A funny and realistic look at life as a working mom with young kids. Ramona is dealing with alot, her marriage, her kids, her job, her mom, the neighbor and now a hurricane. Really enjoyable.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very quick read. Well written and kept me interested. The storyline is the familiar storyline around losing her self and motherhood and career and not following dreams.

8/10

I thought this book was hilarious. Sometimes laugh out loud, oftentimes a chuckle, usually a smile, and completely a page turner.

This is a debut novel - color me impressed. And purple.

Here’s the basic gist: Ramona is a mother of two young kids. She lives in Savannah. There’s a big hurricane bearing down on the city. She goes home early and catches her husband in an affair.

Oops.

The book follows the next 48 hours as Romana battles to keep her family safe amidst personal and potential weather related damage.

She’s pretty hilarious and so are her kids. This is a journey that kinda reminds me of The Adventures in Babysitting (the original).

Oh, and Ramona is a big fan of Prince, the musician.

I’m a Gen X-er with young kids. I grew up listening to Prince so I get that part. And I understand raising kids, so I get that part. As I said, I thought the book was hilarious and very well written.

Well done Carolyn Prusa. Kudos.

Ramona Burkhalter Arnold is maybe the most relatable MC I have ever read. Wife, mom, daughter, employee, neighbor, chef, chauffeur, and every other role society asks women to be all day, every day. She is moving through her crazy, pressure-filled life when the universe throws curveball after curveball at her. She has a cheating husband and a Cat 4 hurricane all thrown at her in the span of a few days and I have so much respect for the honest, stream of consciousness that her story is related to us. Every. Single. Second is real. I see myself in every thought, every attempt, every awkward but hilarious moment, and every struggle in her life, Adulting is hard y’all, and Prusa captures the craziness brilliantly!

2.5 rounded to 3 stars…Ramona is a stressed out mom in the middle of a literal hurricane. She suddenly finds herself balancing a life flung up in turmoil, which leads to some crazy adventures.

Soooo…I was 100 percent drawn to this book by the title. It’s clever and I expected a humorous rom-com type of book. That’s my fault…don’t make assumptions. It’s meant to be in the mom humor space.

TBH, I found Ramona and her humor to be annoying and her decisions to be nonsensical. I lost track of the number of times I mumbled, “Oh come on.”

Thanks to #netgalley and #atriabooks for the #arc in exchange for an honest review.

Harried working mom Ramona comes home early to discover her husband is having an affair. Unfortunately, she doesn't have time to process this, as Hurricane Matthew is surging towards Savannah. This book is cute and has moments of true insight about the struggles of motherhood, but it would've been stronger without the Prince conceit, which often feels forced through the novel. Most of the time, Ramona is a character you want to root for, but once or twice she does make blindingly stupid decisions that are difficult to understand. Overall a light and entertaining read.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!


Ramona is hilarious. I could tell from the first chapter of this book. I may not be a mother but I can totally relate to her! I am also a graphic designer and understand the struggles. I pity the fact that she can’t work from home in cozy pjs (like me!) and that she is surrounded by clueless men. She really shows the struggles of what it is like being a working mom.

The book flows like you are listening to a close friend. I really loved that element of the book! Her life is chaotic and I feel like a lot of readers can relate to that.

What I loved:
- I am from NC and can understand the hurricane or tornado warnings coming to town. Half of us southerns just buckle down for the weather. While the other half just jet out of town like the apocalypse is on it’s way.
- The book is very descriptive. I had an easy time imagining everything!
- The pop culture references
- All the kids kept cracking me up. Nanette is a gem.
- Ramona. She is just someone who is so funny and her heart is so big. I wanted her to have the world!

I strongly recommend this book for anyone looking for a funny book from a super relatable character! This would be the perfect beach read or vacation read. 4 stars out of 5!

What a fun story!! This was my first book to read by Carolyn Prusa but won't be my last! Highly recommend this one!!!

Carolyn Prusa's debut novel was thoroughly enjoyable! Ramona, a harried hardworking mama to two little ones and a die-hard Prince fan, has her world turned upside down with a dash of hurricane thrown in. Ramona gets a shocking surprise when she arrives home early from work with her two little kids in tow to evacuate her home due to an impending hurricane. She must carry on and handle business. We follow her as she navigates problems in her marriage, with her minivan, her potty training daughter, and even her mother. As a member of Gen X who grew up with Prince as an icon, I loved her references and love of him in the story. As a mom, I can relate to the challenges Ramona faces. There is humor and heart in the story, and I can't wait to read any future novels by the author! Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

Ramona is the mom who is overwhelmed, overworked, over stressed, and flat out DONE. Her kids are needy, her boss has unreasonable expectations, her husband is absent (and having an affair), her mother is stubborn, and Hurricane Matthew is bearing down, spawning evacuation orders. And honestly? Ramona doesn’t care. She evacuates with her children after walking in on her husband in flagrant delicto . But the evaluation only lasts a hot minute before she realizes her mother is refusing to evacuate her home on the waterfront. Ramona heads back, scoops up her mother and shelters in her home where she has a chance to take stock of her life.

Ramona is that mom everywhere. She is every mom who is trying to work and raise kids and care for her aging parents. I connected with the Prince thing, because being a child of the 80s, I was saddened when he passed. It was the end of an era, The symbolism of losing an icon of your youth compared to the collapse of a marriage was the backbone of the story. The flashbacks in this book showed the evolution of Ramona and her husband’s relationship with the small warning flags happening along the way. Neither are bad people, but they just might not be right together. The humor and relatability of Ramona’s situation keep this book from being too deep and maudlin,. Many mothers out there will be able to relate to this story, no matter the stage of their lives, their children, and their careers.

I absolutely loved this book! It was a super cute, fun, and light read. I loved the funny parts, the characters, and the storyline and I would definitely recommend!

I love reading books where the characters need to overcome something in their lives so this one really hit the spot for me. I found it to be quite relatable and engaging and had a hard time putting it down! I think there will be many readers who will feel the same for this winning novel!

Interesting read. Though I'm not sure I know what actually happened. I pretty sure most readers will pick it up for the same reason that I did because of the title.

This book was funny but also heartwarming. It had such a complex story and the delivery was exceptional; Highly recommend it.

I really enjoyed this book ( ARC given in exchange for a fair review by netgalley and publisher—thank you!). The humor, “slice-of-life” style, and feature of Prince’s music as a flashback device were unique and something different to receive from a story.

I found great humor and suitability of the author’s choice in the format/writing style chosen. The novel shifts between present moment and transitions to specific moments/memories of the MC’s past. All of the past memory chapters contribute to understanding the MC, Ramona.

Ramona is a strong but vulnerable depiction of a career-driver worker, mom, and wife. She has been living her life on auto-pilot and suddenly encounters a tail-end session of her husband’s affair with a mom from her son’s school. I’ll stop there on the details (and this specific piece of info is in the book summary). Therefore, all I will add is: the wit, empathy, and genuine “humanness” of the characters will endear a reader to this story. The authentic tone—of written character and situations they are placed in (ex. A hurricane is coming during the story), will keep a reader interested until the end

I enjoyed this book. The plot was easy to follow and the characters were well developed. I would recommend this book and author to others.

None of this Would have happened if prince were alive and I was immediately intrigued by the title. I like how this follows a young woman named Ramona who goes through different ups and downs in life.

The Prince thread is a nice touch to this novel. I enjoyed Ramona’s crazy journey through a literal hurricane and a hurricane of emotions about her life.

As a child of the 80s, honoring the Purple One in this manner is fitting. I adored this title. I've felt some of the same feelings and can certainly relate. What a wonderful summer read. I'll be purchasing copies for my friends and can't wait to discuss with an epic throw-back playlist, of course!

I wanted to give this book a try but this chick lit genre is just not for me. Romona is a very relatable character. I could see myself in her chaotic mom mind and lifestyle. It was very comforting to see myself reflected in her character. Romona is also very funny and I would love to be her friend. If you enjoy chick lit and/or are that parent that has ketchup on your insideout shirt and don't realize until you're at work, I recommend this book to you!