So my kind of book and totally relatable. Funny and quirky and sad with a flawed heroine which works in its favour of the story. Because yes we have all been there. The desperate ex, confused and angry and hurt and wondering where on Earth it all went wrong and slowly figuring out how to move forward.

thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

4 ⭐️

I was pleasantly surprised by this book! I went into it expecting it to be a cute contemporary romance, and while it does hint at romance here and there, the story focuses more on the journey of loving and being happy with yourself.

Claire was such a relatable mess and I was invested in her story from page one. It was so refreshing to see a heroine work to save herself instead of relying on the hero to come in and save the day. Claire took every bad thing that happened to her in stride and I really empathized with a lot of her feelings and fears.

However I was left feeling frustrated about the way that Claire let Ben drag her along until the very end. She had so much positive character development throughout the story and it just felt super contradicting to her growth and all of the realizations she’d had.

But overall this was a really great read and I enjoyed seeing Claire learn to love herself!

I read this in one hit. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It made me think about life in a different way. A stunningly simple but perfect book.

Broken bones, broken hearts and finding your way to loving yourself just as you are. This book is LOVELY and also deals with many important issues in a really sensitive and smart way, especially the trauma of grief, panic attacks and domestic abuse. I appreciate the choices the author made about the ending, tempting as it might have been to take it in another direction. Refreshing.

A one-bedroom apartment with creeping damp. Depressed cat, complete with litter tray. Neither was part of Claire’s five-year plan. Nor, for that matter, was divorce. Left with a comfort eating habit that’s costing her a small fortune in ice cream, and panic attacks flooring her in front of the supermarket meals-for-one, Claire turns to her mum and Mindfulness in the hope that one of them can help her find real happiness. She thinks she’s cracked it… but then her past comes creeping back.

This is a feel-good, easy read. Perfect for reading in the bath with a glass of wine and the candles lit or around the pool or beach!

3.5/5.

Really enjoyed this story that was full of laughter, tears and empathy. Most people can totally relate to the story and all that it brings.

I initially found Claire very frustrating! I wanted to shake her but as the book progressed and she started to recognise her value and be herself again I grew to like her. She comes through a broken relationship with Ben who dominated and denigrated her so that she can support other people with their troubles and maybe find love again.

A lovely story - positive and uplifting.

Well what an interesting read. The book was more gritty than I was expecting from looking at the cover and reading the introduction.

Hart has a great style of writing and a witty too. A very natural writing style.

Claire is down on her luck. Husband has left her for little miss High-maintenance Bella who is now having his baby.

The story covers Claire getting her life back together and new friends she meets along the way.

Thanks Net Galley, Olivia Shaw and Isobel Hart. An enjoyable read.

This book is all about a persons journey to find themself.. It takes a lot of soul searching with a lot of mistakes and set backs on the way. It is witty, humorous, sad and enlightening. It made me smile and it brought a tear to my eye. A very enertaining read.

I was expecting a fluffy, romantic storyline but I was pleasantly surprised that I found the story had depth and I also found that the lead character was very likeable and at the same time some of her choices were questionable. Multi faceted.

The other characters all had their own stories and problems to sort through and they were intertwined very well.

This was an easy, enjoyable read and I give it 4 out of 5 stars. Would recommend.

#thatcertainspark #netgalley

That Certain Spark by Isobel Hart will make you laugh and make you cry! Claire seemed to have it all - a great husband, a successful business with her best friend - all that she hoped for. Until her husband cheats on her with her best friend! Claire learns to turn her life around with a little help from her Mom and a class to teach Mindfulness. A fun, enjoyable read!

I found myself scrolling back and forth wondering what is wrong with me and why this story just didn't connect. I see so many positive reviews that this has to just be a personal preference situation. We find Claire going through basically the worst situation of her life. Starry eyed and hopeful, she graduates university and quickly marries her boyfriend and starts a design business with her BFF. Those plans definitely did not include said BFF and boyfriend hooking up years later and kicking Claire out of what is essentially her life.

She tries everything she can think of to feel something. Anything. All while sharing a dingy flat with her grumpy cat. I honestly had such a hard time connecting with Claire because how she handled the situations she ended up in made me want to shake.some.sense into her. It was also written in such a way that I felt I was reading a self help book at times and not just a fiction book. I appreciate the sentiment I suppose, but most of us read fiction for the escape factor, not to self analyze while using another's life as things we should never do.

⭐⭐

It just didn't work for me honestly. But again, this is honestly probably just a preference thing. I did love her relationship with her mother! That earned a whole star in itself. They were so close and so lovin, which is exactly what Claire needed. I also love the idea that happiness is found within yourself, not our partners or our professions. It could have been written way differently and still have gotten the same message across however.

Thank yoh so much to NetGalley, Isobel Hart, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book and the description is dead on. We meet Claire in the aftermath of a cheating husband whose actions threaten to ruin everything she has worked for. She goes down a path of self destruction and in an effort to help her, her mother has her join a Mindfulness class. Through this class, she starts to address the negative self-talk, which is an ongoing monologue that prevents her from making any progress in building a new life for herself.

The first half of the book takes us through her step-by-step of her Mindfulness journey. I could really relate to the negative self-talk we so often engage in and I think this book will help a lot of people. We certainly could use more books that address mental health, normalize it and also offer examples and solutions wrapped up in an almost rom-com scenario.

Don't get me wrong, this is not a self-help book or a true rom-com. It is a funny and endearing journey of one woman's struggle to start over and learn that she doesn't need to depend on a man for happiness or security. It's a story about learning how to treat yourself with the same kindness and respect you show to others. It's a story about friendships, hardships and helping each other out. There's a little sexual tension and hints at romance, but it isn't the focus. This book is funny, refreshing, inspiring, thought provoking and insightful.

Trigger warning: infertility, divorce, infidelity, domestic abuse (both physical & emotional), death.

This was an enjoyable book, easy to read, light, funny.
The main character, Claire, really goes through the mill with drama and disasters befalling her in quick succession. There are good lessons on mindfullness and meditation here.
Despite this I found her a little annoying at times!
I received this as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

How many cards can be stacked against Claire before she finally breaks? Claire's life is not going how she planned when she finds herself separated and her business and career gone. As a last ditch effort to change her life, Claire enrolls in a Mindfulness course at the insistence of her mother. Throughout the course, Claire meets new friends and starts to get a handle on her struggle but her past just won't let her be.

That Certain Spark isn't your typical love story; it's the love story that needs to be told but isn't. You cant love another until you learn to love yourself. I found myself rooting for Claire but also shaking my head at some of the decisions she made but I understand the process and the work that goes into change. This is a well written book dealing with difficult topics with some humor mixed in. It's on the slower paced side but still a good read.

Rating 3.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This was a great book to read, it had me laughing and also had me wondering how everything was going to turn out. I really enjoyed reading this one, would highly recommend. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

3.25 stars
From page one you are going to want to give Claire a big hug, and her ex a good kick in the crotch. Her life is just in total shambles and the plot shows how she tries to regroup, rethink, and retrain her brain and thought patterns. The mindfulness course that Claire takes has some very helpful ideas. But here’s where a little bit of my issue with this book is. There are a lot of very serious issues being dealt with, and interspersed with this seriousness is more humorous bits. And you get the serious and the amusing back to back in the same chapter, and this makes it a little jarring to read. But the book is well written, and a good read.

Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced reader copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Such a great read! I related to Claire a lot throughout the book, and I like how the main character learns to heal through mindfulness and self-love rather than through a romance. This book tackles mental health struggles in such a real, yet humorous way. I highly recommend it!

This book really has it all, gentleness, grittiness, truth about infidelity, anxiety, maternal support and support groups. I absolutely loved this easy read, a compelling storyline of Claire, her cheating husband and how she tries to rebuild her life whilst suffering crippling anxiety and panic attacks. The support group she joins has a mixed bag of characters who become integrated into her life, not all for positive reasons. It is a realistic story, with all the events unfolding in a believable way. Events and emotions, actions and consequences are thoroughly explored, from Claire’s slow retreat from her previous home situation to her current home, family and work life. It really is a comprehensive portrayal of strength, friendship and recovery. I give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review

A relatable and quite humorous story about relationships, self care and loving yourself. I enjoyed it well enough and found myself cheering, cringing and laughing throughout the whole book. Would definitely recommend for an easy read.