This dual POV romance felt really unique to me--I've never read about an MC with type 1 diabetes, and I've never read a voice like Alex's! As a writer, I was making a little case study of Alex's voice and how Ally Zetterberg pulled it off (wow). As we switch between POVs, it really felt like I was jumping between Alex and Karla's (very) different brains. Ally created such a wonderful mixture of humor with these really gut wrenching moments. Beautifully done!

I couldn’t do it. DNF’d at page 43. The writing is too choppy and disjointed. I know it’s supposed to speak to Alex’s personality and state of mind, but his chapters are HORRIBLE and I have to read his (half-)sentences five times to understand the point he’s trying to make.

Also, I know this is an ARC, but one thing in the first chapter really bothered me when a single German word was uttered:
It’s not “scheibe,” it’s “scheiße.” It’s not a letter b, it’s an Eszett. It makes a double “s” sound: not pronounced shee-ba or shy-buh, but shy-suh.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘐𝘙𝘈/𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.

I think there are a lot of readers who will really respond to this book - there's a lot here about empathy and compassion and meeting each other where we are, emotionally. I also enjoyed the rapport between Klara and Alex and I thought there were a lot of heavy topics dealt with in a really interesting way.

That said, the writing style (especially Alex's parts) could be a little distracting. I found it almost unsettling at first and it took me a long time to get used to. I think that speaks to the mental status of Alex, and it could work very well for some people. But it took my personal brain a lot to get used to it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I wanted to love this book, but it just didn't work for me.

The premise of the story drew me in with relatable and real struggles among the main characters, humor, romance, and diabetes rep! Unfortunately, I had a difficult time following the story from the beginning as the book was choppy with half-finished thoughts and/or sentences which made it difficult to follow. Usually, I’m able to overlook minor errors with it being an Arc but it impacted my ability to enjoy the story.

Thank you so much Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending me a free advanced copy of this book to honestly rate and review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

Absolutely LOVED this. Loved the very different writing styles for each of the main characters, Klara and Alex. Their shared calendar entries were hilarious. In fact, most of the book was funny. Yet even in the moments dealing with Alex's grief, the story doesn't drag you down. There's a BIG twist towards the end where I gasped so loudly - I really didn't see that coming.

The book started a little slow but that won't lower my rating. This has everything - memorable characters you cheer for, great side characters, loving and supportive families. I wouldn't necessarily call this a romance, rather it's a love story in all the best ways. Highly recommend and look forward to seeing more from this debut author.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC of The Happiness Blueprint.

This book follows Klara, who is taking on the challenge of running her father’s business, while he seeks medical treatment, and Alex, who is grieving the unexpected death of his brother.

I went in to this book prepared to absolutely love it, maybe even find a little inspired at the characters worked through difficult parts of their lives. It didn’t fully deliver. The book starts out quite slow, and the author uses a very distractingly choppy writing style whenever Alex is the narrator. However, the book picks up about half way through, and I found by the end, I did care about the characters. The ending was predictable but satisfying, the author represents topics like grief and ability in a sensitive way. If readers stuck with it, I believe they’ll enjoy this book.

It took me a bit to get into the way the book was set up and it felt slow in the beginning. However, once I understood the authors rhythm, I couldn’t put it down. It truly was an encouraging book and sheds light on disabilities and how they can be a strength.

okay hear me out. i really wanted to like this book. but unfortunately, it just did not work for me. which is okay. you should still check it out and thank you so much to netgalley!!!!

I do enjoy reading books that are set in different countries because we get the flavor of the culture and a little glimpse into the differences in our world. The author did a great job with arts in terms of setting the stage.

The story is set in Sweden for the most part and is written from two points of view. I have to say the first quarter of the book I had a difficult time figuring out where this story was going to lead.

The main characters had issues; one had depression that he was working through somewhat. The other had definite quirks and traits that were a part of her personality.

Once we started getting into the heart of the story, I started enjoying it so much more. The two started blending together and working on getting to know each other, building a relationship of sorts… Very different from what we normally see in a romance or women’s fiction novel.

By the last quarter of the book, there comes a huge twist along with a big gesture to tie everything together.

To me, the story reads more as a women’s fiction with a romantic feel. The two main characters had feelings for each other through most of the entire book but they never did anything about it. The story never felt romantic but their personalities certainly balanced each other well.

The family of each of the main characters is also a big part of this book and while there is discussion of the death of a sibling, as well as depression, there is also healing, love, and even a few laughs along the way.

Zetterberg sets herself apart with The Happiness Blueprint as it is different in every aspect.

As much as I wanted to love this it was just hard for me. The characters were hard to keep straight at the beginning of the book which lead to the book seemingly choppy. Maybe my h situation in being each character back to the forefront of my mind with each chapter. The ultimate story was well written and I liked the premises.

3.5 ⭐️

To be honest, I struggled reading this book. Life is hard but being an empathetic human is so important! This book should be required reading for folks who struggle to remember that some times.

The writing was excellent, imagery was stunning and the emotions were poignant. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Mein Leseerlebnis

Das vorliegende Buch enthält eine durchaus frische Geschichte mit Charakteren, in deren Leben so einiges los ist. Große Themen in dem Liebesroman sind Neuanfänge bzw. Neuausrichtung des Lebens und Familie.

Leider hatte ich mit dem Roman beim Lesen ein paar Probleme. So fand ich die Hauptcharaktere zwar interessant, doch konnte ich sie mir nicht als richtige Personen vorstellen und ich fand den Helden auch nicht immer sympathisch.

Zudem fiel es mir schwer mich auf den Schreibstil einzulassen. Ich bin beim Lesen leider in keinen guten Lesefluss gekommen und bin stattdessen immer mal wieder über Sätze oder Passagen gestolpert, die mich aus der Geschichte gerissen haben.

Die Idee einen zwischen Heldin und Held geteilten digitalen Kalender und Einträge in diesem als Form der Kommunikation zu nehmen, war frisch, konnte mich aber auf Dauer aber nicht in jeder Szene faszinieren.

Nach dem ersten Drittel des Romans wurde mir klar, dass ich mich an den Schreibstil nicht gewöhnen können würde. Daher bin ich danach etwas durch die Geschichte gesprungen und habe sie nicht mehr komplett gelesen.

Das Ende fand ich ganz nett, aber auch dieses konnte mich emotional nur wenig berühren.

Blicke ich auf mein Leseerlebnis zurück, so gibt es im Roman ein paar frische Elemente und es ist viel los, leider konnten mich nicht genug Passagen mitreißen.

🖤🖤 1/2

Für wen?

Wer Lust auf eine ungewöhnliche Liebesgeschichte hat, der sollte sich “The happiness blueprint” mal genauer anschauen. Checkt vor einem möglichen Kauf des Buches unbedingt die Leseprobe und achtet darauf, ob ihr in dieser in einen guten Lesefluss kommen könnt.

Mein Fall war das Buch leider nur bedingt.

A romance story that’s not full of romance, but it’s exactly as it should be. It’s a story of growth and loss, grief and opportunity…and finding oneself so they can truly find love in another. Recommend.

The Happiness Blueprint, by Ally Zetterberg, has a slow start but once the two main characters come together, things flow more easily. There are a lot of components that make up the story and they seem to be combined hastily at times and details are missing. The characters are engaging and the story is cute. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

Unfortunately, I was very disappointed with "The Happiness Blueprint," by Ally Zetterberg. The premise - Klara begrudgingly moves from London back to Sweden to help care for her challenging father, just diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer. On the other hand, Alex, overwhelmed by grief after the loss of his brother, is struggling to find himself again. The two meet when Alex applies to work as a carpenter for Klara's father's small construction company.

I really struggled with this story. I found the writing terribly choppy and confusing, often having to reread paragraphs just to understand the narrative. Eventually, I just gave up.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Books for the ARC.

so so fun!

At the heart of the story is a compelling cast of characters, each with their own secrets and desires. The protagonist's journey is marked by a sense of vulnerability that resonates with readers, making her struggles and triumphs all the more captivating. It was just so sweet and wonderful.

Google: How to write a review of a book that left you thinking about the characters long after you finished reading it.

Two lost souls connect via calendar sync - one struggling with grief and the other struggling with fitting in with the world - in 'The Happiness Blueprint', a heartwarming debut by Ally Zetterberg.

Klara uses Google as she struggles to understand people and their social cues. Meanwhile Alex is paralysed by grief after his brother was killed. Both their lives intersect, in more ways than one, when Klara is forced to return to Sweden to manage her father's business and hires Alex.

This book was such a poignant and heartfelt read with some very funny and witty moments too (cacked myself laughing at the comment about Swedish noir crime TV shows). I had to savour it as I was swept inside Klara and Alex's thoughts. It also made me understand how being neurodivergent can be difficult in a neutrotypical world (I felt just as tired as Klara). My heart panged for Klara as she kept trying and sometimes and failing, but cheered when she realised her neurodivergence is her strength and how valuable she was to her family.

It was also just adorable to see the chemistry between Alex and Klara and how Alex just accepted and welcomed Klara into his life (oh the pining!). The writing was just so good with strong plotting (twice I went OMG when I realised a couple of 'twists') and vivid characterisation. Long after finishing this book I kept thinking about Klara and Alex and wondered how they were doing.

New task: pre-order this book and audiobook.
New task: thank MIRA/Harlequin and NetGalley for the ARC.

Slow, confusing, weird.
Very disjointed from the beginning. Full of fragmented sentences and half thoughts.
DNF early on.

this book had such amazing diabetes representation in it. as someone with diabetes, i feel like so many books try to oversimplify explanations and feelings related to a chronic disease, but this book did it perfectly. the dexcom on the cover was exactly what spoke to me about this book and u was not disappointed. it did take me a little longer at the beginning to get hooked because i got lost in some of the swedish and english descriptions (i’m an american), but once i got hooked, i could not put the book down and finished it that same day. i love a slow burn romance and this was such a cute story and everything tied together so well!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of The Happiness Blueprint.

Pros:
I loved the representation of diabetes, autism, and grief in this book. We don’t often get books that feature autistic women or grieving men. The nuances of both were presented with such care and detail.

Cons:
This was a romance novel, and yet, the romance was really barely there. Klara and Alex don’t even meet until 110 pages into the book, each dealing with their own difficult situations.