e-ARC, NetGalley, Avon Books UK
Jen is 50 years old and the airline she has worked for for 30 years as a flight attendant has just made her redundant. Her daughter Hannah no longer lives at home, and with the current state of affairs, no arlines are hiring at the moment, so she’s having trouble finding another job.
Finally with time on her hands and egged by her daughter and her friends, she joins a dating website for “mature” people. She’s also in a rush to find a date – she won a romantic getaway in Greece as a prize for excellence from the airline and she has to use it or lose altogether. She doesn’t want to go alone and she’s now “auditioning” for who’s going with her.
I was immediately drawn to this book on NetGalley when I saw the age of the heroine! How refreshing! She’s 50! With 50-year-old problems and concerns! It’s so hard to find a romance novel where the heroine is over 40! Though this is not a by-the-book romance novel (it’s more on the women’s fiction side), we do get an HEA. Or a Happy For Now.
I confess I was a little disappointed with the online dating development. Those dates were a perfect opportunity for comedy gold, but they were a little flat and a tad repetitive. It felt a little short in the comedy department, but it’s still a very enjoyable book. It has the “Britishness” that I love so much, without being plagued by The Bridget Jones Syndrome that I see in a lot of British rom coms.
I also appreciated how Jen and Rod, her daughter’s father and who she never married (they are just great friends) have a very healthy and mature relationship. The situation with her mother’s dementia is also dealt in a realistic but very sweet way.
I loved the ending: a sweet epilogue eight months in the future tying everything up. Sorta. 😉 It gives you hope that Jen will sort everything out and be happy in the end.
Note: if you are looking for funny, it certainly has its moment. If you are looking for spicy, you are not going to find any. Fun book, though.
Possible Triggers: dealing with parent with dementia, losing a job, fear of unemployment
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you, @NetGalley, Avon Books, UK and Fiona Gibson for the copy.
