Thank you, Hachette Audio | Forever and NetGalley, for providing me with this advance reader’s audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

“Finding Mr. July” is everything you want in a rom com. There is swooning, romance, a little spice and a lot of laughs. The narrator does a great job differentiating between characters with voices and intonation. This is the perfect read/listen when you need something light and easy to get sucked into.

Solid four stars for me. This one started out a little slow and I almost had to power through to get into it, but once I did, I was hooked. Holly and Johnathan just made me fall in love with the story. I love an enemies to lovers vibe so this did not disappoint. There was just enough rom-com to it with the added drama and spice. Took a while to understand the title of the book, but such a cute tie in. Will definitely be looking into other books by this author, as I had never read anything by her prior to this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and my biggest gripe with it would be the title. It just gives away more of the ending and makes the “oh no” plot twist at the end so freaking predictable. However, I love both Holly and Jonathan. This is very much a grumpy/sunshine romance and it so sweet to see Jonathan open up as the plot unfolds. Holly stays relatively consistent but it is really nice to see a 30ish year old have a career change and embrace the concept that it’s never too late to change what you want. I didn’t see Jonathan’s backstory coming at all, but it added a really nice depth to his character. There was also a lot of build up to why Holly left her previous job but then it felt very anticlimactic. There was also a touch of miscommunication trope at the end (bleh), but it was rectified. It took a little bit to get into this read, but I really enjoyed it, especially Holly’s relationship with her brother and niece. The hot guy and dog calendar was really just a bonus to all of it! The audiobook was absolutely fantastic and the narration really immersed me in the story! I listened to it as often as I could! Absolutely recommend! 4.5⭐️, 2🌶

The book itself was great, very cute storyline. The author made it easy to picture what was happening. Those dogs must’ve been so cute! I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a great job as well. Wish I could’ve been on the rooftop for the fireworks 😘

Thank you to Hachette Audio, Forever & NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Finding Mr, July was a quick & cute read that I really enjoyed! To be fair, what is not to like - there's hot guys and puppies! Holly was relatable and her dynamic with Jonathan felt organic. Lauren Ezzo's narration was well done and engaging and I would absolutely recommend the audio for anyone who is interested in this book. Collin's also definitely left some breadcrumbs for a second book and I hope that it's the couple I think it will be!

I listened to the audiobook of Finding Mr. July by Anna E. Collins. The narrator, Lauren Ezzo, made this is easy listen. It was a cute romance about the main character competing in a fundraising contest at work for a promotion. She decides to do a calendar, and she and the dark, complicated photographer have feelings for each other (of course!). The narrator did just enough to distinguish between character’s voices, without it being too much. I liked this audiobook. #netgalley #hachetteaudio #findingmrjuly

Rating: 4.4/5 stars
Holly King, 34, finds herself as an intern for an environment conservation company. This comes after losing her job at her former law firm when she was forced to take the fall for her ex's mistake. She decides pivoting to a new career field is the best choice for her. As the end of her internship is approaching, she and the other interns are to compete for a permanent position for their new branch in Glasgow! Their goal is to create a profitable fundraiser in just a short amount of time. Holly MUST win this to establish her new career AND to move far, far away from her terrible ex. While others plan galas and social media fundraisers, Holly comes up with the best idea: a calendar with HOT MEN AND DOGS!!! In order to pull off her project, she is forced to partner with the broody, grumpy web designer/former famous photographer, Jonathan Summers. Will Holly be able to pull this off? Can she complete it before the deadline?

This book was so enjoyable to listen to. It was a quick read, funny, and romantic. I related to the main character and loved the journey she went through in the novel. I would recommend reading this book!

Holly works for an environmental non-profit as an intern. At the end of her internship there's one final challenge that could get her a new job in Scotland. So she and 4 other interns need to compete by having fundraisers. Her idea is to create a calendar with men and puppies.

This started out great, the banter is wonderful and the opposites attract was a lot of fun. I love office romances so I was expecting this to be a new hit. I really liked Jonathan, how he grows and changes through the novel. However, around the halfway point this took a dive, things started to get weird and the characters lost their charm a bit, it didn't help at all that we had a third act conflict which was super unnecessary.

I didn't really like Holly, she was alright in the beginning but some things about her irked me, like how she is so good at her job, so perfectionist and such a good planner. And yet she plans her project badly, forget deadlines, reading important articles....

The romance was cute but I would have taken out some of the conflict parts, since there was already the potential of her having to move away to create tension. It’s a good book but definitely didn’t live up to my expectations.

Read this if you like:
- Grumpy - Sunshine
- FMC staring over in a new career
- Great banter
- Workplace Romance

I loved this audiobook! The narrator was great and brought Holly and Jonathan to life.

Holly is an intern for a non profit. She needs to win a competition to get a full time job. In order to win the competition she'll need the help of the office grump, Jonathan.

This book, both the words and the narrators, had me smiling and laughing. It had me wanting to know what the characters were going to do next. I loved how well they got along, I loved her relationship with her brother and niece. I loved the dogs. Both Holly and Jonathan had a lot of personal issues that they had to get through on their own, and together. The chemistry between Holly and Jonathan was perfect. It was a perfect romance book for the summer.

This started out great, the banter is wonderful and the opposites attract was a lot of fun. The MMC grows and changes and I did enjoy his character. Around the halfway point this took a dive. It’s a fine book but definitely didn’t live up to my expectations.

What’s to love…
- Grumpy - Sunshine
- FMC staring over in a new career
- great banter
- single POV
- hot guys with dogs calendar concept was fun

What I didn’t love…
- Are MCs were older, yet their actions (esp Holly’s) felt so immature
- The most unnecessary 3rd act conflict. What even was that?
- Everything revolves around this calendar and its so important and Holly is smart and accomplished and a great planer and yet… Plans this calendar SO poorly - and then her poor planning causes an “emergency” - this was NOT it.

Audio Performance: 4/5 Solid performance. Needed to speed it up quite a bit - the pacing was rather slow.

🌶️- a few mildly explicit scenes.

After taking a complete career change from law, Holly is looking for a total fresh start. She is starting from the ground up as an intern at an environmental company. Soon, Holly learns that in order to get her dream full-time position in Scotland, she must plan and execute the most successful fundraiser and team up with one of the company's creatives to do it. Unfortunately for Holly, the only one left to do it is Johnathan, the dark and mysterious, quiet designer, who happened to save her from being stuck in a closet earlier. To raise the most money, Holly decides to sell a calendar featuring hot men and their dogs, with nature backgrounds. The only problem is that she needs to get Johnathan on board as a photographer and a designer. As the two work through the ins and outs of the project together, they uncover more than they expected about each other and begin to develop a relationship both inside and outside of work.

❤️Forced proximity
💙Enemies to lovers
🩵Grumpy x sunshine

I really loved the overall concept of this book, and the execution was perfect! The tension between Holly and Johnathan was so good, and seeing them forced to work together was super enjoyable. I loved them working on the project together and seeing Johnathan show the soft side under all of his black clothes. The project was such a fun idea, and I really enjoyed watching them work through it together. Random, but I also loved the variety of dog breeds included! Their conflict had me frustrated at times, but I understood where they both were coming from, and all of their issues felt very real. They overall did a great job working together under pressure, despite some miscommunication. I also loved Holly's brother, Jude, and her friend Rachel. I would love to see a sequel featuring them because Jude was an amazing character and a great single dad, while Rachel was such a supportive friend to Holly.

Overall, this was such a fun and enjoyable listen! The narrator did such an amazing job carrying Holly's emotions throughout the story. Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the audiobook ARC!

3.5 stars. This is a pretty cozy, sweet romance. There's a maturity to this that kind of defies the title and description. Especially in the first half of the book before there was a need for conflict, I really liked how the characters approached their interest in a relationship. They were straightforward and honest about their feelings and it was really refreshing to see.

Loved Jonathan in particular. You get the mental health representation. And just a lot of sweetness. He was the best. I also really liked Holly's relationships with her brother and niece. Her niece's meltdown about moving to Texas (aka Gilead) just perfectly captured sulky teen vibes while still validating her feelings.

I think I was expecting more hijinks because of the title and description. Maybe I've watched too many Hallmark movies? Also, while I overall liked Holly, I didn't like some of her manipulation tactics with Jonathan, nor her tendency to yell at Jonathan when she was stressed.

Lauren Ezzo is always a reliable narrator. Enjoyed listening to her tell this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2. This was a cute and fun rom com with an enjoyable storyline. I have no negative feedback, this was exactly the kind of easy fluffy reading I find enjoyable in this genre. The characters were well developed and likeable. The story flowed well and never felt rushed or drawn out. The ending is satisfying and wraps up nicely.

The narration was performed well, it’s performed as just one narrator for all characters but I didn’t have difficulty keeping up with the character changes. She has a soothing voice that is easy to listen to and has good pacing and no distracting noises. The only weird thing was the pronunciation of “Canberra” but it wasn’t frequent enough to be annoying.

I would definitely recommend this book.

I received an advanced listener copy of this audiobook and am leaving this review voluntarily.

“Don’t make me bake muffins. You know I’m unreliable with ovens!”

FindingMrJuly by AnnaECollins is a 4.7 ⭐️ read.

The Audiobook is out on the 01st July 2025

Two people with opposite approaches must work together to earn their dream jobs!

Holly King is ready to do whatever it takes to get the job of her dreams, even if it means working with a pile of adorably unruly pups, and the office grump.

The office Intern Holly knows there are pros and cons to everything, including competing in her nonprofit’s big fundraising competition.

But will Jonathan Summers the office grump make this an easy of difficult task?

—:—:—:—:—

Well…. Where does one even begin?

This book was written for ME! (Or at least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!) 😘

It was filled with laugh out loud moments I keep reliving as I sit here writing this review. The story was so well written that I found myself transported into the world seeing life from Holly’s POV.

The funny parts done subtract from the leaning journey of our main characters, and when the emotional connection between them hits that sweet spot, tears are going to flow.

This is a MUST READ for this summer! And listening to Lauren Ezzo being the world alive is chefs kiss!


Favourite Quote: “We have security cameras, and I happen to know. The man who runs them, really likes muffins!”

Spicy Level - 🌶️🌶️

Note: Please read and review all trigger warnings before reading any recommended book. We love to read for our pleasure, so keep your mind, and emotions safe!

Audio Book Available
Publisher: HachetteAudio
Narrator: Lauren Ezzo

A L C • R E V I E W 🎧
Finding Mr. July by Anna E. Collins
Narrated by Lauren Enzo

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75

Workplace Romance
Grumpy/Sunshine
Cozy Romance

This book was fast paced the narrator did an amazing job reading this one. It was binge-able, I was able to listen while working and I did not get lost or distracted. I loved the plot of this audiobook, Holly and Jonathan both wanted to start over. I loved the workplace romance. If you are someone who loves banter, dogs and want to have a good time then I definitely recommended this book! 🤗

Thank you @netgalley, @hachetteaudio and @aeccreates for gifting me an ALC.

Thank you so much to Hachette Audio and NetGalley for this ARC of Finding Mr. July.

This was such a cute workplace romance. I loved the competition idea and all the crazy ways they got people to pose for the photos. The female main character did get a little annoying at times constantly talking about how she HAD to leave, but I guess I just don’t understand why. That’s the only reason I’m giving this 4 stars. Otherwise, I loved everything else about it.

I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a great job.

This is a cozy, slow-burn romance. The plot feels stretched at times and is very predictable. The narrator did a great job, and that's the main reason I continued listening to the book.

Thank you, @NetGalley and @HachetteAudio, for the ALC.
Expected publication July 1, 2025

This book completely blew me away with its incredible character development. Holly starts off in such a low place—she’s lost her dream job, is newly single, stuck living with her brother and niece, and working an internship she’s way overqualified for. She’s frustrated, flailing, and desperate for change.

Enter the strange, awkward coworker she’s now forced to team up with. From the beginning, their dynamic is prickly and full of tension, but that initial standoffishness quickly morphs into something more—something magnetic. The slow shift in their relationship was so well done and kept me hooked the entire time.

What really sets this book apart is the depth. It’s layered and emotional, and yet still manages to deliver unexpected twists, laugh-out-loud moments, and a third-act breakup that didn’t wreck me (a rare and welcome surprise).

This has easily become one of my favorite reads of the year. If you're looking for something that goes beyond the surface of a typical workplace romance and delivers real growth, heart, and a swoony slow burn, this is it.

SO so very cute. This audiobook was so well done and I enjoyed the narration so much. I didn't want to stop listening.

I highly recommend this dog friendly romcom. I loved all the characters and the multiple love connections.

This was a light hearted story about two people who first bump heads with one another and then begin to realize the differences between them are not so vast as they first appeared to be. This grumpy sunshine romance between Holly and Jonathan is a great workplace romance with forced proximity as these two work together on a project that incorporates photo shoots and adorable canines for a nonprofit calendar fundraiser.

I enjoyed seeing how Holly and Jonathan both worked through past struggles throughout the story and supported their family as they took a chance on love and decided to fight their way to their own happily ever after.

The audiobook narrator did a great job bringing this single POV story to life and differentiating the characters throughout the book. Many thanks to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for the advanced audiobook copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

Read if you enjoy:
🧡 grumpy sunshine
🧡 workplace romance
🧡 forced proximity
🧡 photo shoots with dogs
🧡 family and finding who you are

Romance: a couple open door scenes