This was one of my most anticipated summer reads. Not only is it about a flight attendant (which is also my career), but it was written by a flight attendant, so I knew it would be spot on. I’m always nitpicking books that get things wrong about commercial aviation, and Lacie managed to describe our job and situations we encounter accurately, while also making sure it wasn’t too “lingo-y” for a reader without industry knowledge. I truly don’t think I’ve ever highlighted so many passages in a book before, just because they were so relatable for me.

While I’m not a huge reader of romance, this book had everything I love about the genre: forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, and just enough of the steamy stuff without being over the top. The prose is thoughtful yet breezy, and it’s so easy to fly through the chapters, no pun intended. If I didn’t know this was a debut, I never would have guessed it, because the writing is just so polished and effortless. Ava and Jack are such a fun pair, with banter that had me laughing out loud, especially when it came to their interactions on the plane. I mean, an unspoken race over who can serve drinks faster? Brilliant! The romance itself is a slow burn, but the payoff is more than worth it, and the ending was pure magic!

Fans of Christina Lauren will be right at home with this smart and sexy novel. My only regret is not reading this while laying on a tropical layover with a cocktail in my hand. Guess I’ll have to read it again, so I can really get it right next time!

Huge thank you to Putnam Books, NetGalley, and Lacie Waldon for the advanced copy to review. The Layover will be released on June 15, 2021.

I adored The Layover by Lacie Waldon. Set in a beautiful tropical location, with a swoony hero, sweet heroine, sexy bunter, and an adorable enemies-to-lovers romance, it's a perfect escapist summer read. I highly recommend this book to fans of romcoms, especially those infected by wanderlust. I am looking forward to reading more books from this debut author and wondering what destination she will take us to next?

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this romance! When the publisher first reached out, I was intrigued because the book was set in Belize, so I thought I'd give it a whirl. I thought the humor in this book was strong; I found myself chuckling quite often. And the last 20 percent gave me the fEeLs I've been missing by not reading much romance this year! A lovely, breezy romantic read featuring wanderers.

This book was so cute and was the perfect way to kick off the summer reading season.
The Layover follows Ava, a recently engaged flight attendant getting ready for her last trip before finally settling down. She's sad that it's going to be her last trip, but her dream has always been to put down roots and live a stable life, so she's ready to make the most of it. At least, until she realizes who the other flight attendant on her flight is: Jack Stone, a cocky, womanizing former Air Force pilot who she's held a grudge against for years.
She's determined not to let him ruin her trip, especially since she's never going to have to see him again. But the more time they spend together in the air and on an extended layover with him in Belize due to engine failure, the more she begins to realize two things: 1) she might have been wrong about Jack, and 2) her dreams of putting down roots may not be what she wants after all.
Lacie Waldon's debut novel is everything you could possibly want from a summer rom-com. The setting is perfect and immersive. Waldon's descriptions of the day-to-day tasks of a flight attendant and the island where Ava and Jack spend their extended layover were realistic and really helped set the mood. Waldon also did a fantastic job at making me really feel everything Ava was feeling during her soul-searching last trip. From the beginning, it's so clear how torn Ava is between her love of flying and the desire to have the stable home life she craved as a child.
I also loved the love triangle between Ava, her fiancé Alexander, and Jack. I'm not usually the biggest fan of love triangles, but this one was so well done. Upon his introduction, I immediately didn't like Alexander. It was so clear to me that he's wrong for her, and although Ava's inner monologue about him is subtle, it's clear she knows that too. It's undeniable in contrast to the sparks that fly between her and Jack. Their chemistry is fantastic, and they have a lot more in common.
Overall, The Layover was a great read. It was fun, flirty, and had just the right amount of emotional depth. If you're looking for something to add to your summer TBR, definitely check this one out.

Thank you, NetGalley and Putnam, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Review releases on CozyCritiques.com on 6/12

What an uplifting and fun novel about wanderlust and love. This was such a compelling story that I kept finding myself cringing for our heroine because she kept getting herself into ridiculous situations. She was extremely relatable and adorable in all her antics. Jack the hero was the epitome of a book boyfriend from the classic tall, dark, and handsome all the way to the tortured soul. Their banter was both hilarious and sweet and the overall book energy was excellent. I highly recommend this as a great summer read where we can all vicariously travel to Belize with the characters.

Is THE LAYOVER my 2021 equivalent of BEACH READ....I think so! Officially found a new favorite romance book! I had a smile on my face the entire time reading this.

A few pages in I already knew I would love this book. I mean who doesn’t love a good enemies to lovers romance ?! I laughed out loud quite a few times. The characters are all so different but they fit together so well. Gen was so kooky I loved her so much. The humor, the chemistry, the witty banter .....everything was just perfection. And Jake..oh goodness. He’s a new book boyfriend FOR SURE. *swoooooon*

I have zero complaints about this one. It’s the perfect summer/beach read with a satisfying ending. Highly recommend for fans of Christina Lauren and Emily Henry!

This is the perfect beach read. It's got it all...charm, hilarious banter, delightful characters, self-discovery and an enemies to lovers trope. What's not love? Plus, this story gives me all the travel feels. I'm ready to go see the world again!

This book is truly a delight and I devoured it in one sitting!

This book really is the perfect beach read - it's about an air hostess who gets stuck in Belize on a layover with a number of colleagues, one of them being Jack - a man she has reason to hate (or so she thinks). I enjoyed their banter and chemistry and the book as a whole is the perfect escape for anyone unable to travel to exotic destinations right now. Thank you so much to the author and the publisher for providing me with an early copy in exchange for my honest thoughts!

In author Lacie Waldon’s rom com debut, love is in the air, literally.

This book centers around stewardess Ava Greene who is about to embark on her last flight, ever. She’s giving it all up as a promise to her fiancé. Ready to enjoy her final trip, her plans are grounded when she sees former pilot, Jack Stone, is working with her.

A grudge from years ago has kept Jack on Ava’s radar. The fact that he’s good looking and knows it only adds fuel to the fire. All she has to do is get through one last trip with him.

Then a layover throws them together for longer than expected. Can they work through their differences or are they destined to circle the runway forever?

This book is a real treat. One thing that made this standout was its humor. I laughed out loud at some of the character descriptions in the beginning. I wasn’t too surprised at the great one liners though as I’ve spoken to the quick witted @allaboutthat_lace on more than one occasion.

I also liked the originality of the setting. Sure there are a lot of beach read ready rom coms on the horizon, but not many of them focus on the love lives of stewardesses. A flight attendant herself, I’d imagine Waldon writing about what she knows only helped this novel take flight.

I read this one with @lovearctually so getting to be part of the chat is like being bumped up to a figurative first class. Thanks to @netgalley and @putnam books for gifting me a copy of this book for review.

Whether you’re staying put this summer or planning on getting in some travel, The Layover is the perfect companion, no matter the destination.

This debut is sexy, fun, and dazzling. Such a breezy, refreshing read featuring a pack of amazing characters! It was the perfect escape during quarantine and by the end I was craving for more. I got completely invested in Ava's story and I loved that she wrestled with her feelings until figuring out what it was she really wanted. There was sizzling chemistry, witty banter, and not only focused on the romance but also character arcs and internal struggles. I wouldn't mind hanging out with these characters. Such a good enemies-to-lovers book!

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Layover was all kinds of cute guys! Especially after my two dark books, I definitely needed something light and fluffy. In it, you will meet Ava and Jack. She is a flight attendant nearing her retirement after being one for about ten years. He is a former pilot and super cocky. So, yeah, they were a great match from the very first moment they locked eyes with one another.

Even though I wanted to strangle or punch a certain someone for most of this book... it actually ended up being pretty entertaining. The bantering probably helped me but it was pretty easy to see the sexual tension early on as well. Plus these two made so many assumptions about one another that I ended up in a fit of giggles.

The romance was easy to devour and the drama was eye roll worthy. It was very interesting to see how they were going to handle their attraction to one another during this layover and then after it ended. In the end, it was still a pretty cute book that I ended up enjoying. So happy that I got the chance to dive into this and I can't wait to see what everyone else thinks about it!

A decent rom-com story with my favorite trope of enemies to lovers. I was surprised to find out that the main character is engaged, but the two characters didn't really start to get close until after things with her fiancé ended. The book really made me want to travel which was an unexpected bonus. Overall, the story was good and the characters were all right.

The Layover has a little bit of everything: beach vacation, enemies to lovers, love triangle, main character soul searching… everything you need for a summer beach read.

I really liked Ava and Jack’s chemistry. As a closed door romcom, their banter was done well without taking it so far that it changed the type of book. Ava was a realistic character and I liked how she developed throughout as she worked to figure out life separate from how her parents wandered.

I didn’t love Alexander’s character and I thought some of the parts with him fell kind of flat.

Overall 3.5 ⭐️

Newly engaged Ava Greene is ready to embark on a new, steady, reliable adventure with her fiancée. Which means, after nearly ten years, it's time to hang up her flight attendant uniform. Ava has just one more flight and with a layover in Belize it'll be quite the memorable way to leave regardless that she's sharing the flight with her arch nemesis Jack Stone. When mechanical problems force the plane to remain grounded for an extra day, Ava begins to take a look at all that she'll be giving up by leaving including one Jack Stone.

I really enjoyed The Layover starting out as this book dealing with this sort of new phase in Ava's life, a new journey. But I really loved what the story evolves into which is taking a look at who we are, where we've come from, and where we want to go. The reason that Ava is languishing in the idea of having a stable relationship is because she has never had one before. Yes, she has parents who love her, but they often give themselves over to their own wanderlust, forgetting their responsibilities as parents. So Ava wants stability. She wants a settled home. But there's also this sort of secret part of Ava that loves adventure and discovering new places. That longing is sated in her job as a flight attendant and she reckons it'll be easy to give it up for the man she loves. A lot of it, I think, is fear. Fear of turning into the people her parents were towards her own possible-future children. This is an aspect I wish we got a bit more closure on. Clearly Ava's parent's actions have left a mark upon her, but it's not something that she ever confronts them about. Because they are pretty clueless I think as to how they make Ava feel.

I like that Ava's tense relationship with Jack brings out these thoughts and feelings within. Through their interaction Ava comes to realize that Jack sees who she is better than expected and is not put off by her love of adventure. When Ava allows herself to realize that she can make her own way outside of the example her parents set for her, she realizes that her assumptions about Jack might be a little one-sided as well.

I just like how much Jack and Ava fit together. How they compliment each other. Like Ava, Jack has a complicated relationship with his family. He's not exactly met the expectations his father set before him. Also much like Ava's storyline, I wish we had a bit more closure to these feelings.

Maybe it's the fact that having certain conversations with our families doesn't always fix the internal issues we've grown with. A lot of times that can just be salved by the people we choose to surround ourselves with, by the people we choose to build our lives with.

This was just such a nice, feel good story. At a time when travel for many people has been non-existent, I loved getting to vicariously travel with Ava and crew. The behind-the-scenes look at the life/job of a flight attendant is an interesting one, one that I honestly haven't given much thought to before but most assuredly will the next time I book a flight somewhere.

The Layover is a funny enemies to lovers rom com with some beautiful descriptions of Belize that made me want to hop on a plane and vacation there immediately. ⁣
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Ava is a flight attendant, born to wandering parents who is so fixated on finding stability she overlooks her worth and what she truly wants out of life. Her nemesis Jack just so happens to constantly pop up and their back and forth snark is hilarious at times. ⁣
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However, Ava tends to be a bit mean at times when it comes to Jack and hates him based off preconceived judgements; if it weren’t for those building up the enemies to lovers I would’ve found it a bit childish, but it works for the story. ⁣
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The food and location descriptions made you feel like you were at every location they landed in. The chemistry between Jack and Ava was electric. Her coworker Gen was wild, said the most off the wall things and was a hoot.⁣
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Overall this makes for a great summer beach read!⁣
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣
Thank you @putnambooks and @netgalley for an ARC for my honest review.⁣
#bookstagram #books #thelayover #putnambooks #romance #romcom

The story of flight attendant, Ava, is one of a young woman trying to find her fit in the world. Just when she thinks she’s on the right path, a tropical layover will help her to realize that maybe she’s not ready to let go of what she already has.

This book will make you laugh out loud and sometimes make you say ‘oh my!’ but it will absolutely entertain you! It was a most enjoyable flight!

The Layover is the perfect book to read while on vacation this summer. I love reading fun, light-hearted books that make me consider changing my career for one that lets me travel more often.

I really related to Ava, who spent her entire childhood traveling and therefore believed she wanted stability in her adult life despite still having an adventurous soul. And who doesn't love a good hate to love story?

"It's the story of us, two wanderers, brought together by fate."

I loved Jack. The banter between him and Ava was so ridiculous but I'm such a sucker for that in romcoms. Also, the whole 'there aren't enough hotel rooms so some of us are going to have to share' trope is just *chef's kiss*.

My main problem with the book is that in the very beginning we meet this guy named Alexander who happens to be her fiance. Yeah. I wasn't excited to read about that because I could already tell her engagement would cause relationship drama later on in the book and it was pretty predictable how it would go down.

That being said, this was honestly a quick and fun read that makes for a great read by the pool.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A huge thank you to PRH International, Putnam Books, NetGalley and Edelweiss for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!!

This follows Ava Greene as she’s off to work on her last trip as a flight attendant after a decade of working there after getting engaged and deciding to live a more stable lifestyle with her soon-to-be husband but she ends up having to work with, Jack Stone, the very guy she harbors deep resentment towards (though based on hearsay and assumptions). She’s determined to get this trip over with as soon as possible but things get a little heated either from cabin fever or the tension between her and Jack.

I was initially drawn to this book because it was a romance between flight attendants which is a field close to me as someone who hopes to work in the travel industry in the future. It was interesting to know that the author is a flight attendant so reading about the characters’ experiences, her in-depth knowledge towards that type of work reflected genuinely on the page. It was informative reading about their experiences.

I loved Ava’s character so much! She was so relatable especially in how she struggled to find what she thinks she wants in life and what she really wants. I love how her experiences highlighted the reality of flight attendants and the ups and downs of their lifestyle. She pushed the idea that if you love someone, you have to love them as a whole. Including their job.

As for Jack, I loved how emotionally vulnerable he was! After we got over the assumptions Ava had towards him, I got to see just how much of a good guy he was! He was also cheeky and flirty but in the best ways!

My only issue with this had to be the emotional cheating going on between her and Jack since she was technically still engaged to Alexander all throughout their interaction.

Moreover, the enemies to lovers, forced proximity romance between Ava and Jack had that slow burn goodness that I always look for. Their banter and chemistry was a delight to read about and their sexual tension was palpable! I loved the idea that they were in the same line of work so they both understood each other in a much deeper level.

This was advertised as a summer read which I get because the scenes they had in Bleize gave off the best vacation feels and it made me want to travel already (if the pandemic permits 🙈)

Overall, this was a fast-paced, entertaining and swoony read! It was also refreshing seeing this line of work be explored more in books so I highly recommend this if you’re part of the travel industry or if you’re just looking for the next best summer read!

This adorable rom com is the perfect book to read by the beach/pool/summer/vacation. Main character Ava is a flight attendant about to take her last work shifts because her new fiancé insisted she quits (readers can tell he is a jerk immediately while it takes Ava a little longer to figure it out). She wants her last trip to be perfect, but unfortunately she’s paired with Jack Stone, a flight attendant she’s only encountered a few times before but hates. But over the course of the trip, including a longer than expected layover in Belize, she learns some new things about him and more importantly about herself and what she wants out of life. Super-cute and fun, an interesting peek into the life of flight attendants, all characters including even the minor characters really came to life, great banter, and a good deployment of the enemies to lovers trope. If you loved The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren, this book is for you!

Ava is on her last flight as a flight attendant! She is lucky enough to get a layover in Belize to finish out her career but the unpleasant company of the other flight attendant, Jack is really putting a kink in her slink...She hates him, he loves her brash attitude...this is going to be a long trip.

This is Waldon's debut novel and I can assure you I will read more by her. This story was just fun! Ava is a great character. She is so confident in her job, she loves it and brings such a positivity to the flights. She loves to travel and see new places but also loves the stability of routine. She is a point in her life where she really needs to do what she wants to do, and stop bending to others. It takes her awhile but she gets there. 

And Jack...what a perfect match for Ava. He is so charming, but has such a kind personality. I really enjoyed their banter and how they got to know each other during the trip. She doesn't make this trip easy on him, but he doesn't fault her for that.  

If you need an enemies to lovers with a beach vacation feel...this is the book.