Member Reviews
I love Stephanie London's books! She is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors! Her characters are so alive and relatable! I also love her storytelling!!
I just loved getting to read this title. It was just so much fun seeing these characters and I just couldn’t get enough of them. I look forward to reading more wonderful stories in this series.
If you love the movie The Holiday, you are going to love Her Aussie Holiday by Stefanie London. Cora and her Australian friend trade houses when they need to get away. Cora is expecting the house to be empty, but surprise surprise her friend's brother Trent is working on repairs while his sister is out of town. This book was such a fun read and the perfect getaway. Put this one on your summer reading list.
The perfect summer read, a small town romance that pulls you in.
Cora needs a change of scenery for inspiration. When her and her Australian friend decide to house swap. She wasn’t expecting a house guest when she got there. Her friend’s brother Trent is staying there as well. Trent was not happy with her arrival. These two have great chemistry and are so cute. Will things last when Cora is supposed to return home?
This was a sweet slow burn small town romance. I really enjoyed it and am really enjoying this series.
I received a copy of HER AUSSIE HOLIDAY by STEFANIE LONDON. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Five Stars and here’s why:
I LOVED IT! If I could have given it more stars I would! I was hoping for a fun read that took me on an adventure and Ms. London did not disappoint. It’s sort of a mash up with the plot from the movie The Holiday with a DIY tv show twist. Cora and Trent have chemistry in spades.
If you like sexy, savvy women and hella-hot guys with heart, then this book is for you. Highly recommend.
Her Aussie Holiday by Stefanie London held hilarity from the antics of the characters. Another good read from the author.
Review copy received from Entangled Publishing via Netgalley
Her Aussie Holiday is a fun, sweet, and charming foray into what kind of misadventures can happen when you house swap across the globe to escape your family , only to get there and find that the house gets crashed by your friend’s gorgeous brother–and he has no intentions of leaving. Cora lives in Manhattan, and after dealing with a stressful breakup, a stagnant job working for her father in publishing, and the breakdown of her parents’ marriage, she needs to get away–far, far away. When her online friend from a small village in Australia gets an internship in Manhattan, it’s the perfect opportunity to swap places for a month. Cora can get away from all the drama back in New York while Liv can spread her wings at her internship away from her large family and experience a big city for a change.
Liv’s older brother Trent is seen as the free spirited brother of the siblings, the one who can’t be tied down by any woman or even choosing a home for the land he’s purchased. He loves his job in construction and putting the needs of his family first. But when he arrives at his sister’s home, looking to renovate the bathroom as a surprise for her while she’s away for a month, he didn’t expect to find Cora–or the mess she’s made of the house that’s in bad need of repair. The two of them must now put the house back in order and recreate a scrapbook document Trent and Liv’s parents’ lives for their upcoming anniversary that was ruined. Can Cora and Trent ignore their intense chemistry to get things done, but more importantly, to avoid hurting each other like they’re bound to do?
Both Cora and Trent have some issues that they’re dealing with, and I really enjoyed seeing them uncover their fears and work through them both together and with the help of his family and friends. Cora adapts to life in Australia very quickly, and she finds she likes who she is without her family’s expectations pressing down on her. Trent has quite a few family expectations as well, and his secrets come to light with him kicking and screaming along the way.
I give Her Aussie Holiday a five out of five. I really enjoyed the will-they, won’t-they, slow building romance between Cora and Trent, as well as their interactions with friends and family in their small village. Cora’s growth as well as Trent’s throughout the book was nice to see, and I enjoyed all of the side characters–although I would have liked to have heard more from Liv. The setting was vivid and picturesque, making me feel like I was right there in the dead of summer in Australia, enjoying the beach with the characters. Romantic and lighter on the angst, I thoroughly recommend this stand alone book to those who love their contemporary romances full of steam, humor, and believable moments. I look forward to more stories set in Patterson’s Bluff.
Her Aussie Holiday by Stefanie London is the second in the Patterson's Bluff series and each is a standalone novel. In this one, Cora Cabot is a wealthy heiress, but her life is a mess, so when her friend from Australia tells her she's coming to NYC for an internship, Cora offers to switch homes with her so she can take a break from her life and spend some time in Australia. What she doesn't expect is to have her friend's good looking brother to be crashing at her friend's house to do some 'surprise' fixing up of the house while she's gone. So what is she to do when a good looking Aussie crashes her home away from home? Not fall in love with him, of course...
As with when I read the first novel in the series, it made me want to visit Australia and see the beautiful beaches and the gorgeous people who live there, and listen to their accents! :) I enjoyed this novel, it was lively, upbeat and a fun beach read!
Thank you to the author, Entangled Publishing, LLC and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
Super cute chick lit book that hits all the right spots. You will laugh and feel bad right along with the main character.
This is part of the Patterson’s Bluff series but it can be read as a standalone. I did not read the first book and still enjoyed this one. I really loved the house swapping idea and that the book took place in Australia. In 2020 I need all the mental “vacations” I can get! There was great chemistry between Cora and Trent and the story was well written. I will definitely go back and read the first book in this series now!
her aussie holiday is a mash-up of the movie the holiday with fixer upper vibes. cora and trent unexpectedly end up as strangers sharing a house. but there are two bedrooms. plenty of space. projects to do. and so what if cora looks like trent's ex?
honestly that's the lamest bit of conflict ever conceived, partly because it just sounds so improbably, but the two leads have chemistry aplenty and there is enough emotional depth to the story that you can forgive the doppelganger thing.
this stands alone, but is technically book 2 in the series. and it's always nice to find familiar faces in stories like this, especially when you get little updates. all in all, it's an enjoyable summer read.
**her aussie holiday will publish on august 25, 2020. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/entangled publishng (amara) in exchange for my honest review.
This is the first book I have ever read by Stefan London and it did not disappoint! This is definitely a stand-alone even though this is the second book in the series. I absolutely loved her writing style.
Cora swaps houses with her friend and heads to Patterson Bluff. She had no idea her her friend’s brother would be staying there! Are Cora and Trent meant to be??
This was such a sweet contemporary romance and I loved that it was relatable. Read this book! You will not regret it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the advanced readers copy to read and review this book!
*I received this book free from Entangled Publishing via NetGalley.*
Cora wasn't raised in a typical loving household. She was raised like a robot. Always doing what she was told, even if she didn't like it. Always wanting praise and love from her parents, that she rarely received. Even as an adult she put wanting to please her dad over her own wants and happiness. And her trying to write a book that he would represent would be the death of her.
Cora's self doubt was frustrating at times. The fact that she is a grown woman who depends so much on what her father thinks about her, about him considering her a success before she could even fathom the idea, had me not liking her very much. But there would be moments when you could glimpse the real woman behind the insecurities. Now that woman was a sweetheart.
"There wasn't a single doubt in her mind that he was good with his hands. Panty-meltingly, brain-numbingly, skin-scorchingly good."
Trent didn't expect there to be someone staying in his sister's house. He was going to use her being away to get it the renovations completed. But then again someone staying there did not keep him from doing exactly what he intended to do. He needed a place to stay and there were two rooms. Didn't matter if the woman staying there was the spitting image of his ex, who left him. Nope that had nothing to do with it. Or well not after he got to actually know her that was.
Trent wasn't like the other siblings in his family. They all wanted to settle down, raise families, and live the life. That life scared him. He somehow thought that putting himself first and putting down his own roots would somehow make him feel trapped, instead of the carefree life he enjoyed living.
Trent had been keeping a secret from his siblings for so long that it was part of him. Until Cora had come into his life he just excepted it as a way of life, but she made him see that it was just something he was hiding behind because he was scared of what would happen if he told them the truth. But everyone loves him. He's sweet, he always lends a helping hand, he funny....he kind of perfect the way he is, and his family reminds him of that.
"I'm overheated because I can't stop thinking about what it would be like if you kissed me."
Together Cora and Trent open up a friendly humor that had me laughing out loud. From flooding bathrooms to glitter explosions Her Aussie Holiday is definitely not a boring read. The characters were well developed and the storyline had just enough twists to keep the pages turning. I'd suggest this book to anyone looking for a humor entwined sweet love story.
What I loved:
–The house swapping plot. It felt like a blend of the movie The Holiday and a HGTV home improvement show. Plus, I’m always down for a fun, forced proximity trope and I thought a house swap idea was a great way to play with this trope.
–The chemistry. Loved the tension and banter between Cora and Trent. The story starts right away with the two of them meeting and from the very beginning their attraction was magic. I was worried when I saw that the book was on the shorter side that the chemistry would feel rushed or forced, but I never felt that.
–Joe the cockatoo. The MVP of HAH was definitely Joe! He stole every scene he was in!
Why I didn’t give it 5🌟:
–The ex-girlfriend issue. I wasn’t a huge fan of the whole she-looks-exactly-like-my-ex problem.
Rating 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟/5
*I received an arc courtesy of the publisher and TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
I liked how Trent and Cora sparked with each other straight from the start and the house swap was brilliant. They both felt like real characters and I enjoyed being swept along in their romance. Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for letting me review this book.
Honestly, I LOVED getting to know our Cora and Trent BOTH...and I couldn't wait to see if things would get REALLY interesting. There was so much up in the air throughout the book...Cora's life there versus here...the destroyed anniversary gift...the secret uncovered...Trent's tendency to help others over himself...and oh the sparks that could fly if given half the chance! From the moment the meet cute happened to the turning of the last epage, I WAS HOOKED.
I simply couldn't keep my hands off it, even if I wanted to (and why would I?) and the ending, while momentarily making your heart drop, delivered so much more than you could imagine! It truly was a fabulous holiday down under, but while the escape was fantastic, it reminds us of a few things as well. I know, I know...it's a HOLIDAY and I'm getting all heavy with meaning, but hear me out. It reminds us that we can run from life, but we can't hide...and it will eventually catch up with us. It's our choice how and when we confront it, and our right to make it our own. Everyone is entitled to their BEST life, to chase their dreams, to have someone they care for a well as someone who makes them their world as well. Everyone deserves the support of friends, and family...and if that last one isn't happening with blood relations, so be it; choose your own crew.
HARD recommendation for adult Contemporary Romance fans (due to limited content) because really, you SO need to read this and what better way to kiss summer goodbye than with a virtual vaca?!
**ecopy received for review; opinions are my own
Cora does a house swap with a friend in Australia but what she doesn’t realize is her friend’s brother, Trent, is already living in the house. Boy, the sparks fly between the two of them, and while Cora feels like she must go home after the summer is over, will she be leaving her heart in Australia? Another great romance by Stefanie London!
Favorite Quotes:
Cora’s childhood could be best summed up as: may result in therapy.
Seriously? Did you hop into the DeLorean and travel back to high school?
I am the least creative person in my family. Seriously, my Christmas decorations were so bad as a kid, I caught my mum hiding them around the back of the tree whenever we had guests over… I can’t blame her. My ‘Christmas rocket’ really did look like a sparkly dick.
“I’ve heard about this.” Cora wrinkled her nose as the traffic-sign-yellow label on the jar of mysterious dark brown stuff. “Tell me, do Aussies really eat this or is it a mean prank you play on tourists?” Nick gasped and pressed a hand to his chest… “Excuse me,” he said, “but Vegemite is a national delicacy.”
My Review:
I’m enjoying this amusing yet thoughtfully written series with the second installment being just as entertaining and engaging as the first. The books are standalone yet involve the same family members and continue on from the previous publication. The storylines were relatable and held my interest with family drama, a sizzling new romance, Aussie assimilation, and amusing humor. The characters were uniquely flawed yet endearing, admirably hardworking, and highly likable human beings. As this brother turned out to be the opposite of what I was expecting, I am looking forward to seeing what this clever author does with the next family member.
I absolutely loved this book! It gave me all the Robyn Carr Virgin River series feels except obviously set in Australia.
I love sweet, small towns and Patterson’s bluff has it all. A big loving and supportive family, the beach, the group of wonderful friends and a hometown vibe.
I loved Trent & Cora and enjoyed how their story came together. This was a fun twist on the “house swap” romance troupe.
I will go back and read book one & definitely look forward to the next book in the series!
Her Aussie Holiday is the second book in the Patterson's Bluff series. I have read the first book, however, this one works well as a stand alone. While I did think this was a cute contemporary romance, I didn't completely love it. I enjoyed the first book much more. I think it had to do with the couple. I just didn't feel the attraction between Cora and Trent. Other than being told they thought each other was hot. I was just a bit overwhelmed.
What I did enjoy about the book was the way Cora and Trent helped each other be true to themselves. I thought the scene where Trent tells his siblings the truth about himself was very sweet. I was also rooting for Cora to finally break free from her father and go after her dreams. I just loved her tattoo. It's worth checking out and I would also recommend the first book, The Aussie Next Door.