Member Reviews
I don't think there will ever be a book Laura writes that I won't love.
Romance novels are always a great pallette cleanser from the epic fantasy I read and Laura's books are just perfect for a fun quick read in between.
Of course, all romcoms tend to follow the same format, and with this being a love triangle/square, there was a lot of fun tension that I don't think you get with others in the genre.
It was easy to read, a great fun story, one that is also so relatable, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.
This was a cute quick read. Great ending! Just didn’t love this nearly as much as I wanted to.
The characters were good, but it seemed like Penny wanted things and then didn’t want things, and was all over the place with 3 men, 2 of which shouldn’t have really meant anything.
The conflict was a bit baseless. But it was fluffy...
Cute read.
The Love Square is a charming rom-com that will certainly make you laugh out loud. Our main character, Penny, has always considered herself to be unlucky when it comes to love but when a string of men appear at the same time, all things concerning romance get very complicated. The book starts off really well and is fast-paced and entertaining. It’s an easy read and one that will leave you smiling and feeling good. The story is cute and perfect for fans of Laura Jane Williams’ other books, especially Our Stop.
This story is about Penny, a woman who has survived breast cancer, and is now on a mission to get her life in order and find a man. However, she has to go through quite a few men on her adventure, hence the love square. Will she find the man she is looking for? There was one man that I liked in particular, out of the three of them. Penny has a lot to deal with in her life, as her uncle becomes sick and she has to move to run his cafe for him. She is also infertile, but she wants a baby, so this is also explored in the book. Will Penny find her happy ending? Read the book to find out!
The audiobook narrator was good, and she had a nice voice, but sometimes I could hear her turning pages of her script, which was a little bit annoying, and there was a little bit of other background noise.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I DNF'd this book 30% in, unfortunately the writing style just wasn't working for me and I wasn't enjoying the book at all.
Could not review this at the time because it was archived before I could download it. Please do not take my rating into consideration because I have not being able to read it yet.
This audiobook is narrated by Carrie Hope Fletcher who does an amazing job. I love her voice and found it warm and compelling. She reads this beautifully, keeping pace with the story and characters. However sadly this book was not for me. I found it predictable and could not connect with the main character who I found to be one dimensional. 3 stars for the narration.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital audiobook.
This was the first audio book I listened to as I usually like to read them for myself. I was pleasantly surprised, it was very easy to listen to and once I had started listening it didn't take long to finish at all. A nice storyline with lovely characters. Light-hearted and uplifting :)
I really love Laura’s book Our Stop so I had high expectations for this one! I’ll be honest, I found bits a little cringey but what do you expect from a contemporary romance! I liked the premise but the audiobook was really hard to listen to because of formatting so I am going to finish it off on a kindle version instead. I’m super curious to read more of Laura’s work! Looking forward to The Lucky Escape. Given 5 stars as it would be unfair for me to rate the book based on formatting difficulties,
Penny Bridges seems to have her life sorted she has her own business, a loving family, good friends but she seems to be unlucky in love. She meets Francesco and things seem to be going well but of course life is never that simple. A family crisis and Penny moves away to help out, here she ends up in a love square with more than she can deal with!
The narrator was easy to listen to and follow the story. I enjoyed this audiobook.
Interested to read one day but audiobook was archived before I had the chance to download - I have since bought a copy on kindle after hearing good reviews and is on my tbr to read eventually
This book had so much promise, but in the end it wasn’t for me. I felt there was very little romance in this book and more of normal drama. Loved the book until about halfway through. I also really liked the narrator, she was really good, but I also had the feeling that the posh voice didn’t fit this book. Though I don’t think that took away anything of my overall feel for the book.
Fun, easy and lighthearted read that is perfect for a cosy night in! Written incredibly well and was enthralling for a reader, with characters it was easy to connect with. I teamed this up with the audio book as well (which was fab!) and I just adored it!
The audiobook was a perfect little escape, characterisation spot on and just completely addictive! I binge listened/read over an evening!
I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this a lot. I felt like I really connected with Penny and could see myself in her. I had no idea what to expect from the end of this book and I enjoyed it a lot.
Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.
Dressed as a romance comedy this book had slightly deeper depths than your average chick-lit. The main character Penny, hasn't had much luck in love but that is all about to change when along comes a man, and then another and another. We follow Penny through her trials and tribulations both in love, and outside of it and watch as she grows as a person and works out what she actually wants. I loved the supporting cast in this novel, especially Penny's relationship with her sister and their voice note podcasts to each other. A good book that is more than just fluff but will leave you smiling and light of heart.
Penny believes that love may not be in the cards for her until a handsome stranger walks into her life. Just when she thinks that she has a handle on her dating life, two other men express their interest in her. Could one of these men be “The One” or will this end in heartbreak?
This book was disappointing. After reading Our Stop, I was very excited to read Laura Jane Williams’ latest release. I wish I could blame my lack of enjoyment on having expectations that were too high, but that wasn’t the case. Not enough time was spent introducing the characters and building up their relationships. Consequently, the audience was thrown into scenarios where we’re expected to root for characters, but in reality we couldn’t care less. We aren’t given the opportunity to truly connect with any of the them, which resulted in me not caring how the book ended, just that it ended.
The Love Square is also guilty of being extremely predictable, unnecessarily drawn out and overusing needless phrases (I wish I kept a tally of how many times “personal brand” was said throughout the book).
Unfortunately, this book severely missed the mark for me. The delectable descriptions of the food and liking a very minor character were able to bump this book up to a two star rating, however, these reasons are not enough to warrant a positive book recommendation from me. If you’re looking for a cute modern romance novel, I would suggest reading Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams.
Unlucky In Love?......
The Audio version. Amusing romcom with some very real issues at its’ heart. Written with warmth and empathy. A likeable protagonist in funny, independent Penny who has found herself with rather too many men to choose from. Which one, if any, is ‘The One’? An escapist tale and well narrated bringing life to the characters. A delightful listen.
An entertaining and enjoyable quick little read. I was expecting this to be more of a fun light hearted story filled with laughs. The book was much more emotional and dealt with more serious subject matter than I was anticipating. Once I readjusted my expectations I really enjoyed the story. Penny is looking for love in all the wrong places, that is until she’s not... do you know the saying, “when it rains it pours”, well that was Penny’s love life. Penny has a pretty good life even though she’s dealt with some tragedy including fighting cancer and the death of her parents. She is now the proud owner of her own café, and that’s when her path crosses with Francesco. Francesco is kind, supportive, and handsome and things get pretty cozy between Penny and he. That is until penny is summoned Home to run the family pub after her uncle who raised her falls ill. Penny ends things with Francesco because she does not want a long distance relationship. When Penny is working at the family pub she meets two other men that fancy her. So when Francesco and her finally reconnect Penny is all kinds of confused.
Penny was a likable character, however I was frustrated with her indecision. All three men were good guys in their own way, but I had my favorite to be sure. But I have to admit I probably would have liked the story more if it just dealt with one man and that was it. I think these additional men just made the book a little too messy for me. The secondary characters were fabulous in this book, I loved Penny’s BFF and her family. There was also a lot of diversity in the story, something I don’t see as much in books set in the UK as in the US. The audiobook was narrated by Carrie Hope Fletcher Who did a wonderful job of bringing the story to life.
This book in emojis 👩🏻🍳 ☕️ 🍬 📱 🍺 👨🏻🍳
*** Big thank you to Harper Audio UK for my gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ***
Overall, a good romance with a likeable heroine who thus far struggled in the department of love, so much so she suspected there might be something wrong with her. So imagine her surprise, when life suddenly does a whooping 180 degree turn and now she has three potential love interests, who she’s somehow ended up dating all at the same time. Who does she love? What even is love? And how does she figure it all out and make the right choice in deciding which one of the three men is the one to keep?
Penny has a strong personality who is not afraid to make hard decisions. She is a cancer survivor who knows what she wants (except for when it comes to love, but whatever). Before she had undergone treatment for the cancer, she’d had her eggs tested and frozen so she could become a mother when the time was right. Now, with her sister offering to become a surrogate, Penny needs to decide if she’s up for being a single mother, and how taking that plunge would affect her quest in finding love.
I enjoyed reading through the support system Penny had in the form of her friends and sister; it produced various funny conversations as each offered advice in times of hardship. Also, the fact that the author chose to mix the harsh reality of everyday life made the story more than a silly romance; there is a journey of resilience and self discovery, picking yourself up and trying your best even when its the last thing you want.
Despite loving the beginning and liking most of the book, I found the ending to be the weakest link. Penny seemed to deviate somewhat from the character she had been throughout the novel which seemed somewhat strange and confusing. In the end, I didn’t necessarily jump in joy for the man which Penny figured was the one for her despite him being the strongest candidate. I didn’t like the way he was written, as he came to sound more like a jerk with a bit of an anger problem, which for me is a big no. The way in which the conflict between the two had been resolved, left me wishing for a better resolution as it undermined Penny’s character and development.
AMAZING. I love Carrie Hope Fletcher's narration and Laura Jane William's writing. The Love Square is a must-read women's fiction romance with a heartwarming twist.