Jess is a 28 year old chef who owns a catering business with her friend Alice. She’s doing well and has moved on from the guy who broke her heart and took her virginity in high school, though she hasn’t been with anyone else since then. She never saw him again after that night despite him telling her how much he liked her and that he wanted to hang out with her again and that crushed her, but it also motivated her to push on and do well with her life and forget about him.
Now she’s agreed to cater the wedding of the same acquaintance that held that fateful party all those years ago, and Jess knew there was a chance she would see him there, but when she does, he doesn’t recognize her, which she is grateful for. Unfortunately for her though, she breaks down on her way home, and he is the one to stop and help her-and tells her that she reminds him of someone he used to know-her! She lets him have it-all 12 years of pent up anger and frustration and hurt that she’s been hanging onto.
Once she gets it all off her chest and he helps her out with her car, they decide to be friends, and then things start to develop from there. He has an ex wife and a daughter that he has a complicated relationship with and that makes things worse because Jess makes assumptions rather than talks to him, which of course, was their problem to begin with. Miscommunication is always a struggle for me ans in this case it kind of got grating because Jess often acted like she was still 16.
That being said, it was a cute story and an easy way to pass the time.
Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

Jess had her heart broken big time and she has sworn herself off love but is she able to have a second chance ? 4 stars for this good read.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

Never Ever Getting Back Together is Phoebe Macleod‘s stand-alone second chance romantic comedy set in England.

Jessica “Jess” Thomas runs a successful catering business with multiple stores with her best friend, Alice. She’s too busy to date, and she spends her free time visiting her parents and happily married sister and newborn nephew. Jess isn’t thrilled to be catering a former high school classmate’s wedding and is relieved that the bride doesn’t really remember her. She and Elodie ran in different circles, although Jess did attend one party at Elodie’s house before leaving for catering college 12 years earlier.

All through high school Jess had a crush on a popular boy, Jamie Ferguson, who was usually dating Sarah. However he and Sarah had a big fight and broke up at Elodie’s party. Then Jess bumped into Jamie and she wound up losing her virginity to him. He broke up with her via text the next day, saying that Sarah had come around and they decided to give their relationship another try. This devastated Jess so much that she didn’t keep in touch with anyone from high school, including her best friend, Laura.

Back to the present, Jess’ ancient Volvo dies on the way home from Elodie’s wedding and Jamie Ferguson stops to help a stranded Jess. It takes a while for him to recognize her, and then she gives him a long overdue piece of her mind. Jamie is apologetic and loans her his vehicle so she can get home safely. After he arranges for her Volvo to be towed to the car dealership where he is the sales manager, he finds her a good deal on a used car. Then Jamie hires Jess’ company to cater an event for their dealership. He seems to be trying to prove to Jess that he’s really a good guy.

When Jess complains about her and Jamie’s past to her friends, they all encourage her to give him a chance. Since he didn’t know that she had a crush on him, it was fair for him to assume their single encounter 12 years ago was a hook-up. He had no idea that she was a virgin. Both Jess and Jamie are likable characters. Jess is appealing because she’s like a headstrong ride-or-die friend, and her sister and friends, Alice and Laura, alternate between encouraging her and giving her good advice. Jamie IS a good guy, but he acted like a typical teen-age boy. Now he’s doing all he can to prove to Jess that he’s matured and is worthy of her.
Never Ever Getting Back Together is an entertaining second-chance rom-com that readers will enjoy. It does contain some sex scenes and scattered profanity, but I wouldn’t call it steamy.

I received an Advance Review Copy (ARC) from NetGalley and Boldwood Books for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is a charming exploration of first love and second chances. While catering a wedding, Jess unexpectedly faces her past when her first love, Jamie, appears as the best man. The story gracefully weaves through awkward encounters, past heartbreak, and the possibility of renewed romance. The well-developed characters and the universal theme of forgiveness make it a heartwarming read, posing the question of whether people can truly change and if second chances are worth the risk.

I went into Never Ever Getting Back Together expecting something and came out expecting nothing. Plus there were some things written in there that were just...

It started off pretty nice, in terms of the pacing and everything, when it was revealed exactly how they broke up. This book had the miscommunication trope which I am not that big a fan of, however I liked how Jess and Jamie worked through things and talked to each other and asked difficult question. And while there was nothing wrong with the writing, it was just okay and average. Nothing special. Though I did like the chemistry between our two main leads, what I would have liked even more is for them to get to know each other at first, instead of them just rushing into a relationship.

All in a

I love a good second chance romance and this one really hit the mark for me! I loved Jess and thought it was actually kind of funny how she held a grudge for so long.

A quick fast paced rom com that kept me entertained from start to finish, Highly recommend!

A very enjoyable rom-com, with good characters and a fast paced storyline. I liked Jess’ character although she definitely held on to that past resentment for a very long time! Bumping into a blast from the past isn’t her ideal situation, especially when stranded in the back of nowhere but see soon comes to see old perceptions may not still hold true.
Comedy and a bit of heart warming drama, a story about whether old wounds can ever heal. Funny and an easy read.

Okay firstly I can't stop thinking of Taylor Swift due to the book title. I found this slow very quick and easy comfort read Jamie seems very simple and sweet.Jess and Jamie only had one relationship in high school. She fell in love with him. Of course, being a teenager, he was completely clueless and rejected her via text the next day. She then carried a grudge for the next 12 years, never thinking about the fact that Jamie, who she had never really talked to before their relationship, had could have been completely unaware of it. she. . And even after this truth is pointed out to her and she is sent home to get to know Jamie in their adult incarnation, she still refuses to give Jamie her trust. Perhaps it was this lack of trust that diminished the chemistry between Jess and Jamie, but even though the romance had potential, it ultimately failed. There are definitely some nice moments, such as those with Jess's business partner or her family, but the ending feels a bit rushed, even if the final scene is cute.

Despite some shortcomings, Never Ever Getting Back together manages to touch on certain aspects that may resonate with some readers in regards to relationships.

This book revolves around the life of the protagonist, Jess, as she navigates her way through both personal and professional challenges. While the plot lacks the gripping twists and turns typical of compelling narratives, it does offer a relatively realistic portrayal of uncertainties that many people face in their relationships. Trust was the main issue that Jess had to overcome in this novel, in order for her relationship to work. However, I found that she would find the smallest things to get upset over and was very immature when it came to communication and confronting her fears.

The writing style is straightforward, with a heavy use of dialogue to progress the plot quickly. It will appeal to a wide audience. The characters are quite relatable in their flaws, but I found that they lacked depth. Jamie in particular was just too obliging and nice and I found him to be quite surface level. The redeeming feature was the relationship between Jess and her sister Molly and their banter.

Although the characters were mature, there was only closed door romance in the novel. I felt that it could have done with a couple of open door scenes to make it a bit more interesting.

Never say never!!! He broke her heart and, in a way, broke her as she never trusted again. Yet, over a decade later they are tossed back in the same orbit and the old feelings resurface. He seems to fall for her rather quickly, but will her doubt about his honesty and faithfulness be the end of them? This romance is riddled with angst and a bit of humor, but it really does an outstanding job of showing how the brain works overtime to overanalyze every interaction and not always come to the correct conclusion and sometimes the conclusions are bang on. The question is whether this story will have a happily ever after or rather whether the happily ever after will be with the characters that we think or with completely different ones. It was a fun read and the witty banter was a treat, but my favorite thing about the main character is that when she finally starts speaking her mind, she does so with both barrels pointed straight at the person she is aiming at!

This one didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I felt that it would’ve been better as a YA instead of taking place 12 years after the initial incident.

I couldn’t connect with either character. They seemed too immature. Jess was heartbroken by what Jamie did when they were teenagers, and then she just never moved on. That’s not healthy. And Jamie was not fleshed out well at all. He was very one dimensional.

Parts of this book were super cute, and it hooked me from the beginning. I think most of my issues would be solved if this took place 2-3 years after the unfortunate incident instead of 12. That’s just too much time to have passed, and the characters would’ve acted closer to their age if they were 18-19 instead of 28.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Never Ever Getting Back Together is a entertaining second chance romance that I throughly enjoyed. I loved the relationships that Jess has with her family and Jamie. Although the ending was a little predictable, this book was lighthearted and fun which I always look forward to.

Never Ever Getting Back Together comes out October 26th.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to review Never Ever Getting Back Together . I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

🚘Summary🚘
Jess's first love, Jamie, broke her heart in high school, and since then she has made a point to focus on her career and the catering business she has started. Then Jamie is the best man in a wedding she is catering and to make it even worse, he doesn't recognize her. After Jess clues him in, Jamie is on the path to make things right. But if Jess gives him another chance, will he just hurt her again?

🚘Review🚘
I thought this was a cute story overall. The title doesn't really match the story (I wouldn't say Jess and Jamie were ever 'together' in the past). Jess had a reason to have the trust issues she did, but sometimes did feel a little immature and fixated on the past. I really enjoyed the side characters of Jess's sister, Alice and her husband Richard and even Simone. They gave a little more depth to the story.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Super fast, cute read. I started this on the plane and just zipped right through; it’s such a fun read. I understood the anxiety our MC felt, even if I thought it was a bit crazy. Our live interest was such a good guy and I was totally rooting for him.

Jess has sworn off romance since her huge crush Jamie broke her heart via text 12 years ago. So when her car breaks down after work and someone stops to help, she can’t believe her luck when Jamie is the one who stops to help her.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

After he realises how much he hurt her in the past, Jamie begins to do everything he can to make it up to Jess. But Jess can’t help be wary of every little step he takes in the right direction.

I really liked the concept for this story, I just wish the story had been a bit longer and a bit more filled out with the side characters. I would have loved to hear more about the business with Alice.

Thank you Phoebe MacLeod, Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

A delightful, second chance romantic comedy. As an anxious overthinker, I identified with Jess almost immediately and loved her and Jamie's characters. A fun, light hearted, easy read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

This was a fun easy 2nd chance romance. There were some parts that did not connect for me like the constant mention of car sales. But over a fun time.

This is a nice quick read and honestly, just don't think too much into it. The characters are nice and the writing style is charming.

The conflict itself I found a tiny bit immature. Jess lost her virginity to her crush when she was 16. But said crush had no idea about her slight obsession and went back to his girlfriend (who they broke up with for a night) next day, breaking Jess's heart bad enough that Jess signs off men for 12 years.

When they meet again Jess somehow still treats Jamie as if he was this 16 years old villain what is also strange to me. (You'd think growing up, she'd realize why he assumed what they had was just a random hook up). Her trust issues rooted in that first night follow her through the entire story and it's a bit jarring when it comes to Jamie's daughter and ex if we want to be honest.

Their relationship developed a tad bit too fast for me.

The beginning of the story was much fun, things started going a bit south after about 20-30% but again, it's a nice quick read that can be enjoyed.

I did enjoy this book but did get frustrated and irritated with the main female character, Jess, who was always looking for a problem and had real
trust issues..

Jess is the co-owner of a catering company and she just so happens to cater a wedding for a girl she went to school with when she was 16 and the boy she had a massive crush on that she lost her virginity also happens to be at said wedding. Things didn't go well after the one time Jess and Jamie were together and they haven't seen each other in 12 years. There is no way she will allow herself to fall under Jamie's charms again. Right?

This was a sweet, fade to black romance. I would call it a slow burn as well, but it was a good read! Mostly light and fluffy; a relatively quick, easy read.