I enjoyed this book. I love this author and will read anything she writes. She's great at setting and making Seattle come alive.

an absolutely delicious story of colleagues focused on setting up their bosses and not realizing they are falling for each other (aka if Set It Up was set at a local news station)... featuring a fat hero, spectacular depression rep, and some juicy mutual masturbation.

This was a sweet read and I now know a lot more about meteorologists than I did before! Reading this book, it struck me how little I actually knew about meteorologists, so I enjoyed learning about that a bit. Like it didn’t occur to me before that they’re actually scientists?

I loved the way the author wrote about mental health and Ari’s struggles with depression. I felt that the conversations that Ari had about her mental health were really open and vulnerable and real, which was so refreshing. I also appreciated the family dynamics in this story. Solomon explores different family relationships, such as the one between Ari and her mom, and how that’s affected Ari’s other relationships and her mental health over the years. And I loved the inclusion of Russell’s blended family and how they all got along.

There was something holding me back from fully falling in love with this book, but I think it was definitely a me thing. I loved how passionate Ari was about her job, but maybe it was a bit too much weather talk for me? I’m still trying to pinpoint what exactly prevented me from forming a deeper connection to the story, but again, that’s just my personal reading experience. Overall, I liked this book a lot, especially the themes the author chose to write about here.

I loved The Ex-Talk, so when I heard that Rachel Lynn Solomon was coming out with another adult romantic comedy novel, I couldn’t get a copy fast enough. And Weather Girl was somehow even better than I was expecting. While there are plenty of hilarious moments, the heart of this book is really how Solomon deals with the heavier topics and serious issues that her characters face.

Some of the hijinks in this book were laugh-out-loud hilarious as Ari and Russell attempt to parent trap (yes, like the movie) their divorced bosses. But Weather Girl shines just as much in the quieter moments, like when Ari reflects on the impact that depression, both hers and her mothers, has had on her life, or when Russell slowly opens up about his insecurities and his past. All of the characters are written with such care and love, and I absolutely loved seeing them all grow throughout this book. I am also a huge nerd and loved learning more about the weather and weather reporting.

However, my favorite part about this book is that Solomon wrote a main character in a romance who has depression, and who doesn’t have to be magically cured before she can find love. This is such an important message and one that isn’t commonly seen in romance novels. Overall, I absolutely adored Weather Girl and it will have a space on my shelf for many years to come.

A romance book that will steal your heart and leave you cheering⁣
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Rachel Lynn Solomon gets it! She penned a romance novel filled with normal people that was fun, sexy and is worth gushing over. This book has it all - a plus sized hero that will make you swoon, relatable characters, Jewish rep, frank portrayal of mental illness and steamy, open door romance with lots of communication. ⁣
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𝗪𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥 is both fun and meaningful. Ari and Russ are absolutely endearing and so hard to resist. You will find yourself rooting for them fiercely. There were some great weather related puns and funny moments with matchmaking amidst the book’s more serious topics. This book has depth along with its entertainment value which I adore in a romance novel. My suggestion - 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘤𝘰𝘮!

I'm a HUGE fan of Rachel Lynn Solomon's YA contemporaries, but I haven't read The Ex Talk so I wasn't too sure what to expect going into Weather Girl.

My main issue with this book was the lack of chemistry between Ari and Russell. I didn't feel the spark in the beginning of the romance, and even as it developed, I still didn't feel invested in them finally getting together. The characters individually were fine, good even. I appreciated the mental health representation with Ari's depression and the healthy patient/therapist relationship she has. I loved that Russell wasn't the typical, super buff and alpha love interest. He's guy with a belly and stretch marks...a normal dude...and Ari is attracted to him regardless. Those aspects really sold the book for me, and their individual storylines were great to read. But throughout the story, I felt there was no reason that the two needed to be in a romantic relationship. There was never an "aha" moment of attraction, no tension when they are in the pining stage, no chemistry in general.

Overall, the storyline of the the individual characters were great, the side characters were also amazing to read, but I felt no investment in Ari and Russ's eventual relationship. I still love Rachel Lynn Solomon, but I'll probably stick to her YA stories.

Ari Abrams thought it was a dream come true when she was hired as a TV weatherwoman at KSEA to work alongside her idol, Torrance Hale, the famous Seattle weather broadcaster. Ari’s loved the weather even since she can remember but working with Torrance has been less than ideal. Instead of getting the mentoring she wanted, Torrance is too caught up bickering with her ex-husband, Seth Hale, one of the manager’s at KSEA.

However, at Christmas/holiday party, Ari witnesses a moment of longing between Torrance and Seth before it all goes to hell. When their fighting reaches a crescendo, Ari teams up with sportscaster, Russell Barringer to help get Torrance and Seth back together again hoping to eliminate the toxic work environment the Hale’s have created.

Soon Ari and Russell are meeting up, making plans, and getting closer. Ari’s always found Russell attractive, but she’s surprised how easy it is to confide in him and just be herself. Struggling with depression it’s not something Ari’s had an easy time of in the past.

Ari was such sweet, spunky, and likable character! Her struggles with depression felt real and honest. Being raised by a mother who didn’t want to acknowledge her own depression, at the detriment of her kids and relationships, made Ari hesitant to open up about her condition. But with Russell Ari didn’t feel like she always had to be the bright and shiny version of herself.

I adored Russell, too! He was a sweetheart, but he had his own issues, as most of us do. I loved that they helped each other overcome some of the self-doubts and insecurities that came with each their histories.

As a side point, I’m a little obsessed with the weather, and like Ari, I’m gleeful when it rains. I find the clouds and rain mesmerizing, so I loved all the weather talk, especially being set in Seattle where it rains a bunch. I guess that comes from living in Southern California where rain is a rarity! I’ve been told I wouldn’t feel the same way if I actually lived in the Pacific Northwest, but I’ll never believe it, lol!

Weather Girl was such a delightful story that filled me with joy! The romance was slow burn and with oodles of chemistry, but it also felt true to life. Neither Ari or Russell was portrayed as perfect, physically, or otherwise and it made their romance more relatable.

This is the second Rachel Lynn Solomon story I’ve read and loved! I look forward to whatever she comes up with next!

Eeeee!!! All the love for Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon.. Rachel has now become an auto-buy and auto-read author for me. As someone who has a bit of weather obsession herself, I absolutely adored this book and Ari Abrams. And I loved all the representation in this book - depression, mental health, and a plus size hero. YES PLEASE! The chemistry, and the growth, and the character development in this book was so well done. I cannot rave about this book enough. Read it, buy it, tell all your friends about it!! Thank you @berkleyromance for an advance copy of this book.

A TV meteorologist and a sports reporter scheme to reunite their divorced bosses with unforecasted results in this electrifying romance from the author of The Ex Talk.

Ari Abrams has always been fascinated by the weather, and she loves almost everything about her job as a TV meteorologist. Her boss, legendary Seattle weatherwoman Torrance Hale, is too distracted by her tempestuous relationship with her ex-husband, the station’s news director, to give Ari the mentorship she wants. Ari, who runs on sunshine and optimism, is at her wits’ end. The only person who seems to understand how she feels is sweet but reserved sports reporter Russell Barringer.

In the aftermath of a disastrous holiday party, Ari and Russell decide to team up to solve their bosses’ relationship issues. Between secret gifts and double dates, they start nudging their bosses back together. But their well-meaning meddling backfires when the real chemistry builds between Ari and Russell.

Working closely with Russell means allowing him to get to know parts of herself that Ari keeps hidden from everyone. Will he be able to embrace her dark clouds as well as her clear skies?

A BREATH OF FRESH AIR!
I LOVED this story and the real-world look into depression, finding happiness and being your authentic self. I adored The Ex Talk and this book was, dare I say, even more lovely. I felt what Ari was feeling, I loved the way her storyline with Russ unfolded and while it was a romance, it felt... real. Brilliant and lovely, thank you RLS and Netgalley for this opportunity! I ordered a hard copy to keep on my shelf! :)

I liked his book well enough. Same with the Ex Talk though, it's missing that ... hug the book feeling I get from some contemporary stories. I loved all the characters. I really enjoyed reading about them and their backstories. The relationship between Ari and Russell just did not fly off the page for me. I cared more about Seth and Torrance, and even Russ' daughter Elodie.

As always, my biggest problem lies in the conflict. UGH. This shit is SO OLD. Must every single romance feature a silly breakup in the final quarter, and then an over the top reconciliation? And the ending, I think the every single reader would agree that is tacky, no?

Solomon does feature so many diverse characters, and I applaud her for that. Mental health, Jewish characters, plus size rep (male!!), body positivity.

I've fallen HARD for Rachel Lynn Solomon and her writing. If you're still somehow sleeping on her near-perfect contemporary books (both YA *and* adult, y'all), you are missing out. She writes such lovely romances with great, complex characters and a good amount of diversity. She has another hit with WEATHER GIRL. I stayed up until 2am reading 90% of the book in one sitting. I just couldn't stop.

This one hits hard in a few areas but managed to also make me smile and actually laugh out loud to myself a few times. I really love that she's able to balance the tough stuff with the gooey love stuff. Our MC, Ari, deals with depression (like her mom) - while medication and therapy help, she has a ton of "Dark Days" still and struggles with feeling like she's going to repeat her mother's history. Is anyone ever going to love all of her, including the dark parts? Will all of her boyfriends leave when things get tough, like her dad did? Ari and her coworker, Russell, decide its time for their bosses to stop making their work (at a Seattle news station) miserable - they plot to get them back together after divorcing.

Needless to say, cute single dad Russell (who, by the way, provides some excellent fat rap for a male MC!) and Ari hit it off and start falling for each other. They had sooo much chemistry (which was further emphasized with some very steamy scenes) and I loved reading about their relationship... to the point where I was unable to stop after "just one more chapter."

The news station where they worked was a very fun setting. The characters had big personalities - Russell covered sports and really was passionate about the people behind sports stories and headlines. Ari has always been obsessed with the weather and her boss was one of her idols growing up. There's a lot to the workplace element of this - it's not just "our bosses are unhappy so we're unhappy." There were other mentoring, development, etc. aspects to the story that would make Russ and Ari a lot happier.

All in all, this was such a lovely and well-rounded story. Yes, I wanted to punch Ari a lot toward the end but there as a lot of "logic" in the black moment, which I always appreciate. Russ's daughter was adorable and Ari's family situation made things a lot more interesting as well. See? So many strongly developed elements. I adored this.

I adored this rom-com featuring a Jewish heroine with depression and a plus size hero (!!!) set at a Seattle TV station. I actually spent nearly a decade working behind the scenes in local TV news as a writer and producer before switching careers, and there was so much about that broadcast TV life that I could relate to, especially the camaraderie that develops between coworkers in a unique career with weird work hours. (In fact, back in the day, one of my work besties was the weather man!)

But I also loved that the book was about finding love regardless of your circumstances. It’s not about overcoming depression or anything else to find love. It’s about finding and accepting love as you are, depression or whatever and all. It’s a really love message that I think a lot of us struggle with, and this book handles it so beautifully. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also funny and sweet and sexy as hell.

Adored this story of two scheming little devils.

And it's always a joy to read about more diverse characters. Ari may come off as sunshine and daisies as a weather girl, but I really liked reading about her struggles. Made her more human, in a way. And relatable. And a main character with a dad bod!? Heck yes!

Definitely recommend this fun yet thought-provoking romance novel!

THIS BOOK! First, when I read the blurb, I thought it was going to be a cute office Romance. NOPE. This book was so much more and it managed to surprise me and made me tear up at times as well !
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My Rating : 4/5 🌟🌟🌟🌟
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This book follows our two main characters: Ari and Russell, who decides to help their bosses get back together so that they can work peacefully and grow in their career. Sparks fly, adorable meet cutes and accidents happen, and then bhamm! We get one adorable romance that is filled with insecurities, misunderstanding, and drama. At first, I wasn't really sold on the relationship between Ari and Russ. It didn't feel enough, BUT after a few scenes and some heart to heart they had, I got their chemistry and it felt realistic somehow. Torrance and Seth made the story even funnier and kind of filled the hole and it was the perfect amount of meddling, meeting, and messing with the flow of events.
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The main characters Ari and Russell were so adorable together and their relationship development throughout the story along with their issues made them real and relatable. Ari, with her fight with depression and her lack of trust, grew so much towards the end of the book and I was so proud of her admitting her mistakes and making amends. Russel, with his self confidence issue and being a single dad, was so adorably shy and I absolutely loved his character in this book.
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As far the story and character development goes, I think Ari was one of my favorites to grow as a character and Russell was my favourite hero to drool over. The author did a fantastic job discussing Depression, it's impact on a character and their lives, and the effects it has on relationships and trust, along with giving us a normalised male Fat main character who is accepting and confident in their body. I really loved the scene when Russell tells Ari that he is absolutely okay with his body. Amen boy, I love you just for your adorableness.
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And can we talk about how real the sex scenes were?? Like YASSS we need more steamy scenes like this and normalise the weirdness people generally have when they have sex for the first time with someone they don't know intimately yet. The end though, I felt like the drama/ the misunderstanding let me down. It felt sudden and I wanted the characters (who were rational and communicating till that point) to talk to each other. But that's just me nitpicking.
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Overall, This book was a slow paced, work place Romance between the Weather Girl and the Sports Guy who deals with their own issues Along with some boss office drama, silent scheming, secretly falling in love, relaistic sex scenes, amazing character development, discussion about mental health issues, plus size male MC and an adorable proposal. Definitely pick it up!!
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Thank you @prhinternational @netgalley for the gifted arc!

I have been a fan of Solomon's writing for a long time but I just wasn't in the right mood for this one, or something about it just didn't work for me. A lot of people are loving this one though so I'm thinking it may just be me. I was looking for more high jinx in the story, it was missing that spark that really makes a book stand out. The writing was great, it was a nice easy read and the characters were great on their own. It was just together that they didn't work for me. Overall it wasn't for me but I still think its worth the read.

Rachel’s books hold a special place in my heart. We went to the same elementary school, and met when I was her big buddy. Years later, we randomly played a game of tennis doubles on the courts of Greenlake and reconnected a little. All of her books have these little details that I just GET so deeply! Like how no one understands why they built an outdoor mall in a city that’s cloudy 90% of the time. Legitimate local mystery. Or how massive our hometown has grown since we’ve graduated. Or that wild snowstorm that knocked out the power grid for a week. I, too, have danced at Century Ballroom and hung out at Discovery Park.

Weather Girl is another sweet, swoony romance novel from author Rachel Lynn Solomon. After a disastrous Christmas party, meteorologist Ari Abrams makes a drunken plan with sports reporter Russel Barringer to play matchmaker. Their goal is to make their work environment better for everyone, since their bosses are constantly at each other’s throats. What follows is a sweet, steamy, silly romp around the Pacific Northwest.

Representation:
✨ Jewish MC & love interest
✨ depression
✨ curvy male love interest

Having a plus sized male love interest was fun, especially since I’ve also been rereading Crescent City, where all the men seem to have eight packs. You don’t have to be a gym rat to be hot and worthy of love!

This is the first romance I've read with a plus-sized hero! And I loved him! Bravo, Rachel.

WEATHER GIRL is a warm, lighthearted, and charming office romance. It also offers a very reader-friendly/gentle depiction of depression--meaning it shouldn't, in my opinion, be triggering.

I enjoyed this one! I felt a little bit of a special kinship to our main character Ari – for the longest time growing up I wanted to be a meteorologist, so it was fun to read about a heroine who is one.

I liked how Ari and Russell’s friendship started out and how it grew into more. It felt very natural and well-paced in that regard. I saw the author mention her own experience with depression, and that she wanted to write a heroine who also deals with it. To open yourself up like that, to be vulnerable and pull from your own experience takes a lot of courage. It was nice to see that Ari didn’t need to be ‘fixed’ or ‘cured’ of her depression to find love and be loved. I haven’t seen that often in romance, and it was a welcome addition.

I’m not rating it super high though because something did feel like it was missing. I loved the author’s adult romance debut THE EX TALK. I hate to compare books, but WEATHER GIRL felt like it was missing some sort of spark that THE EX TALK had. I can’t put my finger quite on what it is.

Overall though, I had a good time reading this one.

It starts off slow and kind of dense, but once the action begins, it's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. It reads as a true epic, one that makes you feel the world really has been reshaped as you read it. Would recommend.

I'm now adding Rachel Lynn Solomon to my list of favorite rom-com writers! After loving her first adult fiction, The Ex Talk, I was hesitant if I would love another book by her so much but I'm happy to report that Weather Girl lived up to my expectations!

What I especially love about Solomon's books is that her characters feel like real people to me. The people you know and grapple with the emotional experience of what it means to be human. Sure, there are some steamy scenes too, but the bulk of her books deal with heavier issues which I really appreciate.