Loved this one. Not a Christmas book but still fun and entertaining. Carlson is prolific so catch up on her backlist

Sometimes just when we think everything is going wrong, we find what we needed all along. When. Dillon heads home to her grandpa’s farm after a breakup, the last thing she’s looking for is a camper and another man in her life. But with the addition both she finds what she needed all along.

This was a cute, fun story and was mostly lighthearted. It was so easy to fall in love with the characters and make me wish I was living in their world. While there were some tender moments that pulled at the heart strings, I kept wanting to know what would happen next and found myself rooting for the main character. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

I really loved this book, besides the fact that her dad was sick. I have always wanted to live in a camper and travel, but Dillon gets to live in a camper in her hometown to take care of her dad. Plus her ex shows up trying to make amends? Count me in!

Dillon Michaels is ready to go home to help her grandfather. Her grandmother recently died and she wants to help him put the farm in order, and decide what her next steps in life will be. She leaves her dead end job and planned to heal from her going nowhere love life, in the home she lived in as a child. When she arrives what awaits her is not what she expected. Her dead beat mother has ensconced herself in Dillon's old room, relegating her to the couch. When her grandfather offers up an alternative, an old, run-down, vintage camper trailer, she jumps at the chance to restore it and move in. What she didn't expect was to be attracted to the handsome owner of the local hardware store, Jordan Atwood.

This is exactly what I was looking for, a sweet and maybe a bit cheesy and predictable, romance. Dillon was a great character. She was raised by her grandparents as her mother was anything but dependable. She loved spending time at the farm with them and began to heal when she arrived. Despite her mother's scheme to raise lavender having Dillon doing all the work, she loved restoring the camper. It was something she wanted to do and enjoyed. Finding out Jordan also had a vintage camper and belonged to a club that had a trip coming up, had her meeting new people and making some wonderful friends. As she and Jordan got to know each other better, feelings began to blossom. There has to be some angst, provided by Dillon's previous boyfriend, this was a sweet, clean story with a happily ever after. As always with Melody Carlson's stories, there is a Christian message.

A fun, lighthearted story! Filled with quirky and lovable characters (except the mom), this book will have you laughing until you cry. I really want to restore a little camper of my own after reading this! It was almost like watching a renovation show with a comedic twist, loved it!

In The Happy Camper we meet Dillon Michaels, who is heading out to her grandfather’s farm after a serious bump in the road of her life. She’s looking forward to her time there but when she arrives she finds that her eccentric mother has beaten her to it, and seems to be settling in for a long stay of her own. With nowhere to sleep but the sofa, things change when her grandfather gives her his dilapidated vintage caravan and she sets out to restore it. In the process she meets Jordan Atwood, owner of the nearby hardware store and fellow vintage trailer fan. Their friendship begins to develop as he helps her with the materials and knowledge to repair her trailer, but local girl Vivian – who owns the fanciest vintage trailer in town - doesn’t seem too happy about it.

You know what you’re getting with a Melody Carlson novel. Her stories are light reading, perfect for those dark evenings when you’re longing for the signs of spring. The settings are well described and the characters have enough complexity and depth to keep them believable and the required-but-not-too-trite misunderstandings and resolutions. I’m a camper myself, and I absolutely love the way the vintage trailer of this book is a character in itself. The details of the restoration are beautifully laid out, and I could almost picture the van, and the other vans described in the story.

I wanted to love this one or at least enjoy this one as I’ve enjoyed Melody Carlson’s books in the past. But for some reason this one hit to close to home. With the grief. Especially the ageing and grieving grandfather. Though in my case it’s an aging and grieving grandmother. Though it was hard for me to read emotional it was still a good read. So I do feel that fans of Melody Carlson will enjoy this one.

I requested this book on a whim. It is not really my genre of choice but I though that I would be adventurous and try something new. And though there were some things I liked about this book, unfortunately it was more of a miss than a hit.. It felt a little naïve and weak on the romance side. I get that not everyone wants the bodice ripppers but this was to much of a middle school crush than an actual romance. It took way to long and they were way to innocent to believe that they had been in romantic relationships before. I did not like the family relationship between mother and daughter. In writing this review I have realized that the people interactions were the reason it was such a miss. I loved the fixing up the camper and re-establishing herself in the town. When Dillion was on her own I liked the book. When she had to interact with people I hated it.

I don't often read present day novels, but occasionally I get in the mood to read something different. I chose The Happy Camper for that very reason. It just seemed different to me. I mean, a book about a camper? Well, maybe that's what intrigued me with it. I've always dreamed of owning an old camper and being able to restore it. Our family likes to go camping and when we do we stay in a tent, but we always like to take a walk to the camper side and the one's that catch my eye are those restored vintage campers. They are so adorable. The way Melody Carlson describes the campers in this book is so detailed that I can picture them perfectly in my mind. But let's hold up a minute. This book isn't just about restoring vintage campers. It is fun, quirky and what I like to call a quick read. You just have to read and enjoy!

Dillon Michaels is fed up with her non-committal boyfriend and in a spur of the moment decision she breaks up with him, quits her job and heads home to her aging and grieving grandpa's house to help him in his time of loss. Upon arrival she is shocked to find her eccentric mother has beat her there and is staying in Dillon's room. Dillon gets stuck on a saggy couch, but to her surprise her grandpa gifts her with a run down camper. Dillon is thrilled and instantly begins the restoration process of her new tiny home. She seeks help from Jordan Atwood the owner of the local hardware store.

Her life finally seems to be falling in place, but when she least expects it her ex boyfriend shows up....with a proposal.

So to be a little nit-picky. First, the character names really bugged me in this book. Maybe I'm just showing my age here, but Dillon seems like a guys name to me and Jordan a girls. Second, it bugged me that Dillon called her mom by her first name. They didn't have the best relationship, but it still seemed strange to me. Third and last is that Dillon needed to be more firm with her ex. That was just ridiculous. Overall though, like I stated in the beginning, this was a fun and enjoyable book.

***Thanks to Revell Reads for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Fired from her job, Dillon Michaels takes refuge at her grandfather’s farm. She grew up there, after her mother left her with the grandparents for child-rearing. She has an awkward relationship with her mother, who is also hiding out at the farm as the mother flees a commitment request from her long-time, live-in love.

The story really focuses on Dillon as she is currently adrift. With her mom and grandfather and then lots of “things” taking up the bedrooms of the farmhouse, Dillon is given the living room couch. After a few rough days, she is given the chance to live in the vintage camper (thus, “happy camper”) that was left to her grandfather from a friend who passed away. Seeing is as a way to escape the couch, but keep her at the farm. As she fixes up the camper, she interacts with confirmed bachelor, Jordan Atwood. Things seem to be blossoming, until the ex-boyfriend of Dillon shows up quite unexpectedly at the farm. Dillon cannot get him to take a hint and he seems on the verge of stalking her.

I enjoyed the backstory of the vintage campers. I thought the story of Dillon, Jordan and the ex-boyfriend was really odd.

The cover and title are so adorable. This was a fun one, that a romance reader looking for a quick escape would enjoy. The humor is a bit quirky and unique, which I always enjoy. The camper was a fun setting and the characters were adorable.

Really enjoyed this book. Steady paced, great characters, I was absorbed throughout. Will be reading more Carlson books in the future!

The trailer needs help...but, so does her life...

So, I picked this book for 3 main reasons. #1. It's a Melody Carlson book, need I say more? #2. Because the quirky title caught my attention. #3. Because isn't it just the cutest cover? And trust me when I say that The Happy Camper was everything I thought it would be, and maybe just a little bit more.

This story is by turns sweet, poignant, charming, convicting, and just plain adorable. It reminded me of only the best Hallmark movies that I've enjoyed. A little comedy, a little drama, a little romance, and a whole lotta fun. I laughed out loud. I wanted to shake some sense into the characters. I sympathized with Dillon's grandfather's desire for real food and not seaweed or kale chips. Basically, I just flat out enjoyed myself immensely.

If you like Melody Carlson's quirky romances you are going to love The Happy Camper. It has all of her trademark wonderfulness in its surprisingly quick to read 350+ pages. You really can't go wrong picking this story and if it's in your TBR stack it should go right to the top.

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.)

First off love this cover! Adorable! Overall was nice story, would recommend for readers of women’s fiction

I adored Melody Carlson's The Happy Camper. I thought it was a delightful and sweet story. I loved it! Five stars.

This is a fun, light read and I love the camper theme. I appreciated that Melody did her research when it comes to campers. My family does a lot of camping so I know quite a bit about campers. I could so relate to Dillon’s nervousness about backing up. She is way braver then me, I have never tried but am always impressed by my husband’s ability to do so.
The ending is so sweet, I couldn’t have pictured a better why to wrap up the story.
If you are looking for a fun summer read with a camping theme I think you will enjoy this one.

A copy of this book was given to me by Netgalley.com. All opinions are my own.

This was a cheesy, cute, and easy to read novel. It was filled with lots of details about characters and their campers which made things quite easy to envision. This was a great, clean escape read for me during the covid19 pandemic.

I rarely finish books that I wouldn’t give at least three stars to... this was borderline. I like books that make you see and feel the story, and this one felt like you were just being told the story. Does this make sense? It really could have been a cute story - I liked the vintage camper angle - but it just didn’t land for me. The main character wasn’t strong - she was a pushover - and she didn’t stand up for herself. And I’ll be the first to admit that some of the endings in romance books are super cheesy, but this one just felt so unrealistic. And also, this was pegged as Christian Romance and while church and God were mentioned, it definitely felt like an afterthought. The romance part felt like an afterthought too! I’d pass if I were you.

I received an ARC from @netgalley, and I listened to this via audiobook on @hoopladigital.

2 stars
This was not what I was expecting. There was more religious overtones that didn't work for me.. I hated the mother/daughter relationship and how it wasn't even really explained that they were mother and daughter. I felt lost and confused.