I enjoyed this and was rooting for Olivia to make the right decisions. She was a loveable main character, as was Hugo. I liked the story of her great grandparents and I wish her story paralleled it more closely! I also wish this had an epilogue ☹️ Felt like we didn’t get to see enough of Olivia and Hugo.

This book gives me a strong need to be by the Cornish coast - though perhaps not for wedding planning and not with all those characters! I was drawn in by all the peace of the ocean breeze and the Summer sunshine that definitely counted the chaos of so many strong (and mostly awful) personalities in one place. It was hard watching Liv’s battles and resignation, and her feelings were completely relatable and her later bravery inspiring. Teddy was the worst. Well, the worst boyfriend - his mother definitely gave him a run for his money in being THE worst but maybe that’s where he got it from? It was hard to read his behaviour and I would have liked a bit more explanation of it, as well as a little more time to enjoy the true romance of this story but I did like the chemistry between Liv and Hugo and if you don’t finish this book wishing you had a friend like Heidi (or thanking the world that you already do) then I think we’re reading different books!

I absolutely love Portia Macintosh's books. They are all wonderful, funny, engaging, romantic and uplifting and this one is simply no different.

In this book we meet Olivia who is in her thirties , who has a job as a ghost rider, and has always dreamed of getting married in the barn her grandfather built for her grandmother. It is the place that everyone in the family has got married so it simply has to be the place for her too.

Olivia is on the way to her brother's engagement party with her boyfriend Teddy when out of the blue he proposes to her. They haven't been together too long and so Olivia thinks it's too soon her them to get married. Olivia thinks that it is an ultimatum they either break up or they they get engaged and have a long engagement. Not wanting to break up Olivia says yes and is planning for a long engagement. That is until everyone finds out about it and all of a sudden there is a rush for them to get married. Teddy is one of those people, who doesn't have a long engagement. However there is just one spot left in the family barn to get married in, in a month. However there are two marriages now happening on the same day. Who will have to put their thoughts and feelings aside when compromise is key.

This book is rather funny. Olivia is a lovely character, however is akttle but of a push over and too happy to please everyone. While her own thoughts and feeling get trampled on which I found that I could relate to very well.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

A fabulous book from Portia Macintosh.

Following an interview that Olivia has, Teddy picks her up in his Porsche and proposes to her.

The wedding is planned, along with Olivia’s brothers and things don’t get better as Teddy’s mother and sister expect things to be done a certain way.

So, does Olivia continue with the planning and go through with the wedding or will she have a change of heart?

I recommend this laugh out loud book.

Another great and funny novel from the splendid Portia Macintosh. Once again there is a great opening with Olivia’s interview followed by a whirlwind proposal by the oh so unpleasant Teddy(I knew I was going to hate him from the time he picked her up in his Porsche in chapter 1). His equally unpleasant mother and sister add to her problems. Will she make it to the alter or is it best that she doesn’t?
This is once again laugh out loud funny but with romance and likeable heroine. Another triumph!

I’ve been on a roll of reading Portia MacIntosh books this year so when this one came up on NetGalley I couldn’t resist and I was not disappointed.
The story line was my least favourite so far but it was still great I loved the characters of Olivia and Hugo and detested Teddy.
The setting was one of the best parts of the book and as always the humour in it was top notch.
Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this arc.

Olivia is 30 and lives a simple life. She works as a ghost writer and a comedian but other than that, her future is uncertain except for the fact that she knows that one day she will get married in the old barn her grandad built for her grandma when they got married and everyone in their family has been married there since. She’s headed there for her brothers engagement party when her boyfriend Teddy decides to pop the question on the way there. Olivia obviously loves Teddy but is it too soon? She says yes despite her hesitation because she doesn’t want to break up and next thing you know Teddy is announcing that they’re not going to have a long engagement and when they find out that the barn is not going to used for weddings anymore, they have just one chance to have their wedding-and share it with her brother and his fiancé. While Teddy is too busy with work to help plan the wedding, she makes friends with one of the locals, hunky Hugo, and she starts to wonder if marrying Teddy is the right thing to do at all.
This was a quick and easy read. Perfect for a nice break from everyday life. I wish Olivia would have stood up for herself more with her sister in law, but once she finally found her voice, I was rooting for her.
Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

I have never read anything by Portia Macintosh but what can I say I absolutely loved it. It was a lovely romantic, feel good, humorous read.
I really enjoyed the romantic storyline and loved most of the characters. Olivia was a lovely girl who deserved far better than Teddy and his dreadful mother but luckily Hugo who was my favourite by far was featured heavily in the story. (No spoilers)
I would recommend this book as a romantic feel good story that u couldn’t put down and I can’t wait to read more of Portia’s novels.
Thank you to Netgalley, Boldwood Books and Portia Macintosh for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

This was an excellent story! This was my second book by Portia MacIntosh and I will keep reading her books because they are absolutely adorable and always keep me smiling and laughing! Thank you, Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Olivia has been dating Teddy for only a short while when he suddenly proposes. Olivia loves Teddy, so she happily says yes! Immediately the hit an obstacle. In order to get married at the only place she has every wanted to get married, a place steeped in family tradition, there is only one date available. And it is only a few weeks away. Teddy wants to go for it, because why wait? Olivia agrees, but definitely feels some hesitation. Rushing to plan a wedding is difficult, especially when your betrothed is so busy with work that he does not contribute to the decision-making or preparations. Is it all happening too fast? Should they wait? But then she would lose the venue that she has dreamed about her whole life.

I started reading this book without remembering the plot, which is very unusual for me, but just like the Mc in the story I got along with the flow.

Olivia is a simple girl, she's thirty, she works as a romance ghost writer and she doesn't know a lot about her future other than wanting to get married in the barn her grandad built for her granma where everyone in her family got married, she's heading to his brothers engagement party with her boyfriend Teddy when all of a sudden he propose to her.
What are you supposed to do when someone you're involved with propose?
Olivia thinks it's a deal breaker: either she accepts and they go on with their relationship, or she refuse and possibly break up.
She's thinking it's soon to marry, but things with Teddy are going well and who says they can't have a long engagement?
Well, it seems suddenly everyone's in a rush as Teddy doesn't want to have a long engagement and the barn will be no longer available to host weddings: there's just one spot left in a month and two marriage in the family to be had.
Will Olivia and Doug be able to get along and share a wedding ceremony when they couldn't get to share a single thing in their life?

The book started as really funny, I was really enjoying myself but there were some chapter I really struggled reading.
Olivia is really a nice character, loyal, kind, but gets lets other talk her into things without making her voice be heard, this really irritated me, even if I get how sometimes it's difficult to get your opinion matter when you just know what's wrong for you and can't be more clear about what feels right instead.
I had to stop reading and have a pause after some chapters where I felt things got on a little too much, luckily there's some nice reprieve after them.
I did like the rest of the book though, there are some really nice characters, like Olivia's mum, Heidi and Hugo, and some easily detestable ones, like Alicia, Olivia future mother in law, and Eden her future sister in law.

Thank you Netgalley and Boldwood Books for providing me this book as an Arc in exchange of an honest review.

A fun and flirty five-star read that you would happily stay with. Olivia is great, but you do want to pick her up at times and say really, really this is what you want, its nice to see her shine at times, and then really come together as the story goes that I really liked. The setting was just sublime, and some of the details just made me want to run away to Cornwall. Eden really won me over though, the more I got to know her, the more I understood her and found her to be a real character. This is light-hearted comedy with romance sown in that you will just devour in one sitting and be swept up in and able to leave the world behind for a little while.

I absolutely adored this friends to lovers Rom-Com. I found myself agreeing with the characters, getting upset with them and laughing out loud at and with them. This was so good. Definitely see this as a movie.
I just reviewed The Guilty Mother by Sam Vickery. #TheGuiltyMother #NetGalley
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I wanted to love this book. Hugo and Olivia had immediate chemistry. Their dialogue and interactions were witty and felt natural. I loved the way their characters came together and how much Olivia's family loved him.

But the rest of the book just didn't hit the spot for me. Teddy, Olivia's fiance through most of the book, was awful. He wasn't just negligent - he was rude and uncaring. He spoke to Olivia and every other female (save his mother) with disdain and he threw his money around in an attempt to hide his reprehensible personality. I felt no connection to him and couldn't believe Olivia put up with him as long as she did.

Then there was the third act betrayal. As a lover of all things romance, I came to expect it - I just expected it to make sense. There were no signs leading up to it even though Olivia ruminated that she'd known all along something was off. The betrayal seemed to exist simply to exist when Olivia returning home would have been enough of a conflict to fulfill expectations of a third act incident.

Better Off Wed gets 3 stars for Hugo and Hugo alone. He deserved better treatment at the end.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A tale of two choices. Following your heart. A lovely romance. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

There is always a little fist pump when Portia Macintosh completes a new novel.
A pair of siblings, nicely a brother and sister, end up chosing to get married in a joint wedding at a venue before it closes.
A slower start than sometimes, I need not have worried. Once Hugo the bar owner appears, the book takes off and I was through it in no time.
Well plotted, great characters and consistently funny, a hugely enjoyable read.
Basically, this is like a Hallmark Movie, but in a novel.
Can’t wait until this authors next novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with an Advance Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Better off wed

This rom com is one for the books. A beautiful setting and an impending wedding leaves the reader in awe as one rushed wedding becomes a double wedding and an absentee fiancé. A love Story unfolds that really is just like a hallmark film. A sweet Story for any romance lover.

This book had it all for me and that was it. I had to read this to see what it was all about. I was not disappointed and enjoyed the content. Enjoyed this book. I want to find more of her books. Love me Portia Macintosh books. all great.

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

I wasn't familiar with the author but seeing that a lot of people praising their previous works made me very excited to read this. For me this would be an ideal summer read, the whole atmosphere was stunning and I want to be on a beach in Cornwall so bad! The plot was quite predictable but that only added to the fun.

I'd noticed a few previous reviews saying how Olivia was wrong to let the other characters to walk all over her and not letting her have much say in everything, and how she never made a decision for herself without bringing backup or running it by other people first. Maybe this doesn't make for the perfect textbook FMC but I found it very relatable which made me warm to Olivia a lot more, and overall made me enjoy the story a lot more too.
I also appreciated the nod to the situation in Cornwall with the locals trying to reclaim places that have been "taken over" by the wealthy. This was only mentioned in passing but I thought it was welcomed in the context.

If you're looking for something light-hearted and entertaining to read in one sitting then this is the perfect solution for that.
Better Off Wed is out on the 10th April, be sure to give it a go!

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for allowing me to read the ARC.

What a pleasure to read! This is my eighth book by Portia MacIntosh and I am still enjoying it.
Better Off Web is a rom com that sticks to its codes with the author's talent for the funniest dialogue.

Lately, I tend to only read the first few sentences of pitches to avoid being spoiled, so I wasn't expecting Hugo. He's really adorable and exactly what Olivia needs. The opening of the book on the reality show audition was very promising and I really thought that was where our main character would find her salvation.

There are so many implausible and predictable things, but that's also what readers love and expect. This sometimes goes a bit far, making Olivia a bit passive and willing victim of a whole bunch of ubiquitous situations, such as the double wedding, the hateful mother-in-law and the ex in her shadow, Teddy's blatant absence in the preparations, the bridezilla future sister-in-law ....

You don't go into a rom com with the idea of a believable story, so all these twists and turns made me laugh. I liked Olivia's family (although her mother probably should have been more supportive when she was alone against Eden and Dougie), and the family tradition of getting married on this very beautiful English coast. I want to see the view from the house, and bathe in the hot tub in the moonlight.

Is Olivia right to take the plunge with Hugo so soon after breaking off the engagement? This may be the subject of a future book :D

Portia Mackintosh once again delivers an enjoyable rom-com with relatable characters and an idyllic setting, definitely one for those long summer evenings