Single Mum’s Book Club by Victoria Cooke ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Stephanie is a lonely, single mum of three dealing with the complications of coparenting, who after a chance encounter with a couple of neighbours decides to start a book club. Then with her new found confidence she gets herself a job at the local vets, queue dishy love interest!! 😉

I found parts of this book really relatable (but not the hot vet unfortunately😆) and pure escapism, if a little predictable. Would recommend this heartwarming romance to anyone who fancies a nice, funny and lighthearted read.

My only real criticism would be the inclusion of Stephanie’s traumatic childhood, I know that some authors of ‘chick lit’ feel the need to add a bit more depth to their stories and many do it very well (as did this author) but sometimes I feel it’s a bit unnecessary when I’m just after an easy going read 🤷‍♀️ What are your thoughts?

Thanks very much to @netg for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

First, I would like to thank Victoria Cooke, HQ Digital, NetGalley and Rachel’s Random Resources for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review!

OMG!! Ohh Victoria Cooke you have no idea how much I needed this The Single’s Mum’s Book Club this week! So many times you threw me off guard and I. Could. Not. Stop. Laughing.

The Single Mum’s Book Club is dedicated to Victoria’s children, Scarlett and Amelie, who were not utter horrors during the lockdown of 2020.

How adorable was the cover design for this book?! So cute! Books placed all around a stroller! Perfect graphic for this book!! Great job to the Graphics Department.

Victoria wins the award for best scene ever in a comedic book. I was literally rolling on the floor laughing my booty off during this once scene!! The set up was priceless. I have always wondered what would happen if I got locked into a library! Well knowing me I would have a field day curled up in my fave genre sections and just binge read. However, ohh she shares what really happens. Needless to say this is an unforgettable scene in the book!! Well done Victoria!!

Mike was well not my favorite character in the book and a jerk in my eyes.

The unsuspecting friendship between Janey and Stephanie was refreshing in how much they were alike. Seemed like fate brought them together when they both needed someone in their lives to fill a void.

It did rub me the wrong way that Janey made fun of Amanda’s Dog for having difficulties walking and using a special dog pushchair. People shouldn’t judge humans or pets before getting to know them.

Little Big Lies the tv series and the book are both mentioned in this book. I totally binged watched the heck out of that show and loved it. Sadly, I didn’t hear about the book til afterwards. But WOW was it good!

TRIGGER WARNING: Mugging and murder

Steph is having a tough time in love and life and her neighbour Janey suggests a trip to the pub after they meet in an original way.

Steph hasn't been out to the pub for some time so accepts. Janey suggests setting up a book club. I liked the setting and spontaneity for this idea and how keen Janey was, both about her idea and to listen to Steph and cheer her up. I was keen to know what they were going to read.

The other woman in the book club is Amanda. I felt I knew more about Steph than Janey and Amanda, but they all seemed real and likeable. the Single Mum's Book Club is more than a book club. it's a place where the women can really chat and support each other.

I would have liked to have seen more about the books than was in the plot, but the whole novel is original.

The small village setting and the mention of the pub in quick succession won me over and that made the setting a hit for me.

I was eagerly awaiting what the women might talk about. I felt that the novel was true-to-life and realistic. I felt also that the characters were people I would like to know.

The Single Mum's Book Club is cosy, fun funny in parts and a relaxing novel.

Thanks to Victoria Cooke, HQ and Rachel's Random Resources for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars

received this book for an honest review from netgalley #netgalley

Just what I was looking for! I fun light book to take to the beach ⛱️❤️🏖️ ❤️⛱️

A laugh out loud, feel good and modern read. I really enjoyed the way the women bonded through a book club ( and wine & Doritos lol ). Stephanie’s character was well thought out and very real. Janey was the perfect friend. I loved that Victoria Cooke touched on childhood trauma and the long lasting effects it could have if no help is sought. Definitely recommend for a easy, funny and touching story.

A great, feel good, laugh out loud read. It deals with issues like loneliness and childhood trauma which gave the book great depth. I loved the relationship bwtween, Stephanie, Janey and Amanda and it goes to show you how one person can make a difference in your life. Janey came into Stephanie's life when she was at a low point and Stephanie came into Amanda's life when she was lonely and needed a friend. Each one of them saved each other and it was so heartwarming. Edward was the ideal man. A man who loves animals that much will always have my heart. He was a sweetheart. A great summer read and I'll look forward to reading more from Victoria Cooke in the future.

A fun read about three moms and a book club. They've bonded over loss or other issues with a man. It's not only a book club but emotional support, as well. It might a touch predictable it can still be enjoyable.

Thank you very much to Netgalley and the publisher HQ Digital for sending me an ARC of this book!

This book was such a joy to read from start to finish. I've always dreamed of being in a book club and this was such a cute insight into how I could imagine it being. I could really relate to Stephanie as divorced mom with kids myself. The book touches on so many topics of love, divorce and friendship. There is something for everyone to enjoy in this fast paced book. I love the interesection of the lives and different viewpoints as they enhanced each characters story. This was my first time reaing a Victoria Cooke book and I quiet enjoyed it.

Aw, this was so much fun. I loved reading about the vet’s practice (and the vet himself!), and the friendship between the book club members was a joy. Stephanie is a relatively newly-single mum of three and the juggling she has to do simply to get through the day is so relatable for mum’s everywhere whether they are going it alone or not I loved her determination and her fallibility, her kindness and her weaknesses, and her sheer zest for life.
It was a lovely book to get lost in for a few hours.

I really enjoyed The Single Mums Book Club. It’s a great feel good kinda book with a relatable main character and a group of ladies you wish you had as friends.

It’s funny in parts, has a few little twists and is easy to get drawn into and not be able to put it down. I loved the idea of the characters coming together for book club. They have all lost a husband or are having problems with the men in one way or another and the book club is like a little support group for them all.

This is a great, easy going, fairly predictable read about love, friendship and moving on.

I love reading books like this one between fantasy and mystery stories because they always pull me back to reality. The Single Mum’s Book Club is really your usual love story with lovable characters and realistic backstory.

It was fun and I loved watching Stephanie and her friends stumble through their everyday life. Her friendship with Janey and Amanda is enviable and I would join their bookclub if I could.

This is a romance story so yes, there is romance too. Heart-warming, exciting love which makes your heart beat faster.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy. I received a free copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperCollins publishing for allowing me to review this book.

I absolutely loved this book, lighthearted, humorous and cosy reading. Beautifully written about people you can relate to and happy endings. What more can you ask for.

A fun and entertaining read. It may not stick with me forever, hence the rating, but I enjoyed my time with it and it was a pleasant experience.

I have never been in a proper book club, but it's something I'd like to try some day and the first thing that attracted me towards this book. However, although I wouldn't exactly say I'm disappointed, I did expect more book club stuff. Instead of reading, the book club is more about chatting, friendship and mutual support, which is okay and it's definitely something our main character needed. I love the relationship developed between these three women, the support system everyone deserves.

And our main character, Steph, is in real need of support and encouragement. She's a recently divorced mum with three kids, some quarrels with her ex and the need to find a job after years of not working because she was taking care of her kids and her husband. I found Steph to have an impressive inner force, which is not to say she didn't have her meltdowns, but she always kept moving forward. To me, it felt quite real her adjustment to a new life, new relationships, her struggle with what to prioritize (herself or her kids), etc. I also was rooting for her and her love interest throughout the whole story (a slow-burn adorable romance for sure) and I'm quite satisfied with how things wrapped up in the end: family-wise and love-wise.

Chapters are short, which makes for a fast-paced story (I read it in a day and a half), and there's quite some humor and fun punch-lines. However, I missed some more depth to the secondary characters: Janey and Amanda, the two other mums in the book club. I didn't really get to know them well and it's a pity.

This book touches on so many topics: love, friendship, divorce, kids adjustment to divorce, co-parenting, how to overcome some childhood traumas, growing to love yourself and put yourself first. There's something in there for everyone I think. Plus, I don't have any experience with divorces or being a single mum, but I'm quite sure people who have experience them will be able to identify a lot more with Steph's story.

This book felt like my old weekend nights chilling in sweatpants and watching cozy shows. It was laugh out loud funny in several occasions as well. Sometimes I need a book that is charming and this was just the ticket. I will definitely be seeking out more titles by Victoria Cooke!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and #netgalley for the ARC which did not influence my review.

What an absolutely lovely read.

There is nothing particularly shocking or new here, but it is lighthearted and full of tremendous characters who are believable and skip off the page. An easy read which I tore through in half a day - a very definition of a summer read.

A total joy.

Brilliant. Just brilliant.

It was a book that I couldn't put down. I loved the characters, the setting and the different scenarios that played out along the way.

I really enjoyed following Steph's journey as a newly single mum finding new friends within her village.

I love small village settings as I live in a tiny village and every chapter got better and better.

I was really cheering Steph on as she found her feet and adapted her identity as her own person and I am really looking forward to more of Victoria's books.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thanks to Netgalley, HQ digital and Victoria Cooke for giving me a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book, I read it over the course of two days and was sufficiently interested to bring it up to bed and read it when I should really have been going to sleep.

In the style of the Why Mummy Drinks (Gill Sims), this book features a group of newly single/about to be single women who form a book club in an effort to make new friends whilst navigating the intricacies of family life. It is both funny and bittersweet in places.

We begin the book, with the main character, Steph, utterly bereft as her husband has divorced her and she’s trying to maintain her sense of self and look after three young children with virtually no support. Her neighbour, Janey (who she’s never spoken to before) sees how much she’s struggling and they start a new friendship. The third member of the group is the slightly older (posher), Amanda.

As well as being about female friendship and the importance of being genuine, there is a love interest in the form of Steph’s new boss, Edward. The only thing I didn’t like was the portrayal of a stereotypical grumpy Librarian! Hopefully most of us aren’t that bad! 😏

It does have a somewhat predictable plot and isn’t particularly cerebral but I think that fans of Carole Matthews, Jill Mansell and Katie Fforde will enjoy this book as a holiday read.

The book is out 30th April and you can support independent bookshops by buying it on Hive.

Thank you NetGalley, author Victoria Cooke, and HQ Digital for giving me a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
5 stars
This book was simply amazing! From the first page, I was immediately sucked into the story and it held my attention until the very end.
The story follow 3 single mums, who come from very different walks of life, but have one thing in common is the need for some much women company due to the stress of motherhood and marriage. I really enjoyed the characters. Each had a unique voice, well developed, and likeable. Stephanie is a single mum with three children and an ex that seemed to make unreasonable times at times. When finding herself overwhelm and having a meltdown in a supermarket, she meets Janey, her neighbor. Although they have lived next to each other for a while, they have never really talked, but as they get to know each other by starting a book club, they find they have more in common.
Edward was such a uniquely written male character. Most men would be running scared by a single mum with three kids, but he seems to be drawn to Stephanie and her children. I loved how real he was around her. I also liked how much he was willing to support her as a friend and even more. The slow development of their romantic relationship was so sweet. I also appreciated the fade to black intimate scenes. For some stories less is more and detailed descriptions are not necessary and sometimes take the reader out of the story. The support system these women had for each other was so powerful and realistic. I liked reading a story where the women helped each other rather than teared each other down. Overall, the ending left me well satisfying and wanting more! I would highly recommend this book to those who love a light hearted romantic comedy. I can't wait to read more books by this author!

the single mums’ book club was a quick, enjoyable read. the plot was entertaining and characters were likeable and realistic. the relationships were well-written and all the mums’ book club moments were real scene-stealers, funny and emotional at once. romance was cute, i really liked stephanie and edward’s dynamic. overall an alright read. 3 stars.

In this story we meet some lovely ladies who are all experiencing a turning point and seeking friendship to help them along the way.

Stephanie is navigating a new world after splitting with her husband a year before and is finding looking after their small children and juggling finances really difficult. In a chance encounter in the supermarket she bumps into her neighbour Janey who she quickly becomes fast friends with.

I really enjoyed this book, it was brimming with the realities of being a parent and was really focused around the kids maintaining a happy and normal life to create the very best memories despite everything that Stephanie couldn't control. We got to know her ex husband in this story and watch as she navigates the path to decide if she is ready to move on or if she still wants to be with her ex husband.

The wonderful ladies who form the book club made me laugh, with their wall climbing escapades and created a wonderful friendship which in turn helped each of them when they needed the most.

I love reading books by Victoria Cooke and as expected I flew through as I kept wanting to know what would come next. It made me giggle throughout and was a wonderful light hearted read with lovely characters.