2.5 stars. The protagonist really annoyed me and I was halfway through it before I really cared about the story at all, and I forced myself to finish it. Not her best.

I was SO excited about this book, being a fan of Sophie Kinsella's past titles that I had gotten to read. That GORGEOUS cover, a fun synopsis about not only an escape to Italy but a writer's retreat (books about anything to do with books are always a must!) but this one just fell flat for me.

The first time I picked it up, I thought it was just me, but I gave it a second chance with a buddy read. Thinking the discussion and other readers would help me enjoy the story more, I was disappointed when it still wasn't the book for me. I will definitely read more from Kinsella in the future, this just wasn't my favorite of her books.

I'm a longtime fan of Sophie Kinsella, but unfortunately, this one was a miss for me. Between the insta-love and the lead characters that didn't mesh at all after their initial time together on vacation I was cringing at the fact Ava was still trying to make things work (or force them to work) with someone who didn't appreciate her. The resolution didn't really work for me either in the way she tried to tie it up with each character improving the other.
Many thanks to Press and NetGalley for the advance copy.

I enjoy reading Sophie Kinsella's books. This one focuses on a woman who attends a writers workshop in Italy, falls in love with a handsome man, but will it last beyond the holiday romance? Upon returning to London, they learn more about one another and find they are very different from one another. I particularly liked the supporting characters in this novel, the friends of Ava and Matt's family and roommates. Each is a very unique and interesting individual and they add a lot to the story. A really fun read!

Huge fan of Sophie Kinsella. I loved each of her Shopaholic books. In fact I have reread them! She had a few misses recently but I really think she has gotten back to her old writing style. And her entertainment level.

This took me a little while to really get into but once I did I couldn't put it down. I really enjoyed the story line and the characters.

Love Your Life is a typical Sophie Kinsella book. It is a romcom with a cute story line and fun characters. This book had me laughing at times, shaking my head at others and scratching my head as well. I loved Ava. She was such a free spirit. She believes in love, but does not want to spend anymore time on apps promising true love. She is also trying to write a novel and has been for many years. Her friends are very eclectic and not always the easiest to get along with. She has a dog named Harold who seems to have a lot of fears and neurosis. Ava heads off to Italy to a writing retreat where she meets another guest. As they are not allowed to use real names or tell anyone about their real life, Aria meets Dutch and they fall in love, very quickly, but deeply. When they get back to real life, they find out that not only do they both live in London, but they learn about each other's lives. The are completely incompatible, but they keep trying to find middle ground. It is hilarious. As usual, the more staid and uptight person in the relationship is the one who changes the most but not without several situations. There was quite a bit of angst in this one, but all's well that ends well. I enjoyed this lighthearted story and it was just what I needed going back into lockdown for the third time since the pandemic began.

Another light, fun romance from Sophie Kinsella. What would happen if you met someone and knew they were your soulmate without either of you knowing any details about each other's lives? Ave "Aria" and "Dutch" are about to find out. After meeting during and returning from an anonymous retreat, they crash back into reality and having to get to know and get used to each other's lives and habits. Typically entertaining Sophie Kinsella adventures ensue!

I usually love Sophie Kinsella books, but for some reason, this wasn't my favorite. I personally felt like I couldn't really connect with the characters and this was a pass for me.

This book unfortunately wasn’t a total win for me. I’ve read Sophie Kinsella’s other books and usually have no problem with her signature “quirky” characters, but in this case I found myself unable to connect with the main character on any level.

I give this one 3 stars because I enjoyed the writing and overall storyline, even though I wasn’t pleased with the characters. I also wasn’t pleased with the ending. Even though this is a HEA romance in Kinsella’s typical writing style, I was hopeful that the book would take a detour at some point and surprise me.

The main characters, Ava and Matt, are so incompatible in 90% of the book that I couldn’t reconcile the final 10% of the story. There were multiple times in the book when I wanted to give them each a shake and yell “Compromise! Communicate! Buy a mattress pad and bring an extra blanket!” There were so many situations that could have been solved with a conversation and a quick run to whatever the Target-equivalent is in London.

The parts of the book I did enjoy: the descriptions of the writing retreat in Italy (I want to go!), the supporting characters, the dog Harold, and Kinsella’s aptitude for detail and funny internal dialogue. I always get a great feel for the places where her books take place because she writes a great scene. I could easily envision both Ava and Matt’s apartments. And she gets me inside her characters’ heads so well, which normally I appreciate, but in this case it mostly just frustrated me to know Ava’s thoughts but not see her making any changes.

I’ll likely give Kinsella’s next book a try because I’ve enjoyed what she’s written in the past even though this one wasn't my favorite.

I've typically been a huge fan of Sophie Kinsella's since I was a teen. I adore her Shopaholic series (especially the first one, which I keep in a pile of comfort reads to turn to over and over again) and I think she is incredibly funny, smart, and overall a rom-com legend. But this book didn't hit the mark for me. Where Kinsella is usually excellent at writing slow burn, the relationship here was super instalove while also feeling devoid of chemistry. While the concept was fun the execution felt a little forced and the characters were not as lovable as her usually ragtag bunch. I know so many people will enjoy this one, as they enjoy the rest of Sophie's books, but this one sadly felt like a bit of a departure for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy of this one. This is the first book I've read of this author.

Ava is kind of a flaky, all over the place girl currently dabbling in writing, aromatherapy and whatever else strikes her fancy. While on a writing retreat where they can’t use real names, she meets Dutch and they fall head over heels. ⁣
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Dutch ends up being Matt, and they don’t live far apart in real life. So after the retreat they start their relationship. ⁣
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Ava ends up being a bit extra and verging on ridiculous. Her dog is an untrained monster, she tries to force Matt to be vegetarian, and she seems a little too into him. ⁣
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Overall this was entertaining. The characters were a bit over the top but it made the book less boring. There were some amusing parts too. ⁣
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I’ll get to more of her books at some point I’m sure. ⁣

Ava and Matt meet while on a writer’s retreat in Italy but when they return to their normal lives they find that they’re perhaps not as compatible after all. I really wanted to love this one and I feel like this is an unpopular opinion but I’m afraid overall it just didn’t work for me.

I really loved the start when they were at the retreat but once they returned to England the storyline started to frustrate me. Ava’s quirkiness became irritating and I really disliked some of the plot lines. She seemed like a caricature of a real character, e.g. the lengths she went to to force Matt to become vegetarian was bizarre.

I loved the start and liked the ending but personally the middle section just wasn’t for me.

I’m a big fan of Sophie Kinsella, and was excited to get a copy of her newest book. Love Your Life is a fun, quick read that divides its time between a retreat in Italy and ‘normal’ life in London. I admittedly enjoyed the first half of the story better than the second, but overall thought the story as a whole providing an entertaining escape and characters you find yourselves rooting for.

3.5 stars rounded up.

As a big Sophie Kinsella fan, I really enjoyed this one! Love Your Life is slightly different than her usual books as the characters are quite genuine, especially the female protagonist. Although, I did find one of the characters, Genevieve, to be stereotypically mean, which makes the story a bit less original. Despite this, I did appreciate the fact that the male lead makes huge sacrifices for the female protagonist. I also found the story to be the perfect length with a plot that flowed well and easily kept my attention.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an advance reader copy.

I fell in love with Sophie Kinsella as an author back in college (Shopaholic forever!!!) and I've always enjoyed her books. Love Your Life is no different - a cute little rom-com that was the perfect light and fluffy read for 2020

When Aria and Dutch meet at a writer’s retreat in Italy sparks fly, and the two quickly find themselves in the midst of a whirlwind romance. Things just seem to “click” between them. (Proof once and for all that meeting in person trumps dating apps, or so Aria thinks.) So when the vacation ends, they’re determined to keep the romance alive and their relationship afloat when they return to England.

But being thrust back into reality comes with its own challenges – ones neither of them could have anticipated.

“Aria” and “Dutch” are really Ava and Matt – and, as becomes quickly apparent, are very different than their vacation alter-egos. Worse, they seem to be complete opposites… about everything! Can they reconcile their differences now that they’re out of the honeymoon phase, or will their relationship only ever be a vacation fling?

I’ve been a big fan of Sophie Kinsella’s writing for a long time! I remember reading Confessions of a Shopaholic as a preteen and absolutely adoring Becky Bloomwood and her – what my 14-year-old self thought was very realistic and relatable (haha) – money troubles. Since then I’ve read a number of Kinsella’s other books, and enjoyed them all to varying amounts.

And even still, this book surprised me! I had a lot of fun reading Love Your Life – more fun than I’ve had in a good long while! There were points when I physically laughed out loud.

The first aspect of this book that really excited me was the premise; it was just so unique! Most romance novels end with the couple getting together. But that’s how this story begins. I also found it really refreshing to have a novel focus on what happens after the “happily ever after.” Having to negotiate and make compromises in relationships is super realistic, but Kinsella finds a way to make it sweet and fun.

On top of that it’s hard not to root for Ava and Matt to work things out. Both characters have their flaws, sure, but they’re also very sweet, kindhearted people that you just want the best for. Even though they’re obviously total opposites in a lot of ways, they were also so perfectly matched that it’s impossible to not want them to end up together.

I also loved all the other characters in this novel. Both sets of friends were really great. I would totally watch a TV show of Ava and her three best friends taking on London together and the hijinx that would inevitably ensue, a la Sex and the City. Kinsella did a great job of making all the characters – both small and big – feel real and unique. Their colourful personalities reeled me in, making this book impossible to put down!

Love Your Life is the perfect mix of cute, fun, and heartfelt. With likeable characters you can’t help but root for and a great premise, this novel sets itself apart; a really enjoyable read.

Thank you to the publisher, Dial Press/Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.

3.5/5 stars

Sophie Kinsella is always a sure thing when you’re in the mood for pure escapism and this was no exception. It’s a fun and breezy romcom with several laugh-out-loud moments and an entertaining cast of endearingly ridiculous supporting characters.

As a romance though, it didn’t quite work for me. Even accepting the instalove at the beginning (never ever my favorite), I was never convinced by the development of Ava and Matt’s relationship as they eventually did get to know one another. We pretty much only got to see them during times of conflict and I struggled to see why they even liked each other and wanted to stay together. Ava in particular I found incredibly irritating and immature.

That said, I did really enjoy the ending and thought it was very sweet – I just wish it had felt a bit more earned.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a huge Kinsella fan. I have read all her books and enjoyed them immensely. Sadly, this one did not do it for me. It was just okay. I didn't warm up to the main characters and it was lacking the trademark humor of her previous books. Maybe I have high expectations for Kinsella, but I felt a little let down.

Quote: “You should always be thinking: This is OK…but what else could I be doing?”

Thanks @netgalley and Dial Press for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve read and listen to a couple Sophie’s books. At first,this book was so hard to keep up. With this book, I discovered that I hate instant love in books and this book hace this since the beginning. The main character was so annoying and it felt like a couple without chemistry.

We follow Ava who went to a writing retreat because she wants to write a novel. In the retreat she then meets Matt and they fell instantly. When they get back from the retreat, they decide to start a relationship and things goes from there.

I rolled my eyes every time Ava did something. Although I found her annoying and really hard optimistic, I could relate to her on other aspects of her personality. For example: the overthinking and forcing relationships in life.

At the end, I started to feel emphatic towards the characters but didn’t like the end at all. The ending was a little bit rushed and they change in personality to accommodate the others personality and it was a little bit unrealistic to me.