This story was the cute rom/com I was looking for! Holly's character is so relatable- just a girl in her 30's trying to figure things out when life isn't going the way she expected. Jonathan is on a similar path to self-discovery, and the way they help each other is so cute. Jude and Rachel were such well written side characters. I laughed, but it also tugged at my heartstrings. Great summer beach read!

Holly is not your average intern. After leaving the legal world for personal reasons, she takes a job as an intern for an eco-friendly company and is embroiled in a competition to raise money for the firm. Whomever wins the competition amongst the interns is awarded a coveted position in Scotland, which is perfect because Holly needs to escape her life. Enter Jonathan, curmudgeon, web developer, and savior of those trapped in small spaces. Jonathan may not want to work with Holly and help her win this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but he finds himself pulled along despite his intentions to steer clear. Full of warmth and humor, Finding Mr July will keep readers invested until the end.

Cute fun beach read - grumpy/sunshine coworkers - nice banter! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), and Anna E. Collins for the ear.ly access copy of Finding Mr. July.

When Holly started her new career interning at a nonprofit, she knew she'd need to do whatever it took to win her internships fundraising competition. If she won, she'd be able to restart her career in Scotland, far from the demise of her past relationship and past career. What she wasn't prepared for was having to work with her coworker, Jonathan Summers on her hot, outdoorsy guys with their dog's calendar. Even more so, she wasn't prepared for his photography skills. Jonathan is not what Holly expected. When sparks fly from the start, Holly and Jonathan need to figure out if what they have is worth the risk.

Finding Mr. July is a spicy romance with personal growth, humor, witty banter, and tension that is palpable. It was hard to put this book down, and even harder to say goodbye to the characters.

I LOVED this book! It's such a cute, feel-good rom-com with a side of puppies and spice. Perfect summer read!

Holly is a 30-Something starting over as an intern with an environmental nonprofit l after leaving her lawyer job and her lawyer boyfriend. She’s competing with the other interns for a chance at a job in Glasgow and the ultimate fresh start. Reluctantly teaming up with broody office loner, Jonathan, to produce and sell a calendar as a fundraiser. Who doesn’t love hot guys, nature, and dogs!? Plus it turns out Johnathan was an acclaimed photographer in his past life…

First of all, I love a 30-something FMC!!
The banter is incredible. I was literally giggling and laughing out loud. The spice is *chefs kiss*. Love the focus on environmentalism- very fitting and timely for this day and age. I also love the secondary storyline with her brother and niece both dealing with their own versions of starting over.

An overall story of new beginnings and how starting anew can look different for everyone. Plus what it really means to be happy.


Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book. Honestly, I have nothing but good things to say about this one.

This is my first book with this author, but I’ve already checked out two of her other books from the library. I’ve found my latest author obsession!

This novel follows Holly who quit her job as a lawyer to work as an intern at a nonprofit that focuses on the environment. She is tasked with creating a final project that (if she produces the highest proceeds for the nonprofit) would lead to a real job at their new Scotland office. She really wants this job but she’s stuck working with the office grump, Jonathan. Together they work to create a hot man and cute dog calendar with Jonathan as the photographer. The two go from funny banter and bickering to stolen kisses in between shoots. Will they beat the odds and end up together?

This book is adorable, has an easy plot to follow, and has characters that are dynamic and lovable. There wasn’t a single character I didn’t like. The side characters added to the storyline and weren’t just fillers. Everything had a purpose, and it worked.

Sometimes when you have novels like this, the main objective (such as the calendar project) goes to the wayside as the romance takes center stage. Not here. I liked how we see each unique photoshoot as well as Holly’s struggle with finding the models. Is there a real dating site for pet parents because sign me up!

This book made me laugh and helped me calm down after a long, stressful week. Honestly, pick this one when it comes out. It’s a cute and fun read.

*An ARC was received in exchange for an honest review.

Finding Mr. July was such a cute book! Loved Holly and Jonathan’s dynamic and appreciated that it was not a slow burn. Great side characters and just the right amount of drama to keep it interesting. Also really loved the ending!

This book was as adorable as it sounds! Finding Mr. July is a sweet, feel-good rom-com full of dogs, banter, and slow-burn grump x sunshine tension. Holly is a relatable, driven heroine trying to chase her dream job (and put serious distance between herself and a toxic past), and Jonathan is the brooding photographer with a soft center that sneaks up on you.

The calendar competition was such a fun premise—hot guys and puppies? Yes, please. I loved the way their dynamic grew naturally, even after their steamy accidental start. The forced proximity and creative chaos of staging all the photo shoots gave them space to develop something real without it ever feeling rushed.

It’s light on angst, high on charm, and would be perfect for fans of Rachel Lynn Solomon, Sarah Adams, or anyone who loves a little workplace romance with their dog cuddles. Bonus points for the Scotland subplot—I’ll never say no to a career-meets-life pivot moment that includes kilts and fresh starts.

Finding Mr. July is a case of "I liked it, but I didn't love it." It started off slow and I even thought about DNFing this book, but made the decision to keep reading. I'm glad that I did that, because the story finally picked up and the resolution was great. Plus, getting little tidbits of information about the dogs was probably my favorite aspect. Even though I enjoyed how this book ended, there are still a few component that made it lean more towards the "I didn't love it" side of things. Holly being so hung up on her ex was a bit much and I wish there would have been less of an ex haunting some of her motives and decisions. Even so, it is definitely a cute, summer read that is perfect for the summer months.

This is a cute contemporary romance - Jonathan is a hot, grumpy main mail character and Holly is a 30 something working on her second career after a bad breakup with her lawyer ex. There are fun dog photoshoots, some spice, and interesting family and friend dynamics. It was predictable in that easy, light rom-com way. I felt the third act didn’t flow with both of how both main characters had been maturing through the book.

Thank you Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

This was very cute and fun, I felt that it dragged a bit toward the end but absolutely would still recommend it. Great beach read.

A great slow burn rom com perfect for anyone who loves dogs, workplace romance, and grumpy X sunshine! The banter is hilarious and the story was incredibly cute and surprisingly sweet/emotional.

Finding Mr. July is a cute romcom that had me chuckling and rooting for the main characters throughout. I was hooked from the beginning and finished in only a couple of days. My only critique would be that it felt a little repetitive in the middle and drug on a little bit. 4.5 stars and will definitely be checking out this author's other books.

At 35, I was excited to read a romance featuring a more mature heroine, and I loved the premise of Finding Mr. July: a former attorney turned reluctant intern tasked with curating a fundraising calendar featuring shirtless men—and their dogs. Holly’s journey, navigating the fallout of an unexpected career derailment and the lingering wounds from a past relationship, was both unique and relatable. While I appreciated her vulnerability, I sometimes found her reactions didn’t fully align with her age or professional background, which occasionally pulled me out of the story. Still, the book’s charm, humor, and heart carried me through, and the dogs were a delightful bonus. This may not have been my favorite read of the year, but I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a light, fun, and slightly offbeat romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the privilege of receiving this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book! I didn’t like the social/political commentary slid into a chapter or two, though. Too bad; that knocked a star off.

•𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 (𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨) 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.•

This book started out really strong. I found the premise really interesting - having a "disgraced" lawyer finding her new way with a new career, and then finding out the main male character had a similar "fall from grace". For about the first 40% of the book I was all in. I loved the banter between Holly and Jonathan, I thought his character was compelling, I loved Holly's relationship with her family and Rachel.
Where it started to fall off a little for me was the hot guy calendar. I realize that it makes me sound like early Jonathan, but I felt like the emphasis on finding "hot guys" was just over done. My biggest issue overall was the 3rd act conflict felt really immature and easily avoidable. Overreactions happened, some of the dialogue felt out of character on both ends and it really just felt forced. I also didn't love that Holly basically insinuated through most of the book that she didn't have a ton of respect for Jonathan unless he was his prolific photographer self. Instead of feeling supportive, it felt like a condition? I just wish there had been a bit of a deeper dive in their relationship.

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for access to this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Set in Seattle, Washington, Holly is vying for the coveted Scotland position among the interns and gets help from the office grump with a fundraiser calendar. Holly's law career didn't go as planned, so she takes an internship at the non-profit her friend Rachel works at. A full time job at the new office in Glasgow opens up, but only for the intern who wins a fundraising competition. Racing against her twenty something counterparts, Holly works with Jonathan, who slowly starts to open up to her. As they work to get 12 men posing shirtless with their dogs for the annual calendar she has planned, Holly begins to question what will actually make her happy in the end.

These two had great chemistry (the tequila aftermath!). Their romance is sweet and tender (with spice!), and their struggles felt natural to their stage of life.

I loved seeing all the settings around Seattle! The variety of the calendar was super fun to see unfold.

I also enjoyed seeing Holly interact with her brother and niece, as well as their side story. I would have loved a little bit more about Jude (maybe a spin off?).

Read for:
✨ Cute dogs!
✨ Workplace romance
✨ Grumpy x sunshine
✨ (Shirtless) Men who love dogs
✨ Thirty somethings with career adjustments
✨ Slow burn

Open Door / Spicy

3.75 / 5

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this eARC!

⭐️5 stars!

Things to expect:
♦️ grumpy x sunshine
♦️ office romance
♦️ slow burn
♦️ sweet, romantic spice🌶️
♦️ FMC in her 30s

Summary: Holly is a 34 year old trying to start over. Working as an intern at a nonprofit, she is competing against 4 others interns for a paid position in Scotland: the catch? She is forced to work with the brooding office grump, Jonathan, to pull it off.

✨I really loved this book! It’s a feel good read that kept me engaged the whole time.

The slow burn between the characters was well done and kept me hooked in the story. The chemistry felt genuine and believable. Spice was tasteful, sweet, romantic which was refreshing to read!! Ultimately the relationship between the characters was a blend of sweet, soft, and passionate which is my FAVORITE kind of romance.

I also appreciated seeing a FMC in her 30s navigating both career and personal growth. Holly’s journey to rediscover herself added emotional depth to the story without making it feel heavy.

The writing style was light and engaging, with witty dialogue and great pacing. I also adored Jude, Holly’s brother, and would love a spinoff featuring him!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Finding Mr. July was such a fun, warm, and surprisingly emotional read. Anna E. Collins delivers a workplace romance that has some of my favorite tropes and themes: grumpy/sunshine dynamic, reluctant coworkers turned late night tequila confidants, and a calendar full of hot guys and cute dogs? Say less.

Holly is thirty four, fresh out of a toxic relationship and an exhausting legal career. She’s starting over as an unpaid intern at a nonprofit and vying for a life changing position in Scotland. She’s smart, ambitious, and delightfully chaotic. Enter Jonathan, who is her broody, closed off coworker that gets reluctantly paired with Holly to create a fundraiser for their office competition. He’s grumpy. He’s guarded. He’s also extremely attractive. And did I mention he’s good with dogs?

Their banter is hilarious and really works for them as characters, their partnership messy but effective, and one tequila fueled night leaves them questioning whether something more happened between them. As they hustle toward the deadline, sparks fly, walls come down, and the calendar isn’t the only thing heating up.

I loved the emotional depth. Both characters in this book are carrying baggage, but the way they challenge and support each other was beautiful. Plus, the side plot with Holly’s BFF and her widowed brother adds just the right amount of drama and sweetness (I needed that slow burn resolved!).

Read if you enjoy:
✨ Workplace romance
✨ Grumpy x sunshine
✨ Men who love dogs
✨ Thirty something characters starting fresh
✨ Slow burn with great payoff

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the eARC of this book.