Such a cute romantic comedy. Lighthearted and heartwarming, a definite feel good read. I loved the storyline, the character development! Very well-written and looking forward to reading more from this author.

I don't normally read Romance books I tend to stick to Thrillers but I really liked the sound of this one so I gave it a go!
I'm so so glad I did because I loved everything about this book, the storyline and the characters were amazing! It was such a happy and light-hearted book.
The book follows the character Maya who's life is starting to fall apart with her job and her relationship and I felt she just needed a break in life. That break comes when her boyfriends phone lands in the wrong hands of a lovely Lift Car driver (Uber in the UK).
Who knew that one text could lead the most wonderful day in a town called Carmel with the company of the mystery driver by text messages.
The book then skips a year later when things are even worse in her life and she decides to go back to Carmel to find this driver who changed her life.
I don't want to say to much because it was such a beautiful story, I don't want to spoilt it for the reader! This book is out on kindle 2nd September and everyone should read it. I loved it!!

The humor of this book is infectious, which makes more the book more likely interesting and entrancing. But as much as I'd like to say that I enjoy this book. Sadly not, there are major predictions I had done and it was just easy to predict it. But the humor, again, in this book is so superior!

Unfortunately The Meeting Point did not hit the mark for me at all. The story was very predictable and I knew exactly what was going to happen long before the end. I found the characters themselves very one dimensional. Some parts were explained in too much detail almost and others in not very much at all. Personally I thought the writing itself was very disjointed, some sentences could definitely have been shortened or made far simpler with a few tweaks here and there.

After visiting Carmel-by-the-Sea recently, this book came to life even more. The town is a brilliant setting for a contemporary romance and for falling in love. The premise was overall refreshing, especially with ride share services only becoming popular the last few years, Olivia Lara created a new love story. I loved the adventure aspects of the story, how Ethan told Maya to go all around the area and experience the town. As someone who doesn't enjoy traveling alone, it elevated the story and made me view Maya as very brave. Furthermore, even though there were cliches in the story, they really did work well.

First off, let me start off by saying that this is a lot more to this story than what’s in the synopsis. Maya is an aspiring author by night journalist by day who has been working her hardest but getting nowhere because of the boss she works for. She had a long stable boyfriend but there doesn’t seem to be any spark left in their relationship. Hoping to revive it one last time, Maya decides to surprise David while he is out of town. Unfortunately, when she lands at the airport and tries to contact him, a stranger replies on his phone and mistakes her for the girl David was actually with. But one thing leads to another and realizing that it is Maya’s birthday, the Lift driver convinces her to follow his itinerary and have a blast of a day.

Exploring the small town of Carmel, Maya enjoys a memorable day while texting with a stranger. They do not share their names and ultimately decide to meet up by the beach the next morning. I’ll be honest, the first couple chapters went fast and were kind of predictable. As their meeting was getting closer, I was getting worried if this would be a cliched love story about their relationship… but hey that is not what happened! Author Olivia Lara hooked me right in with her twists and I think the event portrayed in the book aligned well with Maya’s character as it is introduced at the beginning and the practicality of the situation.

Maya has always been a sucker for love stories and making up stories of the people she meets has been an integral part of her creative journey. Writing is also a way for her to cope with the present. After the incident with the Lift driver, Maya writes down all her thoughts in a story… only to find out eventually that a renowned author will soon publish pretty much the same storyline from a guy’s perspective.

Could this be the Lift driver she met? This is where the story truly begins and what most of it is about. The search for the Lift driver. Piecing together who in the town of Carmel was he and seeing if what they had was real.

See what I mean? The synopsis does not do the book justice.

Maya’s first encounter with the Lift driver is completely virtual. It has been a long time since I have made a friend online without meeting them in person or talking to them via video, except due to work and COVID. The Meeting Point in that way made me reminisce about how easy friendships used to be when we were teenagers. Maya is about my age (late twenties) and feeling cheated in a caged relationship can offer a major incentive to be more adventurous. Thankfully, the Lift does not have bad intentions and she isn’t completely naive.

The Lift driver aside, Maya and her friend Alisa share a close bond while living oceans apart. I loved that Maya is an aspiring writer and Alisa is an editor herself. Reading about writing and publishing worlds (and review copies!) in the novel was really fun because I live in that world in my free time too. 😀 Maya’s friendship with Cafe Azure owner Celine was pretty sweet too!

Many thanks to the author for providing me a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was light, fluffy with just a sprinkle of angst. There was also an attempt at the well-loved enemies-to-lovers trope although, there was definitely more 'lovers' than 'enemies'.

This book had all the elements of a typical adult rom-com. A protagonist that's actually really unhappy and it takes a midlife crisis for her to come out of her shell and have courage for new beginnings; no matter how daunting. Coincidentally, she falls in love and things get way more complicated than they should be.

This book was cute. Although the first 80 pages were pretty slow, things really picked up after that and I must say, I was quite engaged. This story is an adventurous one, taking place across beaches, restaurants, magical winding streets with old buildings. The moments the love interests share are cute and dynamic; there is tension, there are unexplained feelings, there is happiness and also a sort of melancholy that is always present in adult rom-coms.

I really liked Maya. I found her to be likeable and quirky, with a thirst for the world that the love interest definitely saw in her. Ethan, the male protagonist, was also very likeable. He had good charm and his sister, Celine is even better. Celine and all the other supporting characters were such good additions to the story. I really enjoyed reading those little snippets about them.

Although the characters were quite unique, the execution and direction of the story were of a typical rom-com; adorable but predictable, without any interesting tweak or twist.

Two big problems I have with this book was how rushed the ending was and the writing. The ending was so rushed, it felt unrealistic and was all in all, pretty lazy writing. It was not romantic in the least and the pace was so jarring that I really felt like I was stunned into reality. At some point, I forgot I was reading and was really quite engrossed but that ending truly did not match up to what it was building up for, especially that last interaction between Celine and Maya. The overall writing was average but Max's writing, however, was not very good. It truly did not have the magic it should have had, seeing the story told from the perspective of Max. It was lacklustre and my heart definitely did not skip a beat while reading from Max's perspective.

It was still an enjoyable light read. I would recommend it for anyone taking a break from heavy genres.

Thank you to The Write Reads for organizing and inviting me to participate in this blog tour. Thank you, Aria Fiction and Net Galley, for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book starts with Maya having one of the worst days of her life. She gets fired, and when she flies out to San Francisco to surprise her long-time boyfriend for her birthday, she finds out from his Lift driver that he’s been cheating on her. Instead of moping at the airport for 24-hours, the Lift driver, Max, convinces her to spend her birthday in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Max texts Maya a personalized itinerary, and they spend the entire day texting, making it one of the best days of Maya’s life. A year later, Maya finds herself back in Carmel-by-the-Sea, determined to find out more about the mysterious Max and to sort out the feelings she’s had since her first adventure in Carmel-by-the-Sea.

The first thing I want to say about this book is that it was super cute. Romance is my favourite genre, and this book did not disappoint. Once I started reading, it was hard to put the book down, and I likely would have stayed up all night to finish it if I didn’t have to go to work the next day. This book features the insta-love trope, which usually isn’t something that I’m interested in, but I didn’t mind it in this book because other things were going on.

I absolutely adored the characters in this book. I loved watching Maya take her life into her own hands, become more confident, and grow as a person. I liked that she fit right into Carmel-by-the-Sea and build some great friendships with the people there. I also thought that Maya was a memorable character, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I mention her a lot on my blog when I make various list posts or do book tags. I also liked the other characters, and I’m hoping that the author eventually writes a spin-off novel or two featuring some of the other characters that were introduced in this book.

As far as the story goes, I thought that it was original. I can’t think of any other romance novels that start with the characters meeting in the way that Maya and Max meet, and the idea of exploring a new place with a secret personal tour guide seems unique.

I also liked how bookish this book was. One of the characters is a published author, and Maya writes stories in her spare time.

The one downside to this book is that I figured out what was going to happen. However, I liked the build-up to it finally happening, so it was still an enjoyable reading experience.

I love these types of romcoms and this one was no exception. I loved the romance and it left me wanting more. I definitely want to read more by Lara and will be looking out for more works from her!

3.5 ⭐️ I enjoyed this book! It was a tad predictable, and the miscommunication was a bit much for me, but it was a fun read and I would recommend it if you’re in the mood for a light, quick, heartfelt read! Overall I enjoyed the characters and the story, as well as the writing style.

The Meeting Point is rom-com magic! What if a chance conversation a year ago could absolutely change your life in every possible way? The premise of the story is day long text conversation between "Max" and Maya and then the subsequent search.

It had such You've Got Mail and Serendipity vibes, I would love to see this also as a movie.

I wanted to like this book, but ultimately didn’t. I couldn’t get past that the girl doesn’t know that the guy she’s reluctantly falling in love with is the same one she had such a connection with via text messages on a previous trip - it felt ridiculous. The fact she doesn’t connect the dots was endlessly frustrating and made her look pretty stupid. I also found it hard to forgive the guy for NOT TELLING HER when he realised who she was. I would have loved to see more romantic tension and intimate moments between the MCs along the way too.
Overall, an average read because it had a great premise but fell short on execution.

I really enjoyed reading this one!!! So good and thrilling...the two main characters and their chemistry was so good!! I would definitely recommend it to everyone who likes romance books

This was a very heart-warming book. I love reading books based on texts, and this was no different. The storyline was very unique. Maya finds out how her boyfriend is cheating on her when she goes to surprise him in California. Her boyfriend's phone gets accidentally left in a Lyft ride, and then the Lyft driver texts her and gives her directions to travel around California. Going on a virtual trip to California through the story was absolutely delightful!! A love story develops between Maya and the driver - I won't reveal the name since SPOILERS, but oh my God, everything was so, so sweet. I was smiling all the time while reading it. <3

Can't wait to read more of Olivia Lara's books! 4.5/5 starts to The Meeting Point. <3

I’ve had this book on my shelf for a few weeks, eagerly awaiting a chance to sit and read it. The book appealed to me and the cover is exciting and eye catching.

The story centres around Maya. She ‘meets’ a Lift driver who she names Max. A text relationship develops between them for one day, but the impact of this one fay changes their lives.

No spoilers from me, but we follow Maya on her mission to find Max and discover who he is. During this time we are introduced to several supporting characters who are all individual and contribute to the story in their own way.

I loved the author’s writing style. The story flowed well and once I got to the 30% mark, I didn’t want to put it down.

A few things confused me…

1. I can’t quite fathom how Maya fell in love by text message conversations over the course of one day. The texts described in the story were not deep enough, heartfelt or emotional enough to have anyone falling in love.

2. I’m not quite sure of the need for Maya’s mum in the story. She didn’t contribute anything and felt like an addition for the sake of an extra character.

3. Some of the back stories of the supporting characters seemed silly. Serious back stories, but they were dropped into the book and cleared up quickly and effortlessly. Again, they seemed like additions just for the sake of bulking the story out.

Overall this was a lovely story. I’d sussed who Max was pretty early in the book. No big twists in the story, but it was still a nice read.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for my advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review 📚

3.5 ⭐️

This, for me was a cute read. I enjoyed reading it. I love how the story is told and I could easly connect to the main charcters.
This was as a 3.5 stars read for me.

I absolutely adored this book. I loved the use of text messages to tell the story. I think that the story was conveyed perfectly in that mix and is really how so many communicate today!

I loved the main characters and just thought the setting was great as well!

I would love for this one to be a Hallmark movie.

I read this till the end but I found the main character quite annoying and spiritless. The writing style was very bland and flat. The reveal was predictable and the plot twist a bit forced and not hugely believable.But despite all this I still read to the end so there must have been something there.

The writing was so playful, very enjoyable to read. Both these characters were relatable.
If you're looking for something to kick a reading slump or if you just want a fun, romantic book to sweep you off your feet this is the one: look no further. This was such a good book.
The pacing was really good and the humour and banter between the characters kept me engaged the entire time.
The characters I absolutely adored. Fun, cute, witty awesome people to follow in a book!
Everything about this story worked. I had no idea what to expect going in but was happy with the journey it took me on. I wanted more as I always do when I’m reluctant to let a story go.

Thank you NetGalley and Aria & Aries for this cute advanced ebook!.

It’s the kind of novel where the side-characters and the setting are more striking than the actual protagonists. I fell in love with Carmel. It sounds like a dream vacation. Cafe Azure looks like a place I can frequently visit where I can just sip good coffee and write.
The inconsistency in Maya’s characterization puts me off. She is a wannabe-writer excited to get her big break but has never been given a chance. Spending her time observing people, writing about them, and giving them the happy ever that they may or may not deserve make her so relatable. Her martyrdom in her last relationship has made her pityful but the idea that she follows her impulse to change makes any reader root for her. However, reading the first person narration sets a very high standard particularly when the narrator-protagonist appears to be a writer. Perhaps, Maya is the kind of person who can organize her thoughts on paper but find it difficult to do so in her head.