When everything else fails, there is always ducks! That’s the moral of the story. If you fails to find a partner, if you fail to find another place to visit, if you fail to stay rooted in one place, follow the ducks. They will lead the way. Laurie’s auntie Dot left a duck behind for her favorite niece to find her way and solve the dilemma.

Laurie didn’t think too much of it at first. It’s a decoy duck after all. It could be some souvenir that her aunt grabbed on her way back from her travels. Auntie Dot lived a life that might be consider unconventional compared to her peers. She never married but had some love life. She never had kids but loved her nephews and niece. This was the Dot everyone knew. However, when Laurie decided to pack up her house after her death, she started find things (starting with a decoy duck) that created a different image of Dot.

All these revelations helped Laurie to figure out her own priorities and what she actually wanted. Sorting out the house was one giant pile of lemons that life threw at Laurie, and she made lemonade, lemon poppy seed donuts, and lemon pie out of them. It was a good feel good story!

FLYING SOLO by Linda Holmes is a modern romance novel. Laurie Sassalyn returns to her hometown for the summer after years away. Her favorite aunt has passed away and Laurie is the only family member willing to go through her aunt’s possessions and ready her home for sale. The story moves slowly, but the pace does pick up some when Laurie discovers an interesting item of potential value. There are a host of real-life characters and a mystery with clues to be solved. This novel is also a romance, and Laurie must decide if she can, and even wants, to balance her successful career with romance in the future. I highly recommend this enjoyable novel that is more real life than most romance novels.

I loved Linda Holmes’s first novel, “Evvie Drake Starts Over,” so I was excited to read her sophomore effort. And even if “Flying Solo” fell a little short of its predecessor—the dialogue felt less sparkling and fresh, and the central romance was a bit unfulfilling—it was still an enjoyable read that should earn a solid place in beach bags this summer. Thank you to NetGalley and to Random House for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review.

"Follow your bliss."

I adored Evvie Drake so was really excited for this next book from Linda Holmes. While it reads very different from her first, this book did not disappoint. Laurie has flown back to Maine to help clear out her Great Aunt's house after she recently passed away. While there, she reconnects with friends as well as her previous boyfriend, discovers things about her aunt she had never known, and uncovers a mystery that they all work together to solve.

If I had to pick one word for this book, it would be "cozy". I felt like I was wrapped up in a warm blanket while reading this. Laurie's reminiscing about her childhood days and the shelter and comfort her aunt provided her felt very nostalgic. And while I never thought anyone could top Dean from her first book (I mean, honestly, it's tough to top an MLB pitcher), Nick definitely gives him a run for his money. He's a sweet, sexy librarian who loves research. I never had any hope of not loving him. This book features the best friendships, family supporting family, and being true to yourself and what makes you happy. Laurie is never overly concerned about her size 18 body, her reaching 40, or that she thrives on having alone time. This book champions the idea that happiness can look differently for different people.

I would say if you are a fan of One Night on the Island or Bad Luck Bridesmaid, then you will enjoy this one. I continue to look forward to more from this author in the future.

I adore Linda Holmes and I loved this book, though it wasn't quite as good as Evvie Drake. It felt a little like the rom-com bits were added as an afterthought and it might have felt a little less awkward if that had been woven into the story more cohesively at the beginning. As it stands, it feels like the first half of the book is all about solving the mystery of the decoy and then, once that's more or less solved, the second half can focus on the romance. Still, the characters were charming, the banter was fun, and the feminist slant was incredibly welcome.

A feel good, cozy story with a touch of romance! Laurie is figuring out what home is, what her aunt's legacy is, what her future looks like after cancelling her wedding. I loved her librarian ex-boyfriend, and was surprised at who the villain in the story turned out to be. This was a really warm, inviting book and super enjoyable.

Following the death of her great-aunt (and the dissolution of her own impending nuptials), Laurie finds herself back in her Maine hometown. Tasked with going through her great-aunt’s belongings, she comes across a wooden duck decoy in the bottom of a storage chest. Laurie’s journalistic instincts kick in and she sets out to solve the mystery of the genesis of said duck. But will reconnecting with long-time friends and former flames get in the way?

This was a great read to kick-off my summer. You have an almost-40-year-old main character trying to figure out her life and the direction she sees it going while navigating a friendly relationship with her first love, Nick. I love 40+ MC rep and this definitely fits the bill.

The mystery and investigative aspect of this book added intrigue that I did not expect but was absolutely here for. My interest immediately deepened, and the pages couldn’t turn fast enough.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good summer read with complicated family dynamics, likable characters, and an intriguing mystery.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine for the ARC. All thoughts in this review are honest and my own.

I enjoyed this! It’s cute, it’s different, and I finished it in one sitting. I could live in Linda Holmes mind. She has a knack for creating the most idyllic towns and writes such interesting and lovable characters in a way that seems effortless.

In this novel you’ll find: a nod to Evvie Drake, a plus size MC, childhood friends to lovers/ ex-boyfriend from high school, a bit of mystery and a duck heist!

While we still get a happy ending, I love that Flying Solo doesn’t end in your typical romance fashion. I saw a lot of myself in the main character and love the message that you don’t have to be married with kids to have a meaningful life.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Ballantine Books for gifting me the sophomore novel by Linda Holmes, author of Evvie Drakes Starts Over, which I loved. 4.5 stars rounded up!

Laurie is fresh off the trauma of canceling her wedding and returns to her small hometown in Maine to go through her beloved aunt's home after her death. She enlists her friend, June, to help her go through Dot's possessions and hires Matt to help her sell or dispose of the things they don't want to keep. Laurie also meets back up with Nick, her high school sweetheart, who stayed in town and runs the local library. When Laurie finds a carved wooden decoy duck hidden at the bottom of her aunt's chest, it leads the group on a mission.

I loved these characters and the small town feeling the author has created. You can just imagine sitting with these people on Dot's deck, surrounded by food and wine, enjoying life. This is also a story of being true to yourself, finding your own path in life, and surrounding yourself with a tribe that makes it all work. Being older, it certainly makes you think about the possessions we leave behind and how we should share our stories. Evvie Drake was a quick mention in this book, which was fun. I loved spending time with this book and these characters!

As one of the many who adored Linda Holmes' Evvie Drake Starts Over, I was thrilled to receive an early copy of Flying Solo. It is a beautiful book in its own right. However, if people are looking for a book to give them a similar feeling as its predecessor, they won't necessarily find it here. Flying Solo is women's fiction where the love story takes on a very different look. Given that I often get tired of the same basic storyline in so many books, this is a refreshing and realistic look at life and it was written beautifully.

Main character, Laurie is quickly approaching age forty which has her a little shell-shocked. She's temporarily returned to her home town of Calcasset, Maine after she recently broke her engagement after deciding marriage just isn't for her. She's there to go through her beloved Aunt Dot's estate. Her aunt lived a full and independent life until age ninety. As she's going through Aunt Dot's things, she finds many keepsakes, polaroid pictures, books and more. Several items don't make sense to her, but she has no doubt that at some point it made perfect sense and meant something to her aunt. When she stumbles across a duck decoy tucked away in a chest, she finds it strange and looks further into it. Around that same time, she finds what appears to be a love letter from a man she never knew about that references "all the ducks." Determined to understand the meaning behind this duck decoy, Laurie begins researching it to see why her aunt may have kept it hidden away. After all, her aunt had no need for duck decoys. This research leads her on a journey she never anticipates where she'll discover a great deal about her aunt and who she was. Laurie will also learn more about herself too.

While exploring Aunt Dot's past, Laurie is reconnecting her good friend, June and first love, Nick. She also makes some new friends along the way. The time she spends there helps her to remember that even though she decided a long time ago she never wanted to move back to her home town after college, she does value the people and relationships there. Knowing this, can she find a way to maintain those when she ultimately leaves to go back to Seattle? Or will she walk away from Nick and have him be the love of her life that she just looks back on in her old age? This is a book that truly makes you think about life and how one decision can impact your entire life.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved Holmes’ earlier work “Evvie Drake Starts Over.” So I was very excited for the early copy of “Flying Solo.” However, this follow up was not nearly as good. It follows a woman helping to pack up her great aunt’s house after her death and there was just very little interest in this topic and the heavy facts on artifacts/knick knacks. This was a very slow book and it lacked the exciting charm that I loved in Holmes’ first book. 3 stars ⭐️. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced copy for review.

Flying Solo by Linda Holmes is my introduction to the cozy romance genre and I am into it. Seriously this book was absolutely delightful. It is literally the perfect beach read. I started it and finished it in one sitting at the beach last weekend. After which I proceeded to tell all of the ladies on the beach to get themselves a copy! If you had ask me a few weeks ago if I would be invested in the mystery of a wooden duck decoy, I would have laughed but I’m glad to say I was wrong! On a more serious note one of my favorite things about romance novels is the exploration of more serious topics intertwined in beautiful romantic stories and this book does an excellent job exploring adult relationships and loneliness.

Also a quick shout out to Bad on Paper Podcast for recommending this excellent book!

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

I was so excited to be able to read and review this book early as I really loved Evvie Drake Starts Over. Honestly, this book fell flat for me. There wasn’t too much happening and I felt like I had to keep making myself pick it back up,

I liked the relationships between the characters especially between June and Laurie and Nick and Laurie. I liked that Laurie was super independent, knew what she wanted and wasn’t willing to settle. I just wish there was more of a story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for access to this digital ARC.

Read this if you like: Light beach reads, crazy mysteries mixed with romance, strong female leads

Her wedding has been cancelled right before she turns forty. Laurie Sassalyn returns to her Maine hometown of Calcasset to handle the estate of her great-aunt Dot, a spirited adventurer who lived to be ninety. Along with boxes of Polaroids and pottery, a mysterious wooden duck shows up at the bottom of a cedar chest. Laurie's curiosity is piqued, especially after she finds a love letter to the never-married Dot that ends with the line, "And anyway, if you're ever desperate, there are always ducks, darling."

Laurie is told that the duck has no financial value. She believes that until it disappears under suspicious circumstances. She feels compelled to figure out why anyone would steal a wooden duck and why Dot kept it hidden away in the first place.

Laurie finds herself negotiating with antiques dealers and con artists, going on after-hours dates at the local library, and reconnecting with her oldest friend and first love. Desperate to uncover her great-aunt's secrets, Laurie must reckon with her past, her future, and ultimately embrace her own vision of flying solo.

This book is supposed to be a cozy mystery with a dash of romance included. The mystery definitely isn't super suspenseful or anything. Definitely more cozy and predictable. We have a strong independent female lead. I love that. I thought it was good book. It was a quick cute read. It's perfect for the beach. I recommend it! Grab this now!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Random House for the gifted copy! ❤️

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC of this title.

I loved Linda Holmes' first book, and this is a great follow-up. If cozy mysteries are a thing, we need more cozy heist novels like this one. This manages to tell so many different kinds of story in one, and to do it well, which is all the more impressive.

Flying Solo is about a woman who returns to her hometown after a cancelled wedding to handle the estate of her great-aunt Dot. While going through the myriad of Dot’s things, Laurie finds a mysterious wooden duck. After she is told it has no financial value, she doesn’t think about it again until it is stolen. And here starts the caper to get it back.

This book is supposed to be a cozy mystery combined with a romance. And maybe it was that, but it all just felt flat to me. I couldn’t get into Laurie’s character and the plot didn’t hold my attention. I thought it mostly plodded along. I’m sure others who like cozy mysteries will enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I highly recommend this upcoming release as a summer read. This was a very cute love story and a great representation to all of the couple that don’t want children and everything that stereotypically goes with that chapter of life. 4.5/5!

Flying Solo is a book with a little bit of an identity crisis. Linda Holmes serves up an eminently readable beach bag book, but it was trying to be too many things -- women's fiction, cozy mystery, with a hint of second chance romance.

Although Flying Solo is about Laurie's journey to being happily single and independent at almost 40, uncovering the story about the duck decoy really was the most interesting part. That said, I felt like the book took a hard left into the caper of it all. BTW - it's set in the same Maine town as EVVIE DRAKE, but there's way less sense of place and Calcasset seems to have lost some of its personality.

Enjoyable, but not nearly as engaging as Evvie Drake.

Smarting from her recently cancelled wedding and about to turn 40, Laurie Sassalyn returns to her Maine hometown of Calcasset to handle the estate of her great-aunt Dot, a spirited adventurer who lived to be 90. Along with boxes of Polaroids and pottery, a mysterious wooden duck shows up at the bottom of a cedar chest. Laurie’s curiosity is piqued, especially after she finds a love letter to the never-married Dot that ends with the line, “And anyway, if you’re ever desperate, there are always ducks, darling.”

Laurie is told that the duck has no financial value. But when she becomes suspicious, she feels compelled to figure out why anyone would want a wooden duck — and why Dot kept it hidden away in the first place. Suddenly Laurie finds herself swept up in a righteous caper that has her negotiating with antiques dealers and con artists, going on after-hours dates at the local library, and reconnecting with her oldest friend and first love. Desperate to uncover her great-aunt’s secrets, Laurie must reckon with her past, her future, and ultimately embrace her own vision of flying solo.

Linda Holmes' podcast, "Pop Culture Happy Hour" has a segment each week called "What's making us happy". This week, this book is it for me. Her characters are very real, especially her librarian, who is definitely my favorite character. Laurie is a complex character with good friends and real anxieties.
Recommended.

Thank you Ballantine, imprint of Random House, for another strong summer read. I was a fan of Linda Holmes' debut Evvie Drake Starts Over (and of her work on pop culture happy hour/for NPR!) and I am a fan of Flying Solo as well. I feel I read once that Mx Holmes wanted to write contemporary fiction and romance books, that she as a fan of the genre and tropes would want to read and I can really feel her affection for her characters and how she tells a story, she cares about the story but also the characters. I think she also writes for readers like her and I appreciate how intentional and thoughtful her storytelling is.

I loved Laurie and the theme of finding yourself, being comfortable in the always misrepresented midlife, and learning that you fit in as you are, that you fit in by not fitting in. The duck theme is a bit overdone in a few places but honestly it worked for me and as I said I like how this writer develops stories and offers interesting women. The story is not about settling, this theme was nicely present in Evvie Drake as well, and I really appreciated how Laurie's story unfolded, how romance was woven in but not the only feature of her story. This is a quick read, one just right for summer, and offers some tender, gentle space for reflection while also offering a most welcome summer escape read.

I want more strong, fabulous, midlife women; strong female protagonists in all ways and ages and being just as they are. Most of us know midlife isn't scary, it's a great time, and it's nice to read books that capture that. The book is cozy in all the right ways, a cool breeze on a summer night, and is a great treat for many readers.