Instead of laughing like I usually do while reading a Pippa Grant rom com, I found this to be kinda tedious. It never felt "romantic" to me in any way, and the relationship felt incredibly surface level - especially for a book that's NOT short. This series starter is Grant's first traditionally published work, and the tone is definitely very different than her usual. It's a little bit Schitt's Creek, a little bit It Happened One Summer, and a whole lot long-winded. It felt endless to me, and I found myself tuning out a lot. There are too many characters, and I didn't particularly like any of them. Which... isn't quite how I thought this would go. Her books usually pull me in within a few pages, and this took about 150 before I even started to settle in. I do think there's potential in the series, but this was a miss for me.

The story follows Phoebe, a city girl who finds herself temporarily living in a small town with her family. The reasons are complicated, so I'll skip the details. But Phoebe's appearance in town has Teague off-balance. He's a divorced dad who loves his laidback, small town lifestyle, and the last thing he wants is a spoiled socialite to mess up a good thing. As the two spend more time together, these two opposites can't help but attract.

I do think there's a lot of unfulfilled potential in the story - I enjoy a fish out of water romance, an opposites attract dynamic, and a sexy single dad - but something about this just didn't work. There's a LOT of time spent on things other than the relationship, so that felt like it was short-changed. And the focus on the large cast of characters overwhelmed and bored me, so I zoned out while reading countless times. There was nothing that held my attention - no chemistry, no swoons, no lovable hero or heroine, nothing to liven things up. There's some great potential in this eclectic group of characters, but I just didn't feel the love.

I'm sorry to say but this book was not for me.
I usually enjoy Pippa's books, and laugh out loud, but this made me barely smile.
I could not connect to the characters, and felt myself skipping over a few text passages.

Another Pippa Grant hit!

A disgraced socialite, a grumpy lumberjack and a crazy town...more Pippa Grant goodness!!

I loved this story!! Who are we? Who do we want to be? And where do we fit in the world where we live? There are some deep emotions here along with a lot of steamy, funny, witty action. I can't wait for the next book here!!

Pippa Grant has a gift of imagination that takes a bit to catch up with but once you do the world is amazing! I adored this first in hopefully a new series. Sooo many fabulous characters and soooo many secondary story lines I need to read.

The narrators made it even more fun to read.

Oh Sweet Oprah! Can a rich socialite make her family into better people by moving them to a small town and depriving them of everything they know? When the Lightly family moves to Tickled Pink to spend a year living in an abandoned high school building no one thinks they will last. When Estelle, the matriarch of the family says she is going it to help them learn to be good people so they can get into heaven no one believes it will happen.
When granddaughter Phoebe meets the town curmudgeon Teague they immediately start fight8ing yet there is something between them that continues to grow. Even as Phoebe grows out of her selfish NYC socialite persona, she begins to find Teague and his treehouse living more attractive.
The characters in the family and in the town are a wild collection of eccentrics but the family begins to fit in and thrive over time. But it all falls apart when Phoebe discovers that Teague isn't who he has portrayed himself to be. Can the two of them get over his secret and admit that they love each other? Over the course of the book, Phoebe grows to lover herself and her family as well as falling in love with Teague. When the happily ever after finally comes it is definitely worth the wait.
I received an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Pippa Grant’s new release is a small-town romance with witty writing and memorable characters who will have you swooning and laughing. It takes such grandeur writing to move me this much in a romance story. If you’ve read the premise, know that this is more than just Schitt’s Creek vibes. It’s a journey of self-reflection and a chance to see yourself how others see you, 
 
(And of course it includes a hot grouchy loner who is much loved and adored by the whole) town. 
 
“Bitchy Socialite Workaholic” Phoebe Light and her privileged family must move into the town of Tinkled Pink to “improve their souls” or else her grandmother will cease providing for them. “Self--improvement is a new mountain to climb,” and Phoebe certainly tries hard in this endeavor. 
 
While battling gigantic bugs and dishwater coffee, Phoebe instantly clashes with the town’s cranky single dad, Teague Miller. With his cold exterior comes hidden pain, an interesting backstory, and of course the struggle to not fall for Phoebe. Teague is a guy you want to know: “He’s this amazing mix of honesty and reluctance and grouchiness and kindness.” 
 
I loved a lot about this story (besides the hotness and sexual chemistry....seriously people):

 —the way Teague and his daughter held Phoebe’s hand during her privileged “detox”, and how they showed her that no one should matter when it comes to molding yourself into the person you want to be. “The only person whose opinion matters is you and anyone you choose to let in.” 
 
-the perennial theme that community is important. The simplicity of such a theme is moving to me on a personal level so I enjoyed reading Pippa’s commentary of “community, friends, family, fun, a place to belong.” 
 
“You are who you surround yourself with.” 
 
Thanks to Netgalley and Montlake for an advanced copy.

Pippa Grant writes some of the best romance books that you laugh and really root for the MC's. Here characters are real and flawed and try to become better people. The town, Tickled Pink, is quirky and so are it's residents making you enjoy the story even more. This was a fun read and I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the new series.

The One Who Loves You was a treat to read. It’s a lot of what I’ve come to expect from a Pippa Grant book, while just a smidge turned down.

This book features a dual POV between Phoebe and Teague our main characters. Phoebe is a fish out of water in every way as her Grandmother had a life threatening incident and demands that the family retreat to Wisconsin for a year to reform their ways. There Phoebe truly discovers herself while getting to know Teague. There is plenty of funny parts in this book plus is has so much heart band love.

There is a lot to love about this book! Teague is a single Dad and is great with his daughter and gets along with his ex and the ex’s spouse, which is great to read about.

5 stars!

When Phoebe's grandmother chokes on some Kobe steak, she has an epiphany. Her and the rest of her family need to change their stuck up ways. In order to do that, she moves everyone to Tickled Pink, Wisconsin to a derelict high school building. The family must learn to be good people while fixing up where they have to live for the entire year.
The town is not quite happy to have the Lightly family there, though they are happy to have the influx of cash that grandma is throwing their way. Teague is right up there with the rest of town in wishing they would call it quits and return home. But there is just something about Phoebe and her desire for change.
Opinion
Right off the bat, I hated Phoebe. She was stuck up and pretentious. It was also a great way to open the book. I wanted her to get what was coming to her. Teague was definitely swoon worthy and a great balance to Miss Priss. The character changes throughout the book brought some redemption and the book ended up being a highlight of my week.
Many thanks to Net Galley and Montlake for providing me with an ARC of this book.

This story was not what I was expecting from Pippa, having read all her others, but I really enjoyed it. The romance, the love, the sarcasm, the laughter, the tears, the character growth. I enjoyed all of it!

Schitt’s Creek meet Tickled Pink! This snort out loud rom-com features an old money rich socialite and family who arrive to Tickled Pink to become “better people” under the duress of the dragon matriarch, Grandma Gigi. I loved watching the growth of Phoebe from entitled, self absorbed aristocrat to a warm and loving human being. While there was the romantic element with Teague (who has secrets himself), I think Phoebe’s emotional growth took center stage. I also loved and appreciated how the author gave some secondary characters more diverse personalities in a matter of fact way, without great fanfare. Some authors I have read have also incorporated diversity but did so by bludgeoning the reader with repeated reminders as to their differences.

While I felt it dragged a bit in the middle, I think this is a great story with lots of heart and interesting characters. This is my first book by this author and I am adding her to my auto click list.

After her grandmother has a near-death-experience, Phoebe finds herself consigned to the small town of Tickled Pink, where her grandmother hopes she, her siblings, and her parents will learn to be better people. Living out of a dilapidated high school and having to follow the strict set of rules her grandmother has put in place - if she doesn’t want to be cut off - Phoebe struggles to adapt to her new lifestyle. Making matters worse is Teague, an annoying but very handsome local who doesn’t trust Phoebe - or her family. But Teague seems to keep on coming to her rescue, and as they start to get to know each other, they begin to realise their first impressions might have been unfair.

I really, really enjoyed reading this, after a certain point. The plot is very funny and well-done, the characters are well-drawn and believable, the writing is very strong, really amusing with a nice tone. The romantic element is excellent - Phoebe and Teague have great chemistry, some really hot and sexy moments, and some really sweet, lovely interactions. Their romance develops very nicely and realistically as the book goes on and I really enjoyed seeing how it played out.

I just had one issue, and that was that this felt like a long book. Which it isn’t, really; it’s just under 400 pages for the Kindle version, but it felt a lot longer. Whilst I really enjoyed it, it took me a while to get into it and parts of it felt a bit slow. I’m not really sure what, if anything, could be done to help this - I finished the book feeling very satisfied and I really liked the book as a whole, I just had to make myself plough on and get through parts of it.

It’s a tough one, really. There are parts of the plot that require this book to be longer - there’s a lot for the characters to get through to make the ending as satisfying as I found it. That said, this is a really good book - it’s funny and silly but also sexy and steamy, with a really lovely, touching romance. It’s also got a lot of heart. The journey that the characters go on is really lovely to see and I’m excited for the prospect of other books following these characters at some point and I would definitely recommend it. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy of this book.

Content Notes: Near death experience (on-page, side character), minor injuries, toxic family relationships, references to environmental disasters. on-page sex, infidelity / cheating (in past and side characters).

At first I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this book as much as Pippa's other books. I didn't like the heroine at the beginning of the book. She just wan't very likable. But as the book went on she grew on me, and thank goodness, because she became someone you wanted to root for. The town of Tickled Pink is cute a quirky, which is something Pippa is great at portraying. There are sweet, funny, and sad moments throughout the book. There are also some surprises along the way as well. This book isn't quite as funny/crazy as Pippa's other books, but I loved it! I can't wait for another Tickled Pink book!

This was my first read by this author. It did take me a bit to get into the story because it felt, I don't know, off somehow. But once I got on a roll, I enjoyed the banter between Teague and Phoebe. It felt very Hallmark-ish but soon, there was some lovely steam. The characters are all wonderfully quirky (while some are just down-right dislikable -- they were still fun to see jockeying with the locals). A few wonderful little twists --one I saw coming and the other which surprised me had me rolling this 3.5 read to 4 stars. Could I have done with all the Oh My Oprah's? Yes because elevating her to that Goddess status was a bit much but then I put myself in Phoebe's shoes and perhaps, yes I could see her idolizing Oprah. Once was funny-ish, the rest just had me rolling my eyes.

It might be the best book by this author that I’ve read. It definitely has her unique touch, but the usual ingredients combined so well that the end result has the most amazing flavor.

One of the author’s trademarks is her quirky characters. I don’t think there was even one remotely boring character this time. The Lightlys are their own brand of crazy, from Gigi to Carter–all of them so detached from reality that they can’t understand the small town life–and the people from Tickled Pink are all unique in some way. Even Teague, maybe the most normal of the lot, has a sass and sense of humor that keeps him apart.

I really enjoyed him as a character. Beyond the wit and the extreme grumpiness, he has a huge heart and lots of love for the people who surround him. He just loves his peace and quiet more–and for legitimate reasons. I guessed early what his big secret was, though not all the details, and that made him even more interesting.

As for his love interest, and the main character of the book–as her arc is at the center of the story–Phoebe is weirdly relatable. Not that any of us readers is a rich socialite thrown in a small town and forced to adapt, of course. But as a woman who’s wondering who she is, and trying to separate nature and nurture, she’s somewhat of an example. Her journey touched me like I hadn’t been by a book in a while.

Another trademark is the humor. This book was hilarious. It came from the situations–for instance, rich spoiled people forced to do menial tasks that they have no idea how to do–but not only. The dialogues, full of sass and banter, caused some laughs too, as did the quirky characters. And the humor works even better surrounded by deep emotions.

As the introduction to a new series, of course this book had a lot of subplots that’ll be explored in the following books. It worked well because it gave a purpose to the side characters beyond helping or preventing the romance between Phoebe and Teague.

I noticed something that doesn’t happen a lot. In lots of stories, the characters’ voices are just some variation of the author’s voice. Here, each of the main characters had their own voice. The vocabulary, the grammar, the references… They weren’t the same between Phoebe and Teague, for instance.

And I have no doubt that it’s one of the reasons I became so attached to them. They felt real, and I just wanted to see their happy ending. And it was a good one!

Quickie

- Series: Tickled Pink #1 (can be read as a standalone)
- Hashtags: #romcom #enemies to lovers #opposites attract #secret relationship
- Triggers: some psychological abuse I suppose
- Main couple: Phoebe Lightly & Teague Miller
- Hotness: 3/5
- Romance: 4/5
- + how Bridget’s identity is treated
- – I wish a painful death on Gigi

I adored this one! Phoebe and Teague were the perfect opposites attract pair. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5!

The One Who Loves You was such a funny and escapist read for me! It has Schitt’s Creek mixed with Green Acres vibes, as Phoebe is thrust from NYC corporate life into Tickled Pink, a small town who’s claim to fame is a movie that says visiting there is a path to heaven.

While there, she ruffles the feathers of Teague, a fisherman/local sometimes real estate person and his daughter. They are opposites attract in the most truly hilarious, spicy way. I loved the character development between both main characters! This seems to be the first in a series and I’m looking forward to reading the future books, too.

Thank you to Montlake for the early reading copy, which did not impact my review.

I had not read anything by this author, but the summary piqued my interest. I normally read mysteries and this was an opportunity to read a fun and entertaining romance. I enjoyed the Phoebe Lightly character including her dialog consisting of her amusing thoughts and what she actually said to people. That said, much of the book seemed to contain extra story that only added length to the book. The premise of buying property in Tickled Pink, Wisconsin so as to redeem the family and become “better people” was a bit strange. The interactions between Teague Miller and Phoebe were entertaining, but there just wasn’t enough to keep me involved or to try another book in this series. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (paytonpuppy)

I give this Pippa book all the stars. I laughed so hard, cried a little and loved the characters so much. As a born and raised Wisconsinite, I loved all the things that made me homesick for my own small town, fishing, fish boils/fries, and the cheese curds especially! Mostly I loved how exceptionally a very sensitive issue was handled. One seldom written into books, but I think happening a lot more often than anyone wants to discuss. And it was written with caring, love and a healthy dose of humor. Thanks for letting me read an advance copy. Loved it!

This was such an entertaining read. At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it. But the further I got into it the more I enjoyed it. The socialite family the Lightlys have been sent to a small town by their grandmother (because of a near death experience she had) to become better people. And it’s hilarious. The banter between Phoebe and Teague is so funny, and their chemistry is strong. Definitely an entertaining read!

Will his past and fears keep her at bay …

Wow!
I checked my Goodreads and it has been a while since I have read the author.
So when I saw this new series advertised, I jumped on the opportunity.
This story has really the author’s style, an over the top dysfunctional family and the out of their league place they landed in.
Phoebe is not an easy to like heroine, she is shark in the office and not much softer in her private life.
But as her transformation progresses, she shows she has a deepness in herself beyond her business side. She might be ruthless, she cares. She just does not know who she is or could be outside their take-no-prisoner universe.
Teague, from the beginning it is clear, is more than the grouchy quirky lumberjack he presents to the world. His compassion and understanding of what Phoebe is going through are hints he kind of faced something similar.
The shredding of Phoebe’s Scrooge like suit is amusing as she opens herself to ridicule but also friendship, real companionship not the ones she has known all her life, influenced by everyone’s wealth, status or any what they can grab from the other without giving much.

Phoebe’s initiatory journey into being a better person is much different from what she expected, instead of the little tour then going away, she finds herself stuck and not so willing as time passes to leave. For once, she glimpses her true self and life is not so awful thanks to a hot lumberjack.
But said grump is also in for a wild ride as his socialist is more than he expected.

A fun discovery trip as it went both way.
4 stars

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 hot

I have been granted an advance copy by the publisher, here is my true and unbiased opinion.