I quite enjoyed getting to know Jenny James in this story. It's hard to believe the awful luck that befalls Jenny and her teenage son Charlie when their house literally falls off the side of a cliff. Enter their mysterious nomadic campervan neighbor Luke and his sausage dog Betty. With nothing tying Jenny and Charlie down, and much to process, the odd foursome embarks on a summer holiday traveling England in close quarters.

If you've watched the tv show Gilmore Girls, then be prepared to instantly love this story's Luke the same way we love Stars Hollow Luke.

Jenny's story was a sweet and funny journey that I'm glad I had the chance to go on. Now if only I could've actually ridden along in the campervan exploring small English towns and countryside...

Thank you Harper Muse and NetGalley for ARC access to this story!

Jenny James Is Not a Disaster by Debbie Johnson is a delightful and heartwarming read, packed with humor, relatable moments, and emotional depth. Johnson masterfully captures the chaos and charm of Jenny James' life as she navigates through personal and professional challenges with wit and resilience. The character of Jenny is endearing, perfectly balancing vulnerability and strength, making her someone readers can root for and connect with on a personal level.

The pacing is smooth, and the dialogue is sharp, often resulting in laugh-out-loud moments. But what truly elevates the book is the underlying message about self-acceptance and embracing imperfection. It’s a feel-good story with just the right amount of heart and humor, making it a perfect pick for fans of uplifting contemporary fiction.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Very cute story of a mother and son finding themselves and finding joy. I loved the descriptions of the places in England and the cute romance. I wish the problems with the parents were a bit more serious though, because 18 years is a long time to stay away.

Jenny James is no stranger to adversity. Since becoming pregnant at 18 and leaving home, she's been fighting an uphill battle to make ends meet. Now, with her son Charlie a teenager himself, it's mostly been just the two of them. Despite the challenges, Jenny has managed to secure an office job and a quaint seaside cottage with a garden.

But then comes an exceptionally bad day. Jenny's office faces potential layoffs, her car refuses to start, forcing her to walk home, and as she approaches her cottage, she watches in horror as it slides into the sea.

Suddenly homeless, Jenny encounters her nearest neighbor, Luke, who's camping in a nearby field. Luke lives in an RV with his dog, and when he offers to let Jenny and Charlie travel with him for two weeks, Jenny discovers that sometimes less truly is more.
Johnson's novel beautifully captures Jenny's journey as her world expands after losing all her material possessions. The collapse of her familiar life grants Jenny the freedom to rebuild her world on her own terms, even though the process of self-discovery and honesty is often challenging.

"Jenny James is Not a Disaster" is an uplifting tale about finding hope and opportunity when life hands you an abundance of lemons. This novel will likely resonate with a wide audience, particularly those who occasionally dream of escaping the rat race in search of a more fulfilling lifestyle.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus. The opinions expressed are my own.

A cute story, lighthearted but full of heart. I liked that there were no games no tropes in the love story just a nice journey. The different parent child relationships were nicely explored and it was a good lesson in how to handle older teenagers. There wasn't really a climax or a conflict or anything challenging though.

Book 166 of 300 ~ 2024

🌟🌟🌟🌟

First, the possibility of being made redundant. Then comes the cherry on the cake - your home that sits on a cliff.. well, just decides to *ahem* take a dive, thus leaving you homeless.

The protagonist is likeable, as are the other characters. As she finds herself, pushing herself to find adventures, and ultimately, finding herself.

I did both the audiobook and ebook versions of this wonderful read. The narrator was brilliant and kept me interested, too.

I received a complimentary copy of this book as well as a complimentary copy of the audiobook. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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This is a good crossroad-in-life novel. It combines humor, drama, and romance in realistic ways. Jenny James is a very relatable character, and I enjoyed the different adventures that she went on. I recommend this read for those who enjoy a good finding your purpose piece of fiction.

"Jenny James is Not a Disaster" by Debbie Johnson is an inspiring, emotional and sometimes funny story of a woman's journey back from disaster. Poor Jenny, I think at the beginning of this book. Everything goes wrong for her in a matter of days and she will learn what is most important in her life. I love how she rebounds from her disaster of a life to a new and better one. This was a great book about finding out exactly what she is capable of when faced with life changing events. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me this opportunity to read this ARC! I received a complimentary copy of the book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Jenny James Is Not A Disaster is a cozy, feel good story that is a straightforward and enjoyable read. Perfect for fans who want a tidy plot with likeable characters who have to start their life over from scratch while wandering the English countryside, and a happy ending. This book reminded me of the authors Claire Poole (The Authenticity Project) and Abbi Waxman (The Garden Of Small Beginnings).

The author description of Debbie Johnson is that "she writes feel-good emotional women's fiction." That is a perfect description of this book. Jenny James is having a terrible week. She thinks fighting with her 18 year old son and a run in her stocking make for a bad day. She has no idea. Within a day, her workplace is closing down, her car dies, and her house falls off a cliff. As a single parent, Jenny can't just curl up in a ball and disappear. Instead, she and her son end up in a camper with a nomadic neighbor heading wherever the wind blows (or wherever the suggestions in the hat lead). Jenny and her son finally have time to discover what they truly want from life and how to get there. Jenny faces her past and figures out how to find joy, and that joy isn't found in the belongings she lost or the job she once had. This is definitely a feel-good story that might make you want to pack up and hit the road yourself.

My thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for an ecopy. My opinion is my own..

I was not able to read this book, as it came to me in PDF format. It was too small to read on my phone and too clunky to manipulate to a size that was readable. I requested a different format from the publisher and never heard back. I was still curious about Jenny Jones, however, and as soon as the book was available, I snatched it up. It was worth the wait.

I found this novel to be a great tale of finding yourself and confronting the scary things you think you know about your past. Jenny had a tricky relationship with her parents when she found herself pregnant in her teens. Instead of submitting to another blowup fight, she simply left home before they found out, and raised her son on her own. After a series of mishaps, she finds an opportunity to return home and discovers that she may have been a bit hasty back then. And her mother also realizes that she maybe didn't make all the right decisions when it came to Jenny.

This was a nice read for me. I liked Jenny getting back in touch with her family, getting to know a neighbor who became really important to her, and realizing that she was more like her mother than she thought (just in time to avoid another mistake with her son). The characters were well-written and the familial insight was good. These are good people whose good intentions had really bad consequences, and it's nice to see something like that resolve itself.

***Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Collins for the ARC - wish I could have provided my feedback sooner!***

This is a 5 star book because Debbie Johnson is an outstanding writer.

The plot is kind of strange. Jenny James is a single mother with a teenaged son who’s been estranged from her family since she became a pregnant teen. The boy’s father left early on just as her family predicted. Jenny long ago gave up her dreams to earn a living at whatever jobs she could get to make ends meet. She’s finally managed to get a decent job and rent a decent place when the house topples off a cliff and she loses her job. In the aftermath, she and her son take off for what’s supposed to be a short trip (with a man she barely knows who’s been living nearby) to see if life in a camper will work.

As the trio travels around England, the reader gets to see how their relationships change and grow; the characters also change and grow as they take risks in letting themselves be known.

The author did an outstanding job helping the reader experience what the characters experience at the various stops along the way. The exchanges among the characters felt honest and helped move the plot along. Primary, as well as secondary characters were well-developed. I felt as if I were getting to know and experience the characters through what they said and how they reacted to what happened along the trip.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Many scenes were quite funny, some were quite touching, and best of all, there was a happy ending! Highly recommend.

Jenny James is Not a Disaster was a great read. I found it not too light but not too heavy. Like Goldilocks said, it was just right.

Jenny is having a really no good day. Her employer announces the possibility that they are one of two locations that will be shut down. It is pouring down rain. Her car breaks down on her way home from work. But thankfully the car troubles ultimately save her and her son's lives.

I love that Jenny does not let all of this major life challenges sour her spirit or her attitude.

I really did enjoy this book. I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was just as delightful as I had expected as reading the summary. The main character Jenny, and the supporting characters, were all very relatable and were the kind of folks you'd like to hang out with. While the story was great fun, there were also very touching, heartfelt moments. I really enjoyed this book and will be looking for more books by Debbie Johnson. Thanks #NetGalley #HarperCollins #DebbieJohnson

This is the first book I have read by this author and I absolutely love it. I expected a silly, light book about a woman going through a few disasters but it was so much more. It touches on so many relatable topics: parenthood, grief/loss, and how our decisions frame our future. This was a wonderful story and journey to go on with Jenny. I could not put this book down! Read it! You won’t regret it.

A big thank you to NetGalley & Harper Collins Focus for advanced copy of this book and the opportunity to discover this wonderful author.

Poor Jenny just can’t get a break. Her home collapses down a cliff, she’s laid off from her job, and her car dies, all in one day. This story has such a unique story line as it follows her and her son, plus wanderer Luke, all around England and leads her back to her roots. Definitely worth reading!
This book was provided to me from the publisher but all of my opinions expressed here are my own.

This was a good read. Jenny’s thoughts were what most females and moms think about. Her son Charlie was a great character. Luke was a great male character in this story.

The scene and character development was great. I was seeing this book play out like a movie in my mind. The story line was funny yet tragic.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this advanced reader copy. These are my views and opinions of this book.

DNF @ 23%.

The premise is interesting enough, but the characters are too bizarre and annoying. What started as quirky in our FMC turned into a very weird way for a mother to behave, and her babbling was incessant, I also felt that we should have had some more plot by a quarter of the book, and we’d really only breached the back cover.

Thank you so much for the e-arc and I look forward to trying another one soon.

Jenny is having a seriously bad go of it. Her car wont start, her job is in jeopardy and her home literally fell off a cliff. She’s always tried to deal with everything with aplomb, but really what is a single mom to do? She has her beloved son to think about and has always and only wanted to make his life the best it could be and to never know of her hardships. With almost nothing left, she is trying to figure out what is next. Turns out her next is so fabulous. Her temporary neighbor Luke invites them both into his camper van for a fantastical road trip. And it is fantastical and so much more! It is eye opening, allows her to recognize what a strong smart woman she is and always been, helps her to reconnect to her estranged family, reflect on her life choices, find her own happiness, develop a healthy adult relationship with her beloved son, heal her heart, be open to love, discover her love of travel, reconnect with her passion of writing and more. Luke is a good and kind man dealing with his own emotional demons and loss. Together, they each find themselves and find their happily ever after. A wonderful story to read and or listen.


I received a copy of this book from Netgalley.com in exchange for a fair and honest review.