changes when she meets with Ren Christopher, and seems like it’s they fate to be together. Lindsay is too much into her past life that she sometimes gets worried in her present life because of that.
A beautifuly written romance novel about love and doubt spiced up with some supernatural, filled with emotions and a good amount of humor. Surely a charming, immersive story which makes everyone turn the pages fast till the end. For me it was a bit too short, and I wasn’t really a fan of the ending.

Thank you NetGalley for the free copy.

The only reason I did not read this book in one sitting was because life intervened, but I devoured this one! I absolutely loved Lindsay and Ren's story, but it was Miss Stokely who stole my heart. Or so I thought until the Epilogue. I need two more books, please!

I absolutely LOVED this book. It is a story of 2 women who are brought together through fate. Lindsay Hall had a vision in high school of someone that she used to be in a previous life and the girl that she loved. It was a vision that had haunted her for years. After painting her lost love for the first time, Ren Christofer comes to town. At first sight, Lindsay knows this was her lost love. The two connect instantly and their passion for each other is on point, this being Lindsay's first relationship with a woman. As their relationship is taking off, they grow closer to one of Lindsay's old teachers who had been a closeted lesbian for years since it was not accepted in her age. As things develop, a surprise is revealed and Lindsay's past with it.

This story is just an amazing work of fiction that takes the reader through 3 generations of lesbians in this small town and how society treated each of them. It touches on so many ways that people have hurt others through bigotry of someone else's sexual preference. The story is sweet, funny, and at times, heart-wrenching. This one will go on my favorites list to be read again. It is highly recommended.

I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Setting aside the fact that this book deals with people meeting in another life and someday will meet again. Not usually my things but seeing as the author is Ms Spencer I decided to give it a go. Took me a while to actually read it but now I’m glad I did.
Ren Christopher just wants to get on with her life after a relationship that was allowed to go on for too long, finally ends. Now she’s ready to start working out of London but not before she spends some time with her best college friend, Patty.
Lindsay Hall is an artist that seems to only paint pictures where the same woman makes an appearance every time. The same woman that shows up in her dreams. She feels like she should know her, perhaps from the time she and her best friend Patty discovered they had lived before. That task was helped along with a few drinks; they were both too young. She does remember her being part of her past life and apparently she was someone Lindsey loved. But life didn’t lead her in that direction because after all she did marry a man but now she’s divorced, mainly because Lindsay just couldn’t leave the past behind her. Even her teenage daughter tells her to get over it.
Ms Spencer has actually written a book dealing with ‘past lives’ that I enjoyed reading. With some laugh out loud moments along with a cast of characters that enrich the whole experience. All in all a great read that will make me at least not be so quick to pass over a book dealing with creepy stuff. Don’t get me wrong this story isn’t creepy like most books exploring this genre. Very enjoyable read.
ARC via NetGalley/Bold Stroke Books

Elle Spencer, PLEASE don't be finished with Lindsay and Ren!

Much has been made of the past lives aspect of this book, and admittedly when I read the synopsis I was iffy on the premise. But ultimately, for me, it fit seamlessly into the story and made complete sense.

The two main characters are inexplicably drawn to each other and the chemistry between them in palpable. There are so many good side stories and backstories involved that I literally couldn't put this book down. The friendships between Lindsay and Patty and Ren and Deb were realistic and fun to follow. The mother/daughter relationships really rang true for me as well. But Mrs. Stokely's backstory was absolutely emotional and touching. I agree with other reviewers that the ending was rushed, but for me, the brave and interesting story line made this worth five stars.

Elle Spencer has become almost Robin Alexander-like in terms of physical comedy and witty dialogue (which really surprised me in her story in the Hot Ice trilogy) and Kris Bryant-like in terms of the hotness level of the love scenes.

Even if you think you won't like the past lives flavor, take a chance on this book. It's the kind of story that requires a day or two of contemplation before moving on.

To like this story you are going to need to be into supernatural events. Lindsey believes in past lives. Sinds she was a teenager she saw the face of a woman in her dreams who she believes she met in a past life. Only her best friend Patty and her ex-husband know this. Not even her daughter knows. Lindsey named this woman, Roo.

Lindsey lives in a small town, she is an artist. Her most famous painting is of a young boy, Whom she also sees in her dreams. She paints on commission and sells her painting in Patty's gallery.

Ren Christopher is in between jobs, Her new job starts in Paris in two weeks. Meanwhile she is in town visiting her old college friend Deb. Deb owns the coffee and pastry shop in town. One when Lindsey meets Ren there, she faints when she set sights on Ren. She's sure of it, Ren is Roo.

Cue hilarity and some serious issues in between while these two fall in love, Lindsey piece by piece figures out her past life, and Ren finds out. Meanwhile Ren is in doubt about going to Paris or staying with Lindsey.

The book would have been 5 stars but the end wasn't to my liking. I felt like Ren accepted too easily that their time was over. It took Patty to get her moving.

I’m not a fan of romance stories based on people who had met in previous lives. I don’t know why but it’s a trope that makes me cringe. However, Elle Spencer is among my favourite lesfic authors so I decided to give it a go. I’m happy that I did because I really enjoyed ‘Waiting for You’.

All her adult life artist Lindsay Hall has been obsessed with a woman of her past life. Recently divorced from her husband and with a teenage daughter, the mysterious woman is in her dreams and her paintings. But when Ren Christopher appears in her small town on a short vacation before moving to Paris, Lindsay realises that the woman of her dreams might be very real…

I thought that I had a grasp on Elle Spencer’s writing style: she can produce great rom-coms such in ‘30 Dates in 30 Days‘, good dramas like in ‘The Road to Madison‘ or a mix of both like in her debut ‘Casting Lacey‘. But ‘Waiting for You’ doesn’t fit into those types of stories. In certain moments I thought I was reading a book by Ann Mac Man because of the witty, nerdy, intelligent humour and clever dialogues. Some other times, it sounded like the ridiculous situations out of Robin Alexander’s stories. A very interesting combination.

From my point of view, the problem with the reincarnation romance trope is that it’s got the potential to quickly become a melodrama and I’m not a fan. Ms. Spencer avoids this by not taking anything too seriously and with a heavy dose of humour. The flashbacks to the past are a great excuse to explore life as a lesbian decades ago when homophobia was more commonplace than nowadays. Some of those flashbacks were heartbreaking.

The main characters have amazing chemistry which Ms. Spencer exploits in and out of the bedroom. Every single character was written with such knowledge of the writing craft that they all seem to come alive out of the page. They are complex and endearing, very easy to relate to. My favourite was Mrs. Stokely, who is a colleague of Lindsay’s, an old lady with a beautiful story to tell.

Overall, a very good reincarnation romance book, another enjoyable story by Elle Spencer. 4.5 stars.

ARC provided by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lindsay Hall's discovery of her past-life has gotten in the way of relationships and greatly influences her work. Ren Christopher is taking a few days of no-drama vacation visiting her best friend before moving to Paris and start her new job. However, when Lindsay sees Ren, everything changes for both of them.

I have to say I was a bit skeptic about this book. I don't know how I feel about past-life believes, much less about past-life romance books. But damn, this book was really, really GOOD!

The way Elle Spencer craft the story made it believable and intriguing. Both main characters were lovable and their chemistry was palpable. The supporting characters were funny and interesting too, and they added to the story instead of just being there to fill up pages.

This was one of those books where I didn't know how they would be wrapped up, and I have to say it was done beautifully. I completely recommend this book to fellow readers.

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

3.5 stares.
I have mixed feelings about this story. I definitely found it interesting but it is a very small story that expands a bit in the final few chapters. It's sort of a cross between supernatural , ghost story and coming out. I am left a bit confused though about many things. For example I don't understand why Lindsey fainted when she saw Ren for the first time. When reading that event, I assumed Ren looked identical to Roo, Lindsey's dream girl. But later I am told they don't look alike...What? So I "suspend my disbelief " and read on.
The romance was sweet but again I wasn't sure if it was supernatural/ghostly intervention that was supposed to be driving it......I don't know....I was just enjoying the 2 mc.
What I didn't enjoy, and (I'm sure I'm in the minority), was the many scenes that were just pure clever banter between many of the characters. I appreciate that the author is a talented dialog writer but I found the bouts of chatting was very clever but did not advance the story at all. So I skimmed a bit cause I really wanted to know where this story was going to take me. Well the simi-mystery got all sumed up in the last chapter and the epilogue. Somewhat satisfactorily.
Overall I found it an enjoyable read but sort of an unsatisfactory story.

I enjoyed this book. I’m not a huge fan of the belief in past lives and being destined to meet, but the concept is handled so beautifully here that it works well and is rather lovely. I really like the banter between the leads and their best friends. Patty Cakes is the best; she deserves her own book because she’s adorable. The author creates an excellent picture of the place, the people and the art. I want to see the paintings. The front cover should have had a painting on it. It looks more like a Melissa Brayden book. Actually the dialogue, the humour in particular, really remind me of Ms Brayden’s books. Nothing wrong with that. If you’re going to be influence, you may as well be influenced by one of the best romance writers.

I nearly didn't request this book because it looked like so many others, but on another reviewer's urging to give this author a try - I took a chance.
Am I ever glad I did! This story was funny, it was heart-breaking, it was brave, it was so much more than what I expected.
All of the characters are individuals in their own right, with their own voices and views. Even the smallest of them.
This is not a book to read in bed beside your partner who is sleeping. Because I'll tell you right now, you're going to wake them up. I mean, check this passage out, an adult doing their impression of a two-year-old talking to Alexa (the A.I)
"Awexka, I need five hundred and two bananas, and a million fwoot snacks. And no socks, I don't like socks."

How do you not dissolve into fits of laughter at that? And that wasn't the only hilarious passage, but I won't ruin it for you.

The cover did not win me over, but the author sure did. Any author that can write so well that I have an asthma attack from laughing is tops in my book. So to speak.

Get this book, but don't read it at night while people are trying to sleep. They'll be grumbling at you the next day.

Lindsay is a recently divorced single mom, to Brooke, and an artist who paints predominately portraits in a small town called Salt Creek. Ren Christopher is in Salt Creek for two weeks to spend time with her college friend, Deb, before heading to Paris for a new job opportunity.

Lindsay believes in past lives and some of her painting reflects people from past lives. When Lindsay goes to a local coffee shop one day she literally faints when she meets Ren who reminds her of a past life obsession named Roo.

The past life concept was interesting, but even if you don't believe in that kind of thing, this book was quite interesting. The lead characters of Lindsay and Ren are well developed. The secondary characters of Brooke, Deb, PattyCakes, and Mrs. Stokley all had unique personalities and there were many laugh out loud moments with this cast of characters. There were also some unique lessons to be learned by reading this book.

I highly recommend the others read this latest book from Elle Spencer.

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I've been wanting to try an Elle Spencer book for a while so as soon as I saw this one up for request on Netgalley I knew I had to read it, and whilst i'm glad I did i'll admit that this wasn't quite the book for me.

I really enjoyed the writing style here and how well developed the characters were. There's actually a decent sized cast of characters here but all of them felt well-developed and explored.

The relationship was cute, although definitely a little insta-love. However, this book focuses heavily on the idea of past lives and I just could not get into that aspect which just ruined my enjoyment of the entire book.

A good book, just not for me but i'm still hoping to try more from this author in the future.

This book is about those we knew in past lives and reconnecting with them later in life. If you have difficulty believing in it, this story has characters that are fully fleshed out, it won't matter. Lindsey and her best friend in high school got a CD about past lives. While her best friend didn't understand it, Lindsey got a glimpse of who she was and who she spent her life with. Years later, she meets her lover from her past life. The only problem, that person, Ren, is only visiting for a short while before relocating to Paris.
This is a quick read that is enjoyable. I would recommend.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.