4.5 rounded up to 5
please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
FMC: Rose- after coming into a world changing secret, Rose leaves her previous life in search of her next adventure. She ends up in Galway and ends up deciding to stay. Her path keeps crossing with grumpy contractor Angus and she keeps trying to figure out what she did wrong to get on his bad side.
MMC: Angus- a big and burly grump contractor in Galway who is thrown for a loop when a curvy and mouthy stranger keeps crossing his path. Now he’s contracted to fix up her new house and will be in forced proximity for moths since she plans on living in the house while he works.
POV: 1st person, dual POV
HEA: yes
spice: several open-door spicy scenes
TWs: fat phobia, body shaming, bullying, rape (moderately graphic on page, recounted (not MCs)), slut shaming, mental health- anxiety/PTSD, suicidal thoughts (not MCs), suicidal actions (not MCs), death of family (recounted), death of friends (recounted), divorce
standalone: book 1 in the Big Love From Galway series
final thoughts: I was so sucked into reading this book! The story was great and mostly cozy with some serious topics strewn about and discussed in a great way. While there is a 3rd act breakup that lasted way too long, because stop they’re so cute together, this had so much that I love in a book and so many wonderful tropes. I love the way the characters were written and how complex they were, the side characters were fun and dynamic, Rose’s character growth with self-love and understanding was so beautiful.

read this book if you love

💓 slowburn
🏝️ forced proximity (contractor on her house)
😬 angst
🌀 plot twists
💞 friends-to-lovers
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
🤐 miscommunication
👮 blue collar MMC (contractor)
🔀 opposites attract
🏡 small town
🥰 nicknames
🫡 big MMC
🤩 curvy FMC
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 found family
💼 workplace romance
🌍 world building
😠 grumpy/sunshine
🤫 hidden truth/keeping secrets
🍪 cinnamon roll MMC

I really wanted to unabashedly love this book, and I did love parts of it: the body-positive fat representation, the small town setting, the supporting characters who welcomed and embraced main character Rose, the heat of her burgeoning romance with hired hand and town grump Angus, who was himself a lovely little gem...

And then the third act break-up absolutely soured me on Angus, almost irreparably. I did not like the way their conflict was handled AT ALL, and I was glad that other characters called him out on his unreasonable stance, but it was so deeply rooted in some really toxic masculinity and I didn't like that at the end it was just sort of smoothed over to get Angus and Rosie back together. It left a sour enough taste in my mouth that I'll probably give future books in this series a wide berth.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Publication: August 22, 2023

Rating: 4.5 stars

This was my first book by Moher and I had requested it based on the synopsis. I was not disappointed! This story was a sweet and gentle read. It had Hallmark vibes to me but will be a perfect companion read this summer. I loved seeing Angus and Rose work through their difficulties before jumping into anything with one another. Moher did an excellent job bringing these characters to life!

Perfect for fans of:
- Dual POV
- Found family
- Strangers to friends to lovers
- Grumpy/sunshine
- Realistic broken people
- Mia Sheridan

Curves for Days is a lovely little romance that tells a worthwhile story about two emotionally scarred people who find themselves falling in love. Moher delivers an excellent small town romance but there are a couple of issues that keep this from being an A – including a weak third act.

Alice Rose Barnes is a spirited, curvy woman whose luck abruptly changes when she inherits a lottery ticket from her dead neighbor. Before this she’d lived a very isolated social life, still emotionally scarred from heavy bullying during her youth because of her weight. Now that Rose has cash, all of the worms from her past keep turning up looking for money or attention, so she decides to skip town and avoid press attention, using her middle name to avoid detection.

Landing in Galway, North Carolina, she finds herself stuck in a snowbank. The handyman who gives her a lift thinks she’s outrageous; and she throws him a Snickers bar to pay him off. She ends up buying a run-down Victorian house there, and who should be the man who shows up to be her contractor but the bearded sourpuss who helped her out of the snowbank!

Angus Drummond is a lonely ex-Marine who makes ends meet as a contractor, but also counsels fellow veterans. Angus could use a little support himself, as he is suffering from PTSD and survivor’s guilt that has put a wall between himself and happiness. He refuses to allow himself to fall in love until he pays back what he considers to be his debt to society. And yet Rose tempts him.

The more time Angus spends fixing up Rose’s new house, the closer they get. But will rigid Angus’ feelings about Rose change when he learns she lied about being loaded?

A lot of Curves for Days works. Rose is one of my favorite heroines of the past few months; she’s lively, isn’t self-pitying, and has a silly sense of humor. Her scars are understandable. Angus’ self-hating gruffness made me weary, but it comes from an understandable place and he improves – well, until the third a act. I liked that Rose isn’t a doormat for his issues, so at least that’s a step up from the usual grumpy-and-sunshine fol de rol.

The romance is sweet and cute, and it’s always fun to watch two different sorts of people find love together. The small town setting is my cup of tea, too. Even more importantly, Rose manages to cultivate two close friendships, something she desperately needs after living such a self-sheltered life.

Then comes the third act and the big separation, in which Angus acts like a sexist dolt. The man’s a licensed therapist and might be a little more understanding of his girlfriend’s behavior instead of dropping her. She also takes him back far too easily. That torpedoed the grade down from an A to a B. And it’s too bad, because otherwise Curves for Days is a great contemporary romance, but how much you enjoy it will probably depend on how well you can stomach the book’s final choice for a third act.

I think this book was lovely, thoughtful and FULL of small town charm. I am a big fan of grumpy/sunshine and this book did it well. Being plus sized myself I often wince at the representation I read but this book really made the experience feel real, honest, and positive.

Yes yes yes and more yes! This book was a fantastic meet-cute with all the small town vibes AND a fat protagonist. My only qualm with many books (this one, not as much as others) where the protagonist feels so negative about themselves at some points. Not every fat person is unhappy with themselves or their weight. I’m so glad to see that the main character shifted through the book and there were so many more positive attributes to her that were awesome and being fat wasn’t the main focus of the book, it’s just one aspect of her body! I loved the vibe of this book!

Absolutely adored this book! It's so refreshing to read something with a main character I can actually imagine myself as. Loved all the self-development with both main characters and I can't wait to read more from this author!

4.5⭐️

What to expect:
Small town charm
Grumpy / sunshine
So much mutual pining
Forced proximity
Witty banter & humor
Fat protagonist
Love interests over 30 y/o (32 & 36 I think?)

I looooved Rosie and Angus! They both had their own issues holding them back, but I loved seeing Rosie get comfortable and come out of her shell, and Angus slowly let down his guard and stop resisting Rosie.

Rosie was just so brave even while she felt broken, and she had such a zeal for learning and trying new things.

Angus was such a grump and was so caring and considerate, very thoughtful and working so hard to do more good for others than others do for him (the darn scoreboard!)

It was fun to see both of their character arcs, as individuals and together.

I feel like these two had healthy communication most of the book, which I really appreciated! They only didn’t about one topic and that came to a head in the 3rd act but… don’t worry friends, there’s an HEA ❤️

I also loved Rosie’s new friends, and I’m curious what’s going on with July (assuming there’s going to be another book coming next and there was some set-up!)

Thanks to netgalley & the author for an eARC of this book! Opinions are my own.

This book left me with some mixed feelings.

I really liked how the two characters, Rose and Angus, met. I thought it was a very fun meet-cute. I really liked the small town vibe of the book. I liked seeing Rose become more confident in who she was throughout the book. I loved the plus size representation, however, a lot of Rose's thoughts about herself at the beginning of the book left me unsettled. I'm glad that she became more positive about herself as the book went on.

Sometimes I liked Angus, and other times I did not. I was not a fan of the Third Act Fight/Break Up (although, I did see it coming). I felt like both characters acted in ways they had not throughout the entire book. Angus really did disappoint me here.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Publisher for granting my Access to this E-ARC. I love that the main character is curvy! It was such a cute read. I flew through the book. I'm glad that I was able to get an ARC of this book!

How do I love this representation, let me count the ways! Rose was such a great character and I’m so happy with how the author handled sadness with joy, and the way that hero loved her! We need more books like this that showcase love at all sizes, and of course I love myself a grumpy hero. Beautiful, swoony romance. Highly recommend!

I am very happy with the characters in this book. It's one of the only books where being fat isn't the only thing that revolves around the protagonist. The truth is that the main character is strong, determined and very nice.

The love interest was very well created, since he had wants and desires and he wasn't just the love interest with no personality.

The beginning of this book was very good, but I feel that towards the middle it became a little slow.

I'm very curious about the writer's future projects

I loved this book. A romance, the two main characters are extremely likeable and have issues but they don't take away from their developing relationship. I wholeheartedly recommend this book for anyone who likes happy stories and romance.

Curves for Days was such an adorable and yet emotional at times story! It’s was so cute and felt like I was wrapped up in a cozy warm blanket hug the whole time. The banter between characters was ridiculously lovely.

This is a super cute read! Love the plus sizesd main character and her body positivity throughout the book. The character development was good and it was lighthearted, yet emotional.

Rose Barnes stops in the small town of Galway with a beat-up car and only eighty million dollars to her name. Could things get much worse? The man who comes to her rescue is big and burly, with a handsome face, but he is also scowly and can’t take a joke. When she decides to settle down and buy a house, the last thing she expects is the same man to be the contractor working on her new home. How is she supposed to get anything done with him around?

Curves For Days was so goddamn diddly tootin’ cute. I felt like I was wrapped up in a warm hug for a majority of the story. The maturity between the main two characters was great, I like how real their relationship felt. The things they discussed and the way they treated each other, even though sometimes the characters could be grumpy, was done with such respect and courtesy. The romance progressed nicely, the main characters took time getting comfortable with each other and before anything else, became friends. It was done in a way that was super sweet and fun. The story is well-written and has a cast of likeable side characters. I do think it would have been nice to have known the side characters a little more, especially Angus’ friends – considering they do play a more important role near the end of the novel.

Some things that didn’t exactly work for me would have to be how quick the ‘I love you’ came after the main characters got together. I think because it took quite a while for their relationship to become something beyond platonic, it just felt a little soon. There was also a bit of tension near the end of the novel where I struggled to see reason in some of the characters opinions, and I thought a certain character acted unlike themselves by getting so upset and torn up about what had happened.

In the end I loved the maturity and respect between the two main characters and enjoyed seeing the development of their relationship. It was really a gorgeous story.

Curves for Days
☀️Book Review☀️
❤️Curves for Days ❤️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Curves for Days was such a sweet rom-com featuring a sassy plus-size FMC and a grumpy and sweet MMC. I can’t wait for it to come out in stores in August so I can buy a physical copy for myself 💞

I love reading books about plus sized women because it feels good to see myself in the story. Sometimes this can be over punctuated and their entire identity is just “fat”. However, this book does a wonderful job developing Rosie’s character and storyline. Readers can quickly come to love her sassy, independent, and humble ways.

Angus, the MMC, was unbelievably sweet and thoughtful. He is a therapist, war veteran, and contractor who loves nothing more than to make Rosie happy. The dual POV let readers see Rosie through his eyes and made me love her and him so much more.

The “conflict” in Curves for Days was a bit lack luster, but that’s mostly because I hate the miscommunication trope. Other than that piece, I loved the way the characters interacted and their dialogue carries the book. ❤️

Thank you to the author, the publishers and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


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An adorable romcom with a sassy, plus-sized main character and a grumpy cinnamon roll of a love interest. (I know grumpy & cinnamon roll seems counterintuitive but it makes sense with regards to this character I promise) There’s a lot of discussion on the importance of consent & communication during intimacy that you don’t see often in romance novels which was very refreshing.

I didn’t love Angus’s reaction to finding out Rose’s secret which almost ruined the whole book for me (that’s what I get for reading a book with the miscommunication trope) but luckily he gets called out for his poor reaction instead of it getting swept under the rug because they’re ~*~in love~*~.

Overall a fun, quick romance that would make a great beach read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved how this book articulated a reflection on money and how it can improve lives but also cause hurt. It was nuanced and delicate. My absolute favorite thing was the dynamic between the main characters, where both of them wanted to help everybody so much that they were arguing about it but ended up just caring for each other however they can.

The story was sweet, comforting and all around delightful. Very well written and very well thought. The plus size representation was amazingly done, I hope this get the success it deserves.

I got an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a quick entertaining read. It was full of clichés, but I didn't mind it too much. It was fun and fast paced and I believe this book will be amazing as a quick vacation read. I liked the characters and their chemistry. And the reason I gave I gave it three stars is because it was a bit too much insta love.