This book started out promising, but then became full of standard womens fiction cliches. I also didn't particularly like the writing.

It’s an ok read. I failed to get too involved with any of the main characters. I didn’t particularly care about any of the characters. This book was a miss for me.

Not Exactly What I had in Mind is just that.. something I didn’t really expect. I enjoyed it and it was a quick read, but overall it left me a little unsatisfied. It follows a group of characters, including Hazel and her roommate Alfie, Hazel’s sister Emily and Emily’s wife Daria. Hazel is an illustrator working in a coffee shop and Alfie is a teacher, and the pair sleep together early in the book and awkwardly move on with their lives and don’t really talk about it again.

Emily and Daria are trying to start a family, and both story lines combine as all four figure out all of these important and large hurdles in their lives. It’s very character driven as it focuses on these four individuals and what happens to them throughout the next few weeks and months, and the book covers a lot of deeper, more serious topics. Overall it fell a little flat for me. I dislike the large miscommunication that happens between some characters and how it truly affected the rest of the book. I also felt the epilogue really did not work well for me and almost ruined the whole book entirely in my opinion. I did like the conversations between Emily and Daria regarding finding a surrogate for their baby and the trials and tribulations that come with that process. It was a overall great that I finished in a day and I was intrigued to finish it and see how these characters ended up.

This book is also very British, and as someone who is not British some of the jokes I think went over my head. It was funny though, and I think it’s a book a lot of people will enjoy. Unfortunately for me it didn’t wow me, but it was overall pretty okay to me.

Thanks to Dutton and Penguin Random House for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Sometimes you just need a good Rom-Com to take your mind off life. They are light hearted and easy reads that usually leave you feeling all mussy. From the very beginning this book was spicy and I loved it! I like a some naughty details every once in awhile.

Hazel works at a cafe and pretty much keeps to herself. Dating isn't really her thing but she recently had a one night stand with her very hot roommate and she can't stop thinking about it. I mean Alfie really knows what he's doing in the bedroom and Hazel wouldn't mind doing it again. She's pretty sure Alfie has one night stands often so their hook up isn't anything special for him. When Hazel comes home one day she discovers her sister and her wife cozy on her couch hanging out with Alfie. What the actual heck? Hazel can deny her feelings for Alfie but it's pretty clear when he willing agrees to help Hazels sister move that he has caught feelings too. No one willing volunteers to help anyone more! To make matters more complicated Emily and her wife Daria have been looking for a donor and have decided it makes more sense to go with someone thy know and like, and they now know Alfie and both really like him. Will this be a problem for Hazel? She swears there's nothing going on between them so it shouldn't be an issue. Would Alfie even want to be their donor?
These 3 women will become close to Alfie and bring him into their family one way or another!

I grabbed this envisioning something like Sally Rooney's books, and there are similarities--the communication issues (which, as usual, frustrated me), the angst and longing between the love interests that are compounded by their own fears and insecurities, and the intriguing side characters. I appreciated the multiple POVs to round out the story; I found myself wishing there were more chapters about Emily and Daria because I liked them so much. At times, it feels like Brook is trying to squish every social issue (e.g., revenge porn, medical trauma, male toxicity, even the pandemic) into the book, which makes the plot feel both overwhelming and like it's skimming over important topics. Overall, though, it's a perfectly fine read.

Couldn’t get into this one, it’s not my typical genre and nothing that really interested me. A fine book but didn’t hook me from the first 50 pages

This was an interesting one! Definitely not a rom com, more of a contemporary fiction. I liked that it was realistic in the sense that things don’t always work out the way you plan and not every loose end gets tied up in a neat little bow. I loved the found family Alfie found in Hazel, Daria and Emily. I liked how each character had their own relationships with each other and really cared about the others. Character wise, I liked them all. Emily got on my nerves a few times, but i I loved how caring and kind she was. Alfie was wonderful, but almost a little too wonderful at times. This book also tackled A LOT of social issues like the climate change debate, white privilege and fertility to name a few. The constant mention that Daria and Emily were vegans was a little much at times, but that’s probably just a me thing. I know there’s been some issue with the epilogue with it being set around the pandemic, but it did not bother me. The ending was a little ambiguous with Alfie and Hazel, but I kind of like that it’s open to interpretation. Overall, I enjoyed this read and I’ll definitely pick up Brook’s next book!

TW: miscarriage, anxiety, infertility, mentions of cancer, revenge porn, mentions of the pandemic

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for an advanced digital reader’s copy!

This book was fantastic! Loved getting to read before publishing date and will be recommending on Instagram, goodreads, and Amazon.

Not Exactly What I Had in Mind was a quick and easy read. It wasn't my favorite, but also there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. It was well written. The failure to communicate trope is one of my least favorites, hence why I didn't utimately love the book. Hazel and Alfie had so many missed opportunities and failures to communicate. I most enjoyed the storyline of Emily and Daria - Hazel's sister and sister-in-law - as they tried to navigate their fertility journey. I do believe that others will enjoy this book, more than I did, as I found the premise to be one that is not my favorite, rather than anything to be wrong with the writing or the characters.

I appreciate the opportunity to read/review this book and will look forward to seeing what Kate Brook writes next.

This book was a bit all over the place. I really struggled with the back and forth, the constant drama for characters. I didn't love major plot points and found myself cringing a bit when the storyline included lack of consent. I had big hopes for this book but it fell really flat.

Hazel sleeps with her flatmate Alfie right off the bat in this tale of family and romance (of a sort). She then backs off because, well, it wasn't a great idea and because she meets Miles, who might be hot but who is a slug. A real slug. Her sister Emily is married to Daria and she really wants a baby but they need a donor. Daria has a fear of pregnancy (but Emily will carry the baby). Of course they ask Alfie, who is a good guy. Not a whole lot really happens as this group circles around one another but Brook introduces several topical themes (including revenge porn) and the characters are well drawn. Then there's the epilogue- not a fan. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A good read.

*I received this book (Via eArc by Netgalley) for free from the Publisher ( PENGUIN GROUP Dutton, ) in exchange for an honest review*

It was a very interesting and not something I would actually actively seek out to read. It had very interesting topics and also circled around a love story and the struggles of family. Alfie and Hazel were very interesting to read and it felt so realistic. The epilogue felt like I was reliving the pandemic again. I think I very much enjoyed it overall and I would check out Kate Brook's other work!

Thanks so much to the publishers and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Well, this book was appropriately titled. This was nothing as I had expected it to be. It was all very overwhelming and emotionally draining for me.

I don’t mind some diverse topics but when an author tries to hard to tackle them all at the same time, it come across false.

I really wish I would have liked it more.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for my E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The writing style of this book felt Fedrik Backman-esque as the 3rd person POV switched between each of the main character’s perspectives fluidly in a way I enjoyed. It made me care deeply about the characters, so even when the plot felt a little slow, I still felt invested in each person becoming happy.

I legitimately enjoyed this book until probably the 80% mark and then it all slowly went downhill. The ending came out of nowhere and didn’t provide any closure or even the kind of open ending that leaves you thinking. It was just sort of a tepid rolling stop.

And then the epilogue…yikes. The mentions of the pandemic were so forced and completely unnecessary and unrelated to the plot. And it didn’t even give the reader any closure. It was just an awkward extra chapter set during the pandemic.

HOWEVER, 3 stars for the vast majority of it being funny and interesting with characters that had me rooting for them. I wish the author had focused more on the relationships between the main characters and left out some of the climate change/protest stuff only because it felt like filler. I kept waiting for something to HAPPEN with Hannah and her wife but nothing ever did.

This author clearly has a talent for writing interesting characters and I felt very invested in them but just never felt that I was rewarded for that investment in the end.

This book was 100% exactly not what I had in mind. The description is vague and I went in thinking it would be about one thing. I was so surprised - and happy - to discover that I was completely wrong. I loved this! Hazel felt so real to me and the story was heartfelt and sweet.

This is a quick, fun read that I really enjoyed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for any honest review.

Available June 28, 2022

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of NOT EXACTLY WHAT I HAD IN MIND by Kate Brook. I thought this was a really relatable story of what it's like to be a millennial these days, from Tinder dating to deciding to start a family to trying to figure out your career. The romance was a little bit disappointing, but I still felt like it had a natural, hopeful conclusion—and the book overall definitely was not a genre romance in structure or theme. The story dealt with a lot of current issues, especially climate change, in a nuanced way, and also delved into mental health, revenge porn, and infertility and miscarriage. It just felt very relevant and the stories pulled me through to the end.

Kate Brook’s “Not Exactly What I Had I Mind” is a title that foreshadowed my reading experience. What in Sam Hill did I just read? I’ll tell what it wasn’t—it wasn’t a romance despite being promoted that way. It was however, an in your face contemporary, politically and social issue charged work of fiction that I really didn’t enjoy. I’m all about tackling social and political topics--pick one any one and I’m here for it—but Brook’s picked like, all of them. There was just too much going on and it convoluted what started as a great storyline. Had she stuck to just one (or even two), I think it would’ve been a totally different and more enjoyable read. Instead, it was overwhelming, triggering and…it was just a lot.

I will say the writing is quite funny at times and I did like the multiple POVs from a diverse set of characters. As I said above, it did start out strong but I never quite connected and as more and more issues were introduced—revenge porn, the pandemic, pregnancy complications, etc.—it slowed down and I had to trudge through it. A personal side note…the miscommunication trope is not one of my favorites and literally everyone in this book falls into that. It was grating on my nerves but if you do enjoy that particular trope then this may be a book for you to pick up. If you’re like me, be warned.

What I thought was going to be a fun escape into a romance turned out to be and incredibly hard and emotionally demanding read that rewarded me at the end (that’s sarcasm) with a “wtf” epilogue.

I'd like to start out by saying that the writing was very funny. I enjoyed most of the characters and found myself involved on most of them on there journeys. The author lends a bright and fresh voice to her characters and develops them nicely. However, I felt that the book was a little rushed and that the author tried to really cover as many topics as could be covered in one book. There's a lot of social commentary of all types of subjects, which is a good thing, but it was just too many subjects and I was getting confused and felt that the book was rushed at that point. Several of the subjects could have been cut out and more focus could have been put on the remaining subjects. However I did like the novel, I did find it amusing and I think the author has wonderful style. I do recommend the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! I enjoyed this story quite a bit. I love anything told from multiple POVs and this one had a variety of characters. The characters had a different relationship than I've seen in other books and I really enjoyed it. It felt like reading about friends, not something predictable the way some books can be.

The only problem I had was with the epilogue. Some of the details/plot just felt unnecessary, there could have been a better way to wrap things up.

All in all I enjoyed this one a lot! Friendships, family relationships, romantic relationships, it had it all.