This was a sweet second chance romance with a lot of family drama in it as well, and the Christianity aspect was not too preachy. There was definitely a lot going on: deception, resentment, teenage angst, a sickly parent, and more. This book was enjoyable over all even though it felt like there was a bit too much going on in it at times. Overall I would say this book was just ok for me, but given that it’s a debut novel this one was decent and I would definitely give this author another chance.

It's a great debut novel by Jessica and while it was serious in places, I also found myself laughing and smiling as I turned the pages as I wanted to know more. My one complaint is that I found that despite being an Australian author there were parts of the book that were Americanised and would've rather she wrote it for an Australian audience instead of an American one or not forced Australian culture into the book. It is great to read an Australian Christian author though and was a pleasant surprise to come across the book.
The characters were great and I liked getting to know Natalie and Jeremy and their histories along with their love/hate relationship. The book got real and raw in places and it wasn't all smooth sailing for the characters and things got messy in areas which is realistic, especially how at times in the book everything went wrong which is often how it is in life! I really enjoyed the book and I highly recommend reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc of Love and other mistakes. I didn’t know when requesting that this was a Christian book. It shouldn’t matter that it was, but I think it is part of the reason I couldn’t seem to get invested in the story. Natalie is the daughter of a southern minister who thought she had her life planned out, but circumstances changed seven years ago when her fiancé left her, her father fell sick, she had to skip college, bills became overbearing, etc. All I could think was, it was seven years ago...move on! She is now trying to get a job for a new hot shot ministry while babysitting the ex-fiancé’s baby part time. She is such a mess of insecurities that I would never hire her. Yes, she is helping her parents and kind to the ex’s niece and baby, but I cannot look past her ability to help herself. Sorry, this one was not for me.

About Books: Love and Other Mistakes
When I started this book I was expecting a fun, fluffy read. Boy did it have something saved up for me. Just about every nitty-gritty thing that could go wrong to someone? It probably happened somewhere this book. And it absolutely took me along for all the Love and Other Mistakes.
I was offered an ARC by Netgalley in exchange for a review. All opinions are strictly my own.

The story

Natalie Groves was meant for great things. But soon after her fiancé left, Natalie’s father was diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly her grand plans evaporated . . . and God felt very far away.
Fast-forward seven years, and an internship presents Natalie a chance at her destiny—but she needs a job to work around it. And the only offer available is worse than a life sentence. Her ex Jeremy, now back in town, is desperate for help with his infant son and troubled teenage niece, Lili. And Natalie may be just the one to help Jeremy . . . provided they don’t kill each other in the process.

When Jeremy and Natalie join forces, sparks fly. But will either of them get burned along the way?

The opinion

As I said - the actual story of this book? Not at all what I thought I signed up for. Like - at all.
https://twitter.com/SaarTalks/status/1154443207582867456?s=19

And, let me be clear: we're not talking a bit of drama. Love and Other Mistakes really delves into the dark side of live in a lot of ways. Firstly there's Natalie. And, let's be real - she's not had an easy deal, the past ouple of years. She went from happily engaged, happily working with her father (pun intended), happily doing her studies... To none of that. To face the loss, both around her, and of her sense of self? It made the past 7 years something of a struggle.

Jem (Jeremy) hasn't had it much easier - his childhood, marked mainly by the death of his mother and a 'heavy on the tough'-love approach of his dd has made him more than a little lacking in the faith in love department. Having to move back home a single father, and not having spoken to his own father for actual years? Doesn't help the situation.

Neither does the fact that he suddenly has to take care of his niece Lili who basically has seen her whole world (and family - mainly family) fall apart in a very short span of time. I mean, out of all of them I probably felt for Lili most. She literally is thrust into a situation that her parents deal with in the worst possible way - and then order her to be quiet about.

Throughout all this the author manages to show a variety of perspectives on each situation, and yet avoids repeating herself. That, combined with the powerful way all these characters were written down? It dragged me through this entire book in a matter of hours.

The rating: 4/5
I mean, I figure it's pretty obvious by now that I really enjoyed this book. While definitely not the book if you want something light, Love and Other Mistakes will be perfect if you want a book that will really take you along with these characters as they make their way through some pretty difficult circumstances. Oh, and if you're in the market for some great character development!

-Saar

I had no idea this was a Christian fiction story and was slightly surprised by how much the church is involved until I looked up the book. It was like a very dramatic episode of seventh heaven minus that amount of children. I liked how they tackled the subject of hypocrisy of church members however there was a couple of story lines that were left open. I think the main theme of this story was relationships to god and how humans we can twist it around. Despite being a Christian book, it wasn’t excessively preachy. It tried to paint one couple as the main story but this had various story lines going through it that were left unresolved. It was an interesting read

This was an interesting book. The characters had very real problems and felt authentic. Happy endings aren’t guaranteed for everyone. The characters had a lot of issues in their relationships….some long-standing. It felt messy and complicated, just like real life.
I especially enjoyed Natalie and Jem’s relationship. I laughed out loud at some of the scrapes they got into and enjoyed their funny banter. Natalie is an amazing woman who is trying so hard to do the right thing for those she cares about, even if it comes at her personal expense. She is blessed to have people in her life who will ask the hard questions to get her to think, even if she doesn’t always like what they say.
This is a story of love and mistakes, reconciliation and forgiveness, joy and grief. I’ll definitely check out Kate’s next book. Thank you to Thomas Nelson for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
#LoveAndOtherMistakes #Netgalley

I loved this book! It's a great feel good love story, but true to life, not fairytale. It is very clean, no bad language, etc. For those who care.

I had a hard time getting into this book, because it seems like there are so many things going on that it’s a little distracting. However, I kept reading, and I was glad that I did. This book gives light to many different struggles in a very relatable way. Definitely worth a read!

*thanks to Netgalley and the published for a complimentary ARC for an honest review*

I picked this book expecting something else. I realized it was a Christian book, which is not a genre I would usually go for, but I picked it anyway because it was billed as a hilarious romance. The thing is that it was quite heavy for a hilarious romance. A cheating pastor (caught by his daughter, who he then manipulates into staying quiet), a dad with cancer, an ex with a baby (whose baby mama decided an abortion was against her values, but abandoning her kid wasn't), it was all too much. I got to 50% without any hilarious (or just humorous) parts, and there was some romance but more family drama than romance. This one was not for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for sending me a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Natalie Groves had her life sorted out - she was engaged with the man of her dreams and was soon going to college to study what she loved. But then her fiance dumped her ten weeks before their wedding and her father was diagnosed with cancer and all her dreams and plans fell apart. Seven years later Jeremy Walters, her ex-fiance returns back to the town with his infant son and asks Natalie to be his child's nanny. Even though Natalie wants nothing to do with the man who broke her heart, she desperately needs the money to work around her big internship opportunity and hence, accepts the job. Soon she realizes that even though she hates Jeremy, her old feelings for him never really went away and even he changed into a better person in the past seven years. Now the question is if she can forgive the man who hurt her and learn to love and trust him again.

This book was a little different than what I originally expected. I went into this expecting a enemies to lovers romance with hilarious dialogues and lighthearted moments. While the book does have some fun moments, it also delves into serious topics like cheating, family problems and forgiveness and I have to say it was pretty well executed.

I think Natalie was too civil and nice to Jem. I mean you would expect a woman who had been dumped weeks before wedding without any real reason to be more upset. But she was actually friendly. May be I am just bothered because I wanted more hilarious fights and banters. I do not particularly like Jem - his reason for abandoning Nat was too selfish and dumb and he didn't show enough remorse. In fact most of the time he acted like he didn't do anything wrong. But I loved his relationship with Olly and Lili. Jem and Nat's scenes were cute too. I loved the idea of second chance and looking past the old grudges. I felt genuinely bad for Lili and am so glad that Nick was there for her.

Overall, this book was a good summer read and I somewhat enjoyed it.

3.25 stars

3.5, rounded up.

I'm tagging this as fiction, and spiritual (more about that later). It's billed as a romance, and there is romance in it, but that is overshadowed by so many issues it read more like a problem novel.

To discuss it, I have to go into spoiler territory, so if you don't want to be spoiled, don't read on.

It's a debut novel, and as such it's impressive. The author certainly packed the story with issues, keeping the pacing boiling along.

Central is Natalie, who was dumped by her fiancé weeks before her marriage, which caused her entire life to crash and burn. She is back in her home town after a series of bad jobs that didn't work out--and right when she begins a promising internship for a new ministry, she runs into her ex, Jeremy. Who is also back in town--with a baby. He's a single dad.

Natalie ends up being hired by Jeremy to watch his baby, as he, too, is beginning a new job, at the local newspaper.

Along the way we meet Natalie's wonderful parents--her dad, her idol, is retiring from his lifelong ministry as he is dying of cancer. Jeremy's brother and sister-in-law, Mike and Steph, are co-pastors at the church that Jeremy left, but apparently he's returned to. We also meet what I think the best character in the book, Mike and Steph's daughter Lili.

Lili discovers that her dad is cheating on her mom, and when Mike finds out, he pleads with his daughter not to tell anyone. That's right, the pastor makes his teenage daughter complicit in his cheating.

Jessica Kate writes about these flawed characters with sympathy, showing how fragile human beings are--this is no postmodern novel smirking superiorly at the "corrupt fundies" that has become so very common in fiction these days.

The problem is, this issue just about overwhelms the rest of the book, as Lili tries to deal, makes friends with an awesome teen whose family is full of their own problems, and finally can't deal and runs away. Meanwhile Nat is dead set against trusting Jeremy, though they are instantly attracted to each other all over again.

But then things take another horrible turn when Jeremy's baby turns out to have a severe case of diabetes. That's right, another heart-breaking issue!

For the most part, Jessica Kate deals fairly with the characters--including Jeremy's ex, who comes knocking at the door to see her baby after dumping him on Jeremy right after she gave birth.

Probably the best sequence was Lili's running away. Her quest for understanding resonates with a sense of verisimilitude, and her faltering faith and how she deals is easily the best treatment of that subject in the book. For the most part, the others seem not to remember they are Christians, except intermittently; when Mike finally tackles his issues, the hard stuff is kept entirely off-stage, which nearly shipwrecks the book. How did his congregation react to his confession? We don't know. How did he justify breaking the Ten Commandments when he's supposed to be a leader of his flock? We don't know, except that he finally got his wife to agree to therapy--which she wouldn't do before because of how it would look. After all this heavy stuff, conflict resolution is pretty much whisked past us, which is anti-eucatastrophe.

Meanwhile, Nat's dad is not going to make it. *Definitely* not light-hearted romance.

Natalie and Jeremy get their happy ending, but their resolution is very much overshadowed by the entire Mike issue, and the diabetes and cancer don't help. And yet the author is so good at painting three-dimensional characters with strong appeal. I liked everybody in the book, warts and all, though I don't think this is exactly a fun and light-hearted romance. Given that, I still look forward to seeing where this author goes. Lots of talent there.

I definitely had high hopes for this book because I'm a sucker for a second chance romances. It was good but not the greatest. I did like the characters of Natalie and Jeremy. They were relatable and definitely interesting. I think the big focus of the story was forgiveness. Also, trust was a big focus in the book. This book definitely had me chuckling and some points, but there are definitely some more serious moments in the book too. Natalie and Jeremy make a cute couple with an adorable baby and a teen girl. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute second chance romance!

Enriching story about forgiveness and different types of love. Natalie dealing with her job falling apart and her terminal ill father. Then suddenly Jem her ex fiance comes back into her life. Only he now a single father with a nine month. old boy Ollie.
A little boy that could if been her's if he hadn't lift her seven years ago a few weeks before their wedding. Now he back in her life asking her to be Ollie's nanny. It solves her money problem and allow her to go after her dream job. Can she open her heart and allow his family and him into her life? Taking on new responsibilities and still being there for her mother and father.
The author brings in a family full of characters each one facing their own demons. Each one asking if God is there? This Christian Romance touch on an important question. Can you forgive someone who has hurt you? Warning some reviewers didn't like the ending of the book. I found it more true to life that it wasn't all wrapped up in a neat bow.

This book wasn’t quite what I was expecting. I had heard it described as a romantic comedy, and although there were some funny moments, it dealt with some pretty heavy issues. There were a lot of storylines and characters introduced at the beginning of the book, which was a little confusing at first. Everything did end up coming together and making sense, but it felt like there were so many stories going on, we didn't get much detail about any of them.

Some of the side characters were actually my favorites: Lili and Nick's friendship was really well written, and baby Olly provided some fun moments too. The overarching themes of forgiveness and finding your worth and purpose were what redeemed the book for me. Overall, I enjoyed it and I will read the next book in the series when it comes out next year!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This a new author and new genre for me. I enjoyed the book. It was a great second chance love story. You get to see growth with Jem and Natalie as they develop a new relationship by starting as friends. You also get to see Lili figure out her life as a teenager with some family drama going on. I like the characters and the breakthroughs each of them had. I had trouble with the transitions in the story. I did a lot or rereading to figure on what was going on. One time Natalie is talking about leaving on a date and then the next part is two days later. I received a complimentary copy of the book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I really enjoyed this book about second chance love. Jessica Kate writes about faith, love, and family. Natalie’s having a hard time in life and losing her job, having her ex fiancée move back into town with a baby and her dad being sick isn’t helping. She feels like everything that can go wrong, seems to be. She’s trying to help her parents financially and losing her job was the not what she needed. Her ex fiancée moves back and he was the one who broke her heart when he left town just weeks before their wedding. Now he’s in need of a babysitter and she’s in need of the cash. Can she do it? Jeremy is hoping she can so he can get his life back in order. Jeremy is the ex and has his own life struggles. This book has these characters who lives are based around their Christian Church and makes them question those beliefs and asks questions about hard facts in life. Being an adult isn’t easy and questions about life and death make it more complicated. This book is well written and if you like books based on faith and family, you will enjoy this second chance at love novel.

It's so hard to find good christian fiction but Jessica Kate hits the nail on the head in Love and Other Mistakes. Right from the start the book is engaging and keeps you interested the whole way through. The author's blending of God and christianity with the struggles that Natalie and Jeremy face really feel authentic and not an afterthought. If you're looking for a good and fun read that properly integrates God into REAL characters, this is definitely the book you should be reading next.

Love and Other Mistakes was like a cookie freshly warmed from the oven with an ice-cold glass of milk. It was warm and heartfelt. There was no spice or “sexy times,” but what it lacked in sexual content, (which it did not need) it more than made up for in faith, hope, and love.

Natalie’s life is a mess. Her fiancée up and walked out months ago. Her job is dangling in the air, and she’s about to be late to a meeting that might save her business. She gets a call, her ex needs help. He’s been in an accident and she’s the first number the stranger finds. She wants to walk away but she can’t I’m good conscience. So, she speeds over there to discover him dizzy on the ground, with a baby on his arms. He had a kid? And why is the stranger leaving her here?

The accident sets off a series of incidents that bring the two closer and closer, much to Natalie’s resistance.

What unfolds before our eyes is a beautiful and slow-moving in a good way, love story that is sure to warm the hearts of believers, and non-believers. This is a Christian romance, but the author delivers the faith aspect almost coyly. It’s very soft without being overly aggressive.

Jem, is a new father, with a brand new baby—whose mother walked out on them. He’s back home, avoiding his gruff father, in his dream career, and trying to get his ex-fiancée back, even if it means luring her into nannying for him.

The characters are true-to-life. Their problems are problems any average person might have. Their struggles are presented in a realistic way; that leaves the reader feeling understood and hopeful.

The writing is decent and engaging. I would definitely be interested in more from this author. A nice, simple romance without too much fuss—oh, with a cute gummy baby boy.

Well done.

This book was ok. It is more suitable for young adults and sort of seemed like a CW TV show. The characters were a bit immature for the age.


***I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.***

DNF at 30% Christian fiction, A Pastor cheated, just not for me. I don't know what happened. I liked the cover just not the story or what I read of the story.