I wanted to like this but it was just all over the place and I don’t think it could figure out exactly what story it was trying to tell.

( )

It was… okay? Alright, I guess? I’m not really big into romance or cute little contemporary novels so I figured it wouldn’t really be my thing and while I enjoyed listening to it enough (I listened to the audiobook version) It felt a little lacking. Everything just worked out a little too neatly, it felt lacking of real conflict and emotional weight. Like I was surprised when the main characters got together halfway through the book. I even asked my more romance novel experienced friends if that was the norm. And then everything was mostly smooth sailing? There was very little conflict or drama, and the very minor things that did happen were usually resolved if not in the same chapter then in the next. I guess I would say I spent a lot of time just waiting for the other shoe to drop, and the longer it went on the more frustrated I grew with the book. Overall I wouldn’t say I disliked it, and it was more or less exactly what I was expecting. ( )

Digital audiobook read by Sarah Mollo-Christiansen

Publisher’s book blurb A TV meteorologist and a sports reporter scheme to reunite their divorced bosses with unforecasted results in this charming romantic comedy.

My reactions
This was a cute rom-com with an underlying serious issue. Ari is a charming young woman who has achieved her dream of becoming a TV meteorologist. But she sometimes struggles to maintain her on-screen persona; she suffers chronic depression, although therapy and medication help her cope. Still, she IS coping, even thriving. And a scheme to get Torrence Hale (the station’s star meteorologist, and Ari’s hoped-for mentor) back together with her ex-husband Seth (who is also the station’s news director) brings Ari and Russell together in more ways than one.

I liked these characters. They seemed genuine, with real-world challenges, and recognizable coping mechanisms. I liked the way Ari and Russell interacted, though I did think they were a bit quick to jump into bed, but hey … consenting adults. The ups and downs of both their career paths and their romance kept me interested in how this would play out. Were some of the scenarios just a bit too outlandish to be real? Sure. But it’s a rom-com and it wouldn’t be fun without those scenes.

Sarah Mollo-Christiansen does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. She sets a good pace and has diction clear enough to easily understand even when listening at double speed. ( )

The lovely cover caught my eye and I’m glad it did! I loved this. And it is single POV!

After a few drinks at a miserable Christmas party, Ari, a weather girl, and Russell, a sports reporter, conclude their workplace would be better if they Parent Trap their bosses, a divorced couple.

“Get them back together? Russell, they hate each other.”
“Hate and love are two sides of the same coin. As the saying goes.”
“That’s ridiculous.” [...]
“Is it, though? They’re miserable, and they’re making work miserable. And not just for us. What if there was a way we could figure out what went wrong for them? A way we could fix it?”
I think back to what Torrance said at the party, about the intense passion they had. The look they shared onstage. How she lit up when Seth asked her to dance.
There’s still a spark there.
“If I’m humoring you,” I say, “which I am, because I am not at all taking this seriously, how would we even go about it? Are we taking cues from 1998 classic The Parent Trap, starring Lindsay Lohan and Lindsay Lohan? Because yes, it’s a perfect film, but I’m not sure it was intended to be a how-to.”

Humorous hijinks ensue. But what I enjoyed the most was Ari discovering that she doesn’t have to pretend to be all sunshine in order to be loved and accepted, and building a relationship in which she can be honest about her mental health struggles and her personal rainy days. It’s such a warm, comfortable romance!

I also liked the forecasts at the start of each chapter. Like A full night of wallowing gives way to a little light scheming in the early morning hours OR A new front promises severe weather and severe anxiety OR Partly sunny, with a chance of extraordinary courage. ( )

I loved this and devoured it in a single afternoon/evening. The main characters reminded me of Tiffy and Leon from The Flatshare, which is high praise from me. I'm not usually a workplace romance fan (do not get me started about The Hating Game), but this one didn't annoy me in that way at all. I also loved that the third act drama wasn't based on miscommunication, but each of the main characters acting in a certain way that they come to realize maybe wasn't logical once they work through their feelings. Also, Elodie was super cute. ( )