Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis is a contemporary romance that is for those that believe in serendipitiy and twists of fate to find ones soulmate. The story is a slower build as the couple come together time and again.

Noelle Butterby is on the way home to her mother that Noelle has been caring for when a blizzard interrupts travel trapping Noelle on the road. At first Noelle believes that the storm will pass and the traffic will more along soon but as time passes she realizes that is not the case.

Noelle is in need of a charger for her phone to be able to call home so she accepts help from a friendly American in the car next to her. After eight hours pass with the conversation flowing easily Noelle is certain she’ll never see the stranger again but fate has another thing in mind when time and again Noelle continues to run into Sam.

I went into Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis somewhat blindly thinking the whole story was going to be about the eight hours so I was nicely surprised to find this one held so much more. The story and characters immediately caught my attention and I loved the threads the author wove to pull this couple together slowly. If looking for a nice cozy and heartwarming romance this one should be added to your list!

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Do you believe in destiny? If you do, you’ll love Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis. Noelle and Sam meet by chance in the middle of a late winter blizzard. After spending 8 hours stuck in a car together, they part assuming they’ll never see each other again. But they do...over and over again, they keep seeing each other. And, each time they bumped into each other, I loved them both a little more.

This modern love story is a feel good read, but also deals with some serious topics like unresolved grief, survivor’s guilt, anxiety and, postpartum depression. I liked the way Louis handled those topics and used them to show how the characters grew, through and in spite of, their problems.

Why not a 5 star, then? The beginning was a little slow for me. I was worried that all 8 hours would be in the car. I started loving it once Noelle and Sam were out of the car. The secondary characters were also so well done. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't realize when I requested this ARC from Netgalley nor when I decided to read it this week that it was by the same author of "Dear Emmie Blue" which I read in 2020. I see a lot of similarities in this book with that book. The main character is stuck. There is a question of whether love is fated or circumstantial. There is a secret. I purposely picked this book now because it takes place in winter (well, the beginning does) and I thought it would be an enjoyable cozy read. Ultimately, it was just okay. I didn't really feel the attraction between the two love interests and the fate stuff just became over the top as the book went on.

5 out of 5 Stars, I loved this contemporary romance! I will be reading more from this author in the future. Thank you, publisher and NetGalley for the early copy!

Noelle finds herself stuck in a blizzard while driving on the M4 and befriends the driver of another vehicle with whom she rides out the storm with. They don’t ever expect to see each other again, but, of course, the universe has other plans.

This contemporary romance explores the role that fate plays in our lives and whether a coincidence is just that or something more. Lovely is the first word that springs to mind when I think of this book, it was such a lovely book. I adored the main characters and found the story itself, while admittedly rather predictable, to be engaging and I was completely rooting for Noelle.

What I didn’t like was the fact this seemed to be being marketed as a Christmas/winter title so I was expecting it to be more “warm and fluffy” and while it was definitely a charming and warm hearted read it also covered some important topics; grief, suicide, family relationships, postpartum depression and infidelity, which made me feel like the cover and synopsis sort of undersold this one.

I also felt the title was a little confusing as although the “eight perfect hours” are an important part of the story, they are also only one part and so I’m not sure why this aspect of the story was pulled upon for the title. I had (wrongly) assumed prior to reading that the majority of the book would focus on those eight hours but that was not the case.

Despite these points I did really enjoy this one and would definitely recommend it.

Oh how I loved this book! I feel in love with Lia Louis’ writing in Dear Emmie Blue, and Eight Perfect Hours did not disappoint.

I loved Noelle and Sam’s heartwarming and complicated journey and watching them both grow through the process. I was so hooked that I think I read this story in a day!

Eight Perfect Hours is beautiful and swoony and everything I love about Lia Louis’ writing. I will read anything she writes!

Eight Perfect Hours was an adorably perfect snow day read. Like, you COULD read it in the summer...but for some reason it's just one of those books that is better appreciated under a blanket, in front of the fire, with a steaming mug of cocoa in hand.

Noelle is a charming main character, and I felt like Lous's writing allowed the reader to understand her in a deeper way than you often get in the romance genre. Even the decisions that logically I knew weren't the right ones (*cough* Ed *cough*) made sense in the moment and felt authentic because of how fully realized she (and therefore her internal struggle) was. But thank god for Sam and for fate (rather aggressively) pushing them together time and time again, because girl deserved so much better than she gave herself credit for when she was with Ed--and Sam was So. Much. Better.

My only reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that the fate stuff felt a bit too heavy handed at times--there were some revelations in the last quarter of the book in particular that pushed it too far into unbelievability for me. Louis is a fantastic writer and these themes of destiny and "meant to be" obviously work for her (I really liked Dear Emmie Blue as well), but I hope this doesn't become her only formula.

3,5/5 stars

First things first: if you don’t believe in fate or destiny, or if meant-to-be-together love stories aren’t your trope, this miiiight not be the book for you. I’m all for willing suspension of disbelief when it comes to fiction but the number of convenient “fated” twists and coincidences in this book was just a little too much for me. However, if the thought of that doesn’t make you roll your eyes then this might be a really sweet and romantic story for you!

One thing I didn’t realize before reading this is that there’s a love triangle, which also detracted from my enjoyment a bit. I didn’t mind it because of the love triangle itself, but because Noelle spent so much more time with the person who was obviously not the one. I appreciate that it was necessary for her growth but I really needed more pagetime to grow the connection between her and Sam for me to buy the intense pull she felt toward him. Even their initial meeting in the car that started the whole thing kind of felt a bit rushed and didn’t do enough to establish the relationship for me.

Setting aside all that, I’m interested in reading more from Lia Louis because I really do think it’s just the main conceit of this story that didn’t fully work for me. The writing was charming and funny and made me want to keep reading. I also thought Noelle was a wonderful and likeable character who had great growth; she felt well-developed and real and her motivations made sense even if I didn’t agree with all of her decisions.
Overall I found this an enjoyable if somewhat far-fetched read. Check this one out if you’re in the mood for a serendipitous and emotional winter romance!

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

This was a cute holiday read that was a great fit in between my darker thriller reads that I’m used to. I don’t read many holiday themed books but this one had just the right amount of romance /steam (very little)/ holiday for my liking and ended up being a perfect holiday book for me. I do believe in fate to a certain extent and this story did a great job of showing how one encounter could change the course of your life albeit not right away. I liked the characters of Noelle and Sam, and anytime the setting is overseas I am instantly hooked so this one just had all the right elements for me, is a great feel good, warm book and I would absolutely recommend it!

Thank you to @NetGalley and @AtriaBooks for the digital copy to review.

After a chance meeting during a freak snowstorm that completely shuts down the M4, Noelle and Sam form a connection that can’t be denied for eight perfect hours; however, that seems to be the end of their story. But then there are other chance meetings and a connection among their pasts that tugged at my heart strings. I really enjoyed this book, but wouldn’t consider it a Christmas romance. I also highly recommend the author’s previous novel, Dear Emmie Blue.

One of my favorite beliefs in storytelling is the red string of fate, and Eight Perfect Hours was a beautiful retelling.
I absolutely adored this.

This adorable winter themed book grabbed me from the beginning. I think the concept of two strangers meeting by chance during a snowstorm was the perfect meet cute. But then when the story went deeper about how they had near misses for most of their lives, it was even better. I like that the author showed that they just weren't meant to meet or bet together in that moment but how something was always missing with their current relationships. I also really enjoyed the mental health aspect that the author threw in with her best friend. Post partum depression is something we don't typically explore, or talk about, and I am glad to see that she touched on that as it's so important to recognize that it is something that happens and is not taboo. I would read this one over and over again!

This was a cute holiday read though it’s not set at Christmas time. It’s more of a winter read. I really enjoyed the beginning with the cute meeting of the main characters while stranded on a roadway. I got a little frustrated in the middle with the slower pace and didn’t like the way either of the main characters behaved but I did enjoy the end. Overall I recommend this book though I warn it’s not a Christmas read as many seem to think. I definitely want to read more from this author in the future.

There is something about Christmas reads that just seem magical to me, so when I saw Eight Perfect Hours I knew I had to read it. Focusing on Sam and Noelle the two are brought together but after thinking they will never see each other again they keep bumping into each other. Fate I believe has a bigger plan than us and this read just seemed.. right, This read just gave me the feels I really loved it.

This was a sweet romance with engaging characters - I enjoyed this book for the most part but found there were quite a few coincidences which came across to me as slightly unbelievable.

I was deciding what book to read for my first book of the new year, and realized that I had another one from Lia Louis on my list. I will admit, as I admitted in my notes on Dear Emmie Blue
that, while I would not consider myself a "romance" reader, this pandemic has done strange things to my reading habits. I thought this book would be a great way to kick off the new year—with optimism, fun, and an unending supply of serendipity. Coincidence or fate? Noelle and Sam are locked in a debate about this, despite the evidence all around them. I, for one, believe in signs. If you do too, you will be thrilled with this story, because signs and coincidences are abundant here. I am starting to think the world would be a nicer place if we all read a few books each year that defied our expectations and even crossed the line occasionally on believability. Maybe crossing that line, with an over-the-top happy ending is not such a bad thing after all. I used to deride a neatly wrapped up story with a tidy happy ending, but three long years of chaos in the world have changed me. Maybe, what we all need, is a little more love and a few more perfect hours.

Not a holiday read but a winter read, Eight Perfect Hours follows Noelle, a cleaner and carer for her sick mum, and what happens when she gets stuck on the freeway in a winter storm on her way home from her high school reunion.

By a stroke of fate, Sam (American, tall, and a professional rock climbing guide) happens to hit traffic in the same spot, and invites Noelle to use his phone charger while they wait out the storm.

Once the storm is over, however, Sam and Noelle keep bumping into each other. Is it fate, or just a small town in England that keeps bringing them together? With both still dealing with other relationships, the reader is kept on their toes, wondering if/when the two will get together.

I loved that throughout the novel, both the characters and the readers uncovered more ways that the Noelle and Sam were linked. It didn’t feel cheesy or overwrought, but well done by the last chapters when it all comes together.

Though it was a touch of a slower burn than I would have preferred, I found Eight Perfect Hours to be a cute romance, with little enough steam that you could let your grandma borrow it and it wouldn’t be uncomfortable.

I loved the initial premise of this book, but as the story went on I found it hard to stay connected to the characters.

8 perfect hours. Stuck on a highway in a blizzard, in a car with a total stranger. That’s all it took Noelle Butterby to realize this handsome American was someone special. Too bad they didn’t exchange information and Sam, the American, was on his way to the airport to catch a flight home. Why then a few weeks later while sitting in a hospital waiting room does she run in to him again? And a few more times after that. Was it fate?

I loved this book. Although it was frustrating at times, the twists and reveals it made, made me fall head over heels for this.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you can buy into the premise of coincidences, this is a cute love story. I was not fully invested in the idea of a woman getting into a strange man's car, or that a major freeway in a huge city could be completely blocked for multiple hours at a time, but once you set that to the side, the relationship between Sam and Noelle was sweet and lovely.