Thank you Dial Press for this opportunity!

🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈/5

This was an adorable second chance romance!

Robin and Molly were both so well rounded and meaningful to me.
And you know I love a forced proximity trope.

This book makes me want to go to Arkansas for myself, experience a queer small town with hidden gems and 'lifers' who make me believe in happy endings.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!!!

I really enjoyed this! Molly and Robin are so fantastic together! I found myself laughing and crying throughout this book! I loved the whole concept and the world the author created!! I also loved how diverse the characters were!!

Just a great experience all together!!

DNF at 11%. The writing of this one failed to engage me. The two POVs feel too similar, and the spark to draw me in is otherwise lacking.

This book manages to cover so many tropes extremely well; forced proximity, second chance, THE MOST ADORABLE QUEER TOWN, and a fixer-upper. Both Molly and Robin are extremely deep characters with well rounded backstories, complex feelings to their queerness in the south, and their family support. While the “every business and person is queer” in the small town felt a little cliche, it did send me on a google chase to learn more about Eureka, A VERY REAL TOWN, in Arkansas. That might have been the best part of the story, the town was its own character.

While at times it did feel hard to find the romantic link between the two MCs, and the main conflict felt kind of weak, the overall read was super enjoyable! I’ll be looking into Susie Dumond’s other books in the future. Cute, and a fun read! A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Set in the real town of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, this LGBTQ+ second chance romance features two women, Molly and Robin. When they met years ago, they connected quickly, married, and bought an old Victorian house in need of TLC. They did a fantastic job of it, and created a bed and breakfast that was well known beyond their region.
Robin's cooking skills led her to being seduced away from Arkansas to bigger things, from reality television to her own restaurants. But despite the aura of success, Robin is not doing well financially. Her latest restaurant failed and she is back in town to regroup and find a new way forward.
Molly was devastated when Robin left, and stayed for a while, later hiring a management company to run the B&B. But it has been closed for a while, and while Molly found an outlet for her creativity, stained glass, she has recently wanted to do work that she connected with on a personal lever rather than creating commission work for wealthy clients. She has come back to town at the same time as an artist friend of hers, and plans to create a sign for her friend's new shop, as well as another niche shop in town. She isn't sure if she's ready to stay longer or resume the nomad lifestyle she's lived for the last few years.
As Molly and Robin discover each other's presence and intention to stay at their old B&B, they react first with antagonistic acts, but find their chemistry still calls them to each other.
The inn has been modified by the management company, with some of its best features removed or covered over. When a mutual friend who runs boutique hotels expresses interest, the two women team up to bring the bed and breakfast back to its beautiful past through updates so they can sell it and move on. The question is, do they really want to split up for good?
I really enjoyed this novel, as I do most second chance romances, as people change and grow and bring their maturity to a better understanding of the real work relationships need to survive.

Thanks to Netgalley & Random House for the E-ARC! Really cute & loved the setting! Great characters & fun banter. Will read more from this author.

Unfortunately, I don’t think this book was for me. While I thought the blurb was interesting I just didn’t like this book. Molly and Robin both got on my nerves if I’m being honest. Molly more so than Robin it was like any issue was too much for her and in turn she gets treated like a toddler by those around her. They were both responsible for their marriage not working out, I think they were equally toxic especially with their past. The ending of the book really doesn’t seem like they have changed just got comfortable with one another again. Molly and Robin are definitely a couple I don’t see staying together.

In general I think the chemistry was forced between Molly and Robin. There were so many moments that just felt awkward and I understand there is going to be some awkward moments went living under the same roof as your ex wife but this felt as if they hadn’t had history. It was as if they were high schoolers who hated each other one minute and kissing the next minute.

While the smut was written nicely it just felt randomly placed. The characters would be clearly unavailable emotionally but have sex anyway, they would talk about their past and how bad it was… then go have sex. I get feelings are difficult but damn. Their marriage felt like it was done out of grief and filled with trust issues.

I will say I did really like seeing the casual queer rep and the cover of this book looks really lovely. Plus the recipes at the end were a really nice touch!

Plot: 4/10
Pace: 3/10
Ending: 5/10
Characters: 3/10
Enjoyability: 3/10
Writing Style: 4/10
Would I Recommend? Maybe
Favorite Character: Robin

Favorite Quote: ❝“Well, what am I supposed to do in the meantime? Bake scones over a bonfire in the backyard?”❞

I am a sucker for sapphic romances already, but add small town and second chance to it? Yes please! I love the whole premise of the inn and them working so hard to make it a safe space for queer people in their small town. Molly and Robin both changed so much in their time apart, but fell back into things with each other easier than either of them expected, and overall, I was invested in seeing how their reformed connection worked out. I truly loved and appreciated how much diversity there was amongst the characters. I could have used a little more distinction between the two as far as how their thoughts played out.

This was my first book by this author and it seemed like an interesting premise, but it fell short for me.

First off, the back and forth first person POV's were confusing and hard to differentiate between the two. Plus I'm not a fan of first person POV's unless they are done well and this was not.

Molly and Robin were together, broke up and are forced back together to decide about the inn, each with their own regrets. The premise was intriguing, but it just lacked spark and chemistry. Felt forced and there were too many tropes for this to be done successfully. There were some funny parts, but overall, I had a very hard time finishing this book.

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

I wanted to love this book, but it fell a bit flat for me! The best part was after the ending, finding out Eureka is a real town in Arkansas. I loved that the author included all of her favorite spots AND Robin’s cake recipe. 🥰 Still a fun pride month read releasing 6/24!
What to expect:
🏳️‍🌈sapphic exes to lovers
🏳️‍🌈forced proximity
🏳️‍🌈found family
🏳️‍🌈small town
Thank you to the publisher/NetGalley for the ARC!

Overall Bed and Breakup was a cute and quick read, but something about Robin and Molly’s romance didn’t quite do it for me.

Thank you to Random House for providing me with an e-ARC of this one. All thoughts are my own.

This was such a wonderful, cosy, heartwarming second chance romance! I’m an absolute sucker for a second chance romance and this one nailed it.

Molly and Robin were both great main characters. They had so much growth, both on the page and throughout their past apart, and I loved seeing how those changes brought them closer together in the end.

All their grievances and disputes and frustration felt so real and raw and valid. They both hurt each other without really meaning to, and I loved that they could see things from the others perspective.

I also just really loved the vibes of this one. It was so gentle and relaxing to read these two fix up their old b&b while exploring who and what they want to be.

There’s something so refreshing about a rom-com that’s actually queer and written by a queer person—not just queer-adjacent and riddled with clichés or dipped in subtext, but proudly, joyfully gay. This book delivers that and more.

This is an OWN-voices sapphic romance, and while it follows some familiar beats—lovers to enemies to maybe lovers again—it does so with enough heart, nuance, and emotional authenticity that it never feels like it’s just checking boxes. If anything, there were moments when I genuinely wasn’t sure if the author was going to break the rom-com mold entirely. (No spoilers—but it kept me guessing.)

The setup is familiar, but fun: Molly and Robin were once young, starry-eyed newlyweds who opened the Hummingbird Inn, a charming B&B in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and turned it into a destination for queer travelers. But things fell apart when careers took them in different directions, ambitions grew in opposite directions, and they walked away from the inn, and each other. Well, Robin walked away, but whose counting? (Molly is. It's Molly. She's counting.)

Fast-forward seven years. Both women return to the Hummingbird Inn—Molly as a rising artist on commission, Robin as a celebrity chef who is struggling after her star has started to dim. Neither is willing to give up their claim to the property. Cue the lights and the gay pranks of getting on each others nerves in an attempt to drive the other one out.

Their dynamic is both hilarious and tender. I believed their history. I believed their hurt. I believed they still knew each other’s coffee orders even when they didn’t know how to speak kindly anymore. And that’s what made the romance work—it felt real.

One of the biggest standouts for me? The setting. I’ve never once in my life thought, “You know where I need to go? Arkansas.” (Sorry, Arkansas.) But this book made me want to book a weekend in Eureka Springs. It’s quirky, queer-friendly, and the kind of small town I wish existed everywhere.

Inclusivity runs deep in this book. Lesbians, gay men, trans characters, Black and white characters—it’s all there, but it never feels forced. Just… natural. Like real life.

The side characters were another bright spot. They were vibrant without being cartoonish, and I wouldn’t mind seeing a spinoff or two. There’s plenty of story left to tell in this community.

If you want a queer rom-com that feels grounded and joyful, with just the right mix of angst and charm, this book is a great pick. It’s the kind of story that reminds you love doesn't have to follow any one specific rule book in order for it to work. It's about the people in love who make it work (or not).

3.25 ⭐️

This was a super fun read. I enjoyed the FMCs and the storyline. I loved the idea of the HGTV Second chance romance as they renovate something that brought them together in the first place and had such special meaning to them both.

While i think there was a lot to enjoy in this book, I think the romance itself was lacking for me. I need angst and longing from both parties in a second chance romance and i feel like the romance itself was lacking overall for me. I wanted more. I wasn’t invested in their romance, which made it hard to be invested in that storyline at all.

I would definitely still return to this author and would recommend this book as a low stakes romance that is an easy read and pretty bingable!

What the book brings to the party:
-Second Chance Romance
-Forced Proximity
-HGTV/Renovating together
-Queer

I loved this book so much. The world the author creates in Eureka Springs is so well-constructed that I felt like I could close my eyes and be right there, walking around the inn, the restaurant, and all the local businesses. Molly and Robin were fantastic protagonists; I found myself easily rooting for them both as individuals and as a couple. This is a book I can easily see myself rereading over and over again for the love story, the personal growth, and sense of community.

I received an advanced copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own. Thank you to The Dial Press for the opportunity to review!

<b>Genre:</b> contemporary romance

<b>Tropes:</b> second chance, restoring the old inn, no strings for the summer

<b>Spice Level:</b> 1/5: a couple of scenes, not very descriptive.

<b>Content Warning:</b> mentions of parental abandonment

This is the perfect HGTV LGBT summer read.

Ex wives (sort of) Molly and Robin both return to their old inn to reset and lie low. Their relationship ended badly, and there's no love lost between them. Pranks and sniping ensue, until they decide to work together to sell the inn. To move on, supposedly. And then they decide to sleep together to end their old relationship with a bang rather than all the hate. With a diverse cast and a colorful setting, this one is a perfect read for Pride month, or just summer in general!

a second chance romance as exes team up to fix up the bed and breakfast that broke up their marriage.

Queer joy at its finest. The community built up in Eureka Springs Arkansas was really precious. The drawn out conflict and dishonesty between Molly and Robin was mildly aggravating but all contemporaries need some sort of conflict to move the plot along. Good for them realizing they belong together.

The idea behind this book was super cute—a second-chance romance set in a cozy, queer-friendly town with a B&B renovation in the mix. I was really into the setup! But honestly, it didn’t quite hit the mark for me. Robin and Molly kind of blended together—their inner thoughts sounded so alike that I kept forgetting which one was talking. Their voices just weren’t distinct enough. And while I love a good past-love story, this one leaned a little too hard on their history without showing much growth or connection in the present. It took a while before they even had any real, meaningful conversations. Yeah, overall, it was okay. But I would read another book by the author. Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for the early ebook.

pretty cutesy second chance romance with some fun characters, although at points they feel a bit underdeveloped. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.