A romance whose handling of friendship is more charming and insightful than its treatment of love and companionship.
A florist must reassess her idea of the right partner before true love can bloom.
In the span of a single day, florist Kat Kowalski finds herself abruptly dumped by her self-centered boyfriend, saddled with his pet hedgehog, and forced to make a trip to a funeral home to deliver an order. Already having a terrible day, Kat is thrown off the deep end when she bangs into Mick O’Sullivan at his family's funeral home. Although she is instantly attracted to him, Kat takes a step back because she wants to radically rejig her approach to romance. Convinced that she has a thing for men who are absolutely wrong for her, Kat decides to be wary of instant chemistry and—aided by two friends who have recently found love—outlines the qualities of her Mr. Right. Mick is the exact antithesis of Kat’s idea of a perfect partner, but when the two bump into each other again, they begin to strike up a warm friendship. Even though Mick is attracted to Kat, he decides to set his feelings aside to help his friend find the right man. But both Mick and Kat will have to radically reevaluate their ideas of rightness and goodness before they can find real happiness. Brimming with references to 1990s Hollywood rom-coms, the book paves the couple’s path to true love with clichés; while some are heartwarming and sweet (endearing family members and comforting descriptions of home-cooked food), others quickly tip over from quirky to cutesy (a difficult-but-beloved cockatoo). Mick is refreshing in his capacity for warmth and understanding, but Kat is caught in the mold of the prototypical clumsy-and-lonely single heroine. Johnson is witty and affecting when she details evolving dynamics, such as the couple’s growing closeness and Kat’s gradual acceptance of changes in her equation with her closest friends. But she is less convincing when she addresses the factors that keep the couple apart.
A romance whose handling of friendship is more charming and insightful than its treatment of love and companionship.Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781250768827
Page Count: 368
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A charming love story that absolutely radiates warmth.
A single mom winds up fake dating an incredibly wealthy man in her hometown.
Dolly Brick is back in her hometown of Whitfield, Rhode Island, for the summer to help her dad and disabled brother manage their house and family business. As a 39-year-old single mother with multiple jobs—which now include working at the Brick Fish House—Dolly is always busy. When her mom left their family years ago, Dolly took over caring for her siblings and father and never really stopped. When she runs into Stewart Whitfield after making a shrimp delivery to his family’s mansion, she doesn’t think they could be more different. She’s had to figure out how to do everything by herself, and he can’t even change a tire. That’s why Stewart’s proposal that she pretend to be his girlfriend feels so unbelievable—but it comes with a hefty check that she desperately needs for home repairs. So she becomes the fake girlfriend of Stewart Whitfield (as in, the Whitfields her town is named after; his real fiancée just dumped him and it’s a bad time for him to be single) and experiences what it’s like to walk into fancy buildings through the front door instead of the service entrance. More than the boats and helicopter and expensive dinners, though, Dolly is impressed by what a kind man Stewart is—and how it feels to let someone else take care of her for a change. Soon, their relationship starts to feel more real than fake. Monaghan creates an impossibly winning story with a charming, lovable heroine. Dolly is capable, hardworking, and will do anything for the people she loves. She and Stewart both possess real flaws, and while their relationship begins with one of the most beloved rom-com tropes, their challenges feel like realistic adult obstacles rather than easily solved miscommunications. It’s also refreshing that, even though Dolly must learn to allow other people to help her, she never views her caretaking responsibilities as burdens. She deeply loves her family, and that love carries through the entire story.
A charming love story that absolutely radiates warmth.Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9780593853979
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
SEEN & HEARD
PERSPECTIVES
A deliciously dramatic look at how one woman’s past influences her future.
A happily engaged woman is pulled back to her hometown—and her first love—when tragedy strikes.
Billie Wright is living her dream, running a thriving fertility clinic in New York City and engaged to a wonderful trauma surgeon named Dean. Her happily-ever-after meant giving up her life in Wisconsin, where she left behind many friends as well as her high school sweetheart, Mick. Although they’d been deeply in love, when Billie’s ambition pulled her away from home and toward the city, Mick couldn’t handle either the distance or her busy schedule. Billie has finally moved on from that heartbreak—but then she receives a phone call from Mick, the first communication between them in years. Her best friend, Erin, died in a car accident, leaving behind an 11-year-old daughter, Phoebe. Now Billie must return home to help sort Erin’s affairs and provide some kind of comfort to Phoebe while grieving the loss of her best friend. Of course, being back home also means being in close contact with Mick. Their feelings for each other may not have ever gone away, and their proximity leads to big decisions for Billie. Can she ever reconcile her current life in Manhattan with her past in Wisconsin? And which one will be her future? Giffin knows how to do drama, and she ratchets up the stakes with every page as she continues to reveal new obstacles for Billie. The ending wraps up quite neatly, but the nostalgia-filled ride is full of twists and turns that will keep readers flipping the pages.
A deliciously dramatic look at how one woman’s past influences her future.Pub Date: July 7, 2026
ISBN: 9780593600320
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: April 6, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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