Ohhh I just love her books. The characters just suck you in right away in the beginning of the book and then you can’t put it down. Katie and Callam connected so great. I love a good small town romantic book.
Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy of this book. I can’t wait for her next read!

I previously read another one of Catherine Walsh's romances and really enjoyed it, but this one didn't work for me, mainly because of the juvenile writing style.

The Matchmaker by Catherine Walsh
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (4.5 stars)

The Vibes:
- Ireland
- Small town/village
- Women’s fiction and romance
- Callum 🔥

The Concept:

Katie was born and raised in a small Irish village. She loves the simple life she has made for herself there and has deep roots in the community. She works in a pub and her friends have truly become the family that she doesn’t have. Everything Katie knows and loves is threatened to be changed when a hotel developer starts moving in to tear down parts of the town and build a resort. The plan is to make this small village a booming tourist area. When Katie finds out that the pub is going to be destroyed - she pulls out all the stops to save this small village by reviving the town’s famous (and forgotten) matchmaking festival in hopes to show the developers that the world truly does care about little Ennisbawn.

My Thoughts:

I went into this book for a rom com and I got so much more. This was so charming and sweet. This book is about Katie more than anything. It leans women’s fiction and coming-of-age with a really sweet romance thrown in there. Grandma Maeve is just lovely and the village people were the perfect townies. I loved the way that Katie was happy with a simple life and I loved the way Callum was drawn to that. This one was funny, cute, romantic, and could be the next Netflix movie. I’m ready for it.
Releases April 18, 2023.

Thank you so much to Bookouture, NetGalley, and Catherine Walsh for providing me with this ARC to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Matchmaker by Catherine Walsh
Pub Date: April 18, 2023 🗓️

Catherine Walsh does it AGAIN! 🙌🏼

I didn’t think anything could top Holiday Romance, but I’ve been proven wrong! I was captured by the first page and loved how the author made me fall in love with Ennisbawn and the residents. ❤️

Katie Collins, the main character, has never left Ennisbawn, a tiny Irish village. She works at a local pub called Kelly’s and has everything she could want in her quiet, tight-knit community. It was the perfect place to live, until Callum Dempsey and his crew showed up to build a new hotel and golf-course. Shortly after the disruption caused by construction, Katie finds out they plan to demolish Kelly’s Pub.

The pub holds a lot of history and memories for Katie, and is the last connection she has to her parents who were killed in a care accident when she was young. To save the pub and her beloved community, Katie decides to bring back the famous matchmaking festival to bring people to the town and to bring it to life again. Can Katie save her village despite the efforts of Callum and his crew?

I absolutely adored Katie and Callum and found myself smitten with their relationship. I also enjoyed the strong character development of characters like Adam, Gemma, Nush, and Noah. And how could anyone not love Katie’s grandma, Maeve?

Overall, I found this book to be absolutely perfect and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a cute HEA romance!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to the publisher, Bookouture, the author, Catherine Walsh, and NetGalley for a gifted copy of The Matchmaker!

Posted on Goodreads on March 19, 2023: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
Posted on Instagram (full review) on April 18, 2023: https://instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Posted on Instagram (mini review) in April 2023: https://instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Posted on Amazon on April 18, 2023

This five-star read had me wanting to visit Ennisbawn and starting a protest. This swept me up and make me fall in love with Katie from the very start, I am wholeheartedly with her when it comes to sleep, so I feel like we are kindred spirits in that regard, but there is no way I would be as strong as she was when it comes to fighting for what she believed in and keeping her home safe from developments. Could you imagine having a wishing well in your local pub, if there was one in mine, there would be drunk people in it every week trying to find the gold I’m sure, but in Ennisbawn it’s a true history and that comes with a special presence. There was something about this story that will keep you hooked, the more you get to know Callum and all of the characters, the more you fall in love with this story and the place. You will be cheering for the town as well as the people within, the oddest thing was that I ended up loving them all, even the baddies, hoping they all get their happily ever after.

I LOVED this book and could have quite happily reread it all over again straight away!
It gets right into the action from page one. It starts strong and doesn’t stop. This book had me laughing out loud all the way through.

Don’t mind me I’m just off to work out how i can live in Ennisbawn. The scenery sounds stunning, and the community spirit was so heart-warming. There were so many sweet aspects to the book from stubborn gran's to salty soup and cheese toasties in the village pub. I normally prefer books that purely focus on the romance but the supporting characters and storyline surrounding the festival was so good and enjoyable that I didn’t even notice - and there was plenty of great romance too!

Callum and Katie’s relationship felt so realistic and well developed. This book truly felt like a warm hug🥰

I couldn’t have asked for more from this book and I highly recommend you give it a read too!

And if all that hasn't convinced you to read it yet here are some of the great tropes/features it contains: he falls first, no third act breakup, rom com, small village vibes, forbidden romance vibes,

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh was one of my favorite reads last year so I was very excited to get an early copy of her latest work, The Matchmaker, I was not disappointed.

Katie and Callum’s initial meeting was one of the best “meet cute” scenes I have read in a romantic comedy in a long time. Katie immediately dislikes Callum on principle, she’s doing everything in her power to save her charming Irish town from a big developer and Callum, although handsome, works for the enemy.

These enemies to lovers are never truly enemies and soon they can’t deny their mutual attraction. However, Katie is never going to stop fighting to protect the town that has been her home and safe place since the death of her parents when she was a young child. It’s obvious that despite their differences they are starting to develop serious feelings for one another, they just have to figure out a few things first.

I was completely charmed by Katie and Callum, the townspeople of Ennisbawn, and all of its wonderful characters. I cannot wait to read more from Catherine Walsh.

Callum ❤️❤️❤️❤️ I really enjoyed this book!! If a book is set in Ireland it's a must read and this one didn't disappoint. Who doesn't love a small town and meddling, snarky grandmother's?? I'm going to need a book about all the other characters ASAP.

My only complaint is Katie and Callum got together around the 50% and I just knew I was in for some bullshit...and sure enough lol but otherwise I enjoyed it!!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ four star read! This book was so cute, I found myself excited to sneak away and read more about Katie and Callum’s story. I love how the typical grump vs optimist trope was spun a bit, highlighting the multi faceted aspects of each of the MC’s personalities, and how well they fit together! I am so appreciative to the publishers and netgalley for providing me this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion. I will definitely be looking up more books by this author!

This was my first book by Catherine Walsh and I thought it was enchanting! The quick, witty banter of the likeable characters, the pleasant setting, and the overall premise made this a joy to read. I loved Callum and thought Katie was delightful, so while a few parts felt slow to me, it was still a fun romance that I enthusiastically recommend!

This book was a solid three stars for me. The Irish village setting was fun and the cast of characters were silly. I didn't feel very invested in the romance of this one, but still enjoyed myself.. My favorite Catherine Walsh book is by far Holiday Romance as it has all the chemistry. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this advanced reader copy for my honest review.

Two days. It took two days to finish this book. And that’s with working a 9-5 job. It was one of those books that I couldn’t put down. That was because of the main characters. I loved and adored Katie and Callum. However, Nush felt like a character I could barely tolerate. Personally, I felt she wasn’t fleshed out enough. But I also love side characters. Overall, not a bad book by any means.

The Matchmaker - Reseña

ENGLISH

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this ARC (publication date: 18 April).

This book is simply put as Fanfreakingtastig. I mean, fucking awesome. I adore this author and I've only read her last two books. You already know what we do when we love an author, they get their own nickname of adoration, so I have baptized Catherine Walsh as "CatCat". From now on, any book she publishes, becomes a book on my shelf. And I thank her for making me more broke. I LOVE HER.

That said, the book has it all: some enemies to lovers, a tiny Irish village, a protagonist who doesn't shy away, a kick-ass grandmother, a love interest who is supportive and helpful but lets her achieve her goals by herself, and secondary characters who steal the show (including LGTBIQ+ characters). It's got it all.

I don't want to tell you anything because it really is worth it and I'd love it if a publisher would translate it into Spanish because I'm sure you'd laugh and cry like me. You would love to see my messages to my friends and specially my partner because I was so so so into it, I just could not stop talking about it. Honestly. I'm still thinking about it. That pub, that village... I love Ireland and her books make want to go back to dublin or cork.

The characters are complex but without being a melodrama or an overly complex story because in the end it is an fanfreakingtastic romantic comedy. It's hilarious, sexy, romantic, it gives a lot of power to friendship, to the idea that family is often not who you are born into, but rather who you have chosen. I love it, I really do.

I plan to read more of CatCat's books, I have them all ready on my shopping list for when I can because I NEED them. I want the book now but until April I will have to wait. 10/10.

SPANISH

Gracias a Netgalley y Bookouture por la oportunidad de leer este libro antes de su publicación (18 abril)

Lo primero de todo: este libro ha sido Fanfreakingtastic, como dice la protagonista. Es decir, la puta hostia. Es que adoro a esta autora y solamente me he leído sus dos últimos libros. Y ya sabéis que aquí si une autore llega a la patata, se lleva su propio apodo de adoración, así que he bautizado a Catherine Walsh como "CatCat". Libro que publica, libro que me compro y le doy las gracias por hacerme aún más pobre.

Dicho esto, es que el libro lo tiene todo: algo de enemies to lovers, un pueblo pequeñito irlandés, una protagonista que no se amedrenta, una abuela cojonuda, un interés amoroso que apoya y ayuda pero deja que sea ella quien consiga sus cosas y personajes secundarios que se llevan la palma (incluyendo personajes LGTBIQ+). Lo tiene todo.

Básicamente hay una empresa que quiere construir un hotel que flipas en un pueblecito irlandés, que hasta ahí pues bueno bien porque trae turismo y trabajo para la gente, pero lo malo viene cuando pretende tirar edificios. Entre estos edificios está el pub Kelly's, justo donde está el pozo en el que la gente tira monedas para conocer a su media naranja, pub en el que trabaja la protagonista y lugar en el que se conocieron sus padres. Así que para proteger ese punto tan especial, harán todo lo posible por retomar el festival de solteros que tanto bombo tuvo en el pasado.

Es que no quiero contaros nada porque de verdad que merece mucho la pena y que me encantaría que alguna editorial lo tradujera al español porque tengo clarísimo que os reiríais y lloraríais como yo.

Los personajes, redondísimos y complejos pero sin llegar a ser un dramón ni ser una historia demasiado compleja porque al final es una comedia romántica en toda regla. Es divertidísimo, sexy, romántico, le da mucha fuerza a la amistad y los valores, a la idea de que la familia muchas veces no es quien te ha tocado, sino quien te has buscado. Me encanta, de verdad os lo digo.

Pienso leer más de CatCat, los tengo preparados todos en la lista de la compra para cuando pueda porque LOS NECESITO. Lo quiero ya pero hasta abril, me toca esperar. 10/10

Catherine Walsh has done it again. All I have to say is, that I adored this book from the first chapter until the epilogue. It was an adorable small-town romance with intriguing plot, lovable characters, and funny interactions between them. I loved diving in the community of the village, the relationships between people in it and the dynamics between friends and family. The main character, Katie, was extremely relatable (at least to me) and I’d love to have her as a friend. I also liked that the love interest wasn’t grumpy and that he knew how to communicate.
It's a fun and easy beach read, for anyone who wants an escape to Irish countryside and swoon over the love interest.

Couldn’t get into it as I didn’t really gel with the characters so I gave up 20% of the way through and this was a DNF for me

This winter I read and fell in love with Catherine Walsh’s Holiday Romance. So when I saw her newest book, I knew I needed it. And it had everything I loved about Holiday Romance - Ireland setting, hilarious banter, perfect side characters.

Short Synopsis:
Katie loves her small country town in Ireland. But when a developer shows up to not only build a hotel and golf course in town, but to also tear down the bar she has worked at for the past decade, she loses her cool and does everything in her power to save it. But unfortunately the project manager is a bit sexy…I mean distracting.

My Thoughts:
This was such a fun and quick read. I picked it up on Saint Patrick’s Day and it was so fun to live in this Ireland town for the day! I was laughing one minute, swooning the next. This was just such a fun romance.

Read if You Like:
💖 Funny Banter
💖 Tattooed Men
💖 Ireland
💖 Quirky grandmas
💖 Friendship goals

I enjoyed this reading far more than I had expected. It’s a quick and easy read. 

Katie is a heart driven woman who know what she wants and know how to get it. She’s funny, loving and cares deeply about everyone around her. 

Her peace is disturbed when a big construction is taking place right in front of her house in a small and forgotten town in Ireland. One day, tired of having to wake up at 7am with blasting noises of trucks and construction, she paces right through the site and meets Callum Dempsey, handsome and disturber of peace. 

Callum is instantly captured by Katie’s stubbornness, and when he meets her, he realizes that everything he wanted and dreamed was right there in Ennisbawn. 

Their chemistry is off the charts, funny and lighthearted. The side characters was just as loving, Nush and Gemma are the best friends a girl can have.

Another 2023 anticipated read that fell short. The book is brought down by the romance's insta-love and then no subsequent development; almost half-way through the book and I still didn't know why they liked each other...On the upside, Catherine Walsh is funny no matter what she writes, and I'll always have "Holiday Romance."

This book was so cute! Katherine Walsh has a way with words and humor makes me laugh out loud. Callum was swoon worthy. I loved Katie’s grandma - she made me laugh. Love me a good small town romance.

Thank you NetGalley for eARC in exchange for an honest review

The Matchmaker: very cute and charming, enemies to lovers romance with some genuine laugh out loud moments. This is like a Hallmark movie set in small town Ireland, but gender swapped and told from the perspective of the small town woman. Excellent side characters and secondary story lines. Mild-moderate steam. My only complaint with this book is that it was a little insta-lovey. I’m not sure why they fell for each other besides being hot?