Oh how I loved this fun romcom by Olivia Lara! I took this lovely read with me on a weekend getaway, and it was the perfect escape to add to my escape! This book promises romance, originality, characters you’ll love, strong chapters and a satisfying ending. I loved Maya instantly. She finds a story in almost any situation (which I can relate). I found the texting that went on between her and the Lyft driver on point! I loved it all, from their silly road games to finding out about each other. Readers of the genre will love this new swoony romance by Olivia Lara. Highly recommend!

When Maya travels across the country to surprise her boyfriend, her life changes. Her boyfriend left his phone in a Lift driver's car only for the driver to reveal that he's been cheating on her. But the mystery driver refuses to let Maya have a horrible day and guides her to a tour of a nearby beach town, all through text. They spend the day getting to know one another, but when her boyfriend gets his phone back, there's not hope for Maya finding her mystery driver. A year later, she's determined to find him again. Even if she has to uproot her life to do it. But she finds that her mystery driver may not be who she thought he was.

I was really hooked by this premise, but this one ultimately wasn't for me. The initial day between the love interests felt so short and I couldn't believe they fell in love with each other from just a few questions back and forth! I felt like they were both more in love with the idea of each other and the possibility of a happily ever after, so I found the rest of the story to be a tad bit unbelievable at times. I do love a snarky hero though and Ethan was this to a t. Their enemies to lovers plot line was great in and of itself, but I was so frustrated that Maya couldn't put two and two together. It was so obvious and I couldn't believe she didn't realize it! Regardless, this is still a cute and sweet read that's perfect for those who love beach town, semi-forced proximity, and enemies to lovers!

Thank you to Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Oof, I had a lot of trouble getting through this book - I almost dnf at 30%, but pushed through and ended up skimreading a lot of it instead.

First of all, I really enjoyed the descriptions of Carmel-by-the-Sea, they were extremely gripping and made me want to visit this picturesque seaside town, and I loved the text directions given to Maya from the Lyft driver - it was fun and very easy to read.

As someone who is not a fan of insta-love, things started to go downhill quickly for me and I rapidly started losing interest. I struggled with the writing (it has a slight immature tone?) and found the pacing of events quite odd, especially with the ex-boyfriend drama (for lack of a better word).

As a whole, this was extremely predictable, lending to a dragging of events (who is this mysterious Lyft driver?), subsequently leaving me bored and uninterested in the rest of the story. I didn’t enjoy many of the interactions between Maya and Ethan - I thought a lot of their dialogue was quite over dramatic and unrealistic, and it just wasn’t a romantic pairing I was rooting for.

Overall, a very easy and quick summer read, but not one I would recommend or come back to.

cute, but not for me personally. i liked the concept of the whole mystery lyft driver and whatever but i didn’t really click with the story. i feel like i wasnt a fan of the authors writing style and i didn’t connect with any characters. i also wasn’t a fan of the ending unfortunately. that being said, it was a decent book, 3 ⭐️ thanks to net galley for an arc for an honest review

First, I would like to thank the author and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I can’t believe that I am saying this, but I kind of wish the book was just a little longer so we could get more of this couple! It was already 88 chapters. I definitely did not expect the book to take the twists and turns it did, but I am so glad it did. The book starts off with Maya showing up in California to surprise her boyfriend for her birthday. And he’s off cheating on her! After finding out about his infidelity, she starts talking to the Lyft driver who helps her experience an adventure of a lifetime. I won’t go into anything else because I don’t want to spoil anything. In the beginning, I was scared about how this book would go and if I would enjoy it especially since it was so long but I feel like the plot really picked up and gave the characters the journey they needed.

"The Meeting Point" by Olivia Lara
Release Date: 9.2.2021

Maya Maas is having a horrible day! She receives a rejection for an interview, which then results in being fired from the newspaper she has worked at for the past four years! Then, when she decides to make a surprise trip for her birthday to San Francisco to visit her boyfriend, David, Maya finds out he is cheating on her! This news comes from the Lyft Driver, telling Maya that he left his phone in her car, and left the car with a hot blonde, who was more than friendly in her backseat!

Maya feels depressed and deflated. The Lyft Driver gives some great suggestions on a trip to the beach city, Carmel, to make her birthday celebration special.

Throughout the day, they play a game of 50 questions to get to know one another. Although she has only texted with this Lyft Driver, she feels a connection. They decide to meet, but Maya does not make it. Luck just isn't on her side. She returns to New York and begs for her old job.

A year later, Maya returns to Carmel to meet the Lyft driver, who she has dubbed "Max." She meets twins Ethan and Celine. Ethan may know "Max" a little too well.

Maya finds out that "Max" is an author who used the one day adventure for his newest book! That's an issue, because Maya also wrote about her adventure!

I'm a sucker for banter, and Maya and "Max" don't disappoint. I loved this story, and the real MVP was Celine. I hope she receives her own story; she deserves her own happy ending!

Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #netgalley #netgalleyreads #netgalleybooks #2021bookreleases #romcom #contemporaryromance #themeetingpoint #olivialara

After getting fired, Maya decides to fly to California on her birthday to surprise her boyfriend. However, what Maya is not expecting to find out is that her boyfriend is cheating on her through his Uber driver when he left his phone in the Uber. This leads to Maya's best birthday where she texts with the Uber driver and he guides her on an adventure through a small costal Californian town. At the end of the day, the driver and Maya decide to meet however it does not go as planned. One year later, Maya is back at that town looking for that Uber driver. She doesn't find him but she finds the author who somehow got their story and is now publishing a book about it. The more time she spends with the author, the less she thinks the Uber driver is the one for her.

This is a great book if you are looking for a fun summer read with plenty of romance and humor!

<i> Thank you to NetGalley and Aria & Aries for a free digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review! </i>

I had trouble getting into this one because of the writing. I don't know exactly why, but. I just felt like a young girl was writing this book and I couldn't keep going. I however loved this authors last book and may revisit this one one day.

The perfect rom-com book that would make an adorable movie. Did you know how it would end? Yes. Did you shake your head at your heroine? Yes. Did you finish it anyways? Yes.

Perfect happy read for a nice break.

The Meeting Point a quick little read that I would recommend after reading an intense, thrilling novel. Maya a young women who is working at a dead end job. Who is living with a man she thought she would spend the rest of her life with. Until she decides to not take a writing assignment because of her birthday weekend surprise for David. Only Maya is the one surprised on her birthday. David 's phone is left in a lift car and when Maya finally tracks down the driver she finds out that her wonderful boyfriend of five years has been cheating on her. What is she to do. Maya goes on an adventure through texts with this mystery Lift driver Max. She goes on this wonderful journey to try to forget that she has no job, boyfriend or place to life. She is a mess, but Max helps her have the best time of her life. Everything is fine until she tries to meet Max but ends up going back home with David. Never meeting this mysterious, caring and possibly loving man Max. Maya wakes up a year later knowing she mad the biggest mistake of her life by coming home with David. She is so unhappy and needs to find out who Max is. Her best friend Alisa helps her on her next adventure back to California to see who this elusive Max is. Ms. Lara wrote a very funny, easy going story with a character that will make a reader feel like she is writing about them. The story gets really chaotic when you through in a highly famous author Ethan Deplay who Maya thinks can hold all the answers to finding out who Max is. To find out how Mayas second adventure turns out I would suggest you read this book. It is funny, loving and makes you root for Maya to find out all the answers to her questions. Even if she goes about it the wrong way. Thank you Olivia Lara for an entertaining story. Thank you NetGalley and Ari-Aries for the approval for this ARC. Totally loved it.

After an opportunity with Maya's career takes a turn for the worst and ends with her fired, Maya takes a chance to surprise her boyfriend with a visit. However, her surprise quickly spirals into heartbreak as a Lift driver that finds her boyfriend's phone delivers the news of her boyfriend cheating. Instead of heading home, she spends her birthday weekend in an unfamiliar town enjoying the time with a custom itinerary delivered by the Lift driver.

As a fellow people watcher, I love that Maya fleshed out their stories beyond who they are and what they do and always made sure the had a Happily Ever After. I love that Max goes out of his way to help Maya after such a devastating turn of events. However, their instant love and lack of chemistry along with poor communication dragged down the Hallmark feel for me. The idea was well thought out and original and definitely a nice rom com with that Hallmark Movie feel that made for a fun and quick paced summer read.

Thank you to Aria&Aries and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book; I very much appreciate it.

The best word I can use to describe this book is cute. The characters were all loveable (except for the cheating ex-boyfriend, of course) and I'd love to be friends with them all. It took me a chapter or two to get used to the author's writing style, but once I got used to it, it was a very quick read. The heroine was a very sweet woman and the hero was considerate and caring. The descriptions of Carmel were vivid and made me want to hop on a plane to go visit. While the plot was predictable, I didn't mind it much.

A perfect summer read. 4.5 stars.

Maya is having a bad few days. First, she's fired from a job where she's completely underappreciated for something that was completely out of her control. Then when she decides to surprise her boyfriend in San Francisco for HER birthday, she finds out he's cheating on her. From his Lyft driver who found his phone!

But what happens next is a sweet adventure. She connects, via text, with her driver. She calls him, Max and through their communication, takes her on the best birthday trip she's ever had through idyllic Carmel-By-The-Sea. Without ever meeting him Maya feels a connections she's never felt with anyone before.

But before she knows it, she's back to her old life in NYC, with her boyfriend (who had a lame explanation) and back at her old job (where she had to beg to get back). Then a year goes by and Maya is still wondering about Max.

What I did like about this book is the way they painted Carmel-By-The-Sea. As someone who has been there and lives in the Bay Area, it was just as picturesque as it is described. It makes you want to seek it out and see if the hype is real.

I also loved Maya's relationship with the women in this book, Alisa and Celine. Her genuine connections with the women and how they portrayed these friendships was refreshing.

I think the only thing that held me back from giving it another star is that I felt like it was a little predictable. You know who Max is from pretty much the time she returns to Carmel. It wasn't hard to figure out although they try to keep putting off that it's someone else. That mystery sailed long ago. And the effort that the book kept trying to push who Max was just wore me down a little. I think if they had played it that the readers were already in the know to Max's true identity while seeing if Maya would figure it out might have played out better for readers.

In all, it was a nice, sweet read. I enjoyed the book for the most part and think I'll check out the author's other books.

A really sweet and soft romance, I loved the friendships and characters and the setting was just so gorgeous. I found the romance a little fast and almost insta-lovey, and I also found that the constant secrets and miscommunication got a little tiring, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Overall a nice quick and easy to read romance!

At first, I would like to thank Netgalley and Aria & Ariesfor allowing me to review this book. Keep in mind that my review, however, is my true opinion on this book.

Maya Maas just wants people to be happy. She writes love stories and she makes up love stories everywhere she goes. To random people on the street who do not even know each other will in her imagination end up getting married. That is because she just wants them to be happy. She gives these people fake names and emotions, because she does not know them. It kind of seems like a nice gesture or something.

There is enough sadness in the world - as Maya Maas would put it. This is your chance to get some more light into yours. And this book will help you on the way and make a smile on your face. Because it is a cute story.

Maya Maas also says: “why make life easy?” I kind of like her mentality. She seems like a fun character.

I love the mysterious driver, Max, and his fun games. He sure seems to want to help Maya and he seems like a genuinely nice character just like Maya. And all of the time spent on trying to figure out who this guy is, is absolutely wonderfully written!

All the characters actually seem quite nice. Ethan and Celine are especially lovely characters. They are so sweet. You just can not help but love them.

This is a book showing how there is always another side to the story. There will always be two perspectives. And it is easy to misunderstand each other.

This is a kind of book, where you more or less know the ending very early on. But this does not make it less enjoyable to read. It is just as exciting to read this amazing story. It is just so lovely!

I loved this book! And I will highly recommend this!

I adored this story so much! A good mix of romance and comedy I need now in my life. Lol.

Thanks Netgalley for the copy. I will post the whole review on my IG account.

I absolutely adored this book and couldn’t put it down… and read way later than I had planned. The story, scenery, and characters were incredible. Perfect feel good story.

Spoilers:
It reminded me of Shop Around the Corner/You’ve Got Mail but it was well done.

4.5

There’s a lot to unpack with this novel and a lot of it I will keep close to my heart because I don’t want to give anything away!

I will start by saying that the beginning of this book is sweet and unexpected! What I loved about it was that it was our first introduction into who Maya is! This story is told through just her point of view and throughout the book we see many sides of her! At the heart of her character though she is someone who wants to see every one find their HEA! She is a romantic who just wants the world to experience the beauty of love!

When the day trip of a life time becomes the premise of an upcoming book Maya knows she must find the man responsible for her amazing day! He’s the key to what her future! What she embarks on is a journey of discovery in more ways than just love!

I really enjoyed Maya’s character, and that she had such a great foundation with her best friend and her mom! She also meets new people on her journey and each character really added to the story!

The book did feel a little slow at certain parts and I know it’s building up to the climax so my warning is to stick it out! Continue to read because when the book picks up at about the 60% mark you will be mind blown and completely invested just like I was!

When Maya gets fired from her job and travels to California to surprise her long-time boyfriend on her birthday, she didn’t expect to find out from a Lift driver that her boyfriend was cheating. The Lift driver, who Maya names Max, encourages Maya to make the best of her day by traveling to a charming beach town. With a fabulous itinerary and an even better series of text messages, Max gives Maya the most wonderful experience of her life. However, when they finally agree to meet, Maya’s mystery man doesn’t show. Instead, her boyfriend does.

A year later, Maya is fed up and longing for the connection she felt with a man she never met. When Ethan, an author friend of Max, writes about Maya’s magical day, Maya decides to head back to the small beach town and find out who Max is. She gets a job working for Ethan’s sister in the hopes of uncovering Max’s identity. However, what she finds is more than she ever expected.

The Meeting Point is a sweet story about two strangers who fall in love before they even meet. It’s also about finding yourself, taking risks, and never giving up on your dreams. I love the characters and the gorgeous setting, as well as the messages about love and friendship.

The setting is beautiful, and it definitely sounds like a place I’d love to visit. It has that charming, quirky small-town feel that really speaks to Maya, and I can see why. The author gives such vivid descriptions of the homes, the ocean, and other charming and unique places, and it really made this idyllic coastal setting come alive.

The characters are charming as well. I love Maya! She’s on such a journey of self-discovery and is really finding out who she is and what she wants in life. She grows a lot throughout the story, and I enjoyed her journey. Ethan, the writer who wrote the story of her day with Max, is so thoughtful and fun. I liked his sense of humor and his strong relationship with his sister. I also like that some of the minor characters also find their happy endings. There are so many charming characters in the story, and to see them find happiness too is lovely.

The love story, though fairly predictable, is charming and fun. It begins in such an unusual way and initially develops through texts. They have such chemistry, and their banter is so fun and witty. I love how he slowly woos Maya and shows her how he feels. It’s romantic and sweet, and so very charming.

This is a cute and heartwarming story with a wonderful setting and characters. I think readers who enjoy quick and light contemporary romance or rom-coms will enjoy this read, and I’m so thankful to The Write Reads, the author, and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

i received an arc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

this book was just... aggressively average. the main character was okay. the love interest was okay. the plot was okay. the twist was predictable, but okay.

the only thing that was *good* was the setting (carmel, for those bay area natives!).

also, the book is pretty much nothing like the synopsis. the synopsis is true, but it only represents like 10% of the novel (when maya actually has this experience). most of the novel is about being a writer and having another author steal this life experience (of getting cheated on and learning via a driver) for his upcoming novel. even though this was still interesting for me, i could see how some readers who are expecting something different could be disappointed.

overall, i'm glad i read this book because it helped me realize that i don't enjoy a particular romance trope (can't divulge because of spoilers). but, if you want a summer read with the beach-town feels, maybe pick this one up?