This book was not for me. I've enjoyed other books by O'Leary, but I did not connect with any of the characters or the plot. Everything felt a bit precarious, and the miscommunication at the center of it all felt too weak to be a driving plot point. Sadly wanted to like this more.

I am a huge fan of Beth O'Leary but I could not get this novel to work for me -- Izzy's character felt immature and Lucas' character felt bland, I didn't buy into their enemies to lovers vibe (the banter felt extremely immature, not how I'd expect adults and colleagues to interact) and I ended up not caring about their relationship. It really pains me to say, but this is not O'Leary's best book in my honest opinion. I look forward to checking out her new novel though.

This story unfolds with a delightful blend of rivalry that turns into unexpected connection, adding layers of complexity to the hero and heroine's journey. With a charming holiday backdrop, this novel offers a heartwarming and engaging tale of redemption, love, and the magic of the season, making it a delightful read for anyone in search of festive cheer. I'd definitely recommend this one as a holiday read to add to your TBR this fall / winter!

I found myself struggling to finish this book and skim reading more than I usually do. I’ve loved all of Beth O’Leary’s other novels but unfortunately I didn’t connect with this one. I found Izzy immature and Lucas had no personality. I wasn’t rooting for them at all. I enjoyed the side characters more than the MCs, I would have liked more of all the side characters. I’m sure many people will enjoy this cute enemies to lovers closed door romance but I unfortunately just couldn’t fully connect with the MCs.

3.5 stars. I liked the woodsy, small town hotel atmosphere, but couldn't always picture it. I enjoyed the two main characters, Izzy and Lucas, and their enemies to lovers vibes. Izzy occasionally got on my nerves, but I could understand where she was coming from. I love a found family story, but don't love one where miscommunication is a huge part of the tension. I also didn't feel like I fully bought the romance between Lucas and Izzy. I really enjoyed quite a few of the side characters. Mr. Thompson was the best! I thought the hunt for the ring owners was a fun storyline.

The writing is solid, creating a vivid atmosphere, but the plot is a mix of captivating moments and predictability. Characters are well-developed, though some lack depth. Pacing fluctuates, making it a decent but not outstanding read.

Beth O’Leary is one of my top auto-buy authors and The Wake-Up Call is her newest and might I say, best read yet!

Forest Manor Hotel and Spa is in trouble. Between Covid Lockdown and less guests staying in hotels these days, this 40 year hotel might be on its last leg. Izzy and Lucas need to work together to see if they can save it! Problem is, they HATE each other! Will they be able to do it?

The Wake-Up Call is definitely up there as one of my favorite reads of O’Leary’s. This enemies to lovers rom-com is a bit less serious than some of O’Leary’s other books and I was enamored with the charming hotel and cast of characters from the very beginning. I also love that it's a holiday romance!

The Forest Manor Hotel and Spa reminded me of a cozy, sweet hotel straight out of a Hallmark movie. I pictured soft lighting, wood panels and cheer decor. A huge Christmas tree and a long staircase with wood banisters you can slide down. Antique rooms and candlelight dinners and beautiful artwork hanging on the walls. I loved that the story centers around saving this hotel! Well, and also romance and love!

Izzy is sunshine and optimism. She is original and was a nerdy kid growing up and believes that “putting good stuff out in the university gets you good stuff back.” Her enemy Lucas is all brooding and serious and grumpy. They had a miscommunication last Christmas and have struggled to get along since. I love that they have to work together to help the hotel and one of their most important jobs is to clean out the lost and found bin in hopes of making a little extra money to keep the hotel afloat. Izzy finds some wedding rings and decides she can’t sell them and would rather get them back to their rightful owners. At first, Lucas thinks this is a waste of time but eventually sees the importance of it and they compete to get as many rings back to their rightful owners. There is so much funny banter and their chemistry is off the charts! I love their hard exteriors but over time you get to see softer versions of these too stubborn characters. They both have suffered losses and they way they learn to take care of one another is my favorite. I also love how other members of the Hotel staff and guests get involved!

Forest Manor has had to make major cutbacks and so many of the hotel staff really add to the story. The owner Mrs SB is so thoughtful and I loved Poor Mandy and the cook Arjun too. Mr. Townsend is so sweet and so is Barty, Ollie, and the Hedgers Family as well. It is the perfect found family and I love characters that you root for and fall in love with!

The Wake-Up call is the perfect blend of humor and more tender heartfelt deep moments. It's the perfect book to get you into the holiday spirit and even makes some references to the movie Love, Actually which is a Christmas favorite of mine!

If you haven't read O’Leary’s books, you must and after you read this one I would highly recommend The Flat Share and The No-Show

Beth O'Leary is an auto-read author for me. I loved this version of enemies to lovers, where you understood why there was friction but also why there was an attraction. Izzy and Lucas were dynamic whether they were bickering or kissing! I should have seen a few of the plot points coming but I almost never do, and I was charmed by the story and the many side characters.

Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC!

During a Christmas celebration at the hotel where she works, Izzy sends her coworker, Joshua, a love letter. When she goes to meet him, she finds him kissing her roommate. After that incident, they sniped at each other for a whole year. When they find out that their beloved hotel is financially in trouble, they slowly get close.

Their romance is like the pacing of a waltz: quick, quick, slow. Izzy and Joshua like each other, but this significant misunderstanding holds them back. It’s quick to figure that Joshua didn’t get the love letter, then laugh at it, then kiss Izzy’s roommate. He’s too kind to be that cruel. Yet, Izzy, still in love with Joshua, fights this attraction because she was hurt and is still hurting to ask him about the letter.

In between the tension of finding out the truth of the letter, the story of finding the people who owned lost wedding rings is a fun romp.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

𝙏𝙬𝙤 𝙝𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨—𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝-𝙧𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡𝙨—𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙚𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙚𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨, 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮.

📍 Read if you like:
• Workplace Romance
• Enemies To Lovers
• Grumpy/Sunshine
• Found Family
• Fade To Black

This was such a fun and quick fade-to-black romance. I usually tend to enjoy workplace romances so I was excited when I got this on NetGalley. There’s also an enemies-to-lovers trope, which is probably my all-time favorite trope.

When Izzy and Lucas are forced to be on the same shift at Forest Manor Hotel, they decide to save their job and hotel by returning the lost rings. They put aside their distasteful feelings and end up teaming up to save what they love.

I didn’t realize this book had a Christmas touch to it until I began reading it. I actually thought it was fun and interesting. The rivalry between the two wasn’t as strong as I was expecting and the banter wasn’t as appealing.

I honestly loved both characters and I’m glad there were Dual POVs. However, I feel like the book was way too slow. It took me a while to get through this book just because I kept losing interest. There was also a trope mixed in that annoyed me.

Overall though, this was a fun and quirky romance. I enjoyed the hotel setting and the adventures both characters took. They were both interesting in their own way, I’m excited to pick more up from this author.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Berkley for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Death Of Parent, Grief, Sexual Content, Infidelity, Toxic Relationship

I absolutely adore this author. I don’t remember where I came across her first but since I read her first book every time I see that she has one coming out, I either request to read the ARC or buy the book when it comes out. So when I saw that she had a new book out I was about to get it as an ARC, however, life and my new job got in the way of reading it in time for publication. However, in my mind, better late than never.

Izzy works at the reception desk of a local “mom and pop” hotel in England. With her works the every so annoying and disgusting Lucas, who is from Brazil. The thing is, Izzy had at one point an absolute crush on Lucas until she poured her heart out to him in a Christmas card and he just never responded. What ensues next is a classic enemies-to-lovers scenario. Ok, I will say the beginning is a slowish burn. But once the book gets going it’s a steady clip of a storyline. I will say this author has once again knocked it out of the park for me. It made me giggle, made me ugrrrhhhh out of frustration for Izzy and her weird quirks that she has that hold her back at times.

I loved how she wrote Lucas. It was the fact that she peppered his speech with Portuguese words. Honestly, if that was me I would have swooned and the book would have been over. The way the author wrote the whole misunderstanding was good. Izzy wasn’t willing to talk about it and Lucas had no idea what was going on. It was a classic of crossed wires and it was one of the better ones I have read. I loved Izzy’s friends. They became her family and stepped in when her parents passed away. She had that support system still and it was nice to see. Lucas’s family needed work, the author painted a picture of a family opposite of Izzy’s. It was interesting to see how they interacted with their families. All in all, it was just a good book. I binge-read roughly 45% of it in one night. I will be waiting patiently for the author’s next book to come out, when it does I’ll pounce on it.

It’s that time of year when the day is unclear, I sink into the couch a little earlier than usual and read more than I have in months. I read The Wake-Up Call this week to keep the cozy feelings alive. Beth O’Leary is one of my favorite rom-com writers and I’ve read her books to date. The Flatshare remains my favorite, though I enjoyed The No Show, The Road Trip, and The Switch.

The Wake-Up Call is told from alternating points of view and follows Izzy and Lucas, two feuding receptionists at Forest Manor Hotel, which is, quite literally, falling apart. This is a heartfelt story about two people who lean into disliking each other because they each think the other hates them. It’s a quick read and I enjoyed the “save the hotel!” plotline. My only qualm is this features a trope I don’t particularly enjoy. That aside, I still really liked it and would recommend it if you like O’Leary!

3.5 rounded down.

This has an interesting twist on the miscommunication trope, which is usually the trope I loathe but this was cute! I also loved reading this around Christmas as the past & current events of the story do happen mostly at Christmas. It wasn't quite five stars for me as I wasn't sold on the love interest unfortunately but it was enjoyable.

Beth O'Leary's The Flatshare is one of my fave romances, so I was very eager to read this one. A perfect holiday romance, this has enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine vibes. I wasn't crazy about the miscommunication-- there were a lot of times when I wanted to shake the main leads into talking to one another, but once we got over that hump, I enjoyed it a lot more. All in all, a solid romance! Thank you so much to Berkley for giving me a chance to read and review this arc!

Rating: 3.5/5

Thank you to Berkley and PRH for access to this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion!

Beth O'Leary is fully a hit or miss author for me with this one being a bit meh. I did really love the concept of this book and enjoyed a big part of the novel but I was not invested in the couple at all.

I absolutely adored the setting and all the side characters. I loved the save-the-inn storyline and connecting with former guests. Each ring being returned to their owner was so sweet. This was a heartwarming story to read during the holidays.

For the romance: their miscommunication, enemies to lovers style vibe, could have be solved with one conversation. I wanted these two to clear the air earlier, it could have been so simple and it was frustrating for me to listen to at times.

The wake up call by Beth O’Leary

The wake up call byBeth O’Leary is a wonderful holiday romance and the perfect grumpy meets sunshine trope. I loved all the laugh out loud moments so reminiscent of a good Beth O’Leary classic.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Please read it you’ll thank me later..

As a big fan of The No-Show last year, I was equal parts excited and hesitant to read this book. How could Beth O'Leary possibly follow up to one of my favorite books of 2022? Well, I'm happy to say that she has done it! The Wake-Up Call is the most perfect feel good, holiday romance.

We start by meeting our two main characters, Izzy and Lucas, in the midst of the Christmas season. They both work the front desk (and many other odd jobs) at an old Inn. While Izzy is all about Christmas, stringing decorations everywhere, Lucas is not in a festive mood. The Inn is financially in trouble and Lucas and Izzy have different ideas on how to save it, which starts the bet. Throughout the book, our two main characters' wildly different personalities put them into some sticky (and steamy) situations that are very entertaining for the reader.

I loved how the author included backstory that really fleshed out the characters and explained the reasoning behind their moods, actions, and hang-ups, as opposed to leaving us with a simple grumpyxsunshine cliché romance.

All in all, if you're looking for heartwarming, fun holiday romance with a slightly less serious tone than the author's previous novel, I would highly recommend this book. It is the perfect book to read curled up under a blanket with a hot chocolate in hand.

Read if you like:
- grumpy x sunshine
- scenes filled with tension
- fade to black
- fun side characters
- rom-com style airport chases

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishers for providing an advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

The passive-aggressive business at the front desk made me crazy, but once they joined forces, I was totally invested!

Izzy loves her job working at Forest Manor Hotel. Even though the place has fallen on hard times, she’s determined to help bring it back to life. Lucas is a Brazilian ex-pat working at the hotel, and Izzy’s arch nemesis. He’s the stern to her bubbly, the realist to her optimist. In order to pay for renovations they decide to go through the lost and found and sell what they find. Except Izzy can’t bring herself to sell any of the lost wedding rings. As they work to return them, they learn more about each other and realize they really aren’t all that different deep down inside.

I love Beth O’Leary and honestly, in my opinion this is her best yet. While the miscommunication trope isn’t always my favourite it’s kind of in the background with this one. Izzy and Lucas compete as to who can return the most lost rings and slowly learn more about each other. Their falling in love makes sense and like the characters surrounding them, we can all see it. The dual POV really works, and with Christmas as the backdrop it’s a holiday romance with substance.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve liked Beth O’Leary in the past (specifically The FlatShare) but I’m afraid this one was a bit of a miss for me.

First off, Miscommunication as a trope, is an immediate Nope from me. I spend the whole book muttering, “Y’all need Jesus and Brene Brown.”

Second, while I love (LOVE LOVE) Enemies to Lovers, I found these characters particularly unlikeable.

Third, I side-eyed this whole plot. Maybe, instead of a road-trip, have a YARD SALE.

I did, however, love some of the banter, and there’s nothing I love more than an old hotel, so this wasn’t an entire waste of time.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this ARC.