This is a good book. The two main characters are Julie and Luke. Julie and Luke meet at an AA meeting. They meet again when they go to a meeting about the wedding of Julie’s best friend. They are opposites of each other. They start to like each other. They start dating and fall in love.

"Love, Julie" by Jamie Anderson is a heartwarming and deeply emotional novel that explores the complexities of love, friendship, and self-discovery. Anderson’s writing is both tender and evocative, capturing the nuances of relationships and the ways they shape our lives.

The story revolves around Julie, a protagonist who is navigating the ups and downs of her love life, friendships, and personal aspirations. Through letters, diary entries, or intimate reflections, readers are given a window into Julie's thoughts and feelings as she learns about the nature of love—both the romantic and the self-love that comes from understanding and accepting oneself.

Anderson skillfully portrays Julie’s journey with authenticity and warmth, making her a character that readers can easily connect with. The narrative is filled with moments of joy, heartbreak, and introspection, as Julie grapples with the challenges of making important life decisions and the lessons learned from past relationships.

"Love, Julie" is not just a love story, but a story about growth, resilience, and the importance of staying true to oneself. Jamie Anderson’s novel is perfect for readers who appreciate deeply personal stories that are both uplifting and emotionally resonant. Whether you’re looking for a poignant romance or a tale of self-discovery, "Love, Julie" offers a satisfying and memorable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and TRM Publishing for the arc.

I rated this story 4.25 stars. I enjoyed this story about Julie West, an alcoholic in her mid-40's, who's trying to stay sober while planning her best friend Kate's wedding to her brother, Ben. Julie finds out that she's actually co-planning the wedding, with her brother's best friend, Luke Hudson. Julie takes an instant dislike to Luke due to his consistently sunny nature. Luke is a widower, with a young daughter, who proves to be very patient with Julie. Their romance is the subplot of the story, with Julie's fight to stay sober the focus.

I thought the handling of Julie's struggles with dealing with the present-day challenges, while being brought down by her past, was very poignant. There is a lot of self-review and instrospection done in the story, and I thought the author, Jamie Anderson, handled it well. There was humor and heartache, and I was interested in finding out if Julie would be able to conquer her fears and battles.

Luke was such a sweet character, so supportive to everyone, and such a great dad. I thought their romance was sweet.

I want to read the author's first book, Someone to Kiss, which is the story about Kate and Ben. They were such an interesting couple, and they were so supportive of Julie.

This is a lovely. sweet book.

This makes you realise that life doesn’t always figure out how you originally planned it and that’s ok.

Julie can seem like a difficult character, but she develops herself and that’s wonderful to read.

Loved this story! It was a funny romance that i didn’t know i needed in my life. The characters were all likeable, while its a romance book its about self acceptance and self love which is something we all need, really enjoyed this

I loved the story, of this book from the start.

I like that we get a slow development, of interest between our main characters Julie and Luke. I loved Luke’s joyful personality and play fullness also. The fact that we got to know him on a slightly deeper level was also refreshing to read.

I love Julie’s relationship with Kate. The support that Kate gives Julie throughout the book is like a warm hug.

I’d love to see a sequel to this.

A nice read of the struggle of an alcoholic trying to be sober for family and realizing she needs to do it for herself and value herself before moving on to love and self love while planning a wedding. Her journey to self love is well written.

Julie’s road to sobriety has had its challenges and in order to really commit, she takes on the role of planning her best friend’s wedding to her brother. While planning, she is paired with Luke and during the process she finds herself on the road to sobriety and love.

I'm in awe of this. Such a real, imperfect, beautiful story of life. I loved how it wasn't just focused on a romantic storyline and instead led with character growth with a romance sub plot. From the adorable dog, cute kid, friendships to raw moments of addiction and recovery, this story was a roller coaster but so worth it! Well done!

Poignant and Humorous Journey of Self-discovery, Resilience, and RedemptionOpting for self-recovery over romance, Julie dives into planning her best friend Kate’s wedding. However, sharing this task with the irritatingly cheerful best man, single dad Luke, proves to be an unexpected challenge.
As Luke’s persistent kindness chips away at her icy exterior, a friendship forms, stirring a longing she’d sworn to suppress.
What a great story and read

The writing was engaging and entertaining with a serious side to it. Throughout the story there were emails from the present day, which encouraged me to keep on reading so that I could find out exactly what had happened to result in such correspondence.

Thank you NetGalley and TRM Publishing for my E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a tough read for me. Getting involved with this book took a lot out of me. I promise to come back later when my brain's in the right place but for now know Julie's growth is outstanding in this book.

Thank you again.

Lots of dialogue, lively characters, and midlife reflections. I didn't love it - the morality is too loose for me. The back and forth in time seems to be a feature of many movies and novels. That's ok - but I don't prefer it. Well, it's a fun story if you need a casual novel.

This is an absolutely charming and sweet book that teaches us how to accept a life that did not turn out how we wanted our planned and, equally as important, how to forgive ourselves for our role in that. I rarely drink, but have other addictions so I really enjoyed the honesty and openness about alcoholism and the difficulty that creates in someone's world. Julie can seem unlikeable sometimes, but her personal growth keeps the reader invested and you find yourself not only understanding her, but also rooting for her. I also found the fact that she is 40 (rather than 20) to be extremely relatable and impactful. Showing that you can still be figuring out things messily even if you're not 20, and that is ABSOLUTELY OKAY. <3

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Love, Julie.

I have to admit that the first 30% of the book was a bit of a struggle as the author tried to set the scene and introduce the main character. It was a bit heavy on the alcoholism and I really wasn't a fan of Julie in the beginning. Then the MFC became more than her drinking problem; the story began to flow a lot smoother and the love interest was a complete darling, so I became hooked.

I have this 4 stars. It's definitely worth the read if you can get through the first third.

As the author says, this is a sweet romance with a serious theme. I adored it and read in one sitting, on a long flight. I’ll look forward to reading more books by this writer, that both inform and entertain. . #LoveJulie #NetGalley

Once, Julie dreamed of a life filled with love and laughter. Now, in her mid-forties, she faces a starkly different reality. She's single, lonely, and reeling from breaking her hard-earned sobriety in front of her family and friends.

Opting for self-recovery over romance, Julie dives into planning her best friend Kate’s wedding. However, sharing this task with the irritatingly cheerful best man, single dad Luke, proves to be an unexpected challenge.

As Luke’s persistent kindness chips away at her icy exterior, a friendship forms, stirring a longing she’d sworn to suppress. But with self-forgiveness as her biggest hurdle, and her past ready to sabotage her future, can Julie confront the shame and trauma that have darkened so much of her life and find the courage to love again? Or will her demons shatter both her and Luke’s hearts in the process?

This book had a very interesting narrative about age and womanhood and love!

4.5 ⭐️

Love, Julie is a sweet romance, but that’s not really what the book is. At its core, it’s actually a book about self-acceptance, learning how to live life after trauma, and realizing that the people who truly love you will be there for you through your lowest lows and highest highs.

Julie went on a truly beautiful one-year journey of sobriety and proving herself capable (to others and, more importantly, to herself). She was incredibly likable, even when she was totally unlikable in sabotage mode. She was exactly the type of character that I cheer for when all of the lessons finally settle in and she realizes that she wants to be in love with someone else because she’s finally started loving herself. She deserved a cheerful and loving guy like Luke, a man who would protect her from herself and encourage her to keep with her goals when they felt hard.

I think everyone could learn a few things from Julie and Luke, even if their story doesn’t revolve around sobriety.

Thank you to NetGalley and TRM Publishing for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book explores alcoholism and self esteem in a really respectful way.

Julie who is an alcoholic has one drink at her brothers and best friend engagement party which leads to her being drunk. Julie then decides to plan a wedding with her brothers best friend whilst trying to stay sober.

It was super easy and enjoyable to read.

I completely adore this emotional and unique romantic comedy. It’s not something you read often in contemporary romantic comedies, but it focuses on our FMC Julie who is a recovering alcoholic, I liked the fact it was different and covering a character so many will relate to via themselves or family, friends.

Luke, is a such fantastic MMC completely genuine, sensitive, cheerful single parent . He is such the perfect match and I completely fell in love with him myself. I love a slow burn romance and this is just perfect, with elements of grumpy/sunshine and forced proximity I knew it was my kind of read. If I could give it 6 stars I would, perfect for those looking for a romantic comedy with a more mature aspect, brilliant !

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.