I really enjoyed this book!

Nora is a guidance counselor at a high school who lives with her grandmother. The two of them have a wonderful relationship, they absolutely help each other out by providing emotional support. While Nora loves her life and her work at the school, one student, Ivy, is special to Nora. Ivy recently lost her mother, which brings up feelings in Nora. Ivy acts out a lot and it seems to Nora that everyone else has given up on Ivy, including her own father.

Ivy's father Blaze is famous in the Nashville recording scene. He's always busy and doesn't quite know how to be the father that Ivy needs. Nora and Blaze start working together to find a solution for Ivy, and become friends. When something unexpected happens during Nora's vacation, choices are made that have an impact on all of them.

This was a fast read, clean, romantic and family oriented. Beautiful scenery and deep connections. Highly recommend.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "Out of the Blue" and all opinions expressed are my own. This is a great summer book. An easy read with some things predictable. I thought the characters were really good and likable. I would have liked to see more about the relationships, the end seemed rushed. Overall I liked the book.

Beach read season is calling! Pack this gem in your beach bag — you won’t regret it!! Stuck at home this year? No worries! This story will whisk you away to a dreamy seaside escape, no sunscreen required!

⛱️Hale’s books always pack an emotional punch with a story that grabs you from start to finish — and this one is no exception! You won’t be able to put it down!

⛱️The story centers on Nora Jenkins, a devoted high school guidance counselor, as she works to help Ivy Ryman, a grieving teenager, cope with the heartbreaking loss of her mother.

⛱️Nora heads to the Gulf Coast for a much-needed summer escape with her spirited Gram. Not long after they settle in, Ivy shows up at their cottage door, running away from her famous father, Blaze Ryman, who she's now forced to live with after the loss of her mother. Blaze, overwhelmed and buried in work, struggles to connect with Ivy. Nora, who understands the weight of grief all too well, truly sees Ivy for who she is — and soon, Ivy finds comfort and solace in Nora’s presence.

⛱️Hale's vivid and descriptive writing makes the characters, Nora, Blaze, Ivy, and Gram deeply relatable. I felt as if I was part of this heartwarming found family, enjoying their beach vacation while wholeheartedly rooting for a happily-ever-after.

⛱️This is a great book for fans of feel-good romances and stories that explore the complexities of human connections. It's a great reminder of the power of love and new beginnings when you least expect them.

Nora Jenkins loves her job as a high school guidance counselor. One student in particular is taking all of Nora’s time and testing her patience. Ivy Ryman is new to Oakland High School. Blaze Ryman, Ivy’s dad, can’t seem to get control of his daughter. And now with the school year coming to an end, Nora is ready for the summer break.

Nora heads out of town and goes directly to the Gulf Coast. It’s her oasis, her happy place, and she is desperate to unplug. As she is basking in the sun, she gets two unexpected visitors. What are Ivy and her dad Blaze doing here, and how in the world did they find her?

Out of the Blue, authored by Jenny Hale, is an amazing and inspirational story full of hope. Nora is a wonderful character that has a heart of gold. I loved that she would do whatever possible to help her students and encourage them. She was such a great influence on them.

I was quickly transported to the toasty sand of the Gulf Coast. This amazing beach read was unputdownable. I was immersed in this book and heard the lapping of the waves on the beach. Hale is an amazing writer that always gives the reader more than expected. This little gem of a story would make a fabulous movie. I highly recommend this phenomenal book.

A totally sweet romance about finding love when it’s least expected. Nora Jenkins moved away after the man she was engaged to cheated on her. She is now a high school guidance counselor and although she loves her job, there is never enough time to help the many students who need her. One student, Ivy Ryman, seems to find her way to Nora’s office almost daily. Ivy is dealing with the death of her mother and living with the father that she doesn’t know. Not only does she not know him, but he is a famous music producer who doesn’t seem to have time for her. Nora is living with her grandmother and is looking forward to their summer trip, to the beach, when she finally meets Ivy’s father, Blaze. She finds herself enjoying time spent with him as she offers ways for him to bond with Ivy. A scare over her grandmother’s health and missing Blaze when he no longer needs her help has her wondering what is next for her. As she begins to move towards the next chapter in her life, will that chapter contain the two people that she has lost her heart to, Ivy and Blaze? I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (4.5, paytonpuppy)

Title: Out of the Blue
By: Jenny Hale
Pub. Day: April 29, 2025

Genre:
Fiction, Women’s, Romance, Beach Read

Summary/Review:
I’m a new lover of all Jenny Hale novels! This is my first narrative written by Hale and I read it in one sitting!!! Hands down an excellent novel!

Ivy’s mom has recently passed and now Ivy is forced to move in with her nonexistent, rich, producer dad. As a new student, Ivy is struggling to make new friends, and seeking attention at school by acting out during classroom instruction. Nora, Ivy’s high school guidance counselor, has the ability to reach her on a level unmatched by anyone else. Out of the Blue leaves an undeniable impression, especially for educators, by powerfully illustrating the profound and lasting influence an adult can have on a student’s life.

Thank you to Jenny Hale, BooksGoSocial, and NetGalley for the opportunity of an Advanced Readers Copy. I am voluntarily leaving my review.

#OutoftheBlue
#JennyHale
#reluctantreaderreads
#advancedreadercopies
#BooksGoSocial
#NetGalley

Reading a book by Jenny Hale is always an enjoyable experience and Out of the Blue was another successful story.
The characters all fit together in a way that made me feel like I was right there with them as they all navigated the ups and downs in their lives.
This is a perfect beach read.
Thank you NetGalley, Jenny Hale and BooksGoSocial for the ARC of the book Out of the Blue.
This is my personal review.

A warm, beachy setting with themes of healing and discovering love when you least expect it.

🥹​ Uplifting | ❤️‍ (Very) Slow-Burn Romance | 🇺🇸 Nashville / Florida

High school guidance counselor Nora Jenkins has her hands full. Her newest student, Ivy Ryman, has been wreaking havoc at Oakland High and is consuming all of Nora’s work hours. Ivy’s father, the wildly successful music producer Blaze Ryman, is too caught up in his demanding career to manage his daughter’s growing rebellion. Nora, however, has a soft spot for the troubled teen, who’s lost her mother and is now trying to navigate life with a distant, high-profile father.

When summer break finally arrives, Nora dreams of escaping to the Gulf Coast—of turquoise waters, sunny days, and cocktails on the beach. She’s just about to settle into her long-awaited retreat when Ivy and Blaze unexpectedly show up at her beachfront doorstep, bringing all the drama she had hoped to leave behind.

I’ve loved Jenny Hale’s books for years (especially her cozy, heartwarming Christmas ones!), so it pains me a little to say this… but this one just wasn’t for me.

As always, her writing style remains lovely—easy, uplifting, and perfect for escapism—but the story itself struggled to find its footing. The beginning felt slow and drawn out, but once the pacing picked up, it almost moved too quickly, rushing through important emotional beats. The biggest disappointment for me was the romance—or rather, the lack of it. The relationship between Nora and Blaze was barely developed; the focus remained almost entirely on Ivy’s struggles. I wanted to see a deeper, more natural build between Nora and Blaze, but instead, it felt like the story fast-forwarded to a neat, unrealistic ending where everything magically resolved. I needed more sparks!

I found myself frustrated with the lack of meaningful communication between Nora, Blaze, and Ivy, particularly when it came to working through their grief. Ivy’s constant rebellion, paired with Blaze’s inability to reach her, felt repetitive and exhausting. After so much estrangement, their sudden reconciliation felt unearned. A trip of a lifetime after barely speaking? It didn’t sit right with me.

I appreciated the exploration of Nora’s inner struggle—trying to find her purpose and reignite her passion. Also Nora’s Gram, June, was a wonderful addition to the story.

Overall, this was a slower, less satisfying read for me personally. However, I can still see how others might enjoy its warm, beachy setting and themes of healing and find love when you least expect it.

I kindly received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much Netgalley, Harpeth Road Press, BooksGoSocial and Jenny Hale.

I really enjoyed this heartfelt beach read. The story follows Nora, a school counselor, who is dealing with new student, Ivy, who is acting out unable to deal with the grief after losing her mother. Ivy is now living with her father, Blaze Ryman, a successful music producer who is constantly away from home. Nora no stranger to loss herself connects with the young woman and knows Ivy needs someone to see her. Can Nora help Ivy and Blaze repair their relationship? When summer break comes Nora heads to the beach with Gram for a little rest and relaxation. But before Nora can begin to relax, a runaway Ivy shows up at her doorstep with Blaze not far behind. Can Nora help Ivy and Blaze connect? This was an enjoyable beach read. There is a touch of romance and I enjoyed the relationship between Nora and Gram. An overall feel good beach read .

Thank you to Netgalley, Harpeth Road Press and Jenny Hale for the advanced readers copy.

I’m not much of a romance reader, but decided to try this book as a recommendation from a friend. I enjoyed it and would pick up another book by this author if I need a light book to read. Thanks to #NetGalley for #OutOfTheBlue.

I really wanted to love this book but found it so hard to get into. This was my first Jenny Hale book and maybe it just wasn't the right one to start with?

Out of the Blue is the perfect beach read! I love Jenny Hale's books so much, and this was no exception. I absolutely loved the characters. They're very well-written, so I got attached to them easily. I felt so much heartache for Ivy who was trying to deal with the loss of her mom while navigating a new life with her dad. Nora brought out the best in her and her celebrity dad. Blaze is completely swoon-worthy, and he tries so hard to be what Ivy needs while having no idea what that was. I loved the summer beach vacation and seeing the characters develop deeper friendships. I'm so ready to head to the gulf coast now! If only I could rent that cottage... I highly recommend this book to those of you who love sweet, clean beach reads.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Everything is better at the beach. This book was a great escape, especially since a lot of the book was set at the white shores of the Gulf.

Nora Jenkins is a school guidance counselor. A student at the school, Ivy Ryman, keeps ending up in her office because of her different shenanigans. Some see Ivy as a troublemaker, but Nora sees a young woman who is in pain and just needs someone to see her. Ivy lost her mother and is now living with her father, Blaze Ryman. Blaze is a super successful music producer and is away from home a lot. These two need communication instead of avoidance, but it was if neither one knew where to start.

When Blaze and Ivy end up crashing Nora and her grandmother's beach vacation, none of them are prepared for the things that are about to happen to change each of their lives forever.

This book is a perfect beach read. It made me long for the white sandy beaches as the author described their little white cottage on the beach. Each character was special in their own way. Ivy was struggling mightily. I felt so sorry for her, but I also wanted to shake her at times. Being a teenage girl was hard enough for her, but also dealing with unprocessed grief was making her life miserable, and in turn she made everyone around her miserable. Suddenly the salty breeze, sunshine and sand are changing things for everyone in the house. I loved every single minute of this book. I smiled so much in the final 20 pages of this book that my face hurt. This author knows how to write a happily ever after story, but she also knows how to address real world issues with finesse.

Thank you to Harpeth Road, BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I LOVED this story. Inspiring, feel-good, and uplifting! I became invested in the characters and their story.

Out Of The Blue written by Jenny Hale was a deeply emotional and inspiring beachy read. Jenny has become an auto buy author for me, I have read so many of her Christmas book and absolutely love them all, I have only read a few of her beach reads, but I definitely need to read more of them. Out Of The Blue is the type of book that should be in your beach bag or on your kindle for a day tanning in the sun at the beach or the pool. As always Jenny Hale is the QUEEN of happily ever afters and this one is no exception. If you haven't read a book by this author before, please go do yourself a favor and add every single one of her books to your to be read list, or even better, mark your calendars for April 29th, 2025 because this book better be a part of your summer reading. Jenny's words and writing style are so poetically pleasing. A few tears were shed along the way, but from page to page, I just couldn't stop smiling, I had the biggest smile on my face throughout the entire book, it was just THAT good. If you haven't added this book to your to be read list, please go do so right now, like actually run right now or I will haunt you until I see this book on every single person's lists. My cheeks literally hurt from cheesin' so much, I couldn't help but kick my feet up in the air and smile. When I first saw that beautiful beach cover, I knew I had to get my hands on a copy of this book immediately, and I'm so thankful I had the chance to read it early because I loved every single minute of it.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND BOOKS GO SOCIAL FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!

"I want you to know there are people in your corner. If you focus on those who lift you up, and let everything else fall away, life will get easier".

"Having someone to help you work through your emotions can be beneficial in your healing process".

"If you want an old woman's opinion, you need to let go of the rules you set for yourself".

"In our limited time on this earth, we will have lots of battles, and we will have to choose which ones are worth the fight".

"No life ever changed for the better by taking the easy way out".

Nora Jenkins is a high school guidance counselor and she has her hands full with a new student. Nora lost her parents in a car accident when she was in her twenties, so she became a counselor to help other student navigate their own grief. Nora has a master's degree in counseling so she can help other kids live better lives while they try to live their daily lives as they are struggling. Nora holds a dual license for private and school counseling, but she feels like she makes the most impacts working with students. Nora has three weeks until summer vacation until she can spend two weeks along the Golf Coast. Nora has never been to the beach before, but this time she's renting a gorgeous beach bungalow with her Gram. Nora and her Gram are so excited for the white sandy beach, turquoise water, and beautiful palm trees. Blaze Ryman is a famous music producer that works between Nashville, New York, and Los Angeles, so he's hardly ever home and now he's an absent father in his daughter Ivy's life. Blaze always seems so sure of himself like he's better than everyone else because he has money and he's famous, he's almost superior or self important. When Ivy first started at this new school, it was hard for the school to get in contact with Blaze because he never answered his phone, but he was always posting on social media. Blaze is also known as "Nashville Magazine's Most Eligible Bachelor.

Ivy Ryman is a seventeen year old senior at Oakland High School. Ivy isn't your average high school student, she has black lined lips and pink hair which was her mom's favorite color, and of course she gets bullied for it because high school kids are just mean. Ivy's mom, Candace died during a routine knee surgery procedure. Before living with her father, Ivy lived exclusively with her mom in Alabama where she was kicked out of two private schools. Ivy enrolled at Oakland High with only two months before the end of the school year. Ivy is an unruly student, she ran off the premises twice, skipped more classes than anyone could fathom, rumored Ivy had jammed the locks on a bunch of lockers but there's no proof she even did it. Ivy goes home to an empty house everyday because of her famous father. Ivy hadn't fully dealt with the grief of losing her mother before starting a new school. Ivy craves emotional acceptance, and she feels invisible. Throughout the book, Ivy has found a deep connection to Nora and their shared grief of both of them losing their parents. As the book goes on, Ivy makes progress when she works with Nora, she starts going to class and scoring high on her tests. During summer vacation, Ivy and Blaze turn up at Nora and her Gram's beach bungalow, but you will need to read this book to find out those details and fun memories. My heart broke for Ivy, she was just trying to navigate her grief, meanwhile kids bullied her because of her pink hair.

Jenny Hale’s *Out of the Blue* is a delightful, heartwarming novel. High school guidance counselor Nora already has her hands full when she meets troubled teen, Ivy. Ivy's dad, Blaze, has a busy career and is unable to get a handle on his daughter. Nora develops a soft spot for the girl as the school year comes to a close. Imagine Nora's surprise when, while at the beach with her grandmother for summer vacation, Ivy shows up. Does her dad know where she is? Can Nora help Blaze and Ivy? Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC,

Sweet story about finding love when you least expect it. Wonderful characters and of course a happy ending.

A cute, easy read with lovable characters and a beautiful setting. The satisfying ending is the icing on the cake.

Nora is a high school guidance counselor who’s always looking out for others. When Ivy, a teen dealing with the loss of her mom and a dad who’s barely around, starts having a tough time, Nora steps in to help.

At the start of summer break, Nora and her fun, lovable grandma head to the Florida Keys for a little getaway. But their quiet trip takes a turn when Ivy runs away—and shows up at their door. Not far behind is Blaze, Ivy’s dad, who’s trying to be there for his daughter for the first time in a long time.

Nora didn’t expect to have feelings for Blaze, but something about him surprises her. As they spend more time together in the sunshine, things slowly start to change—for all of them.

Out of the Blue is a sweet, feel-good beach read about love, second chances, and finding family in unexpected places. Nora’s grandma totally steals the show with her big heart and fun personality. If you’re looking to escape into a cozy story that feels real and full of hope, this one’s for you.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Jenny Hale, and Harpeth Road Press for the opportunity to read Out of the Blue!

This was my first Jenny Hale book and I enjoyed it. Nora Jenkins is a high school guidance counselor working with a very troubled new student Ivy Ryman. Ivy's mom passed away and now she's unhappily living with her famous music producer dad Blaze who had been completely cut out of her life up until now. Ivy has been acting out in and out of school and Nora seems to be the only one who can connect with her and reach her on any level. When the school year ends, Nora heads off with her grandmother for a relaxing beach vacation, but shortly after they get there, a distraught Ivy shows up followed quickly by her dad Blaze. Everything that happens from there is totally predictable, but still light and easy to read. This book is perfect for a beach/vacation read. Thanks to #netgalley and #harpethroadpress for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.