I came to this book by the cover but fell in love with the content.

She tells the story of Nicole, who after separating, struggles to raise her daughter, run her business, contribute to her friend's wedding, and save the environment in the process.

Nicole meets Drew, the best friend of her best friend's fiancé, and at first he seems unpleasant but soon she will discover that Drew is much more than he seems.

I loved the author's way of narrating, it is easy and light without many ornaments but it manages to hook you to the story.

The characters seem fantastic to me: Drew the doctor who is handsome but is not stereotyped and Nicole a normal woman who is proud of being the way she is (although sometimes she doubts a bit, but who has not?).

I melted with this story and it carried a quality feeling in my heart.

This book was a great read. I had a hard time putting it down. It focused on exactly the right points and didn't linger or draw anything out. I enjoyed that Nicole didn't have the "perfect body" and that she had so many commonalities with the real world: single mom, vegan, clear air vehicle. Perhaps the books build on each other (I believe there are two previous to this one), however, I would have appreciated more background on the sewing gang. Without much background on those characters, some of the issues discussed (e.g. racism) felt a bit forced/out of place. Overall, it was a refreshing read.

Warm, cosy and a feel good read. I love the use of the Bible and the message about saving our planet. Definitely recommended for a forget about your day, fuzzy feel good read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book was fun and quirky, with interesting facts I’ll be looking up soon. Both characters Nicole and Drew, are really easy to like, and their situations give them depth.
I just thought maybe it would have been nice to see how their romantic relationship developed a bit more, as it seemed to move a bit fast there at the end.

As a divorced mom busy raising a daughter on one hand and trying to save Planet Earth on the other, Nicole hasn't got time for dating. But her sewing-sisters circle insists on playing matchmakers, even if Drew, a doctor who annoys Nicole out of her skull, isn't exactly what the sisters have in mind in Nicole by author Sarah Monzon.

Admittedly, I can only do a few contemporary romances a year nowadays. I tend to burn out on some of the unsurprising elements that show up in a lot of them, so I have to be selective. The expressive, vibrant, and thoroughly fun illustrated cover on this ChristFic romantic comedy, with a bespectacled and stylish heroine I heard is a plus-size gal, convinced me to give this read a go.

Now, while the switch from the serious to the more frivolous comes off as rather insensitive at one point in the story, I appreciate that this author doesn't avoid addressing serious issues even in a story that's on the lighter side overall.

Nicole and Drew are interesting characters with contrasting sides to them. And to be frank, I especially like how this romance doesn't take the "jumping to huge conclusions and overreacting" route to contrive a dramatic climax.

This read is sure to please fans of sweet contemporary romance.
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I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley for an honest review.

I have loved every book written by Sarah Monzon and this one is no different. They are always light hearted reads and a fun escape for me. I had a little trouble trying to like Nicole in this one though. I can see where she is coming from, but I just wanted her to lighten up a little bit, which, I guess, was the point of the whole thing. Even in the earlier books where we saw glimpses of Nicole, I thought she was just a little too much and she needed to tone it down a little bit with all of her volunteer activities. But it was still a delightful read, and I enjoyed it very much. You do not need to read the early books in the series in order to follow this one, but it does help.

I received a complimentary copy of the this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

A cute and quick rom com about a single mother who is guarded and a doctor who is trying to win her affections.
I related to Nicole, being a single mom and not used to being in the dating world. I too recently started dating again after five years of being single. I've finally found love again and had to open up to a complete stranger and include him in not just my life, but my child's as well. So yes, I liked this story because I could to relate to it. I wish there was more to this story though, I felt like there wasn't enough relationship development for the character's story line.

Nicole is the third book in the "Sewing in SoCal" series. I downloaded the book on a Sunday night, and I had it finished before I went to bed. Definitely an enjoyable read! While this book could be read without the other two, I highly recommend that the books are read in order.

In the first two books, Nicole is rather pushy and almost abrasive. When she finally gets to tell her story, the reader understands her motivation. By the end of the book, I came to really enjoy this character. She is honest. Nicole is a curvy single mom who feels that perhaps she is too much. The growth and transformation that occur as she is finally appreciated for her fine qualities is stunning. This conveys into confidence as she begins to accept herself.

This book is told from two different points of view. The author kept switching back and forth in each chapter, so the reader never had to wonder who was speaking. This made it easy to follow.

Drew is the other main character. He made an appearance in the previous books. At first he seems childish and almost annoying because he loved to jab at Nicole. There was enough chemistry that the reader could not help but want them to have a story together. As much as I liked Nicole, I really, really liked Drew as her love interest. His back story was powerful. The parts about his medical practice and even his family add so much to the story.

Nicole is a single mom. She is portrayed as a caring mom, but by the end of the book, she becomes a better parent because she tries to temper some of her overpowering qualities (such as trying to save the planet) that have caused her daughter to perhaps be more of a little adult rather than a child. I liked the fact that Nicole was shown that she was raising a kind girl - moms definitely need reassurance like that.

Drew's friend caution him to take starting a relationship with a single mom. They do not discourage him, but they remind him to take it seriously because a child is involved. I cannot imagine how challenging it would be to try to find a new relationship with children in tow. Care does need to be taken to protect everyone's hearts.

Friendship is definitely an important aspect of this series. The sewing friends do get together to work on projects and to support each other in community. I have definitely reading about the Sewing So-Cal girls, and I cannot wait to read book 4. Thank you to the author for letting me read this one early on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I really love this series! I will admit to being worried about reading Nicole's book, given her opinionated views and somewhat judgmental comments in the other books. I was worried I wouldn't like her. Thankfully I did, even though she really frustrated me at times. Bless Drew. That guy is literally perfect. So swoony. Overall, a great continuation to the series and I can't wait to read the next installment.

I LOVED this book! After enjoying the first two books in the series, I was excited to dive in to Nicole’s story. I smiled often while reading this book, and I didn’t want the story to end! I read the whole book in a day because I couldn’t put it down.

Nicole and Drew are complex characters and I loved how the book was written from both of their perspectives. The banter made me laugh, and there were plenty of swoony romantic lines that made my heart melt! I also really felt for them and the struggles they both dealt with; while this book is a romantic comedy, I appreciated the struggles in it too because it made the characters relatable and realistic.

I highly recommend this book, and I look forward to whatever book Sarah Monzon publishes next!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I could not wipe the smile off of my face while reading this book! This is the first time that I have read this author and I can't wait to read more.

Drew and Nicole are like oil and water. She is a divorced mom who is pretty straight laced. Drew is a physician who is super laid back and silly. Will Nicole keep up her walls around her heart?

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc. The opinions are my own.

This book was definitely different than I expected.

The good:
- Main character Nicole is a breath of fresh air in a heroine. She is smart, sassy, opinionated, and passionate. She is not a short small waif like the majority of romcom heroines. She is a better person than I am.
- Characters and pacing were easy to get into and to follow.
- I stayed interested and wanted to find out how the main characters got together.

The bad:
- I don't understand Drew (or Nicole's attraction to Drew) at all. In the beginning of the book, he makes it clear that he stands for everything that Nicole is against--the meat industry, gas guzzling cars, etc. This understandably bothers Nicole, and in a very cliched romance novel kind of trope, Drew beings flirting by teasing Nicole and provoking her by taking positions on everything she feels most passionate about that are diametrically opposed to hers. It is very kindergarten, "boy teases girl because he likes her." Then, about halfway through the book, although (apparently) he still eats meat and drives a gas guzzling vehicle, because he tells Nicole he likes her, all of those red flags about his personality just become a non-issue for her. He takes her to one vegan restaurant and suddenly she's in love with him.
-There is zero chemistry between these characters. Considering they literally kiss one time in the entire book, I don't really care...but, basically I kept reading to see if maybe Drew became a better person. He didn't, Nicole just compromised her values for him because he said he loved her and took her to a vegan restaurant.
- There was no warning this was a Christian rom-com. I was raised Christian and respect it, but until I had the book and started reading it, I had no idea it would be full of praying, quoting scripture, and, ultimately, zero intimacy. This book reads like a Puritan romance. No sizzle.
-Considering the lack of "rom," I was hoping for some serious "com" to make up for it. This book didn't make me laugh, at all. There was little funny about a climate crusader, a cancer survivor who is infertile, and sewing wedding dresses. I don't get it.

Thank you to Netgalley, Sarah Monzon, and the publisher for the opportunity to read in advance in exchange for an honest review.

Nicole is my first read by Sarah Monzon. It's the third in a series but it felt like it could stand alone. I may have missed a little backstory on Drew and Nicole from the previous two, but it flows easily on its own.
My trouble is Nicole. I feel little chemistry with her as an MC. She's abrasive and sanctimonious. I internally cringed several times with the way she reacts, particularly in the beginning third and particularly with Drew, the LI.
Drew on the other hand is completely relatable and likeable. He's gone through hardships, has his life together, and seems like a genuinely nice guy. The best parts are his intentional needling of Nicole.
The overall pace and concept is good so I will likely try another book by Sarah. It is hard to connect with an unlikeable heroine who feels like she might be best in a quirky supporting role. There are some other redeeming moments that had me smiling and the ending is sweet.
Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the advanced copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

Nicole is a divorced mother who is taking care of her eight year old daughter Sierra and trying to carry all the problems of the world on her shoulders. She gets some of it from her Christian faith and some of it from her mother who is quite scary in her demands. Drew is a doctor and Sierra's football coach who starts out annoying her deliberately because he thinks she could use some lightening up. Of course the annoyance turns into attraction.

I quite enjoyed this book because some of the dialogue is hilarious but other bits struck me as somewhat speechifying, not like organically developing conversations that people would naturally have. Nicole and her eight year old daughter have memorized charitable quotes and cite them at each other while shopping. What with climate change, domestic violence, systemic racism, body positivity, homelessness, deadbeat dads, childhood cancer and infertility,. among other things, there are so many issues crammed into one book that I thought maybe a little less would have sufficed to make the author's point.(Nicole is a do-gooder who worries about problems that she can't solve alone, and while Drew might occasionally seem like a jerk he cares about important things too.). . But it is still quite a light and pleasant read.

I read an advance reading copy that I got via Netgalley. The editing is good, I only marked one clear error when someone starts pining when they should be pinning. At some point Nicole muses that her relationship with Drew must be on an advanced level because she knew what his schedule was on a Monday afternoon. This struck me as nonsensical because I am sure that any number of people who are not in love with me will be able to guess that on a Monday afternoon I'll be at work.

Steam level: kissing and chaste touching with clothes on. This is part of a series that I haven't read but it looks like Nicole's friend .Amanda has secrets that might get revealed in the next book.

The post-review-to-goodreads button gave me an error message.

Nicole by Sarah Monzon is the third book in her "Sewing in SoCal" series, and the first one I read by this author.
It can be perfectly read as a stand-alone, it does refer to events in the previous 2 books, but it doesn´t feel as if one needs to read them to get this story.

This book focuses on Nicole, a sassy single mom with a zeal for saving the Earth.
A bit self-deprecating, good sense of humour, and (most of the time) sure of herself, a picturebook example of today´s strong women. The author, however, still managed to portray her in such a way that she felt real.
The men in the story might have been a bit too perfect (except the a** Nicole has a date with at the beginning of the book, but he served his purpose too).


I was hoping for a light and airy read, and didn´t find it in this book. Mainly because one or two of the themes hit too close to home for me.
But that is okay, it is still a lovely read, and even though it wasn´t what I expected, it touched me.

Definately worth to put on your want-to-read list. (You´ll have to wait only a short time, expected publishing date is January 7th 2021).

4.5 stars
I wasn’t sure how much I was going to like this book because I hadn’t read any of Ms. Monzon’s books but I ended up loving it. Nicole is the third book in Sarah Monzon’s Sewing in SoCal series. Nicole is just trying to juggle raising her daughter and saving the earth from irresponsible inhabitants, she doesn’t have time to date. Not to mention the her winning personality and the fact that her curves have curves that doesn’t exactly attract the opposite sex. She wouldn’t ever consider Dr. Drew Bauer as her dream guy, but life seems determined to throw them together. The more time Nicole spends with Drew, she finds her common sense escaping her and starts to fall in love.
This was a funny and sweet book. Nicole was hilarious and I loved her outspoken behavior. She was kind, but she didn't beat around the bush. She was really passionate about saving the earth and taking care of the planet. However, she was also vulnerable and she was just trying to do her best raising her daughter, Sam. She wasn’t looking for love, but the more time she spends with Drew she finds herself falling for him. She knew that she didn't measure up to people’s standard, and she didn’t care but some days it was harder than others.
Drew was a sweetheart, however, he hid it behind humor and jokes. He liked Nicole from the start and enjoyed pushing her bottoms. But before Drew knew it he was head over heels for not only Nicole but also her daughter. He loved them like his own and he wanted to care for them. I really liked Drew and it was fun to read about his family. His past wasn’t all sunshine and flowers, but he had learned to overcome the trials thrown at him
Drew and Nicole were a cute couple. But they did have to work through their differences. Nicole had to figure out how to trust Drew and learn that he was not like her ex husband. Drew needed to fight for Nicole and learn how to best help Nicole as she raises her daughter. I loved their relationship and the development that it went through. Nicole’s friends were super fun and now I want to read the other books. I also adored Sam, Nicole’s daughter.
Nicole was a great book! And I really enjoyed it! Nicoel is a clean rom-com, that had hints of faith. I would definitely recommend this book and I can't wait to see what else comes in the series!

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher through Netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion, a positive review was not required.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this was a sweet, slightly humorous rom com. Nicole is an outspoken humanitarian who has sworn off men but she goes on the occasional date to appease her friends. Drew is secretly in love with her and although he rubs her the wrong way he manages to convince her to give him a chance. He appreciates her curvaceous body and intellect. A knight in shinning armor for sure.
Overall its a decent romance just a bit overun with clichéd lines and a bit stale in the areas of originality. But still worth the read if you're looking for a quick romance.

This is not your normal romcom. It is so much better, but that's not a bad thing... And, it isn't an insult, I've loved nearly every romcom I've read.

Dealing with topics like not having the supposed perfect body, and illnesses, Nicole will pull you in for a humorous ride of ups and downs!

I love Sarah Monzon's awesome sense of humor, her way of keeping serious topics light hearted without taking away from the harshness of the seriousness.

I am so looking forward to the next books in the series!

Recommendation: 16/18 up due to romance.