One of the better story when twins switch their identities. The story is well written, with the characters greatly developed and the story develops in unexpected ways. I really enjoyed reading it.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for Netgelly

You or Someone Like You
by Winter Renshaw (Goodreads Author)
5642347
Minna's reviewJul 16, 2023 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: 4-stars, contemporary-romance, netgalley

Thank you to NetGalley, Montlake, and Ms. Renshaw for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

I haven't read anything by Ms. Renshaw before but after this book I think that will change. I was pleasantly surprised by the organic love story happening between two straightforward adults. The female MC, Sloane, is standing in for her identical twin sister, who is being pressured by her boss to go on a date with the boss's nephew. Twin-swapping is a trope I typically don't much care for and while I could understand *exactly* why Margaux didn't want to go but felt she had to, I'm not sure why Sloan had to do it other than Margaux was lazy and avoiding a difficult situation. The female MC, Roman, is a grieving widower with two young children, ALSO a trope I usually dislike. AND it took place in New York city, which I'm not really into as a reader. And yet, the story felt so natural, despite the extremely contrived situation. Sloane and Roman seemed so serendipitous together and so easy to root for.

Plot-wise, I didn't feel that there was much (if any) unnecessary drama. Sloane's choice to conceal her identity and her failure to come clean in a reasonable amount of time provided all the drama you could want. Normally I get irritated by the third-stage breakup but here it was completely warranted. I mean, the girl did LIE. Repeatedly. Frankly I thought she should've worked harder to make amends. And I'm surprised to admit this (because I don't usually love kids in romance novels), but I was actually disappointed that Roman didn't introduce Sloane to his girls at any point in the story proper. I guess things worked out happily for all concerned in the end and that's all we need to know, right? Anyways. I most appreciated the relative maturity of the two main characters, despite Sloan's initial ethical failure, and the positive way in which the author handled Roman's grief and grieving. I highly recommend reading the author's note at the end.

Overall I really did enjoy this a lot and would recommend it. I'll certainly be seeking out more by this author.

Such a beautiful message of love and making each and every moment count.

This story carries such a wonderful sentiment which hits even harder when you read the authors afterword.

With some easily likeable characters and also a character it takes some effort to like, I found myself really hoping that Sloane and Roman could find their way to each other. Of course I read a lot of this story from behind a cushion as you just know everything has to go wrong before it can even start to go right….but that’s the nature of this particular storyline!! We’ve all read enough of these kinds of tropes to know to expect an aching chest at some point during the story!!

A great summer read with some gentle humour and who doesn’t love a wonderful single dad with two small girls…I mean hello melting heart!!

I throughly enjoyed reading this book!! Why wasn’t I born a twin?! This was literally my first thought after reading the first chapter. As I progressed I realized if I were a twin, I wouldn’t want her to be anything like Margaux. Roman and Sloan are relationship goals. Everything always works itself out. Such is life.

Winter Renshaw is now my must read author. This book just hit my soul at all the right places. I swear she is a magician with her words. She created the most beautiful and heartaching and heartwarming feels in You or Someone Like You. My heart is so full and forgive me if I sound messed up..because I am! At the end, I was smiling with tears in my eyes. I am overwhelmed with all the sweet raw feels in the best possible way. I do not want to leave Roman and Sloane..can I live in their story forever?

Sloane Sheridan agrees to go on a date pretending to be her twin sister because her sister's boss wants her sister to date her widowed nephew. It turns out that that nephew is Roman Basillero, the most famous and elusive art collector in New York, who got her fired once from the gallery she was working at. He is still grieving his wife and the date was a favor to his aunt. It was supposed to be a one time thing. But something clicks and Sloane finds herself getting tangled in the web of lies with a man she has no business falling for. What will happen when the secrets come out?

It starts with one awkward date between two reluctant people..Sloane standing in for her twin sister and Roman giving in to his aunt's demand. Art was the passion that really opened up their hearts. Roman found himself seeking company of the simple, witty and introspective woman who is nothing like women in the rich people's world. He found her to be refreshing and her passion for art reignited the spark he was missing from life. Sloane had to keep on the charade for her selfish and narcissistic sister’s sake but she was feeling so much guilt. She wanted to hate the man who disrupted her career over a simple mistake but as she comes to know his pain and his loss..she realises he is an extraordinary man with emotional baggage. I loved how this story solely focused on the couple and their growth and evolution. Roman made me swoon so hard! A billionaire single father finding love for life and art again with the most unlikely but deserving woman..all the stars. He is a bit grumpy and brooding and closed off at the beginning but Sloane uncovered the charming man inside who can love so deeply! I was mesmerized as they came closer and closer with every date..as their chemistry reached an epic level..as their hearts got entangled..and then how the heartbreak and angst happened. I am so happy about the way the drama was handled. It was not dragged or complicated but still added to the angst. I am obsessed with this story and Winter Renshaw's writing.

PS Let me know if you guessed who Halcyon is! I DID!

I REVIEWED AN EARLY COPY THROUGH NETGALLEY AND MONTLAKE

When Sloane has to sub in for a date with Roman Bellisario at her twin sister’s request, she was not thrilled since he got her fired from her job three years ago. Yet, as her sister’s job relies on the date, she agrees and is surprised when they actually connect. Soon Sloane finds herself falling in love with the widowed single dad but has still to reveal that she is not her sister Margaux.
A sweet romance that manages to incorporate Roman’s status as a widower in a well-balanced manner. I would have like to have seen the issue of Sloane pretending to be her sister, revealed earlier but overall, it did work. Overall, Sloan and Roman were two likeable characters, whose relationship is well explored as the deception is revealed.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Roman and Sloane's love story was absolute perfection. This story was angsty and passionate and the connection between them could not be denied. Bravo! This is another amazing story by Winter Renshaw!

4.25⭐

You or Someone Like You is a romance full of heart and a big dollop of sweetness.

As single dad Roman still grieving the loss of his beloved wife Emma is convinced by his Aunt Theodora to go on a blind date. With a member of her staff Margaux who she thinks is perfect for him.

But Margaux has suspected food poisoning. So she begs her twin sister Sloane to go in her place and to be as dull and undateable as possible.

And it works.

Until Roman bumps into Sloane whilst walking home and finds out she not only lives where his wife did when she first came to New York. But she's a huge fan of an elusive artist called Halcyon and now Roman wants to see her again.

Much to the real Margaux's despair and Sloanes shock.

But one conversation later it becomes clear why he wants to see her again. Although Roman makes it clear he's not looking to date.

Yet, time spent with Sloane soon has him ready to move on from Emma and Sloane soon starts falling for him too.

If only she hadn't lied.

And with a few emotional moments, sweetness, likable characters and some not so likable characters. Yes, I'm talking about the real Margaux. This was really easy and engaging read. That had me invested from start to finish and I'd happily recommend it to others. 😊

T he is was a more difficult book to rate for me. I actually liked the characters, Sloan and Roman. I thought they were inherently good people. It a fan of Margeaux to be honest because her selfishness was off-putting. I did, however, find the romantic connection between Sloan and Roman missing- I mean he was so not over his wife and she was pretending to be her sister. These two aspects carried on for too long (especially the pretense) and that made this story very difficult for me. I can’t believe how quickly things were resolved even though the lies were prevalent for the majority of the book.

I started reading this book and after the first 5 pages I kind of lost interest. Then life got in the way and I forgot about it, until last night when I woke up at 3am and I thought I will give it a second chance. And sure enough 6 hours later I am done, I read the whole book in one sitting!! From the moment Roman asked about the keychain I was done for… I cannot get enough from Winter’s unique writing style.. so different and so captivating.. 5 stars!

Twins swap places for a blind date. What was supposed to end with one date turns into several encounters and a growing infatuation. The deception was carried on far longer than it should have been. It could have easily ended after the first date with Margeaux taking over as herself. Or the swap didn't even need to take place as you tell the truth, say you're sick, and reschedule the date. Honesty! What a novel idea!! I liked Sloane and Roman and how they bonded over their love of art. I'll have to admit, there's something irresistible about a heartbroken widower raising adorable little girls. I would have enjoyed the story more had they met some other way.

It should be no surprise that this is a really good book. I thoroughly enjoy the stories that Winter Renshaw weaves; You or Someone Like You is no exception. Roman is a single dad and not ready to take a dip into the dating pool. His aunt believes Margaux is the perfect person to get him to loosen up and live again.

I did not want to put this book down and have the bags under my eyes to prove it! I strongly suggest reading all the way thru the Afterword as well. Hint: you *may* want to have tissues on hand.

I always love this author and this book is so good. It starts with the herion going on a date for her twin sister that is sick. The hero is a single dad that doesn't want to date but does for his aunt. Doesn't go well but he calls her later and they meet up again. Then they start to get feelings for each other but she hasn't told him the truth of who she is, he thinks it is her sister. It is a emotional ride had me cry a few times. But I loved every minute of it.

Yay another hit from Winter Renshaw! I always enjoy her romances and this was no exception. Highly recommend!

You or Someone Like You was ok if you are looking for a quick read with low heat and light sprinkles of feels.

Sloane has an identical twin, but their similarities end with their looks. Sloane had a big heart, and it was clear her sister used that to her advantage. Her sister was selfish, and even as I reached the end, she didn’t earn my forgiveness.

A majority of the book is spent with Roman believing that Sloane is Margaux; up to 77% of the time, he doesn’t even know her true identity. I feel like that takes away from the overall love story we’re meant to be seeing. Sure, they were their "genuine" selves when they were spending time together, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that they began as a lie. He finds out from her sister, and by the time they reconnect, it’s past 90%.

I feel like I’m missing a part of the story. It begins with Roman not even wanting to date, and he even says point blank that he’s not ready to move on. Then it seems all of his doubt becomes nonexistent, other than a few brief moments of guilt. It just didn’t seem to fit with what he initially said, and because of that, I felt like the inevitable emotions that would have played out while he began to move on after such a heartbreaking loss were instead glossed over.

I would have liked the opportunity to see more of them fall in love without the lies hanging over their heads. I’m disappointed that there’s really only one chapter with them together where all the truths are out in the open. Sure, we were able to gather all of the reasons the two were perfect for one another, but otherwise, I feel like it was all surface level. The chemistry between them was there, but beyond that, I felt like the whole storyline fell flat. They shared their love of art, but more than that, there weren't any big emotional layers they pulled back in an effort to get to know one another on a deeper level. In a sense, I don’t feel as though there was any real growth shown in either character. They were brought together due to a lie, but while the chemistry between them was there, it was only ever explored when there were lies between them that made it impossible for Sloane to answer in a "real" way. She edited a lot of her responses so that they would go along with how her sister would reply, and that’s a huge reason I feel as though, as a reader, I feel cheated out of what could have been Roman and Sloane’s story.

After the truth was revealed, I would have liked the opportunity to see them fall for one another without the deceit between them. Roman’s kids were such a huge part of his life, and yet we don’t get any interactions between them and Sloane until the epilogue. With the lie always hanging in the air between them, I felt the first part of the book was slow, but when Roman is made aware, the rest of the book moves more rapidly but lacks the depth to make any of it meaningful.

This story is so beautiful, a story about love, hope, second chances, fate, I always feel captivated by Winter Renshaw and her emotional writing style, and this time is not the exception. I loved it so much

Roman and Sloane are everything, their story is so good, even though Roman doesn't want to fall in love again or rebuild his life after losing his wife, he can't help but fall for Sloane and her bubbly personality. I loved how little by little they fall in love, their deep emotional connection took my breath away and the electrifying chemistry between them is off the charts.

This author always provokes intense emotions in me, and You or Someone Like You is a captivating story, it made me laugh, cry and sigh, it is the perfect combination of feelings, passion and angsty, perfect for fans of
Single dad
Angsty
Slow burn
Secret identity
Second chance
Art

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS*** 5 STARS!
Holy Moly! Where do I begin? Roman is a widower and single father who is just trying to make it through each day. Sloane is a star in the art world who will do anything for family. When Sloane's sister and identical twin, Margaux, needs a favor, things get completely out of hand quickly. Margaux is asked to go out on a date with her boss's nephew at the same time she's up for a promotion. She thinks the only way to get the promotion is to go on the date. But there is a huge issue...she's sick and asks Sloane to step in for her so her promotion isn't blown. Well come to find out it's more than just any common cold, Margaux is pregnant. The promotion announcement drags on for a month at which time Sloane keeps going on dates with Roman and falling in love. Margaux starts showing as Roman decides to surprise who he thinks is his Margaux at work when he notices the bump. This is the real Margaux of course because Sloane was the one going on dates. Things completely unravel! Roman feels betrayed by Sloane until he realizes that Margaux is self-centered and only blames Sloane for everything. In the end, he realizes that he has fallen for Sloane after not thinking it would ever happen again after the passing of his wife. He gets her back in the best way. I will not spoil that part! So sweet and very thoughtful!
Spice Level: 1/5 - one open door scene, one implied
Side note: DON'T SKIP THE AUTHOR'S NOTE OF THIS BOOK!

I loved this book! I always love Ms. Renshaw's stories, but this one was epic. The chemistry between Sloane and Roman was unexplainable. I kept waiting for the shoe to drop on their tangled web knowing it was going to be bad for Sloane, but hoping that it wouldn't destroy their relationship. And when I figured out the "who" of the artist OMG, well that just made me want to read more! I never wanted the story to end. Thank you for keeping me wanting more Ms. Renshaw

This was my first book by the author and I really loved the writing. I was very impressed with how it was written and how the story unfolded. This story was a fun story with tropes that aren’t frequently used. I’m not even sure what to call all of the tropes. Sloane agrees to a date but has to pretend to be her twin sister Margoux who is feeling sick. Roman is a single dad set up on the date by his aunt who wants him to be happy after the death of his wife.

There was a bit of mystery that had me extra invested in this story. I was really interested in finding out who the artist was. Roman originally didn’t have any plans on seeing “Margoux” again but something she said had him coming back for more. And they continued to spend more and more time together. It was a nice slow build to their relationship. I was a little bothered by the lack of interaction with Roman’s kids but I guess it was supposed to be a mature relationship where he doesn’t bring the kids around anyone until it's very serious.

I felt deeply for Sloane and what she went through. I hated the way Margoux treated her. She was way too good of a sister and person to deserve Margoux. When the truth unraveled, Roman was really hurtful too. I think I loved Sloane too much to see her hurt like this. But Roman and Sloane had an organic chemistry despite who they said they were and there was no way Roman could continue to deny that.

Sloane is persuaded by her identical twin sister to take her place on a blind date. It’s meant to be one night and then she will never see Roman again. The date doesn’t go particularly well, but Roman is persuaded by his aunt to give it another go. Margaux (the twin) is not happy about this, but as she thinks this will effect a possible promotion she urges her sister to continue, but to keep things boring. It turns out that Sloane & Roman have a lot in common and they start to grow closer. It takes a while for things to heat up, but they do seem good together. Roman is conflicted about moving on as his wife died in a tragic accident leaving him to bring up their two daughters alone. I loved his interactions with his daughter. I found it unusual that there was no interaction between them and Sloane until the very end of the book and definitely felt like I had missed part of the story. Sloane’s twin had her own story going on in the background, but she came across as so selfish. I wish Sloane had stood up to her sooner. As expected in a twin swap story they get found out, but not until very late in the story and I thought Roman let Sloane off the hook a bit too easily.