A quick and easy read that I found myself picking up after a long day to unwind. The characters are beautifully written and I came to love them within the first few pages and was rooting for them all the way to the end. At times I wanted to stop reading because I just wanted the experience to go on for longer.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really happy to have the opportunity to read this book by Maxine Morrey! I really enjoyed this lovely romance. I loved the characters, the settings, the storyline. I had a really good time reading "You only live once"!!! I recommend you this book!

You Only Live Once by Maxine Morrey

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books and I am leaving this review voluntarily

When Lily’s husband dies, she moves to the edge of a tiny village, settling into a solitary life, her only real company her brother and his family. A quiet life becomes her safe space, with no risk of getting hurt.

When her brother offers her spare room to his oldest friend, Jack, Lily’s reluctant – but knowing how much she owes her family, can’t say no.

A lodger takes some getting used to but to her surprise, Lily begins to enjoy Jack’s company. Slowly but surely, Jack encourages Lily to step outside her comfort zone.

This is a heart-warming and charming read. Lily has preferred her own company since the death of her husband, so she objects to having a house guest for a few weeks. Overall this is a very enjoyable, cute rom-com. I read this within a few hours as it was difficult to put down.

Rating 4/5

A great story of finding love when you thought you had yourself closed off to it and learning to trust again. Brilliant story

This wonderful, British, roommate to lovers story was so enjoyable to read! Even from just reading the summary on the back of the book, I was excited to read about Lily's story and her path of healing after her husbands death. Enter her brothers attractive friend, and I was even more intrigued! I loved that Jack got Lily out of her comfort zone and helped her on her journey of healing.

I’m a huge fan of Maxine Morrey’s book so when I had the chance to read this through NetGalley and the publishers, I was beyond excited.
The book did not disappoint and could not put down!

Amé el cliché de roomates to lovers en este libro. Los protagonistas se enamoran de una manera simple y fresca, a pesar de la edad que tienen. Me recordó mucho a la comedia Alguien tiene que ceder.
Muy buen argumento y personajes divertidos, es de esas lecturas ligeras para pasar el rato.

Rating: 4 / 5 Stars

For Lily Thomas, her romantic life ended the day her husband died in a freak car accident during an anniversary trip to Paris. Since then, the 39 year old romance writer has been living reclusively in her old English estate, happy to put as much distance between her and everyone else around her.

When Lily’s brother Felix asks her to allow his best friend Jack to stay with her while he gets back on his feet, Lily is torn on what to do. While wanting to stay secluded she begrudgingly agrees to let Jack live with her in this roommates to lovers jaunt.

This is your quintessential English romance. A little dodgy, a bit quirky, and endearingly romantic is the most no fuss type of way.

I really enjoyed Lily & Jack’s sweet story and the idea that second chances at love are possible with a bit of faith and trust.

Thanks to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and Maxine Morrey for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

How do you step out of a life that you've made smaller and smaller because of grief and fear?

You get yourself a fitty lodger called Jack. Who's not only hot, he's also kind and thoughtful. And he buys Lily a dog to help her get out into the world again.

Is Jack a unicorn? He's definitely a mythical creature but I certainly fell in love with him, and with the slow burn of romance between him and Lily.

This is utter escapism and a beautifully written love story with heart and soul. I adored it.

This story has it all! It is a fun, cute, and feel-good romantic comedy. The characters are each developed well and I was able to understand each of the characters' personalities and intentions clearly. I was able to sympathize with Lily and understand her family's worries. While it does lack the romantic heat it isn't necessary due to the storyline. I love this book and highly recommend it.

If you like romantic comedies with tropes such as brother's best friend, roommates to lovers, slow burn, small-town romance, and friends to lovers then you need to put this on your TBR list.

I loved this novel as I found Lily to be such an interesting character. It is very much her story as she slowly began to emerge from the life she has constructed for herself after the sudden death of her husband some years ago. You get to see her vulnerabilities and to see how self-aware she learns to be about her own behaviour. Although grief and loss are part of the story, Lily finds the courage to look forward.

If anyone is going to tempt Lily out of the cocoon she has built around herself, it is going to be Jack. He also has hidden depths. Lily remembers him a s the player he appeared to be when they were teenagers but as you discover, there is much more to him than that. I enjoyed some of the larger than life characters you get to meet, especially Jack's family. Second chances, starting again, moving forward- these themes give the story a hopeful tone. I can thoroughly recommend it for the characters and the narrative.

In short: Second chances after loss
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the book
#blogtour

I honestly tried so hard to get into this and got about 40% of the way in, the chemistry just wasn't emanating of the page for me, I feel like the plot was dragging up until this point.
The concept and premise was something I was looking forward to, I enjoy seeing how an author brings a widow through grief but in the bits I read she wasn't dealing with it all.
Maybe this was just me, I'm unsure, but either way I couldn't get into it the first time around. (ARC copy)
The formatting wasn't great on my kindle, either.

You Only Live Once by Maxine Morrey

Lily lived through a tragedy that killed her husband. But she is not living life the way it is intended. She barely leaves her home, and people in the town she lives in wonder about her and reclusive lifestyle.

But, Lily loves to spend time with her brother and his family. Their two kids are the brightest spots in Lily's days, and she loves her work. She's a best-selling author!

Lily can't believe it when Lily's brother tells his best friend, Jack, that he can stay with Lily until he finds his own place. She isn't one to entertain company- and especially not Jack, who she had an embarrassing experience with years ago. Maybe he won't remember it?

Lily and Jack soon fall into a routine. They both find themselves in situations they can't get out of, and they are there to help each other through them. When Jack brings a surprise home for Lily, she won't accept it. Can Jack get Lily to start living a real life again?

Such a fun book! Light-hearted, easy, feel-good reading!

I was given this book to read and review.

Lily is heartbroken when her husband dies. Ten years later, her family are trying to get her back out there, and she reluctantly agrees to let her brother's friend Jack stay with her for a while. Will she have a second chance at love, or will she still be stuck in the past?
A great read, emotional at times.

What a truly stunning read this book is and Maxine never fails to disappoint. Heart warming and beautifully written.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was so sweet! This is a romance book but was different from my usual romances that I read. There was a lot of build-up between characters, but the *ACTUAL* romance was closed-door and breezed over pretty quickly. I thought that this book was so wholesome in some spots and I really enjoyed it overall.

When I read the blurb for this British tale, I was intrigued. I've read the books about starting over with love after losing your spouse and liked the few I have tried, so I thought this book might be similar to them.

Trigger warnings: grief from losing a spouse, mentions of suicide

This book didn't match the description or the cover for me. On the cover, it looks like Lily is embracing the new. The story had her fighting the new every step of the way, but being bullied by her brother and Jack to step outside of her comfort zone. While the synopsis says she lives a solitary life, in truth she is holed up inside her house as a recluse, and rarely ventures out of her house. When she does, she tries to go to stores when not many people will be there. Very different from solitary. As people try to get her out and about again, she fought against it and would shout that she wished she was dead.

Jack is portrayed as someone who is charismatic, and was a playboy in his youth. As he was being served up to be the potential love interest, some of his behaviors were appalling. As the story is going on and they are starting to get to know each other, all of a sudden he is yelling at her to leave her house and live her life. Way out of bounds! Then, when she doesn't go along with what he says, he just ups and leaves. He brought something to Lily and forced it into her life, even when she keeps saying "no." This didn't sit right with me.

While the story was predictable, I had a hard time believing it as the pace of the story did not lend to believing any romantic intentions. All in all, this story just didn't work for me.

⭐⭐⭐
You Only Live Once, Maxine Morrey
June 14, 2022, Boldwood Books

Thenk you NetGalley and Boldwood for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When romance writer Lily's husband dies suddenly, she shuts herself off from the world in a beautiful, secluded manor. When Lily's brother's oldest friend Jack needs a place to stay he offers up Lily's big house. You know where this is going.

Yes, at the core this is a romance, but with a bit more. First of all, Lily is pushing 40! The core of the story is really Lily and Jack both figuring that they are worthy of love, both romantic and family. Lily pushed pause on her life when her husband died 10 years prior, but through her relationship with Jack learns...You Only Live Once.

A great summer read for anyone looking for a book to fill your heart and of course a happily ever after is always appreciated.

@scribbler_maxi @netgalley #YouOnlyLiveOnce #NetGalley #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #romance #summerreads2022 #chicklit

I really enjoyed reading this book. The story was beautifully written and relatable. If you read this and it doesn’t warm your heart and put a smile of your face then you’ve gotta be doing something wrong.

You Only Live Once is a book that I instantly fell in love with.

Get ready for some major gushing on my part! I love Maxine’s storytelling abilities, and You Only Live Once just had me squealing with joy. I loved this book so much that I bought my own copy, and when it came in the mail, I proceeded to re-read the whole book.

I knew right from the first chapter that I would be falling hard and fast for this book. Maxine always creates characters that I instantly love. I think it is because they are just so genuine, fun, and charming. Lily is one of those characters I know I would be friends with if she existed in real life. I think it is her love for books (she is a romance author), food, and everything Jane Austen that had me imagining sitting in her backyard chatting away for hours. I loved Lily’s heartwarming journey of learning to live again. I could understand Lily’s need to hide from the world and its social pressures after the death of her husband. But it was truly incredible watching as she took steps to start going out of her comfort zone and engaging with society again. I don’t know how Maxine does it, but she makes the most dreamiest, gorgeous book boyfriends. I fell head over heels for Luca from Living Your Best Life and didn’t think she could create a book boyfriend I would love even more than him. I was wrong; Jack just had me swoony and acting like a giddy teenager. Jack is so kind, understanding, and of course, tall, dark and handsome. I lost count of the times he had my heart racing.

The story and setting had this incredible fun, cozy feel to them. It has just the right amount of those lovely qualities in Hallmark movies to give the story a heartwarming, charming feel without becoming cheesy and unrealistic. That balance between realism and charm makes this story stand out for me. It’s just such a fabulous book! Lily’s house and the garden surrounding it were lush and enchanting. I fell in love with all the garden talk in this book. And it was really perfect timing because I have been spending all my spare time working and tending to my own garden.

The romance between Lily and Jack was oh so freaking fabulous. These two are brought together when Lily’s brother suggests (or manipulates) Lily into having Jack stay with her until he can get his business up and running. Lily has been avoiding Jack since she awkwardly confessed her feelings to him when they were teenagers. As most love stories go, the more time these two spend together, the stronger their feelings for each other grow. I admit I think this is my first brother’s best friend’s love interest trope, and I really enjoyed it. I am also a huge fan of forced-proximity love stories, which is a bonus. The romance between these two is sweet, swoony, and just oh so perfect! It’s not smooth sailing for them; they have ups and downs. Their love story has just the right amount of drama to keep me entertained and not drive me crazy.

You Only Live Once is one of those books I will be reading again and again.