Gemma is a single mother without a lot of money, so the dilapidated cottage on Sam's estate is a perfect rental, even if she and Sam haven't hit it off in the past. Sam bought the estate as a wedding venue and needs a tenant to help with the tight cash flow as he gets things up and running. Both have relationship issues, so of course, they're attracted to each other, despite the many problems both are facing.
It's a quick and okay read. I never really warmed up to Gemma and Sam as a couple, but the story was engaging and the side characters interesting. ( )

Actual Rating: 1.5

This had so much potential at the start, and I was really interested in the premise. The idea of the main character, Gemma Whitehall, being a single mother working as the local registrar for couples and yet not being able to grasp a relationship herself…it’s a feeling of being in the middle of everything and yet on the outside looking in, that I’m sure many of us can relate to.

And Sam started off as a very nice character as well, who had a tragic past I wanted to know more about. Gemma moving into Sam’s cottage on his estate also sets up the scene for two characters to be in close proximity at a place that was very intriguing.

By the middle, however, the book started falling flat, and it stayed that way until the end. Essentially, it all felt like I was watching a Hallmark movie, in which the writer was given a batch of tropes, and they just picked five at random to use. Unfortunately, a mash-up of tropes does not make a story.

Instead, we got a bunch of characters going through the motions, and I was really not feeling the relationship between Sam and Gemma, especially when both lacked character development beyond learning to “allow your heart to open up.”

They had really annoying, immature fights, and the third person perspective omniscient writing did Sam no favors because some thoughts just made him seem annoying and misogynistic:

“Why did women always have to spoil things by asking, probing, demanding? Couldn’t they just accept a good thing when they had it?

The writing was also a little weak, which is why I got Hallmark vibes from it — it felt like I was reading a rom-com movie script instead of a book, which can usually go into much more depth.

It might’ve just been my copy as well, but it was full of errors:
‘I had too.’ / ‘I don’t think leprechaun’s control karma.’ / Plugging in her numbers, only two…

Ultimately, I think there could’ve been a lot more to this, and I was so onboard with the beginning. But unfortunately the novel lacks depth and originality — though it might still be a nice read for someone looking to pass the time. ( )