I was really excited to read this one due to the premise of it and storyline, but it just fell flat for me. I think it could have been 100-150 pages shorter. There were times it just dragged on for me with nothing significant happening. I was glad to be done with it considering I have so many anticipated reads to be read right now. I do want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this one as an advanced copy.

The Five-year plan 3.5 stars it was a book that I really wanted to read, the Blurb caught my eye, the description sounded promising but as soon as I started reading the first pages, I started to feel like something was missing. Everything was there to make this book an amazing read but I felt like it was liking of depth.. The dialogs were too quick and the situations and scenarios change also very quickly, I had a little difficult time identifying when the dialogs change from character to character but other than that as I said it was a great story that got lost in the pages.

Oral and Aiden's story started five years ago, they meet by mistake and since that very moment both of them have never been the same, she was only there for her job and in the end, she felt like their encounter was more than just a simple interview but life and circumstances have a funny way of changing things and Aiden and Orla soon will find that nothing is set in stone.

Orlas' character was perfect for Aiden but at times her internal dialogs were very insecure, and sometimes a little immature for her age. she fought so much the attraction and the love they felt for each other but no matter how much she tried everything was meant to be

Aiden was determined and always knew what he wanted until he met Orla, a girl who will change his life and every rule he ever wanted to follow.

I recommend that you give this book a chance and make your own conclusions, what it wasn't for me maybe it ill be perfect for you.

I had many thoughts on this book. The story is about a young female reporter named Orla (a name which seemed unsuitable to the character) who lives in a small town and is going to cover her first solo story on a travel photographer named Aiden. The two meet, and a unexpected injury blossoms into a fast-friendship turned romance. Unfortunately, Aiden, always on the move, quickly moves to another part of the world, leaving Orla, and her five year plan, behind. Five years later we catch up with Aiden and Orla who have recently met again, and realize that some feelings have not gone away with time.

At the beginning of the story I really enjoyed it, I was excited to keep reading and I loved the characters. However, the longer this book went on, I could not wait for it to end. The story dragged with too much dialogue between the characters. There was a complete lack of other characters or enough of a secondary story to parallel the main storyline. The information about Aiden's job dragged on and was uninteresting. Orla becomes annoying because of her stubbornly refusing to give up on her five year plan, which she could adapt as she has a job she can do from anywhere in the world. Orla was so set on everything but never communicated her feelings with Aiden. Then, she was upset at how everything turned out, it did not make sense. In the end, suddenly her feelings just come out and they live happily ever after! It was extremely predictable. I found that their conversations went in circles, they talked about the same things over and over again, it was not enjoyable to read. The story could have been written in less than half of what it was. I generally liked the love between the two characters, their connection was sweet and the storyline was not bad, the overwhelming details and similar dialogue made it an unenjoyable read.

The book opens in present day. Aiden is a famous wildlife photographer and has filmed lots of documentaries (think Bear Grylls) and is in London for an exhibition of his photographs. Orla is a journalist. She's personally invited to the opening. They speak very briefly before he gets swept away to talk to other guests. She leaves early. She gets on the train and right before the doors close, Aiden jumps on. It's been 5 years since Aiden has seen Orla.
Flashback to when they first met and this is the story of Orla and Aiden. They meet cute. She's a junior reporter in the small town of Hawksely and he's a quirky Irish wildlife photographer. She gets sent to interview him about the otters he's observing. She sprains her ankle and he ends up taking care of her because he's a nice guy. They have great friend chemistry and are super flirty but he isn't into relationships because he's always on the move from one exotic locale to another. They spend the summer together observing otters and doing the will they or won't they dance. Orla has a 5 year plan. Does Aiden fit into her plan? Does she fit into his?
I loved the way this book started and then went into flashback but I have to say, the flashback was a little too long. Also, I found Aiden to be a bit creepy and persistent just showing up randomly at the beginning. I get that he liked her, but the dude was a little too "friendly."
All in all, it was enjoyable and had a different story structure, which was refreshing.

The story begins in the present and then flashes back through their time together five years previously to tell the story of their friendship. Not an unrealistic, romantic, love story like some, more of a realistic story of friendship becoming something more beautiful.

When they first met Orla was a strong, independent woman, recently gaining her first job as a reporter, who has a five-year plan to improve her career and nothing, not even love, is going to stop her. Enter Aiden, a wildlife photographer who is her first solo interview. After a scare and unlikely accident, they are drawn together and become unlikely but great friends, that is until Aiden gets called away to his next assignment.

Flash forward five years and Orla goes to Aiden’s photography exhibition on his invitation. He is now a famous wildlife photographer with some documentaries under his belt and she is a successful journalist working on a large paper in London, her dreams fulfilled.

I really enjoyed this light-hearted read about second chance romance with a lovely happy ending.

💗 BOOK REVIEW 💗
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The Five Year Plan | Carla Burgess
Pub date: 3/20/20
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RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5
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SYNOPSIS: Orla is a trainee reporter with a five-year plan: work her way up the career ladder, move to London and secure a job on a big national newspaper. She doesn’t want a boyfriend, he’s only going to hold her back anyway.
Aiden spends his life travelling the world and living in a tent. He knows his goal: to photograph animals and raise awareness of global warming and wildlife conservation. He’s definitely not looking for a relationship past the odd casual hook-up!
So when Orla and Aiden’s lives collide, they do everything to not fall for each other – with the opposite effect. But they stick to their plans, and go their separate ways…
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REVIEW: ** possible spoiler? ** This book is so much more than a modern RomCom/ChickLit novel! Carla Burgess did a wonderful job bringing A strong, independent, passionate woman to life in this book. I feel it so appropriate on #internationalwomensday to review this book and highlight such a refreshing woman lead. It was also so heartwarming and endearing reading about Orla and Aiden’s friendship turned love. You could feel his kindness and caring for her. But the best part to me was how even when he asked her to come with him, she walked her own path and lived her own life FOR HER! Such a great testament to taking care of yourself and following your dreams. I just really loved the overall feeling of love in this book whether while they were friends, or apart, or more...
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This was a happy, heartwarming read I would definitely recommend & won’t be my last Carla Burgess novel!

I absolutely loved story of Aiden and Orla. I loved how it began in the present and then flashed back. Orla, a new reporter, meets, hunky, free spirited Aiden, on an assignment. After an unlikely accident, the two become fast friends, which quickly leads to more, only problem, Aiden is a free spirited, adventurer, while Orla has a very clear, five year plan,

The realness of this story immediately drew me it. It wasn’t some far fetched lovey dovey story. I highly recommend this book for those looking for a realistic love story!

THE FIVE-YEAR PLAN is nice but not really memorable story of easy friendships blossomed between two strangers. It is a firt-person, present tense, single POV; told from one Orla Kennedy who struck me as an insipid character. Consequently, it diluted the promising scenario altogether for me.

The book started at present before going back revealing how Orla first met Aiden and the unlikely friendship developing between them. I actually enjoyed the back and forth between them where Aiden introducing Orla to things she’d not usually find interesting. Only, she was so darned clueless even this reader got frustrated before long into the story. Yes, there abound romcom wherein the main player(s) are oblivious and said cluelessness are stuff of hilarity that boost the story. But when the story was delivered from the oblivious person’s POV ...it became a nightmare! I was afraid I blew a vessel over the exasperation I had throughout reading.

Just to clarify, it all went well. This slow burn romantic comedy had our heroine win her love of her life in the end, amidst encounters with a bunch of interesting characters along the way. But oh how I wish for Aiden’s insight being included in it. It might improve the story for me. Maybe.


Copy of this book is kindly given by the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book appealed to me because of the cover and the plot. I always gravitate towards books that have some kind of journalism aspect and Orla, one of the protagonists in this novel, in this novel is a journalist! I enjoyed the writing and many of the strong relationships found in this novel; however, the relationship between Orla and Aidan seemed rushed to me—ultimately, this was my primary frustration with this novel.

For example, in the second chapter when Orla and Aidan first meet, Orla sprains her ankle and Aidan proceeds to take her to the hospital to get her checked out, drops her off at her apartment and helps her get settled in her apartment. This felt awkward to me—especially considering they just met—but the characters think nothing of it. Again, the third chapter finds Aidan visiting Orla at her apartment the next day. He then proceeds to make her breastfast, etc. This continues throughout the novel and continues to feel unrealistic to me.

Overall, I would have liked to have seen a relationship that evolved gradually over the course of the novel.

This was such a delightful read! I loved every moment of it. It made me want to go travel and explore London and Ireland! I am sad I finished the story so fast.

I enjoyed the beginning of this book and loved the second chance romance trope. Flashbacks, however, are a tricky to.pull off and I found myself wanting more of the present story than the past one.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had all three tropes that I love in a romance novel.

At the beginning of the book you are introduced to Orla and Aiden who meet again for the first time in 5 years at one of Aiden's wildlife photography exhibits. Orla now writes for a large newspaper and lives in London. Aiden has been traveling the world over the last 5 years. Prior to the exhibit Aiden has sent Orla an invite that she assumes is because she works for a large newspaper. I think it is safe to say that Orla’s assumptions were incorrect.

The next ¾ of the book backtracks through the history of when Orla and Aiden first met and fell in love. Unfortunately, Orla has a plan of where they want to be in 5 years and Aiden is in no way ready to settle down, so they go their separate ways once Aiden receives his next assignment.

If you are a fan of second chance romance, friends to lover’s romance, and/or slow burn romance all tied up in one book than I think you will enjoy this one. Plus, there may be otters in included. I mean who doesn’t love a romance book with otters in it?!

Thank you to NetGalley/HQ Digital for allowing me to read an ARC of this book.

I like other reviewers hate to not finish a book once started. I realise the amount of time and effort that has gone into it’s creation., but I’m afraid I realised that life is too short to keep on with a story that is just not going anywhere.
Some chic-lit authors have the ability to retain my attention in quite lengthy flashback chapters but I’m afraid this author didn’t. I found the heroine to be childish in her manner, certainly not acting her 22 years and the dialogue was really stilted during the first third of the book.
The first chapter started so well and I thought oh this is going to be a good novel but I’m afraid the back story just went on and on and on..
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read a preview copy but I’m afraid I couldn’t finish it.

I chose this book due to the cover (cute!) and the storyline had promise. This was the first book that I've read by Carla Burgess. I loved the first chapter; it started out like a great rom com. However, I didn't care for the flashbacks as they were quite lengthy and too drawn out for me. As well, I really didn't care for Aiden either; it seems like Orla always has to do the compromising in the relationship which irked me to no end. I like to read about women characters that are strong and stand up for themselves. The characters were supposed to be in their 20's-30's but the dialogue sounded a lot younger.

Thanks #netgalley for the ARC.
#thefiveyearplan

I loved this book! Aiden and Orla had the perfect friendship/relationship from the very beginning. I found myself cheering them on. I also loved that it centered so heavily on the photography/documentary aspect of the book. Would highly recommend!

Special thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, HQ Digital, for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

Oh boy.

I would have loved to start my blog with a glowing, amazing review but c'est la vie. First, let me tell you what this is all about. There may be spoilers below so be warned.

Summary:
Orla Kennedy receives an invitation to an art gallery showcasing her wildlife photographer ex-boyfriend Aiden Byrne. Aiden has achieved worldwide and household name success (WHAT?) as a wildlife photographer and documentarian (is that a word?). Orla is NERVOUS so she brings along Aiden's #1 groupie/her co-worker. From there Aiden and Orla reunite and things get awkward so Orla runs away in the rain and Aiden chases her onto the train. After this chapter, we are whisked back into time (five years ago) to relive Orla & Aiden's too long love story and we need to find out if these two crazy kids can make it work five years later. She has a CAREER! He doesn't want KIDS! He also TRAVELS and lives in a TENT! HOW CAN THEY MAKE IT WORK?

My thoughts:
Okay, honestly, this book's first chapter had promise. I loved the premise of the two of them reuniting and Aiden chasing her to the train. I even loved the flashback right after but then the flashback went on for what felt like years. The writing got sloppy and awkward and the dialogue made me cringe.

NOT ONLY THAT, but Aiden is a douchebag. He pressures Orla into sleeping with him because "They're just friends! Who cares???" and then expects her to drop everything including her crush on the Italian barista FABIO and her job and apartment to travel to India with him...nope. THEN, five years later, he pulls the same thing and expects her to drop everything including her career and her boyfriend (JUSTICE FOR JAMES) to move back to Ireland with him. He decides not to compromise at all and she does the majority of it. ANNOYING. Also there was more toilet humor in this book than I needed to hear about (I understand how people use the bathroom with camping, don't push that on me when I'm reading a romance novel).

Ugh. So, this one was difficult to finish. I hate DNFing books so I powered through it but yikes it was painful until the end. Like I said, it held promise right at the beginning but fell off so completely by the end. Another silver lining is that Aiden talks about otters a lot and who hates otters? Not me.

Release Date: 3/20/20

Rating: ⭐️

The synopsis for The Five-Year Plan caught my eye. Unfortunately, it just didn’t live up to my expectations. Aiden Byrne and Orla Kennedy had their moments but often I found them to seem much younger than the ages they represented. Aiden could be pretty persistent and Orla very stubborn. I get that they had their goals but there never seemed to be room for compromise.

The first chapter is great, ending on sort of a cliffhanger then delving into their past but many chapters later, with far too much fluff, I was left wondering when I’d get back to the relevant part of the story. I don’t mind backstory, it was just a tad too long.

The last 25% of their story was good but again a bit drawn out. This had potential but just kind of fizzled and never quite reached it.

Orla has a five year plan - move up the ladder in her journalism career and move to London. When she interviews Aiden, a wildlife photographer, a relationship begins. After a whirlwind romance, Aiden leaves for his world traveling job, while Orla focuses on her career.

Fast forward five year, and Orla has seemingly achieved her five year plan goals - she works for a London newspaper. Suddenly, Aiden appears back in her life - is she ready to forgo her “planned” life for one of unknowns with Aiden? Or is she too scared?

This was a cute story, and didn’t take long to read. It wasn’t the most exciting book, and didn’t have enough to garner more than a 3 star rating to me. I’m not sure exactly what I missed, but maybe more about Orla’s career - it was just kind of glossed over when that was such a big reason for her “plans”.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to HQ Digital and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had some good potential, but it fell flat for me. The main female protagonist was too weak and wishy-washy to carry the story, and her POV did not come across as an adult, but rather as someone who needs to woman up and get on with it. Lots of grand talk about her career, but there didn't seem to be an awful lot of substance behind that. And at the same time, it irritated me that it was more or less expected of her as the woman to give up everything "for her man". Uff. What century are we in?

From the blurb this sounds like the ideal book for me. I even loved that the main characters have Irish names.

Unfortunately, this didn't grip me totally.