I was not a fan of how this book represented young adults. It captured my least favorite parts of Bridget Jones's Diary without much of the charm or humor.

Really slow to start and the first third to half were a bit of a struggle. Roxy was her own worst enemy when it came to achieving her goals, but by the time of the protest, the book picked up and got a lot funnier. I was about to scream near the end regarding her ending with Texas, but ultimately I liked how it ended. But poor poor Everett for dealing with Roxy’s brand of crazy for so long.

While I really wanted to love this book (epistolary!!), I couldn't quite connect with the protagonist, who mainly just struck me as annoying. I thought the literary device was sued well, but couldn't connect with the main character. DNF.

This book - told entirely through letters written (but never given) to Roxy's ex-boyfriend - covers a pretty big span of topics, from the serious (mental illness and addiction) to the absurd (burlesque protests and pharma trials). Roxy is definitely an odd duck - along the lines of a younger and slightly more hip Britt-Marie (as in [book:Britt-Marie Was Here|27406704]) or an Austin Eleanor (a la [book:Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine|31434883]). But, given the preponderance of these quirky characters, I think I'm just personally over the troupe and didn't find this book very inspiring. Roxy's antics and behaviors just grow a little tiresome, even if I found the ending to be pretty satisfactory.

Thanks to the publisher for providing this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a fun read. It takes a few chapters to really get into it, but overall it is a great read. This book had me laughing so much at all the quirky things that Roxy got into. It kinda felt very Bridget Jones meets Jenny Han for me. I liked it though! I am definitely the kinda audience this book was meant for.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy.

I had to just put this book down. It just wasn't my cup of tea. Silly really. I didn't even make it thru one fourth of the book. Stupid letters to an ex boyfriend who was renting a room in her house. He's always late with the rent, and she's not making decent money.

Roxy has decided to allow her ex-boyfriend Everett to move in with her while he tries to get on his feet. She leaves him a letter in the kitchen that outlines the rules for his living with her. The rules are fairly comical and definitely outline some boundaries that Roxy is trying to set. This first letter sets into motion a whole spiral notebook of letters that Roxy pens to Everett over the course of a six month period.

As an artist, Roxy has not fulfilled her potential. Her other ex-boyfriend, Brant, ran off with one of her designs and turned it into a logo for a natural products business. This wouldn’t be so bad, but Roxy is a deli maid for Whole Foods, and just about everyone seems to have this product in their baskets. Meanwhile her bestie Annie has moved up to the fifth floor working for the CEO (lite) of Whole Foods. Roxy is in a major funk. But the tides are gonna turn for Roxy when she meets Artemis, a wild and crazy female who along with Annie, inspires Roxy to get back on her feet.

This was an exceptionally fun book. Roxy is hysterical, always praying to Venus and seemingly choosing the wrong paths. Lowry has written a book that is a look at what it’s like to be a young, single female not sure of what comes next for you. I whizzed through this one, wanting to know if Roxy ever gets it right. The format is a nice change from the usual novel, because each letter to Everett gives us all the insight we need into Roxy’s present state of mind.

Loved this one! Highly recommend.


4 stars


This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com on 24 March 2020 .

This story is told through letters to her ex boyfriend who is now her roommate. I enjoyed the quirky comments she would say thought out the story. I felt like the middle dragged on a bit but overall it was a cute story. I just had a hard time connecting to the main character.

This book was slow to start. I ended up enjoying it but it was not my absolute favorite. I like her bluntness and the format made it a pretty quick read.

I'm not sure if my review is fair since this book is so much more Bridget Jones' Diary than I had hoped. I am not a fan of BJD, so I should have known I would not fully enjoy this one. Although because of the setting (also grew up near Austin) I pushed through the first few chapters. I love Austin, and I have seen every side of it. Having said that, Roxy is obnoxious and every part of the stereotypical Austinite. Not everyone in Austin is like this. Austin, in a lot of ways, isn't even like that. But the author is correct in how deep in Austin, the biggest conflict is the vintage vs. the modern. I get that theme, but Austin is still my favorite city; personally I feel like it is a great balance of vintage and modern.

But this is a review for the book, not of Austin. This book was wacky. Honestly, I found it so unbelievable (just like BJD) and unnecessary. And Roxy, oh Roxy. She is not my favorite person. In fact, if I saw her at Whole Foods, I would walk the other way. Hand to head every time she opened her mouth. That's not a good way to feel about a MC throughout an entire book.

I wanted to love this because Austin, but Roxy ruined it for me.

What a GREAT read, I enjoyed this book so much... though I admit, at the beginning it took me awhile to get the groove of the letters aspect, it was awkward at first but after a few laughs I adjusted. There was a bit of a Bridget Jones familiarity to this story, but it quickly became more individual and quirky. This was a really fun and insightful read, I absolutely laughed out loud, loved the characters and felt there was so much to connect with. Will look for more from this Author and I appreciate the opportunity to read and review this work.

Thank you, Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for sending me a digital ARC, in exchange for an honest review.. All opinions are my own.

After reading the comparisons to Bridget Jones' Diary, I was excited to read this book. However, that didn't last long as I found the main character to be immature and selfish so it was very difficult to care about her. There were some very funny moments and the writing was good, but there were too many subplots that weren't resolved as well as some things that wer over-the=top unbelievable. Perhaps I'm just not the target demographic for this book and younger readers will enjoy it.

Thank you, Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for sending me a digital ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved "The Roxy Letters" by Mary Pauline Lowry. Roxy is like an American version of Bridget Jones. At first, I wasn't sure about the writing structure, (the story is told in unsent letters she writes to her ex-boyfriend and current roommate, Everett.) but it quickly became a favorite after 30 pages or so. The writing and dialogue are hilarious. There wasn't a chapter (or page for that matter) that didn't give me a belly laugh. It's a total hoot. The only negative I can say is there's an abundance of exclamation points. THERE'S. A. LOT! But to be fair, it's part of the book's charm.

Roxy is a 28-year old Austin native who works as a deli maid at Whole Foods. She hates her job but is devoted to her roots until a Lululemon opens in her neighborhood. Roxy is sickened by it to the point where she plans to stage a protest. She is worried Austin is losing all its weird, quirky charm by having so many high-end stores pop up on every corner. With the help of her co-worker, Annie, and a new impulsive friend, Artemis - Roxy will do whatever she can to save her beloved city from gentrification.

Roxy is also a struggling artist and nursing a broken heart. I liked how honest this book was when it came to sexuality. It doesn't shy away from uncomfortable situations. Roxy is an obsessive person but I found her so relatable. She's the kind of character you root for. She's sassy, loyal, ungraceful, and endearing. Even though this is considered chick-lit (I hate that sexist term), I didn't think it was cliché-ridden or predictable. You think the story is going to go a certain way and it totally does the unexpected. Ultimately, the overall message of "The Roxy Letters" is about a young woman's journey at overcoming her insecurities and rediscovering her creative potential.

Release date: April 7, 2020

The main character is a 20 something woman living in Austin, Texas and trying to figure out her life. The plot unfolds through a series of letters she writes to her roommate.

It is well written but I couldn't connect with the characters. Frankly, I found the main character to be very whiny. And, as an older woman couldn't relate to the humor.

It wasn't for me but perhaps women in their 20s would enjoy it.

The comparison to Bridget Jones was the hook for me. Unfortunately, I didn't care much for the rest of the book. It was okay but seemed uneven and I didn't care for the overall tone of this title.

This Novel is told through Roxy’s mostly unsent letters to her current roommate Everett who was once her boyfriend. These letters become more journal entry and she only left the first few for Everett to read.

Roxy, a twenty – eight-year-old Austin native girl, is uninspired and unmotivated. She is tired of her job and is seeking real love. Her life is far from perfect. She is an artist, but she hasn’t painted. She is a deli maid at whole foods, which is an unfulfilling job for her. She is frustrated with her sex life.

The description was intriguing, it is a humor interlaced novel. It definitely has a certain Bridget Jones Diary quality to it.

I found the main character very interesting but then the writing fell flat for me and my feeling towards her remained stagnant throughout the book. Don’t get me wrong, Roxy is an amiable character, but she is annoying most of the time.
What I liked the most about this book was the strong female relationships. There are other aspects that some readers may find stronger. like the focus on her love life, her enthusiasm about Austin or even her job.

I received The Roxy Letters by Mary Pauline Lowry as an ARC from NetGalley. The Roxy Letters is a cute story told entirely in letters from Roxy to her ex-boyfriend Everett. She never gives the letters to Everett but she uses them like a diary to chronicle her life. Roxy is an artist who is currently working as a deli clerk at the original Whole Foods in Austin, TX. A break up left her unable to paint and she is trying to figure out what to do with her life. The book was funny and reminiscent of a millennial Bridget Jones. Roxy is low on self-confidence and it's interesting to see how her life ends up at the conclusion of the book. This was a very entertaining and fun book.

I really wanted to like this book, and the premise sounded very promising. I even enjoyed the fact that it was written in a series of "letters" to Roxy's ex-boyfriend. However this completely missed the mark for me. There were 3 (possibly 4, if you count sex addiction) VERY SERIOUS issues that this book touched on, without much resolution. I felt like they were used as a crutch to keep the story moving along. Mental illness and addiction(s) are not topics to be breached lightly, especially not in today's world. If the author was going to even mention these issues, she needed to put some work into understanding and resolving them in a meaningful way, and not just like a passing fad.

I was hoping Roxy's relationship with Texas/Sam would be a saving grace, however she jumped ship because he was a "real adult" with real life baggage? She's 28 years old and acted like a 22 year old twit. The "woe is me/I'm blocked artistically/please mommy and daddy bail me out again" was just sad and depressing. And I think if I saw the words "Oh my Goddess" or one more mention of Venus or "fingerbanging" (which was a whole other cult issue that I'm not even going to go in to) one more time I would have quit the book entirely.

Thanks, NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Roxy Letters.

I have mixed feelings regarding this book; at first, I found it boring and difficult to read. However, I gave it a chance and read on. Roxy, college graduate, sometime vegan, was underemployed at the beginning of this story, working as a deli maid in Whole Foods store in Austin, Texas not making enough to support herself and her two rescues, a sassy cat name, Charlize Theron and a Weiner dog, named Roscoe who likes to chew on her panties. Since Roscoe’s unfortunate eating disorder (panties) left her in debt with the veterinarian, her credit card maxed out; she needed a way to help pay her mortgage, that is when the idea of having a roommate entered her thought. She ran into her ex-boyfriend Everett, and that is when the letter-writing or entries into her notebook started. Roxy has trust issues regarding the men in her life and still reflects on the one who got away, Brant Bitterbrush and his now-wife, Connie Caldwell. Although knowing she and Everett make more sense as just friends then lovers she notes that he is never around, wants to know what he is doing with his time, why he never pays his rent on time, and thanks him for cuddling and movie binging. Everett comes to her aide with her animals and her bail money.
There is her meth-head neighbor, Captin Tweaker who’s name is Franklin. The girl, Artemis Starla, who plowed her down at the sample table, who’s real name is Zoe Panagopoulos who is bipolar and alcoholic. Artemis teaches her to live her life for herself, and to have fun. Her co-worker and best friend, Annie, who is now working on the 5th floor with the CEO of Whole Foods, Topher Doyle. There is Texas, who is a drummer in a band, Fail Better, but also the public defender who’s real name is Sam Johnson, a divorced father of two young children and a recovering alcoholic. There is a list of characters; Patrick, Sal, Rosa, Kate, Yolanda, Barclay, Nadia, Nelson, Jason, Dirty Steve, Derek, Jeff, and Joe Castro, plus her parents all to keep track of during her dear diary tells.
So many characters to try and keep straight and not confuse them or the situations into others is daunting. Someone compared this tale to Briget Jones's diary, but I have to say, no way, while some of the unfortunate events were funny, it’s missing je ne sais quoi. I wanted to like this story more than I did.

Roxy is a 28 year old, vegan deli maid in the Austin, Texas Whole Foods. Her days involve the following: snuggling her fur children, pilfering food from her job, fretting about her lack of artistic inspiration, perseverating about her nonexistent love life...that doesn't involve her trusty "Merman," and writing biting and overly informative letters to her former boyfriend-turner-housemate, Everette.

Hence the name, The Roxy Letters. This is a collection of letters Roxy dictates to Everette in a Bridget Jones-esque style - quirky, awkward, and some-what self-serving in the information shared. But DEFINITELY hilarious.

Roxy finds herself in a serious life limbo. All of her friends are getting married, starting real careers, and moving forward in their adulthood. Roxy's floundering after an especially ugly breakup that leads her into a crippling bought of artistic blockage. As she muses about her choices, everything begins to get more interesting for Roxy after she meets an especially interesting woman named Artemis, a sexy drummer named Texas, and she becomes entangled in a cultish society known as "OMers."

Funny, ridiculous, and completely improbable. But that's a big part of the fun! A good read for when you need a laugh.