Having read a few books recently that try to follow the vein of Bridget Jones, this one was the closest to striking the right balance between quirky and frustrating for the main character. She is naive and selfish, but she does have a good character arc where she learns from her mistakes.

I suspected this book was going to be a mess but it ended up being a different mess than I'd expected. The premise of this book sounded messy indeed - Jess, a young British woman, goes to Australia, has nowhere to stay, and bumps into her ex-boyfriend named Sam, who she's still not over yet, although they broke up several years ago. He tells her she can stay in his spare bedroom but omits the fact that he lives with his girlfriend named Jamie. He isn't the only one lying - Jess keeps lying to the people around her throughout the book and getting deeper into trouble because of it (while being judgmental of other people), which was far from cute or relatable.

Well I really didn't like this book. It wasn't fun to read about these characters at all. Jess was incredibly immature and annoying, she was obsessed with Sam and kept analyzing every word he said and didn't stop hoping that he would see reason and dump his girlfriend, soon to be wife. She made it her mission to remind Sam "who he really was" and convince him that he was about to make the biggest mistake of his life marrying this other woman. No girl. No no no no no. We also got the casual vegan shaming/"jokes" ("Of course Jamie would be a vegan. Typical."), which I'm just very tired of seeing in books.

We saw no character growth in Jess for the majority of the book, which was painful and boring to read. Picking up this book started to feel like a chore. Shortly before the end of the book, the people around her finally got fed up with her behavior and she started to turn her life around but at that point, I didn't care much about any of the characters.

So this ended up being very disappointing. I expected a questionable fun story but got highly unlikeable characters and a boring plot that dragged. I was happy to be done with this book.

I enjoyed this book; I also liked the main character. The book was well written, and I found it really easy to get into.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This was one of those books where I went into it thinking the premise was a litte odd. I thought that about The Flatshare as well. And in both cases I was wrong Elizabeth Neep pulled this story off soo well! I look forward to reading more from her!
Thank you to NEtgalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC for an honest review.

I was really excited to read The Spare Bedroom, but I had trouble getting into the story. Jess was a frustrating and challenging main character. I kept hoping my feelings for her would change, but unfortunately, they did not over time. She seemed to use people and expect others to bail her out of situations. It was a quick read, but not my favorite.

This book had plot to be really good but unfortunately I couldn't get into it and did not finish reading the whole thing.

I really struggled to get into this. I didn’t click with the main character which meant I really didn’t enjoy it unfortunately

Having lost her job at an art magazine in London, Jess has recently arrived in Sydney ready for a fresh start. She bumps into her ex Sam – the guy she never got over - and lies about having a great job and apartment lined up. When Sam hears the new flat isn’t ready for occupation yet, he suggests that she come stay in his spare room for a few days. Maybe this is her chance to rekindle things with him. But then Jess discovers that Sam’s flatmate, Jamie, is in fact his girlfriend.
With a My Best Friend’s Wedding vibe, this is a fun and witty debut which sees Jess dig herself into a big hole with her lies. Looking forward to seeing what this author does next.

Unfortunately, I ended up DNFing this book around the 45% mark. I just really didn't like the main character or the love interest and it made it really hard to connect to the story. I chose not to leave a public review on Goodreads so as not to negatively affect the book, but if you would like me to post one anyway, please don't hesitate to let me know.

4.5 stars

The Spare Bedroom is an engaging & entertaining story about love, adulting, friendships and self-discovery. It was quite a refreshing take on a romantic comedy as it deals with flawed characters and the soul searching they undergo. I loved the flashbacks which slowly reveal how Jess finds herself in her predicament and I couldn’t help but have sympathy for her despite not always agreeing with the paths she takes.

Jess is a bit of a hot mess, she makes questionable decisions, was frustrating at times but I found her quite relatable, empathised in her heartbreak and I enjoyed going along on her journey. There’s a lighthearted romcom aspect to the story but with it comes some depth and you go through a roller-coaster of emotions. I found the ending satisfying though I would’ve preferred some threads dealt with further including Sam’s accountability for how things unfolded and for Jess to have been a bit more proactive in her personal growth.

The Spare Bedroom is funny, heartbreaking, frustrating and uplifting all in one. It had me engrossed from start to finish as it dealt with identifiable issues and I look forward to reading more from Elizabeth Neep.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for providing an e-ARC for review

a light hearted romantic comedy that’s funny and easy to read.

Jess is a little down on her luck and ends up staying in her ex’s spare room..
I laughed out loud and cringed in places.
A fun read

Jess ends up in Sydney, homeless and jobless. She is recovering from the end of a relationship three years ago which still dominates her thoughts. Incredibly, she bumps into Sam in a shop; he's the man she has been trying to heal her heart against...
Sam invites her to stay in the spare bedroom of his apartment while she waits for her non-existent flat and job to be available. She readily accepts, hoping to rekindle their romance but his flatmate is his fiancee Jamie. Jess can't bear not to try to win him back :(
Jess' desperation is sometimes uncomfortable to read although I'm sure that many readers will identify with her pain at the end of a relationship. Part of most chapters includes a past timeline so we can see her relationship with Sam from start to finish. It becomes obvious that she repeatedly changed to suit him and gave up her own passions and dreams. Sam is an interesting character as we only ever see him through Jess' eyes.
I had really mixed emotions about Jess and her situation. I remember breaking up with my uni boyfriend and being devastated, determined to keep the long distance relationship going. I then became comfortable and confident in myself and accepted we weren't right for each other. I'm sure many others have been in that situation too and will identify with her heartbreak.
I could also feel sympathy for Jess lying to cover up her lack of home and job but she doesn't take responsibility for herself which was incredibly frustrating. Her scheme to split up Sam and Jamie showed an unpleasant side to her, yet she was concerned for him as a friend and didn't want him to make a mistake. Selfishness and altruism combined! Like I said, a complicated response to her character!
The Spare Bedroom is a warm and enjoyable book. There is love and loss, lies and miscommunication, hope and heartache.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Unfortunately this one was not for me and I did not finish it. I found the plot a little boring and gave up after a third of the book.

Now, I’ll be honest. I didn’t finish this book. I can’t put my finger on why… the allusion to cheating? Who knows. Something was sitting right, as this is the case I don’t think it’s fair the review. As in many cases it's not the book. It’s me.

The main character Jess was so likeable and had you rooting for her, brilliantly written, funny and heartwarming.

I wanted to like this book more and overall it was enjoyable but I just found portions of the story dragged. The portrayal of Jessica was spot on, at times I didn’t particular like her and her conflict was evident which is integral to the tale. Luckily there is closure to this story, if this hadn’t have been the case it would have been less enjoyable. The setting on the other hand sounds idyllic and a definite high point.

Thank you Netgalley

I want to thank you for giving me a chance to read this arc for my honest review.

Elizabeth's debut book was amazing, it was funny, it was engaging, and it also teaching you a life lesson. This is an exciting romcon that you will want to read.

***I received a copy through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.***

I appreciated how this book ended, but there was something still left to be desired.
This book was tough for me to get through. The changing timeline was confusing at times because in the early parts of the book, it felt like two different stories were being told. As I got closer to finishing, I realized the separate plots were intertwined. But I still think the flashbacks could have been done less frequently to make it easier to follow.
I expected this read to be a little more light-hearted and humorous, but I appreciated its depth. It felt like it took a very long time to get this book off the ground and I wasn’t sure where it was going.
I enjoyed the ending and the fact that the “happily ever after” wasn’t a typical one. But I feel like something was lacking in this book.

This book ended up being a DNF for me. It started off pretty strong, pulling me in right away, but as we got to know the world and the characters I was more and more discouraged to keep reading. The setup with Sam asking Jess to move in without telling her that he lived his fiance, and not mentioning that he was engaged just felt hard to move past. The more I learned, the less Sam seemed like someone I could root for. Similarly Jess's elaborate lies made it hard for her to root for. It just seemed like an unrealistic series of events that needed to take place to set this story up.

A sunny (literally, thanks to the Sydney setting) book about a woman suddenly out of a job and place to live having to scramble to find a place to stay and finding her place in the world. A step up from the usual rom-com with good solid backstories for the characters.