⭐⭐⭐ | 🌶️🌶️

The Seven Month Itch by @/tanvierwrites marks the debut of the Chance at Love series. Currently open for preorder, the book is set to release on January 23rd, 2024. Don't miss out on exclusive bookish goodies – simply fill out the proof of purchase form available in the author's bio. Act fast, though! The deadline for form submissions is January 9th. Worth noting, this review is based on a proof text, and aspects such as design, artwork, page length, and format are subject to potential changes.
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Key Elements:
🥃 Second-Chance Romance
🥃 Close Proximity
🥃 Dual POV
🥃 Opposites Attract
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So, I just dived into “The Seven Month Itch” by Tanvier Peart, and let me tell you, it’s one wild ride filled with laughs, loves, and a sprinkle of chaos.

The story unfolds at a singles’ retreat during the Christmas season, where Justice, our witty and reluctant protagonist, finds herself face-to-face with her estranged husband, Terrence, after seven months of separation. The blurb promised a second chance romance with a cinnamon roll MMC, and it delivered on those fronts.

Peart’s writing is filled with shenanigans, tension, and steamy scenes that keep you turning the pages. The diverse cast adds depth to the narrative, making the universe feel rich and vibrant. Justice, our reluctant heroine, had me cracking up with her humor, especially lines like, “A blind date? Doable, if there’s a swipe left function that teleports me back home and drops me in a pair of sweats.” Classic Justice.

However, as much as I enjoyed the comedic elements, the predictability of plot twists and the abundance of miscommunication slightly detracted from my overall experience. Justice’s tendency to jump to conclusions without apparent reasons made the first half of the book feel a bit chaotic.

Now here’s the scoop — it felt like two books in one. The first half was a rollercoaster of laughs and chaos, but the second half could’ve been a second book, an epilogue, or just sprinkled into the other books in the series. It left me feeling like there was an abrupt shift.

And let’s talk about the smut scenes. Some felt unnecessary, like they were just there to be there. It didn’t always add to the story and, at times, seemed more like filler than substance.

Despite these points, I am genuinely excited about the upcoming stories featuring other couples in the Chance at Love series. Peart has created a captivating universe with characters you can’t help but root for. Although I wished we dug deeper into Justice and Terrence’s backstory, the stage is set for some exciting storied ahead.

In a nutshell, “The Seven Month Itch” is a fast-paced read that blends spice, banter, and drama, making it a solid debut. I look forward to exploring more of Tanvier Peart’s creations in the world of contemporary romance.

A big thank you to NetGalley and thefrenchypress for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
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[not part of the review] I do want to mention that I found one typo in chapter 45, "She pleads for me to take the /paint/ away, and I can't." Paint should be pain.

🥃 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕟 𝕄𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕙 𝕀𝕥𝕔𝕙 🥃
♥️ By: Tanvier Peart ♥️

Unexpected Encounter at a Singles Retreat: Justice and Terrance, currently separated and headed for divorce, coincidentally find themselves at the same singles retreat—both are seemingly shocked and dismayed.

ᴄᴀɴ ᴛʜᴇʏ ꜱᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴡᴇᴇᴋ ᴜɴꜱᴄᴀᴛʜᴇᴅ?

This is Tanvier Peart’s DEBUT novel and I am already eagerly looking forward to reading her future work! I loved the writing style and the story itself. It was sweet, spicy, and a bit heartbreaking at times—and my heart melted as the final portion revealed a hint of raw truth!!

This book does contain mentions of miscarriage and infertility so keep that in mind before reading. The book also contains a few spicy scenes—I enjoyed the scenes and felt like they flowed well and were tastefully done!! But I know spicy isn’t everyone’s cup of tea—please keep this in mind. (I hate seeing negative reviews on romance novels due to the presence of “spice.”)

The Seven Month Itch will be released January 23, 2024! Thank you so much @goodgirlspr and tanvier heart for a copy of this eARC to read and review!!

Holy hell! What did I just read?! 😳
I was drawn to this book by its cover thinking that it would be about two best friends having fun at a couples retreat, but this book was SPICY! I don’t read spicy romance books, but this one was funny and was everything I never knew I needed.

Emma drags Justice to a couples retreat in Colorado. Justice has been separated from her husband for seven months and is having trouble getting over him because he was the other half of her heart and her soulmate. When checking into their room at the hotel, she spots her soon to be ex-husband, Terrance, across the hall. Should she give him a piece of her mind or forgive everything that happened in the past?

This was an entertaining second chance romance where the confident best friend, Emma, tries breaking Justice out of her shell but Justice and Terrance’s feelings for one another rekindle. I loved the multiple POV’s between Justice and Terrence, it gave readers an insight on how each of them felt towards one another. We follow them from the couple’s retreat until years later at a special occasion.

I loved how Emma and Justice cussed like sailors and had no filter when talking about men or each other. I laughed until I cried at the beginning of the book and it reminded me of how my friends and I act when we all go out together.

I’ll read anything this author publishes and looking forward to another book in this series. 🤞🏻

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

I want to say this book was…good. I enjoyed the read! But for me the female lead was pretty annoying. The couple never takes the time to communicate anything. The twist and turns are good to keep the reader guessing but I feel like in this book it was drug out way too long. The situations that kept coming up didn’t even make sense and they never took the time to explain things before running away. I don’t want to give too much away but if the couple was together as long as they were before the singles retreat I don’t feel like it would be this awkward. The female lead was alway “looking” for conflict in my opinion. The ending was good though. Love a happy ending!

I really wanted to love this book because second chance romances are some of my fav - they have the best outline for actual character development and interesting conversations. However this just didn’t do it for me and here’s why:

1) It was not believable that people in that age and so far in life, had that hard a time acting like adults. It was giving me the ick reading about grown men acting like high schoolers. There can be some realism about a book.

2) Miscommunication trope is the worst to be used in a book about a couple that’s been in love and married for so many years. They don’t have space for miscommunication. And then again overuse of miscommunication when they do get together.

3) Too much smut. I’m at a point where “romances” need to be in their correct genre of erotica. Because that’s basically what authors are writing today..

On another note - i did enjoy the banter and all the characters brought a lot to the whole book.

3 stars. I did enjoy this book, it was an easy read. I found some parts quiet funny. Although the storyline was a little farfetched it was still a good book to read.

I really liked the FMC I think her character was great and very relatable.

3.5 rounded up to 4. I love a second chance romance, so this plot was everything. I thoroughly enjoyed the spice and the dynamics between Justice and Terrence (the two main characters). Justice did feel a bit immature at times, but the way TERRENCE LOVES HER??? I’m all for it.

First of all, I would like to point out that the design an color palette of the cover were very good and were actually the first things that caught my attention when browsing through books.
My review of this book is actually 2.5 stars that were rounded up to 3. The fact that these characters knew each other and were even married before the book began gave me what some of my last reads couldn’t: a reason for the instant attraction and I really appreciated that! Though the romance wasn’t my favorite (the miscommunication trope was used way too many times), I found the friendships to be very nice.
I also had a problem with the length of the story. I enjoyed the beginning and liked how it ended, but the middle stretched out a bit too much for my liking, making me lose interest. To add up, the humor in this book was just not my thing.
Though it wasn't the best experience for me, I do believe that some readers might enjoy this book and that's why I would still recommend checking it out.

4 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book was everything I didn’t know I needed. Each chapter kept me entertained and the depth of the relationships in this book was amazing. I felt everything with all of the characters. The only qualm I had about this book was the fact that the FMC said and thought things that I feel like not even a teenager would want to say, so that took off from the experience, but other than that I loved this book. And when I tell you I’m SO excited for Tanvier’s next book I mean I am head over heels. I hope that I’ll get the opportunity to enjoy more of her work in the future.

This is a spicy second chance romance with a lot of fun characters! Terrence and Justice have been together since college, but after some issues in their marriage, Justice leaves Terrence. Her best friend, Emma, takes Justice to a singles retreat, where Terrence also happens to be. As well as one of his old flames from before meeting Justice.

This book will make you fall in love with each and every character. I loved the emphasis on how important friendship is to a relationship. This book has a lot of spice, and contains 2!!! epilogues. I loved that there is a good chunk of the book that covers what happened after the retreat.

One thing I didn’t like was the overuse of the word “coochie.” And the introduction of so many characters at the end.

The Seven Month Itch is thrilling and exciting. Just when you think you know what will happen there is a plot twist!
Justice deserves to be happy, and seems to be fighting for her own confidence, and self-worth. Will her and Terrance finally find their happiness with one another?

Quick Summary: A drama filled, second-to-third chance wo-fi romance

My Review: The Seven Month Itch by Tanvier Peart is the first of what seems to be a possible multicultural series. It features the relationship of Justice and Terrence Reyes.

About the Book: After 15 years of marriage, a lengthy separation, and a pending divorce, Justice cannot believe her eyes when she runs into the man who had once claimed her heart. Why oh why did she decide to attend a singles retreat?

About the Characters:
- Justice was a character who had so much going on. In terms of her professional life, she was crushing it. In terms of her personal life, she was the complete opposite. She had many unresolved issues when she was introduced to her unique singles retreat situation. Her communication style, her thought process when dealing with challenges, her reactionary responses, her stubborn rigidity - it came across as real and raw.

- Terrence was an interesting character. He was a man who was decent and good at his core, but he was also a man who was as dumb as a box of bricks when it came to some of his choices. (I mean really!) He, too, seemed to handle his business masterfully when it related to work, but in his marriage, he needed serious instruction. His lack of sensitivity and understanding at critical moments during interactions with Justice was baffling.

Overall, both characters were flawed. It worked in their favor, however, because it made them human. It made them real. It made them easy to relate to. It gave them the needed texture to draw my attention.

About the Conflict: There was a load of conflict in this book. It was drama, drama, drama. For all of their maturity, this couple had a lot of growing to do, both individually and as partners. At times, they came across as clueless, regarding the weight of their words and actions. Still, the issues at play were straight talk. Their story was one about the rocky navigation of a forever love partnership.

About the Cliches and Overused Word Choices: So... Although I really, really liked this book, there were moments when I could not help but notice the extreme use of cliches. In the beginning, I was able to roll with it. I found many to be humorous. As the story continued, however, the frequency of used cliches became cumbersome to the point that I wanted them to be scaled back. Another thing that did not appeal to me as a reader was the inclusion and overuse of the coo-word. (I'm not a fan of that particular word, as I find it to be vulgar and crass.That's a personal preference. To each, his own.)

About the Spice, the Heat, and the Chemistry: This author knows how to set up her scenes. It was actually quite refreshing to see a couple, who despite their ever evolving marital relationship status, still had the hots for each other after so many years. During the best of times and the worst of times, they maintained an attraction for one another. It was intense.

About the Comedy: Man! Some parts of this book had me bahaha-ing. The injections of humor were needed and helped to balance the story nicely.

About the Emotional Arc: The emotional arc was well done. The back and forth tug-of-war between Justice and Terrence pulled on the heart. What Justice felt and what Terrence felt was so obvious. (Scenes that specifically stood out as emo arc gold stars included the movie night, the balcony, the email, the surprise visit, the hotel, the doctor's office, and the rings. I'm keeping the aforementioned very general, so as to avoid spoilers.)

About the Ride or Die Friendships: I was here for the loyalty! Emma was a beast for her girl. Miles was a diamond in the rough whose charm and true heart won me over.

About the Setup for the Series: I see what you did there. Well played, Ms. Peart. (A less is more wish, in terms of Miles and Emma, would have worked.)

My Final Say: This was a grown folks love story. It presented honest and brutal truths about a relationship on the edge of collapse. Readers who enjoy stories about the beautiful and the ugly anatomy of a marriage will get this book. It is definitely worth reading.

Rating: 3.8/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Status: Standalone (series potential)
Level: 🚨
Other: This would translate well into the audiobook format.

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Frenchy Press, IBPA), and to NetGalley. Thank you for granting access to this work of fiction in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to reading more.

The Seven Month Itch
— Chance at Love: Book One
by Tanvier Peart
I finished this book and sat and wondered why. It was a book trying too hard to be humorous and did not. It was overkill on that.Sorry, but this book was just not very good in many ways.

This book was a quick, light read. I definitely think Justice has a lot of maturing to do and some of her behaviors irked me. Terrence was far too patient for me in dealing with her.

The concept was great and I appreciate the originality of the premise.

I loved this book 😍 I received a ARC copy of this from Good girls PR and Netgally.

This author has an amazing writing style. This book made me feel happy and nervous, it also made me feel ready to stand up for Justice 🤣. I love the diversity between the characters. Overall I loved the whole story, it was a quick and easy read. I’m excited to see what else the author comes out with 😍

Tropes:
🖤Second chance romance
🖤Cinnamon roll MMC
🖤Opposites attract
🖤Dual pov
🖤Close proximity

Spice: 🌶️🌶️/5

Thanks for letting me review this ARC.

To be honest my instinct thought that this may be different to the romcoms I had in the past.
My instinct was right. This was not the best I've read as there were a LOT of cliches and dick jokes.
Don't get me wrong, i like dirty humour but this was like torture as it felt forced.

For a singles retreat in the middle of nowhere to have the same vibes as the shining would also be as dull as this book was.

I have mixed feelings on this book. Second-chance romances is one of my favorite tropes and I was intrigued by the revitalized marriage plot in this book. There were a few things that bugged me about this book - namely that it heavily relied on lack of communication/miscommunication as causing the major conflicts in the book. Justice seemed to run at every difficult situation, making assumptions and not allowing Terrence to explain or try to do better. Her kneejerk reactions felt immature to me.

I would have liked to see more of Justice and Terrence's origin, maybe in flashbacks to when they met and started dating. I think that would have helped build a stronger connection between the two for the reader.

Steam level: 🔥🔥🔥
⚠️: mention of miscarriage

I read this as an ARC.

I loved this book. It quickly had me in giggles and I really found myself rooting for Justice and Terrence. There was some spice, likeable main characters, and swoon worthy romance.

I do think the book could have ended sooner than it did. The ending seemed to have epilogue on epilogue (though that wasn't technically the case).

Overall, a funny and steamy book that I would definitely recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I wanted to love this book. I wanted to even like it a lot. Alas, it was just barely ok for me.

Justice is heading for a girl's trip with her best friend, Emma. Or so she thinks. Instead they're going to a singles retreat. Justice is "single" sort of. She left her husband, Terrence, 7 months before.

Terrence is also at the singles retreat, which is a surprise to Justice & Emma. He's there with his best friend, Miles, and he's still mad his wife left him.

I love the idea of a 2nd chance romance but this book missed the mark for me. Justice is very immature for being a grown adult. Instead of asking questions or even giving someone a chance to explain anything she runs. It's ridiculous. Sure, if you have a real reason to (past infidelity, lies, etc.) then it would MAYBE make sense but she runs at the first hint of trouble. The trouble is often in her mind which makes it even worse. Sure, she's insecure but c'mon, it's just too much. She acts much more like a teenager than a grown adult.

Terrence is a saint for all he puts up with from her. He definitely made mistakes but nothing that should make her act like she does.

I would not recommend this book.

The Seven Month Itch was a super easy read. I enjoyed it for the simple subject nature and it felt like a real life situation, mostly. I really love Terrence and Miles. I had a harder time with Justice. I can't stand the use of the word "coochie" and it almost made me stop reading the book.
My biggest issue with the book is that I really thought the whole retreat concept should have been developed more. I thought that's what it was going to be and then checked what page I was on when the retreat was over because...... where else could we go from here? The rest of the book felt thrown together and rushed.
That being said...... it's a very enjoyable story with good characters. I liked it overall and would recommend it for a quick time filler read.