Initially, I thought I would enjoy this book more as an audiobook but struggled to remain focused on the story. I switched to digital and loved it. Jill Mansell does a brilliant job of filling her stories with numerous characters and storylines all occurring simultaneously but they flow so well that the reader isn’t overwhelmed trying to keep everyone and their story straight.

I enjoyed meeting Tessa, Ross, Holly, Max, Grace, Adam and everyone else. OK, maybe not everyone because I wanted to chuck Antonia through a window after first meeting her and my opinion of her didn’t improve. But see, that’s the beauty of Jill Mansell’s writing. Even the odious characters leave an impression.

I was quite intrigued with how Tessa and Ross meet and didn’t think a one-night stand and an unplanned pregnancy would work out for anyone, but it does here. Even though I wanted to shake Tessa sometimes at her stubbornness and quick reactions to believing the worst of Ross, even if he sometimes deserved it. I was rooting so hard for these two to make it work.

I adored Holly and though she comes off as very self-centered and a little bit arrogant, she has a heart of gold. She is in love with Max but he doesn’t acknowledge her existence, much less reciprocate any feelings for her. Adam, on the other hand, is head over heels for her, though he is a bit obnoxious in demonstrating it. I was on pins and needles on how her story would turn out.

I loved Grace and just wanted to hug her. She is barely out of school, probably around eighteen and working at the hotel Ross owns. Her world is turned upside down when she finds out about her father who she has never met. I was worried she would end up on skid row or something. Life is hard in the best of times, but to be dealt such traumatizing news at a young age could cause someone to spiral into a pit so dark and deep they would never be able to climb out. I must say that I think Grace was probably my favorite character and after you read this book, I think you will agree with me.

My Final Verdict: This book made me laugh, made me cry, made me angry and frustrated me. I loved it and highly recommend it to readers of contemporary romance and women’s fiction.

Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

Unfortunately, I read this book back in 2017 but completely forgot to upload a review on here, so can't remember exactly what I was going to say about it!

Not my favourite book by Jill Mansell but one which does help to pass the time.

Tessa Duvall is a struggling artist and she reluctantly agreed to accompany her best friend Holly to a party at the elegant Charrington Grange Hotel. Tessa has every intention of sneaking off home early until she meets Ross Monahan.

Ross comes with quite the reputation. He was as high profile as the hotel he owned and ran with such panache. Meanwhile Holly has her heart firmly set on Ross’s brother Max, Tessa wrongly assumed that Ross was just sensational one-night stand...until weeks later when that revelation is that one-night stands can have far-reaching consequences...

This was adorable...a typical Jill Mansell, my only issue was that it dragged on a bit so I did find myself getting impatient for the end but it was worth the wait!

I don’t have much to say about this book other than that the title is appropriate. My rating for this book is SO-LOW it’s not even funny. Get it? Solo? Ok, whatever. I’m just trying to bring some cheer into the dank dismal basement of a DNF book. This book was so bad I think I only made it to the 10% mark before I threw my Kindle across the room like it had chicken pox. I don’t know what this book is about. I think it was supposed to be about some playboy rich guy who falls in love with a hippy type chick. I honestly don’t know. What I do know is that the POV’s were switching so fast and without warning that I was getting nauseated. What I also know is that when the characters got it on for the first time, I couldn’t tell if they were having sex or a conversation, honestly, I couldn’t tell. And then, here comes the part where I threw my Kindle. When what I now know was supposed to be sex ended, the male character says….wait for it….wait for it….."WELL, THAT WAS PLEASANT."

Look, it’s 2017. I’m trying to lose 20 pounds and stop using the F word. This book though, made me want to shove a donut in my mouth and scream what the eff was that? I know I can be a picky, judgmental B. Those are also on my list of things to reduce in 2017. So, I read some other reviews to make sure I wasn’t just being myself. If I was, then a lot of other people were trying to imitate me because there were 1 star ratings everywhere. I even read some reviews of people who really like this author and still thought of this book as trash. I haven’t read anything else by this author so I’m not sure if you should try other things by her. All I can tell you is that this book will make you want to cuss.

I have to admit - I like reading Jill Mansell books! They always provide a quick, enjoyable read, and "Solo" was no different. Although the plot line is familiar (poor, struggling artist meets rich playboy), the story was fun and light reading. Every once in a while, that's all you need from a book.

I was sad in my disappointment of the novel "Solo" by author, Jill Mansell. I know that this story was previously released as the writer's earlier works, but the story was filled with so much chaotic drama that I could not finish the story. I want to point that I strongly discourage not finishing a book, but there are times such as in this case that it was impossible to push on with my reading.

Unlike present novels by the author, "Solo" had this raw, heartbreaking drama that just brought on an immense depression upon reading about the problematica lives of the characters and oh yes there were characters. Each one had to deal with their own life mistakes and it was somewhat brutal to see characters struggling without some sort of a more happier tone. Life is like that in reality and so I do not need to read about in a book.

The writing itself was not an easy flow. The stories of each individual character flew from page and page. Back and forth at least the portions that I read did. I ended my reading about middle ways into the book and so I am not going to write regarding the ending because that I would not be fair.
So based sorely on what I have read I would not recommend the book. I would however recommend present releases of the author's novels because they are so much stronger in romance, friendship, life, family matters and of course in HEA-endings.

As a fan of Jill Mansell I can't believe I took so long to read this title. Having said that, I feel that I can't quite give it 5 (4.5 would be more accurate, if I could give that rating) as Tessa got on my nerves with her constant reacting in the same way to each obstacle put in her way, and running away from conflict.

That's my only gripe as otherwise, this is what we've come to expect from Jill. Superbly structured storyline, twists, turns and roundabouts galore.

Please ignore my minor problem with this and read for the sheer joy that Jill can bring into your reading experiences.

Jill Mansell has written the perfect book to curl up with on a dreary January day. Thanks to publisher Sourcebooks, this title, previously published in the UK but not available in the US or Canada, is now available for our reading pleasure, and trust me, the pleasure is all ours!

Playboy Ross Monahan is well-known for both his charm and his wicked ways. Tessa Duvall, a very practical struggling artist, is completely without expectations when she follows a whim and follows him in to bed. Completely content to carry on with her life after their one-night stand, she is shocked when she discovers she is pregnant by him but she is more than happy to carry on as a single mother. After all, she has pretty much always been alone and she's okay with that.

However, Ross unexpectedly wants to be involved in both Tessa and his baby's life, much to her surprise. But will having Ross in her life be more than Tessa can handle?

This book is entertainment at its finest. I always enjoy Jill Mansell books with a cup of tea and a blanket and there is little that is more comforting than that! Her plots are always entertaining, and there are always several characters that I am cheering for! In this case, not only was I hoping for a happy ending for Tessa, but for her immature but lovable friend Holly. There were no slow spots in this story and it was a page-turner from beginning to end.

I can't help but give this one five stars. Entertaining, comforting, and at times laugh-out-loud funny, every women's fiction fan should pick this one up!

I’m not going to lie. This is not my favourite Jill Mansell book. The story line is just okay, the characters were annoying for the most part (I did enjoy a few of the minor characters–the book should have been about them) and I was seriously galled that either of the main male characters should end up with women in the end. They are AWFUL! The only thing they should have ended up with is syphilis.

BUT, I read the entire thing and wasn’t able to put it down so there is that.

With great writing I always expect from Jill Mansell, but with the worst bunch of characters I’ve had the displeasure of meeting in a long time, I give SOLO, 2.5 stars.

Solo is a mad adventure by two women who have their hearts set on something: for Holly, it’s Max, handsome hotel owner; for Tessa, it’s being left alone and not being tied to a man. Unfortunately for them both, “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”

Tessa is involved with Max’s brother Ross in a love triangle of the most unexpected kind. Holly tries too hard. And Ross and Max have their own agendas! Cougar Antonia brings her own melodramatics that turn everyone’s lives into a soap opera.

I always adore the fun and crazy that Jill Mansell writes, and this is no different. The characters are unique from book to book, Solo’s plot is multilayered, and the dialogue is believable even when it’s over the top.

Thanks Ms. Mansell for taking me completely out of reality and into the world of fancy hotels, infidelities and karma, and simple girls who live in simple cottages quite happily enough.

https://randombookmuses.com/2017/01/15/review-solo-by-jill-mansell/

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1880743184

Jill Mansell is a master at writing contemporary romances set in English small towns. They're always filled to the brim with characters, storylines, and laughter. This book was no different...except that the more that I read this book, the more pissed off I got. The different stories worked for me and while I was more invested in Max and Holly, I was still interested in what was happening with everyone else. Everything was going swimmingly until about halfway through and the stuff that worked was still happening with no kind of growing happening. There was a lot of infidelity, a lot of boneheadedness and the characters that showed promise in the beginning, I started to hate.

Ross and Tessa drove me nuts, I wanted to knee Max in his balls every time he went running back to that old hag, hurting Holly in the process and then the whole thing with Antonia, Richard, Mattie, Grace, all of it made me either roll my eyes around the room or seriously pissed me off. I was Team Max for Holly until he kept right on hurting her because then he stopped deserving her. Same with Ross. I was frustrated with Tessa's inability to ride things out. She was always running away and that annoyed the snot out of me.

By the time the end came, I was glad to be done with these characters. Ross was a huge disappointment, and while Max came around, I thought Holly let him off the hook too easily. The character that I probably liked the most was Grace. Her story was funny because she fell in love with her Dad before she knew that he was her Dad and then once she found out, she was so grossed out. That was funny.

Overall, this was a miss for me. It started off great but kind of veered off into the OMG what the hell is going on right now? land. I just couldn't get behind all of the dumbass antics of everyone involved. Such a disappointment.

<strong>Grade: 1 out of 5</strong>

As usual, Jill Mansell has once again written a saccharinely sweet and witty romance that is also rife with heartache and drama. When Tessa inadvertently falls for a notorious playboy she has no concept of what kind of topsy turvy journey she's about to embark on. He's a sexy, rich womanizer. She a beautiful, headstrong "starving artist". They come from completely different ends of the social spectrum, yet there's just something about them that works- until it doesn't.

This is a story that will hit all the romance mile markers. There is sexual intrigue, lust, unrequited love, earth shaking romantic gestures, devastating losses, and even happy endings. It will delight readers, shock them, frustrate them- particular characters more than others (Tessa), and infuriate them. What it won't do is disappoint them.

4 of 5 stars!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the review opportunity.

I didn't finish this one, the writing style was too awkward and clunky for me. Thanks anyway though!

I love Jill Mansell books- the only thing stopping this being a 5* read was that I couldn't warm to Ross at all and therefore wasn't rooting for him at any point. I loved the setting with Ross running a very successful hotel with his brother. Both brothers are scared of commitment within a relationship and I'm the sort that looks for the hearts and roses! Both are very successful men with lots of females chasing after them.
But I loved the character of Tessa and her career as an artist. I could imagine the pictures and being at her first showing.
The book is full of friendships and fraught relationships and secrets. I was totally immersed in the book and couldn't put it down.

3 stars – rounded

Usually a book from Jill Mansell is a must-grab for me as her stories are full of humor and heart, often with multiple characters that are compelling and intriguing. I was hoping for the same in this bad boy makes good story.

Tessa is an artist, wholly different from her best friend Holly and completely unconcerned with the outward trappings of wealth, and not interested in a relationship. Holly is a bit more driven, focused, and completely convinced that Tessa needs a change, as well as wanting to further her own moments with her boss, Max.

Max and Ross are brothers, also very different from one another. These two own an upscale hotel that Max manages, while Ross reaps the benefits in terms of status, wealth and his own little black book. A well-known playboy, Ross is wholly unsuitable for a relationship, but Tessa surprises herself with her attraction to him. She’s aware of what he is – and isn’t looking for more.

So – if the book stopped here, I would have thought it felt a bit ‘written to request’ as the Billionaire Alpha Bad Boy Male trope is strong with Ross. And Tessa is just that right, slightly unfocused, not too bright but wholly supportive female friend that works for these stories. And then the wheels fell off the bus.

Who, in their right mind (and YES – I know this is fiction – but let’s at least pay nodding acquaintance to sexual health and good practice. Tessa is, oh woe is me, pregnant. From a one night stand – with a renowned player with a history of women in his past. So, she moves down from not too bright to perhaps too stupid for words – but the story goes on. She’s going to raise the child Solo, with no interference or assistance from the father. In fact, she doesn’t want him told. Perhaps a noble move in some respects, but wholly selfish - and I hate this sort of trope. But, I soldiered on hoping that Ross would show me some reason to like him, that Mansell’s previous skill in character development, dialogue and interconnecting stories and people would save me.

It didn’t. The book went from not for me to SO not for me: there was little character development, few moments of laughter or lightness, and I was left feeling as if the story was half-hearted. Flat and rather unispiring, I found Tessa insipid, Ross loathesome and while together Holly and Max were cute – there just wasn’t enough emotion or believability in any of them for me to care if their story ended happily. I struggled through to the end, but now struggle with my rating. Solid fans of Mansell may find this story entertaining and similar to Three Amazing Things About You. I thought this lacked the layered characters that brought that story to life. Perhaps not a first choice for a Mansell title, but fans who devour all her books are sure to like this.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.