I love stories where serendipity plays a role. It always feels more special that way. This book is a hallmark movie in book form, so if that sort of sweet and heartwarming book is not for you, look elsewhere. While I normally go for more of rom-com romance book I still thoroughly enjoyed this book. I loved the initial setting of this stories with the main characters being stuck in cars on a snowy closed freeway. The character development in this book was fabulous and the dialogue was very well done. I also really enjoyed the supporting characters. Overall this is a really charming winter read.

Really enjoyed this book by Lia Louis. She writes such lovely heartwarming contemporary fiction/romance that is lovely but not steamy. Check out this if you are a fan of Serendipity or other "meant to be" stories.

Note to publisher (not the author) and future readers: The cover is deceiving. If you're holding out for this one as a winter/holiday read, don't. There's a portion of the book that takes place in a snowstorm and some other reference, but it's not a "winter" book. Read it any time!

I'm bummed that this book didn't end up working for me. I got about 1/3 of the way in before I acknowledged that this wasn't going to be a hit for me.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the advanced readers copy.

Noelle Butterby is having a tough time. After an emotional event at her old college, she finds herself stranded on the highway when a blizzard strikes, without a phone or any food. A handsome American stranger named Sam takes pity on Noelle and offers her help. The two spend eight perfect hours together braving the storm until the road is finally cleared and they can be on their way. Noelle thinks she will never see Sam again, but fate has a different plan.

Told in the first person from Noelle’s perspective, Eight Perfect Hours is an emotional story of fate, loss, and finding happiness where you least expect it. I loved this book! Lia Louis’ last book, Dear Emmie Blue, was my favorite book of 2020. Ever since she announced Eight Perfect Hours, I have been eagerly waiting to read it and it did not disappoint!

Noelle was such a wonderful main character. She cares so deeply about her family and will do whatever is required of her to support them, even though she dreams of being a florist.

I highly recommend this charming story to anyone who loved Dear Emmie Blue, and fans of Jojo Moyes, Josie Silver, and Jill Santapolo!

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the review copy! All opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved Noelle and her journey throughout this book. Her character arc was so touching. It was painful at times to watch her struggle with grief and self-doubt, but watching her gain confidence and take control of her own life was really refreshing and wonderful to read. I think other readers who struggle with finding their voice and using it in a meaningful way will relate to Noelle's journey.

I also loved the element of fate in this novel. It reminded me very much of the movie Serendipity. It was full of funny little twists of fate that kept bringing Noelle and Sam together and pulling them apart. Instead of making the reader feel frustrated that the characters kept being pulled apart, this story had an element of whimsy/magic that make it so fun to read.

I loved this book and it gave me all the warm, cozy, feel-good vibes that I want in a holiday rom-com. I would recommend this to readers who enjoy rom-coms with fully formed character arcs since Noelle's story is anything but surface level.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for this ARC.

Eight Perfect Hours, but Lia Louis, is a lovely modern romance. It will please most of the spectrum of romance readers, It is not trite, not overly saccharine, but weaves a bit of whimsy into the plot through the side story of the main character's best friend.

When USUALLY frustrates me about romance novels is the big hurdle preventing the main character from achieving his/her full potential and love. I usually find most of those hurdles so unbelievable that it pulls me out of the book. In this book, the main character couldn't move to America from England with her beloved boyfriend because her mother had suffered a stroke and had since become agoraphobic. While it may not have been entirely functional to cater to her mother's somewhat irrational fears, it was certainly understandable that the daughter felt an obligation to her.....even if it was occasionally TOO much self-inflicted guilt.

The ex-boyfriend storyline was believable and relatable.

Understanding the NEW love-interest's hurdles was also believable and relatable.

Basically, I enjoyed this book. I won't remember the details of it forever, but I think it was a perfect, light, fun book to read when I was not in the mood for anything too heavy or deep.

A rom-com with depth. Loved this book about love and fate and grief and forgiveness. Noelle and Sam meet by chance on the highway during a snowstorm. After eight hours together they part ways assuming they will never see each other again. But fate has them bumping into each other over and over again. As Noelle deals with disappointment, delayed dreams, and family challenges, Sam is dealing with things of his own and soon their lives are intertwined in ways they never imagined. I loved the layers at play in this book about love, career, family obligation, grief. The way everything comes full circle is beautiful!

We received an ARC from @atriabooks and @simonandschuster via @netgalley of Lia Louis' (@lialouis) book #EightPerfectHours in exchange for an honest review.

🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️🌸❄️ 🌸❄️ 🌸❄️

After reading Dear Emmie Blue, I was so excited to hear that Lia Louis would be releasing Eight Perfect Hours this year. Needless to say, I was so happy when we received an ARC.

Oh my gosh, this book! It is so lovely and made my heart flutter while reading it. It was everything I hoped it would be and more.

Eight Perfect Hours is the perfect book to pick up when you need a reminder that patience and faith pay off especially when it comes to matters of the heart. Sometimes we want something so bad but need to step away to realize that it’s not what’s good for us. This book honestly reminded me of a phrase I often heard growing up: No one can take away what is yours.

I love this book for so many reasons it’s hard to list. One of the main reasons is because it is just so easy to love Noelle since she is down-to-earth, charming, and relatable. I also loved all of the characters and how well developed they all are. It is such a pleasure to have the opportunity to understand the way the supporting characters in this book think and progress. I appreciated that we got to know Charlie and Belinda just as much as we got to know Noelle.

All in all, this book is one to pick up if you want heart flutters and a reminder that everything will happen when it’s supposed to happen.

5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and if I could give it 5 more I would! I knew as soon as I read the Chinese proverb in the beginning, “An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place and circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle but will never break”, that I would love this book!! That quote holds so much meaning to me and is so true. My husband and I adopted our daughter from China and I read this proverb many times while we were waiting to be matched with her. We knew that our red thread was connected somewhere in China to our sweet baby. But to get back to the book, I love how this saying represents everything about this beautiful love story! This book made me smile so much. I adored each of the characters. I loved the author’s writing style, and the storyline was just perfect. It had a “Hallmark” feel to it but minus the cheesiness. But, I for one, love all the corny Hallmark movies, so that wouldn’t have bothered me one bit. It was just one of those novels that will stay with you for a long time after reading it. It makes you believe in fate and true love. I think this book needs to made into a movie. Watching the story of Noelle and Sam, and how they were destined to meet, would be almost as good as reading it. I loved this book and highly recommend it…5 well deserved stars and I can’t wait to read more by this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

To see other reviews I’ve left, check out my Instagram and Goodreads pages:
*Instagram - bookworm_traveler808
*Goodreads - Cherihy808

I wanted to love this book, and I did love the premise. But about halfway through I gave up. I did skim the rest of the book. It was a unique story but seemed to move slowly with a lot of examining of actions and pasts of the characters. The characters were interesting but it just wasn't for me.
Thank you to Net Galley for allowing me to read this book. The options are entirely my own.

If you took out the unnecessary foul language, this could be a Hallmark movie. The unlikely hood of these two constantly meeting up was actually done really well. It was nice to see Noelle and Sam like each other, but not instantly in love.

If it had not been for the winter setting, this would actually be a really good summer read. It was light, fluffy and a quick read. The cast of characters were some times a distraction and didn't add to the story line.

DNF @ 20%.
When I requested this, I didn't realize it was by the same author who wrote Dear Emma Blue. I was not a fan of that book and I was not a fan of this. I think the author isn't for me. I found this story had way too much blabbing, a lot of inner monologue that was boring and unrelated. There was no connection between the main characters/love interests and again, I was struggling to know the point. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free preview in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so charming! It contains the "we keep meeting each other, are we fated to be?" trope but somehow does it in a very sweet way. Noelle's in her early thirties and is stuck doing jobs she dislikes while taking care of her mother who is in a mental decline. She runs into Sam during a blizzard and spends "Eight Perfect Hours" with him. After that, she runs into him routinely and is intrigued by how right their relationship feels.
Noelle is still mourning a close high school/college friend who she lost years ago in a car accident. Grief and mental illness are touched on but not in a heavy way.
Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Eight Perfect Hours is my second book by Lia Louis and she definitely has a distinct writing style. I loved the premise of this book and especially enjoyed the way that Noelle and Sam met. They had the perfect evening together amidst the bad situation they found themselves in. After that night, Sam stayed on Noelle's mind, even though the likelihood of her seeing him again was low. Or so she thought.

Noelle seemed to run into Sam time after time, almost like it was meant to be. There were a few minor twists in this story, some I saw coming, some I didn't, and overall I enjoyed it a lot. Like the first Lia Louis book I read I was frustrated that it took so long for the couple to get together... it's such a pet peeve of mine. But aside from that, I really enjoyed this one!

Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis is a romance about two strangers who both end up trapped on a roadway during a blizzard. Noelle and Sam become fast friends and spend eight perfect hours together. But, are they meant to spend more time together? They keep running into each other and start to realize that maybe there's a reason that they keep finding each other. This book was delightful and such a pleasant break from all the negativity around us today. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

Last year I was introduced to the beautiful writing of @lialouisauthor when I read Dear Emmie Blue, and when I saw that her follow up was coming out, I knew I had to have it. Thanks to @simon.audio, I had the audiobook for Eight Perfect Hours and it was the perfect escape I needed while packing up my house last weekend. I am two for two with Lia Louis books and will happily read anything she writes!

When Noelle finds herself stranded in a blizzard after a college reunion, Sam knocks on her car window and offers assistance. Eight perfect hours later, the roads open and they carry on their separate ways, and what follows is serendipitous.

One October I read nothing but thrillers and, while I loved them, it was way too much and their stories started to blend. That is why, this year, I am breaking up all that chilling anxiety with chills of a different kind. The type of chills you get from reading a really good chick lit/romance like 8 Perfect Hours by Lia Louis.
⠀
I love how this author weaves what you know, what you don’t know, and what you think you know so seamlessly into a beautiful story. The characters come alive and I feel like I know them. Yep, Noelle is going to clean my flat while I pop down to Theo’s for some tomatoes while I chat with Charlie about that time Noelle met Sam on the roadside due to a snowstorm traffic jam. We will have a great laugh and life will be beautiful, and maybe Noelle will leave some lovely flowers in my kitchen.
⠀
Well, this story is beautiful. A very character driven novel about taking care of those around you, valuing them and yourself. Loss and dreams and serendipity all play their role in Noelle’s story. I love seeing it play out.
⠀

I wanted to love this book as I loved that authors last book Dear Emmie Blue. Something about this story fell flat for me. I had a hard time getting invested in the story and would get lost in what was happening. I have heard from so many that loved it, so I could be in the minority here!

Noelle and Sam meet during a blizzard road closure late one night and spend eight special hours together. Both think they will never see each other again, until a chance meeting at a hospital throws them in each others’ path once more. Noelle makes a bold move and gives Sam her number on a flyer that night, but is disappointed to find the flyer wrinkled up and throw on the floor several hours later. Thinking she’ll definitely never see Sam again, Noelle goes on with her life, reconnecting with an old flame back in town after living in a different country for a few years. Low and behold, Noelle takes a job as a cleaner and of course Sam answers the door. This time they both realize they are meant to be in each others’ lives and agree to be friends, nothing more. But is that what fate really intended for them?

Eight Perfect Hours is romantic, tender and sweet, but very slow burning and almost lost my interest a few times. However, in the end, the novel redeemed itself to me as Noelle grows as a person immensely, standing on her own rather than the wallflower she has lived as up until she met Sam. Read this story if Hallmark Christmas movie material on steroids is your cup of tea!

This book was charming and well-written and exactly the type of will they/won’t they fated romance I love to read this time of year. I wouldn’t call this book angsty but watching these two cross paths at all the right, but inevitably wrong, times might feel drawn out to some, but to me it just emphasized the whole fate angle of the story. This was a romance without a ton of romance, if that makes sense, but I felt the connection between Noelle and Sam all the same.

*I received an ARC from NetGalley for voluntary review