This story was entertaining, the characters likeable, and there were some fun aspects to it. The writing was well done and the story flowed well, I just wasn’t gripped by it or invested in the story or the lives of the characters.
It is what I would call a light mystery with a contemporary romance feel to it. You don’t have to be a big mystery reader to enjoy it, as the mystery is certainly a main aspect in the story, but it is not constantly in your face.
I enjoy Dana’s position within her family, as well as her tendency to not always do what she “should”. She is making her own way and she is taking the path she wants to, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
Even though it is probably not a story I would read again, I would recommend to someone who is looking for s light mystery and something not too heavy.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

Fun read! I enjoyed the quirkiness of Dana, and felt like she was an unique character. The storyline moved right along and kept you interested.

Received this book as an ARC from #netgalley for an honest review and opinion. First time reading a book by this author and must say it was a great book. Dana is an aspiring actress who finally lands a great job on a tv shopping channel show, unfortunately on the same day another tv host is mudered or is it suicide??? If that doesn't make for a crazy and eventful first day the hot audio engineer and police detective surely will...

**Disclaimer: I was given a free e-book in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.**

Title Love Sold Separately

Author Ellen Meister

Release Date August 25, 2020

Description from Amazon

Starting out single in the big city as an actor in her twenties, Dana Barry was sure she was on her way to success. But now, newly unemployed, her life is a mess…that is, until she hears The Shopping Channel is auditioning. Relying on her keen eye for detail, sheer bravado and knack for knowing what makes people tick, she lands the host job. While navigating tricky office politics, Dana is caught in the drama when the star host who hired her is found dead. She knows the prime suspect, a male colleague, is innocent—they were sharing some “alone time” together on the rooftop when they both heard the gunshot. Complicating things for Dana is the electric chemistry she feels with the handsome detective in charge. She is so close to having it all if, just this once, she doesn’t screw up. But trouble seems to come easier to Dana, and, she finds, it’s often a lot more fun.

Initial Thoughts

I love a good rom-com / murder mystery combo. I knew I had to apply for this book when I saw it on NetGalley!

Some Things I Liked

Dana’s observational skills. I thought Dana was a great character. I’d love to read more about her.
Realism. I thought this book was filled with realistic characters and actions. Rom-coms are often filled with fluff and are far-fetched. I liked that Love Sold Separately took a more realistic approach.
Quick read. I liked that I read this book in one sitting. The story was engaging and the mystery kept me on my toes.
Plot twists. I must say, I loved the final plot twist regarding the murder. I never saw that coming.

Series Value

This book feels complete but, that being said, I can also easily see more mysteries that Dana and Ari solve together. I would definitely read more in this series.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed this book. I thought some of the subplots were cheesy and underdeveloped but overall, it was a fun read and I loved the twists regarding the mystery elements.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommendations for Further Reading

Make or Break at the Lighthouse B&B by Portia MacIntosh – if you enjoyed the wit, romance, and ideas of starting over in a new place, try this rom-com by Portia MacIntosh.
Coming Home to Glendale Hall by Victoria Walters – if you liked the themes of re-discovering yourself, try this book by Victoria Walters.

A quick read and an enjoyable mystery but a lot of other unnecessary side stories. Dana stumbles into something a murder scene and is instantly charmed by the lead detective. He is successful, her own career is a mess. Opposites attract. That's pretty much the story.

Ok but not a favorite. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Love Sold Separately was good, not great. An easy read but unlikeable characters made it hard to stay engaged. There was a little too much going on and I would've enjoyed more focused development. Cute cover!

A fascinating mystery, with twists and turns like the most marvelous path. Dana is a fantastic lead, with pathos and understanding, and the professional world she has to navigate is dark and intense. This read you can't put down.

This was a fun spin on a murder mystery book with a side of romance. I spent much of the book trying to figure out the murder aspect and enjoyed the twist at the end. Dana’s character was a bit irritating to me and was kind of all over the place. I really wished for more scenes with Megan, as she was a great character. Maybe she should have her own book!

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Mira and Netgalley for an advanced reading e-copy of this book.

Dana Barry’s life is a mess. She’s an actor who got fired from her job at Hot Topic and is drowning her sorrows in drug and drink. So when her manager lets her know The Shopping Channel is auditioning for a host, Dana, slaps herself together and tries out. She does such a good job of talking about a comb for what seems like forever that the powers that be hire her on the spot.

On her first day, the boss is killed, and the rest of the book is spent trying to find the killer. It seems Dana spends more time at it than the police do.

As you may have guessed, with “love” in the title, this story is heavy on romance. First, it’s an employee and then a detective. Dana gets around.

I really enjoyed the behind-the-scenes peak at what goes on at places like QVC. It was a refreshing change from the setting of most books these days – a beach town, an old house that needs refurbishing or a school. I also admire someone, like Dana, who has all those adjectives ready and waiting to describe the fashions and jewelry.

I thought her father was a very strong character and what he said about her was very telling.
I liked the book for the most part, but had a little trouble keeping up with the evidence found that pointed to the murderer. It didn’t always make sense to me and this is why I gave it four stars instead of five.

Love Sold Separately is part whodunit murder mystery and part romance. There were a lot of interesting aspects to this title, but some fell flat.

I was interested to see how a down on her luck struggling actor gets involved in a murder investigation and the development of a romantic relationship along the way. There were a lot of moving pieces in this story- false leads, potential threats, relationship dynamics. Some of them made sense while others seemed a bit random and abrupt and thrown in simply as an effort to make the story multifaceted and more complex.

I found myself questioning many of the characters motivations and actions and also the appearance of the police reliance on amateur sleuthing.

Overall, Love Sold Separately is an enjoyable, light (as light as it can be when talking about a death investigation) read, but it left me wanting more development in some areas and less false starts in others.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.

3 stars!

I’m a fan of romance. I’m also a fan of murder in my books. Preferably both at once. I’m just a lucky girl to have the Hallmark Channel and Investigation Discovery as channel 85 and 87, so I can flip back between the two depending on my mood. Long story short, I love a romance, but I also love a good murder mystery, so Love, Sold Separately seemed like the best of both worlds, but unfortunately I couldn’t get myself invested in this story largely due to the writing style. I personally found it a bit bland, and holding back the potential of the story. I mean, a detective romance, signed, sealed, delivered, I’m yours *pun intended;)*

When I say I didn’t enjoy the writing style, I mean that I found it basic in the sense that, “insert dialogue” She said. “Insert dialogue” He said. Really gets boring after awhile. Seriously wanted her to spice up the writing style, and really let me get inside the character’s head because murder at a new job at the shopping channel! Ugh, I wanted to LOVE it, but I only found myself reading words.

My college drama professor told us that if there were anything else we could convince ourselves to do instead of acting, we should. The first pages of Ellen Meister's LOVE SOLD SEPARATELY reminded me of his advice, as financial problems mount and Dana has lost her “day job” in retail. Things look bleak, but best friend/agent Megan arranges an audition at The Shopping Channel, something with which I am unfamiliar, but now feel I know a bit about. The salary would solve so many problems, but a non-compete clause would mean giving up her theater group, Sweat City, but how can she let down her friends? There are so many more complications, murder and mayhem, sabotage, intrigue and romance, but I won’t put “spoilers” here.
I couldn’t put it down and at the end wished it could go on and on. I liked the characters and wanted more time with them. I also appreciate the insight into the rewards for those called to be actors, getting lost in a character, using nervous energy to power the performance, working as a team. The plot is rewardingly complex and the ending is satisfying. I love when I think I know what's coming, and then get a surprise twist.
A bit of universal wisdom: “She needed this to be a mellow day at work. But that wasn’t the way it went down.” (It never is . . . we used to pretend a lack of urgency to keep the school copier from messing up).

This title kept me going at just the right pace with great characters! As a main character I really enjoyed Dana's self awareness and involvement in the story, and the supporting characters were all very well done. I really enjoyed this book and hope to read more from the author in the future!

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC copy.

This was an interesting whodunnit mystery with sort of a romantic side plot, which I wasn't quite what I expected, but was still a fun enough read. Some of the story's threads felt a bit excessive/tangled at times, but I still think mystery and romance fans could enjoy this book in their own ways.

Ellen Meister’s ‘Love Sold Separately’ is mainly a murder mystery with a little bit of romance mixed in for good measure. While there are a lot of interesting narrative threads, most of them get tangled along the way.

Dana Barry is a broke actor presented with the job of a lifetime: a hosting gig at The Shopping Channel. Right after she’s hired, The Shopping Channel’s biggest star is found dead in her office, and the police suspect murder. As Dana tries to unearth the truth, she’ll find herself drawn to her coworker, Lorenzo, and then to police detective, Ari. In the meantime, she may be putting herself in harm’s way.

There were parts I enjoyed about this book, and others that I found confounding. I think Meister’s ambition to tell a multifaceted story should be applauded, but it didn’t quite work for me. There were too many false leads, too many random plot points. Dana’s character is interesting, but also kind of confusing, as her motivations and actions unfold in ways that seem too random. In my opinion, the emphasis on the Dana/Lorenzo relationship made the subsequent Dana/Ari relationship feel abrupt. I also wish that the events of the last two or so chapters would have been spread out and developed more.

Overall, 'Love Sold Separately' is an entertaining novel with some unpredictable elements, but it left me wanting a bit more.

**Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.**

It was an interesting original idea, but it seemed to have different plots that felt like things were just added on, but not really needed. I wish it was more the rom com book then who done it.

This book had a very interesting premise to it and that was originally why I requested to read it. I loved how you see a girl go from so down on her luck to landing a dream job, or so she thinks. I did not care for all of the drug use in the book. I did enjoy the twist at the end with the murderer and after reading it did click in my head that oh yeah that does make a lot of sense. I also enjoyed how the main character did not back down from doing her theater showing even knowing that she could lose her day job over it. All in all this book was okay to me. I found myself having a lot more questions than answers at the end and could have enjoyed the book without some of the extras (i.e: drugs, prescription drugs belonging to someone else, and sex tapes).

Thank you to netgalley, and Harlequin-Trade Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.