This book follows the story of a young woman named Hannah who finds herself at a crossroads in life. After a whirlwind romance with her college sweetheart, she’s faced with the reality of growing up and figuring out what she really wants.

Waldon’s writing is super engaging, and she does a fantastic job of capturing the ups and downs of relationships and self-discovery. Hannah is a relatable character, and you can’t help but root for her as she navigates love, friendship, and the challenges of adulthood. The chemistry between Hannah and her love interest is electric, and their journey is both heartwarming and real. The romance is sweet and unfolds in a way that feels genuine, with plenty of charming moments that will make you smile.

What I really enjoyed about this book is how it balances the themes of love with personal growth. Hannah’s journey isn’t just about finding romance; it’s also about figuring out who she is and what she truly wants.

This was swoony! I like it. It’s a sweet books to read during the summer, I’m trying to get through all my summerish books. I would read more books by the Author.

This was a cute summer romance! I will say I had a hard time getting through it, it just didn't grab my attention.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing this e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was cute! I absolutely loved The layover, the author’s book just before this, so I was very excited to read this one. Friends to lovers. Some positive growth of the main character. It was entertaining and quick to read.

I started reading this a year ago and couldnt get into it but I gave it a second chance and I am SO glad I did! I loved the friendship between the main characters and the second romance within the friend group. It was like rooting on two relationships at once! Deiss was a dream boat and I loved how no matter what Olivia did or was thinking he knew her better then she knew herself and showed up exactly how she needed him too. A sweet sweet rom-com with wonderful characters and believable progression. Spice level is low for those looking for something hot 🥵

I wanted to like this one so much but there was something about the FMC that just felt off to me. I'm also not a huge fan of friends to lovers (what can I say, I love tension) so this one was a bit of a miss. Loved the setting though.

From the Jump by Lacie Waldon. Pub Date: July 19, 2022. Rating: 3 stars. In this novel set in South Africa, the reader gets to witness to growth of a woman who is a constant people pleaser and a "yes woman." She is learning how to say no and discovering her true self worth. There is a slow burn friends to lovers romance to the story as well. She travels to South Africa with a group of prior college friends, but I found the friendships to be shallow and lack substance. I think I would have enjoyed this novel more if the cast of characters was less and the story was more focused on Liv and Deiss. Thanks to #netgalley and #penguingroupputnam for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 ⭐️

This book felt exciting and messy and what I imagine saying yes to something out of pocket would feel. This has a friends (more like life long acquaintance) to lovers. I liked how their relationship progressed and how they first started being close friends and the intimacy of that lead to becoming lovers. The ending felt kind of patched together but also very the friend group as well. Overall, it felt like a great beach read!

From the Jump by Lacie Waldon is a delightful read perfect for fans of lighthearted, romantic comedies who enjoy stories about the complexities of friendship, the thrill of taking risks, and the journey of self-discovery, as they will be swept away by Liv's relatable struggles and the swoon-worthy romance that unfolds.

A fun sweet read! Highly recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my ARC.

From the Jump is a sweet friends to lovers story. Liv has a series of unfortunate events and finds herself unexpectedly joining her friends on their trip to South Africa. Forced to room with Lucas, Liv struggles to ignore her feelings for him, and realizes that their friend group isn't exactly what she thought it was. This is a really slow burn, there's lots of denial and "we're just friends". The pacing felt a little slow at some points, but overall it's cute, low-ish drama, and has some humor.

From the Jump was such a fun, light read to kick off the summer months. If you’re looking for a great beach/pool read look no further!

Liv constantly says yes to everything work related and sometimes that puts a damper on her personal life, especially the annual trip her beloved friend group takes every summer. But enough is enough! Liv quits her job to join the gang on their trip to South Africa and over the course of the novel sparks fly with Diess, someone who was once off limits. I loved the South African setting and the dynamic between Liv and her friend group.

Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for a review copy.

I absolutely enjoyed Lacie's first book The Layover, so I was very excited to read this one and it did not disappoint! It was a lighthearted read and a perfect book to read, especially when you want something quick. It was swoon worthy and gives us the perfect friends to lovers romance!

This is the second Lacie Waldon book I've read and I enjoy them so much! I also especially love the gorgeous, vibrant cover - what a delight!

I loved Lacie's book Layover, and I loved that the setting for this one was South America! But the rest sort of fell flat.

This story follows Liv, who is a rigid perfectionist type, who is about to miss out on another vacation with her friends when she decides to quit her job and join them in South Africa. From there, a series of unfortunate events happens to her and she ends up crashing with her friend, Deiss, back in LA. As you can imagine in a romance, romance ensues.

So I kinda feel like this story felt very disjointed - like two separate stories combined. The South Africa trip and then the LA bits - plus there were flashbacks to the past with the friend group. I really liked the romance part of the book - it's a friends to lovers type of situation. A semi-unrequited love deal. Really sweet. I truly hated the friend group. They were awful people. All-in-all the plot felt a bit all over the place with the beginning LA, South Africa vacation, return to LA, and flashbacks, but I enjoyed Liv & Deiss as characters, so I probably would have rated this 3.75 stars if I did quarter star ratings. It's a high 3.5 star rating!

I loved this book. Friends to lovers. A lesson in stepping out of your comfort zone and being your true self instead of what you think you should be.

This was my first book by this author. This was a friends to lovers book that was also a woman who was finding herself. Liv was the type of woman that was always doing for others. A friends group that made a pact a long time ago that they would not date one another, but things change on vacation. I enjoyed the banter within this book along with the friendships that came with it. What drew me in was the cover of this book and how beautiful it was and I stayed for a pretty good story.

Liv is used to being the “yes” woman. Always playing by the rules, she lives in the box society she feels she should. But after an impulsive comment at work, Liv finds herself flying halfway across the world to vacation with her group of college friends. Through forced proximity and traveling outside of her comfort zone, Liv just might find the woman she always intended to be, instead of who the world thinks she should be.

review

From the Jump is the perfect escapist summer read. As the first half of the book is set against the amazing South African landscape, the book made me want to hop on a plane and go on Safari! This is a forced proximity, friends to lovers romance.

Liv was an extremely relatable character, especially as she strives to do what she thinks is best for others, instead of what is best for herself. She is incredibly loyal to her group of friends from college. Her love interest, Deiss, was completely her opposite, yet he knew the ways to push her outside of her comfort zone to grow and change. I loved how he was incredibly private and illusive, which added to the mystery surrounding him.

While I enjoyed the book, I waffled on what to rate it. The pacing felt off to me at times. There were parts that I really liked and was totally engaged in, but then the next chapter wouldn’t capture my attention and I felt bored. I didn’t care for the flashbacks to “then,” because it didn’t feel like they moved the story along or added anything pertinent to the arc of this group of friends.
I also struggle when heroines are wishy-washy with their feelings, so Liv’s going back and forth over her feelings for Deiss frustrated me.

in conclusion

However, I loved the found family aspect of the book. It explores not only how people grow and change as they get older, but also how friendships fluctuate as well. Just as people aren’t expected to stay the same, the book shows how hard it can be when group dynamics change, even though the group tries to keep the status quo. The loyalty of Deiss, Mac, Phoebe, Simone, and Liv is something people crave in life and I appreciated their friendships.

From the Jump is an adult contemporary romance about a rule follower that decides to start saying “no”, taking more risks and ends up falling for her friend.

Liv Bakersfield (note: not one of my favorite romance character names) is fed up with the uninspiring graphic design jobs given to her by her firm when she impulsively says “no” to a bone broth campaign. She is promptly put on leave by her boss to work on her “personal issues” but she spontaneously decides to join her college friends on their trip to South Africa instead. Once there she finds herself in close quarters with Lucas Deiss her attractive but emotionally distant friend of over a decade. In both South Africa and back at home Liv will be forced out of her comfort zone and into breaking some of her own self-imposed rules all the while falling for a man that she never considered a possibility.

I really enjoyed this novel about a woman taking risks in her life with both career and love. Lucas was a dreamy male main character that was aloof without being mean or emotionally stunted. I appreciated how their childhoods caused them both to play it safe in their lives but still left space to fall in love with a friend they knew and trusted.