It's just one of those things where a part of Rachel spoke to me. That part where she's a harried mother of twin boys working a full time job and simply trying to keep it all together. I enjoyed the very realness of her world, her struggle to maintain boundaries, especially as she's a virtual assistant with clients across different time zones and even continents. As much as she's a skilled a workhorse as she is - she relishes being in control, strategizing, organizing - it's becoming increasingly clear that she needs to let loose. However, her inclination to do everything by herself because then it's done the way she wants, is not doing it for her lately. Her ex, Gavin isn't picking up the slack but instead throws more on her plate. 

What's somewhat unusual in Rachel's situation, though is that her ex's family is pretty involved in the twins' lives - her ex's brothers, Travis and Dave, and even ex 'momster-in-law', Evelyn. Where Gavin slacks off, Travis arrives to pick up that slack. This unique dynamic instantly won me over because how many divorced couples and their families can still be amicable with each other and try their best for their kids? Travis, especially loves being around his nephews and he certainly doesn't mind Rachel, either. For as much as they antagonize each other, there are also plenty of sparks. After much deliberation, Rachel takes the family up on their offer for her and the boys to stay at the lakehouse for the summer. On the optimistic side, it'll keep her twins occupied and the family's willing to help with them so she can continue to work while there. On the flip side, there's more time with her ex momster-in-law who is determined to see Rachel and Gavin back together. That's not going to happen. But what might happen is those sparks she has with Travis that threaten to ignite into something bigger. And of course it does!

The story moves quickly and amusingly because shenanigans are involved, too. As chaotic as Rachel's life is, she's somehow managed to keep it all in check so far. Except now it's dawning her that she needs better boundaries between work and her personal life, even as the boundaries between her and Travis are blurring. You all, Travis is a dreamboat! I'm not just referring to his hotness. It's how much he cares about Rachel and the twins, and how he wants to help her attain a better balance. He's always been viewed as the clown, the guy who hooks up and dumps them, the irresponsible one. He's allowed them to view him as such and considers that the role he plays within the family. Rachel is a different story. He needs her to know that he can be serious, that he wants to be all in for her and the boys. This burgeoning romance is authentic and complicated. It's like walking through a minefield not knowing how people will react once they're ready to bring it out to the open. 

But first, they need to navigate just the two of them. Rachel's discomfort with being intimate for the first time in a while is basically any of us. The logistics of hooking up in a household full of people AND not being walked in on by one of her kids are at times funny. Everything about this relationship from time management, the family, the kids ... it all feels real, that these are genuine concerns for two people embarking on something new and fragile. Falling for Travis is a long time coming and I was happy that they were adults about it. They actually talk! And that is such a turn on! They avoid any unnecessary drama by addressing things upfront, and any fallout that does occur, happens within the realm of reason. They know where the other stands and that just got me in the feels. 

Rachel, Out of Office is a fun romance where the overworked and overtired mama gets to win at life and have her happiness with someone who clearly loves and respects all of her. This was such a delight to read!

~ Bel

This was a wonderful of Rachel a single mother of twin boys that is a workaholic. He ex and her were to co parent but he’s not around as he’s starting a new family. But he has two brothers that are there for the boys when they have sports. One brother is really nice but Travis she thinks she’s not liking because her ex and him didn’t get along. But she’s seeing him in a new light that was described and finds that he’s a great guy! Now she wondering if they could be more. This storyline was interesting and intriguing and has so many twists that you’ll love the storyline and the characters! I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

What a great, unconventional romance by an author that always delivers romcoms with a tremendous amount of heart!

Rachel is a single mom under so much pressure, doing just about every work-from-home gig imaginable to be there for her twin boys. She's looking forward to a 'summer off' from the daily grind thanks to an offer from her former in-laws to take her children to their lake-house for the hummer. When the plans fall through at the last minute, she has to pivot, and takes the boys to the lake house herself. 

What she doesn't expect is to spend the summer with her former brother-in-law, Travis, and to forge a strong friendship that turns into more as they get to know each other on a different level. Their relationship, thankfully, is full of little drama, and it's more about Travis helping Rachel attain the balance and peace that she wants to attain to have a full life of her own, and be there for her children, without burning the candle at both ends constantly. Their relationship develops really purely, and they have tons of banter and steam. 

Rachel is a strong woman, and Travis is not presented as the man that fixes her life or solves her problems. He's a man that complements her, and works with her and for her. Their relationship is so authentic feeling, and it makes for a really romantic read.

A fun quick book that will put a smile on your face.  Rachel is extremely relateable to busy moms everywhere! With an MIA ex- husband, and a mother in law who has her nose in everything Rachel does, I didn't know if I wanted to cry for her or cheer her on! Another great book by Christina Hovland!

The fact that the main character has twins is about all we have in common. Rachel is burning the candle at both ends and needs a break.


This story features a strong heroine, a likeable cast a supporting characters and a completely endearing love story.


I was engrossed from start to finish. This will definitely be a re-read for me.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this DELIGHTFUL read! The review will be available at the link given, on 1/27/21.

What a funny romantic comedy. It was such fun reading about Perfectionist Rachel's life. I think any mom can easily relate to the comedy in this book and have a great laugh that it happened to someone else and not them for now.

This book was so funny as Rachel tried to balance a full time job, twin boys, puppies her ex-husband gave the boys for their birthday without asking, clients, and her ex-husband and his fiancee as well as her in-laws. I enjoyed watching Rachel not be able to say no and for her not to be able to accept help because she was a perfectionist who liked things done her way, much like a lot of moms that I know. Add to this her feelings for Travis, her ex-brother-in-law and you have a down to earth, funny story that I really enjoyed reading. The scenes at the lake house were quite hilarious. I received an advance copy of this book and I willingly chose to write an honest review.

Three and a half stars

Rachel, Out of Office was my first book by Christine Hovland. The book is romantic comedy -kind of book. The book is about Rachel, who is a single-mom with a business. Rachel struggles with her life, she wants to be a perfect mom and she really wants to make her work perfectly. 

I think that the most of the moms out there recognize these same problems. Every mom wants what's best for her children and they do their absolute best to provide it to their children. Rachel has some problems with his ex-husband. She has problems with her work. She has the same problems we, the moms in real world, have. It made Rachel very likable and I could easily relate to her. 

I liked how the book had very little drama. I liked how the family worked, it felt real family. The tension and passion between Rachel and Travis was believable. I liked the twins and I really, really liked Travis. 

There were moments I found a little unbelievable, but nothing major. My main problem was the fact that the book was written in third POV, but that's just my problem. 

I really liked the ending and the fact that Rachel learned something that we all need to learn, no one is perfect and no one needs to be perfect.

This was a nice read with likable characters and plot. I can recommend this.

Rachel has it all under control. Until you take a peek behind the curtain. Single mom to twin 8 year old boys, Rachel is a pro at managing chaos. She employs these skills in her virtual personal assistant company. However, everyone wants more of Rachel. When her annual guaranteed break via her ex’s family summer vacation is taken away from her, Rachel has to decide what to prioritize. 

Rachel joins her ex’s family for a summer that no one will forget. A snarky, yet kind hearted, ex-brother-in-law, a meddling ex-mother-in-law, and a whole lot of time for things to get shaken up, this summer will drag Rachel out of her comfort zone. Isn’t that where we find all the best things?

This romantic comedy is utterly relatable. It’s also a refreshing reminder that we all deserve to be cherished and feel sexy, no matter our age, parental status, or baggage. There’s a bit of steaminess, but it never felt too much. 

I really enjoyed Rachel, Out Of Office.

Rachel is a single mom of twins who kept her on her toes and also has a crazier professional life.
She manages to deal with everything, her ex husband who seems to be an absentee and the cool and laid back parent, her in-laws and her ex-mother in law, mama bear who likes to interfere and her two sons who are always there for the kids, when their father cannot. 

But in the middle of this organized mess, Rachel needs somehow a break even if she has never once complained about her choices and embracing it.
Suddenly she comes to notice some things who are in front of her and never paying attention or more in denial I guess, like really noticing her brother in law, Travis who was more than people described him, that it was okay to let people in and help. 

It takes one summer at her in-laws usual vacation spot to make her see things in a different perspective. Plenty of sarcasm, colorful characters and some hilarious situations. I appreciated that Rachel understood that she could manage everything but letting people somehow helping her could make things easier. That she wasn’t that alone. 

The author manages to capture a single mom drama that some readers can relate to. The cast of characters are endearing, Rachel and Travis made me smile a lot, swoony tons and their chemistry… off the charts!

A feel good book, a kind of warm and heartfelt.

Today we're talking about a mom rom-com. A mom-com? A rom-mom-com?

This genre of romance is not typical for me. I am not a mom. But, it turns out, you don't have to be a mom to know what it feels like to feel overwhelmed by work, obligations, and family relationships.

What I liked most about this read was that it reminded me of a feel-good movie. Like a Nora Ephron film. You allow yourself to feel comforted by the promise of a happy ending as mishap over comedic mishap gets ladled on to your divorced, career-focused lead who isn't looking for love but finds it anyway. You know that in your own life you would draw boundaries sooner, or that you wouldn't react in quite the same way, but, like with any good rom-com, you release that anxiety and let the story unfold.

I think this book will resonate with some people more than others. (You're not going to pick it up for plot or writing style.) Even with my suspended disbelief, there were moments and situations that felt a little too much. But this is a light-hearted read.

It's best to leave your expectations of self-advocacy at the door, and let the familiar beats of a romantic comedy distract you for a few hours.

As a mom of twins myself that aspect of the book had me reeled in from the jump. This was my first Christina Hovland book so other than the blurb (twins!) I wasn’t sure what to expect going in. This book felt current, fresh and fun! Just the right mix of chaos and steam. Definitely recommending this to all moms.  4 stars and I look forward to checking out more of her work. Thank you to the publishers via NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

This is my first experience reading something by this author and I was very pleasantly surprised. I'm a sucker for romantic comedies, and this one really fit the bill. I loved the character of Rachel. So down-to-earth, relatable, and totally endearing. I can especially relate to her inability to say no when someone needs help. I liked that the book was written in dual perspective. I always enjoy reading the story and seeing both points of view. Rachel and Travis were both wonderful characters and their road to happiness wasn't an easy one, but it was an interesting one. This book had romance, love, and fun and had me laughing out loud or smiling the whole way through. A sweet and adorable story you do not want to miss!

3.5 stars

I really like this story. I liked Rachel and although it was love-hate relationship between me and her sometimes with her being a hot-headed frustrating woman I understood her in the end and end up really enjoying her as our main character.
Travis was amazing, I loved him since the moment he showed up. I liked how he complemented Rachel's life and their relationship developed.
I really liked this but my complaint is the way it was written. If this was first or dual person pov would have been much better and I feel the story would have flow better because sometimes I lost track on who was talking and that was confusing but anyway overall, this was great!

Rachel is a woman who is determined to show that she is capable of balancing all areas of her life which include being a mother, a career and her family.   Her experiences show that like everyone else sometimes it works and sometimes it is chaos.  With her kids about to spend some time with their father she makes arrangements to fill her time with all the things she needs to do only to find out he is distracted by the new future he is building and now she finds herself vacationing with his family which includes her sexy ex brother in-law Travis.

Travis is exactly who Rachel needs in her life as he tends to take whatever life throws at him without a second thought.    He is sweet when it comes to her kids and sexy when it comes to her so it leaves her wondering why something that should be wrong feels so right.

Humor and heat combined with realistic characters and situations add up to a fun story that you can’t help but enjoy.

Loved this story!

So the topic of falling for your ex's brother (i.e. your ex-brother-in-law) can be tricky. It can be a little ewwww if not done right. As expected, Christina Hovland - DID IT UP RIGHT!!

Rachel and Travis are attracted to each other, but doing their best to deny it to themselves. In addition, Travis doesn't seem like the settling down type and what his family has said about him (including Rachel's ex) makes her wary.

"He looked...okay, well, the first word that came to mind was yummy."

Seeing these two gravitate towards each other while Rachel is navigating the single mom life, working from home almost 24/7 and co-parenting (sort of) with her ex - made for some hilarious moments and real-life craziness. I really enjoyed this story and these two as a couple!!

Travis is totally worth the risk! Yummy, a little dreamy, and has just enough return sass to make this the best match of the Frank brothers!

I voluntarily requested and read an uncorrected advance reader copy.

This adorable story will have you identifying with Rachel and all her drama. She is a divorced mother of twins who just can’t say no. She is trying to juggle so many roles and take care of the needs of her children. I loved her character. I find myself connecting with her on so many levels. This is a well written story that draws you in and have you cheering Rachel on for her chance to find happiness. I voluntarily agreed to receive an Arc of this book for an honest review.

Rachel is a single mom of twin boys and is also a virtual personal assistant who is at her wit's end.  Her clients contact her at all hours of the day for work on top of everything she needs to do for her sons.  The father, Gavin, is mostly absent through the story caught up with his new fiancé.    Travis, Gavin's brother, is a misunderstood but good guy.  

This book is totally relatable for anyone that has a kid in their life even if it isn't their own.  I got angry with her when the boys' birthday present from their father showed up.  I got mad at Gavin a few other times in the book, frustrated all around.  But there were still plenty of fun and swoony moments in the book.  

I look forward to reading other books from this author!

Perhaps because of the amount of time writer-mothers have been spending time with their off-spring lately, we seem to have a proliferation of single mother, chaos romances. Of the two “romances” I’ve read this year, both have followed this trend. At least, however, Christina Hovland’s Rachel, Out of Office has some actual romance amidst the chaos and some genuine laugh-out-loud moments.

Rachel is trying to do it all: run a business at home as a virtual executive assistant (who knew there was such a thing?!) and raise two rowdy twin boys and mostly she’s achieving it by working at all hours and finding an hour or two of sleep where she can. Her ex-husband, Gavin, is rarely in evidence buts sends his brothers Travis and Dave to stand in for him for sports events, etc. And, while Rachel gets along just fine with Dave, it’s Travis that’s the issue. Gavin told her all about worthless Travis, but despite that she finds herself thinking about him far too much.

All-in-all, I enjoyed Rachel, Out of Office. At the beginning though, I had a little whiplash as the narrator moved from the use overly cutesy-cutesy words, which had me pulling a face, to dropping sh*t and the f-bomb randomly. Fortunately, both vocabulary choices drifted away and a normal voice took over (mostly). I very much appreciated that.

The romance moved very quickly, which made me wish that it had stayed in the slow burn realm a little while longer. Anticipation’s half the thing. But I did like Rachel and Travis together. I liked Travis who seemed like he was finally deciding who he wanted to be in his life, perhaps because of his feelings for Rachel.

The Frank family was a hoot and it would have been fun to spend a little more time with those family dynamics. While matriarch Evelyn could have come off as a real–shall we go with– unpleasant woman, I liked that Hovland created her as a real person, which made her much more relatable.

A fun funny romance, Rachel, Out of Office would be very appreciated by young mothers who might see themselves in Rachel’s position; for others, your mileage may vary.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rachel, Out of Office should be made into a movie.  It is a fun read with easy to get to know characters. I have enjoyed many of Ms. Hovland's novels and this book is a welcome addition to her offerings.

Rachel is a single mom to eight-year-old twin boys.  In addition, she is the sole proprietor of her virtual assistant company.  Needless to say, she is one very busy lady. She loves her boys and her job, however, she never says no to a client request. In addition, her ex-mother-in-law continues to be a thorn in her side. She believes that Rachel will eventually get back together with her son Gavin, even though he is engaged to another woman. Rachel and Gavin have a very amicable relationship, however, Gavin tends to be a bit hands-off when it comes to the child rearing. Gavin's family is quite wealthy, thanks to their very successful pop-tart company.

Travis is Gavin's brother and Rachel's former brother-in-law. He and his other brother Dave spend a lot of time with the twins, thus, Rachel as well. Rachel ends up spending the summer at her ex-in-laws lake house when Gavin bows out at the last minute. Travis and Rachel share a spark that evolves into much more.

I liked this book, however, I could not understand why Rachel was under such financial stress.  Gavin and his family could have easily helped her make ends meet, especially since they all got along. The twins had some very realistic and funny moments. Overall, this dual point-of-view romantic comedy should be added to your TBR list.

Complimentary copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.

Happy #PubDay to RACHEL, OUT OF OFFICE by Christina Hovland -- and thank you to @netgalley and @entangled_publishing! Rachel is an over-worked, under-appreciated single mom just trying to get by with her own small, business and be present for her two twin boys. Their father was a one-night stand turned failed marriage turned absent parent. This summer, her exes family invites her on a two-month vacation at their family lake house, so they can spend quality time with the boys. While hesitant at first, Rachel is drawn in by the promise of free-child care, uninterrupted hours to work, and free Wifi. However...is she starting to develop feelings for her ex-brother-in-law...?

This is just a cute, quintessential romance with such a relatable heroine. While I can't relate to motherhood, I can definitely relate to having ridiculously high standards for myself - both personally and professionally - and putting undue stress on myself when I don't perform. And while this book was sweet and relatable, it is also steamy and had some fun banter between Rachel and her leading man!