I had a lot of high hopes for this book when I read the plot summary. The idea of a fixer of relationships instead of politicians or celebrities was a great idea for the main character. Aly saw all of her ex's better off after dating her, so naturally her friends believed she could make a job out of it. She ends up with a client who wants to fix Aly's first love & best friend, thus putting Aly in a difficult position because does she think he needs any fixing at all?

As I said, I had high hopes for this book, & while I did enjoy the book, it didn't completely satisfy me. I thought it would be more of a romance, but I saw it lacking a lot in that category. Parts of this book did feel unrealistic for me, so that was slightly hard to ignore. I enjoyed reading Aly & Dylan's progressing relationship, & seeing how both characters were flawed in their own ways & wanted to be accepted for who they both are. I loved Aly's friends Tola & Eric & the dynamic the friends had together. While this was not my favorite read ever, it was a light read & I did enjoy it!

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, & G.P. Putnam's Sons for this ARC!

This book was so goddamn cute. A childhood friends to strangers to lovers story.

Alyssa is 33 working at a marketing firm, toiling away in the hopes of finally landing her well-earned big promotion. One night while dining out alone, she runs into an ex who credits her with turning his life around. Soon, with the help of her friends/co-workers Tola and Eric, she realizes that she is a "fixer" with a clear pattern: she dates men who are "projects" in need of improvement, then after she's put the work in to change them, she's exhausted and bounces, leaving other women to reap the rewards of her labor. So the three of them hatch a scheme to harness Aly's "fixer upper" skills to help women whose boyfriends/husbands need some gentle prods in the right direction.

That's how Aly ends up face-to-face with Dylan, her childhood best friend and crush whom she hasn't seen or spoken to in 15 years. Dylan's famous influencer girlfriend has hired Aly to "fix up" Dylan—she wants to mold him to fit better into her lifestyle. At first, Aly has no intention of taking Dylan on as a project, but when her mother needs money fast in order to keep her home, Aly accepts the job on the condition of a HUGE fee. As she reconnects with her old friend and gets sucked into his world again, Aly struggles to come to terms with her own feelings and what she wants and, most importantly, what is right.

The story was interesting and unique and really sucked me in. The beginning was a bit clunky—it was more telling than showing until the love interest was introduced, as if the author was just going through the motions to set up the good bits. Still, once Dylan came into the picture, it all fell into place. I will say, if you're looking for a book with loads of romance, this might not be for you. The romance is there, but it's slow-burn, more build-up and tension than actual action.

This book reminded me of Heartbreak for Hire, People We Meet On Vacation, and Love and Other Words, but a lot slower in terms of romance. Still very good, a solid 4-4.5.

This one was just okay for me. I thought the premise was interesting and I’m always looking for fresh ideas in romance. Overall I just had quite a few problems.

First, for a romance there wasn’t a lot of romance. I often struggle with friends to lovers because it can feel really instant and unbelievable since If there isn’t build up. Which is what happened here. We didn’t see Aly and Dylan’s past so their romance wasn’t obvious.

Another problem I had was that during this whole story Dylan had a girlfriend. So it felt really icky to have him and Aly in this weird emotional relationship when he had a girlfriend. And the girlfriend, sure she was a bit shallow but overall she was a nice person who thought they were in love. Cheating tropes really bother me.

Finally I had issues with Aly. I felt like it was really jarring how intuitive and strong she could be about other people but how utterly clueless she was in her own life. She was in terrible, destructive relationships, abused at work left and right, and had an emotionally harmful relationship with her parents. Her life was such a mess that it just made it more unbelievable that she was a “master manipulator.”

Overall, a pretty problematic book for me in several ways.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc. I absolutely adored this book. I laughed, cried, screamed, got really angry, and had frequent heart eyes. I’ve read a lot of books that made me cry throughout but this one had me sobbing every 5 minutes. I quite literally could not put it down, and against my better judgment, stayed up until 6 am reading it. I am obsessed with Dylan and Aly. I want more more more. And there were absolutely characters that made me want to tear my hair out, but I loved to hate them. The only thing I want more of is Aly and Dylan’s romantic relationship. I would definitely read a novella or an entire book of Aly and Dylan fluff. will be buying the paperback once it’s released.

The beginning of this book had me worried it was going to be rushed and cliché. However, once the initial plot was set up it progressed very well. I enjoyed this women empowered romance quite a bit.

Here’s 5 things I enjoyed:
1. The character development was immaculate. It was not only believable but also inspiring.
2. The friends to enemies to lovers trope was done well.
3. While I tend to hate the miscommunication trope, it was done in a way that didn’t leave you frustrated with either the main character or the love interest.
4. Women empowerment was woven throughout the story line that allows you to relate to at least one aspect within this book.
5. The resolutions for all the conflicts and issues throughout the story were done very well.

Thank you to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and the author for an advanced copy of this book for my honest review.

Remember the cliché line, don’t judge a book by its cover? I fell for it hook, line and sinker with this book, The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe! Based on the front cover and summary blurb on back, I expected it to be a cute, little, light-hearted RomCom. Oh boy it is not that! For fans of Josie Silva’s, One Day in December, get ready to eat your heart out with this Contemporary Fiction Second Chance Romance. Even being completely blindsided and outside of my normal preferred genre’s, I rated The Fixer Upper as a 4 Star!
Set in London, England, UK, Alyssa Aresti (AKA Aly) has a terrible track record with ex-boyfriends. She dates them, plants the seed for their success in life, and then eventually the relationship fizzles out. Her friends realize this pattern and suddenly The Fixer Upper is formed. A web-based secretive site allows for Aly and her friend to “help” those women in need with their relationship issues. Of course it was all fun and games, and sure, lives were being changed for the better until one high profile influencer asked for the impossible! Unable to say NO, The Fixer Upper got to work. Enter target male… Dylan James. The Dylan James who also just happens to be Aly’s first and only true love.
What worked well for this book was the build up of conflict. In Aly’s personal life, in her work life and eventually in her relationship; everything conflict related lead to her own metamorphosis. And don’t get me wrong, Forsythe painted harsh scenes, harsh realities people live in daily where anxiety usually wins. However, Forsythe’s writing style gave smooth edges to the harsh situations. As a reader, it was not overwhelming and I was able to form deeply felt connections to many of the characters for which ever their circumstances were. Something, someone, or some situation will resonate with everyone who reads this book!

3.5 stars
This book was cute but the message behind the book is probably the best part of it which makes me conflicted on how to rate it lmaoo FRTC

Aly Aresti is a walking fixer. Every man she’s dated has somehow benefited from her fixer-upper ways. It seems the only person she can’t fix is, herself.

“Face it, Aly, this is what you do. You date guys who aren’t worthy of you, and then you do everything for them.”

When Aly and her friends come to the realization that she is a bonafide fixer, they decide to take their group on the road. They create a professional service for women who want to give their men an extra push. She is unexpectedly sent to “fix” her childhood best friend and former love.

From there you can pretty much guess what happens. Except this book surprised me! I mean it still came to the cliche ending but the WAY it all played out was exceptional.

First, I love the dedication, and I think it explains a lot about the book’s theme.

“For the women who learned, sooner or later, that selfish is not a dirty word.”

Second, I absolutely love the side characters. I really want to be a part of their little friend group. The characters’ personalities are so well written that I felt like they were real people.

Lastly, this book is definitely a feminist romantic comedy. It’s face pace with a slow-burn romance intertwined, it's hilarious, and it’s light-hearted and fun!

Thanks, NetGalley for the early eARC!

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review! Honestly this book has such a beautiful cover and that's what made me want to read this.

Aly has been fixing things all her life - her parents, her coworker's work, etc. She's so great at it that, she starts The Fixer Upper, a secret website where women who are tired of the men in their lives always letting them down, sign up so that Aly and her friends can do some behind the scenes magic and fix them up. Everything starts going haywire when a big instagram celebrity hires her to fix her boyfriend because the boyfriend is Aly's childhood best friend and first crush that she never forgot about.

The plus: I liked the growth in Aly at the end. She starts to trust others and builds real friendships with Tola and Eric. She figures out that she doesn't have to continuously fix those around her and that others can figure things out for themselves (ex. her mom).

The minuses: This was not romance. I didn't really feel the connection between Aly and Dylan. I might have felt more of a connection if there were a couple flashbacks to their childhoods. I couldn't even tell they liked each other, other than them stating they have been in love with each other their entire lives. Also did anyone else feel like there was emotional cheating. Dylan had a girlfriend the entire book, yet he was flirting and '"in love" with Aly the whole time? The whole fixing him up for his girlfriend but also being secretly in love with him was so icky.

3 stars because it was okay enough for me to finish it and not give up. It was kind of slow for me. There was 0 romance like it was marketed. Also, I usually love any best friends to lovers trope, but unfortunately I couldn't feel a strong enough friendship for that.

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This book to me is what I would consider a “palette cleanser”… Maybe you just read a book that was very emotionally heavy or you’ve been stuck in a reading rut and want to get back into it.

This book was fun and flirty with your typical “enemies to lovers” trope which I love. The side characters were a joy and you felt very involved in this read. This book was also super relatable to those struggling to meet someone in a society so focused on a picture perfect image and who felt everyone around them was happy and love but secretly dealing with more issues that you know.

Overall I enjoyed this fast paced read and definitely recommend it! I do want to mention in the ARC I read, there were a few typos that need correcting that were most likely accidentally overlooked (capitalization, missing letter in a word).

As an extreme peace-keeper, I completely related to the premise of this book - a woman (Aly) who is used to managing her friends and family's conflicts or life complications decides to put her talents to use in the romance department/getting actually paid for her emotional labor. This is complicated when Aly's first love comes back into her life, and she ends up helping him with his self-image and dating life. A little Hitch-esque, except with a much more feminist lens.

The pacing of this book is fast, the characters are (usually) likeable - it's a fun read! I'd recommend.

The story follows Aly who improves the lives of men without her or their knowing, and eventually to her creating a business around that concept after many requests from different wives and girlfriends. Women who are looking for their significant other to finally propose, or go for the dream job, or simply communicate more effectively. All fun and games until one day, an influencer seeks her service to get her boyfriend to be this hot new tech entrepreneur and propose to her. All in one month. The real kicker? It's Aly's former best friend and love from her childhood that she hasn't see since that one fateful day that ultimately made them ghosts of each other's past.



Cute and fun story! I probably would categorize this as a second chance romance or even a friends to enemies to lovers romance. Considering it was a quick read, I did want to see more of the relationship between the main character Aly and Dylan. It felt like we got a glimpse and then poof! The story was over. Which also brings to me say that there wasn't much development in the book. Huge bonus is the power of womanhood. Women finally standing up for themselves and believing and knowing that they belong in this male dominant world. I loved that it had that message and gave us a great example that women should never settle for less than what they deserve.



Thank you so much NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam and Lauren Forsythe for this e-ARC in exchange for this honest review.

This is a short but sweet read that was overall enjoyable! I ultimately found this book to be a bit one dimensional at times - specifically with the side characters that I wish we got to see more of. I actually really ended up liking Aly and Dylan and the main storyline between them! Overall this was a great read that had so much more than just romance!

ARC kindly provided in exchange for my honest review.

The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe is a novel about a woman named Aly who, unintentionally at first, fixes her lousy boyfriends and then they go on to be more successful versions of their previous selves. She creates a company with her friends to help other women fix their boyfriends. She gets a new client who is a celebrity and her boyfriend, Dylan, happens to be Aly’s childhood love that she hasn’t seen for 15 years. This novel stands out because the main character is very relatable. Whether she is dealing with her annoying coworkers or her parents failed relationship, she faces the world with an ambitious attitude. She would do anything for the people she loves. I loved getting to see Aly and Dylan’s dynamic. I do wish, however, that we got to see a bit more of them as children. I think that would really benefit the story and make it a bit more romantic. All in all, this story is very cute and I enjoyed it.

I highly enjoyed this book. I could really relate to Aly as being someone who fixes things, needs to be in control, and constantly being overlooked. Her relationships with her mom and her boss were so real, and the author did an awesome job really illuminating this "oldest daughter syndrome" - the oldest daughter being the one who receives the parents' burdens and griefs.

I love second chance romance with childhood best friends, so I was rooting for Dylan and Aly all the way. Their banter, their history, and their chemistry was all amazing! However, I don't like the constant miscommunication between the two of them, yet, I know that Aly shutting down is so real.

Overall, this was a cute, a bit emotional, romcom for the women who feel overlooked for their hard work!

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a fun, light book. The premise was appealing and well carried out. Overall, quite enjoyable. However, several of the prominent characters in this book were portrayed very one-dimensionally. There were occasional hints of depth to characters that ultimately weren't supported throughout the book. The pacing was also a tad wonky-things picked up very quickly at the beginning, then slowed down So Much in the middle that it was a bit of a struggle to keep reading. The conclusion also ended up being way too neat and way too easily resolved. 3.5/5 stars.

I feel like the character in this book was a bit all over the place and not very relatable. It was a light easy read but not one I would pick up again. I felt like I was reading to finish and not because I was enjoying the story.

.This was a pleasant surprise in the best way possible. I knew that I would enjoy it, but I fell in love instead.
The Fixer Upper was a feel-good novel that was hard to forget. Memorable from begging to end, thanks to fabulously vibrant and distinctive characters and an overall storyline that was heart-touching .

Thank you so much to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for providing me with an eARC.

I thought this book was a perfect, quick read. It was uplifting, fun, and had all the perfect elements of a light romance novel. I enjoyed the character development of Aly and the unique story. If you're looking for something to get you out of your reading slump, this book is it.

I really enjoyed this book! I ended up loving the friendships in this book more than the romance, which surprised me. All of the side characters were so great! I related a lot to the main character and her struggles with learning how to ask for what she wants and stand up for herself instead of always doing that for others. I enjoyed the concept of the Fixer Upper business, even though I did have to suspend my disbelief a little. The romance part of the book fell a little flat for me, but the rest of the book made up for it. Overall I highly recommend it!