2.5 stars, rounded up to 3. I loved the concept of this book and the cover really drew me in as well. I definitely judge a book by its cover, what can I say? It was a cute and quick read, and I think it had a lot of good moments, especially capitalizing on soldier and veteran PTSD. I think that is something that's so important and I loved that there was an emphasis on seeking therapy and help with John's PTSD. However, I felt like I was let down a lot. I didn't feel like there was much more depth to the main characters; Mia and John, and didn't understand their "chemistry." I, personally, just didn't feel it between them, so it made it a little hard to believe that they were so in love in such a short amount of time. Overall, it was okay. Just maybe not my cup of tea.

This was a cute read but it fell a bit flat for me. It spent a lot of time talking about what had happened instead of living it so felt a bit disjointed from the characters. I didn't feel like it had much of a plot so wasn't intrigued by the characters. However it was cute and the relationship between the main characters was sweet and unique.

This book was read thanks to NetGalley.

This book shows what is the life after, after a breakup for her and after military for him, it was an interesting read.

I wish some things were written different, because there were moments when i find hard to like them, specially her because her approach seemed to pushy for me, but the way it portrayed the PTSD on him was really interesting,

It's a very obvious romance, but that doesn't make it less interesting.

*This book is fade to black * besides that this book was okay. I did not like how Paige and Mia’s mom. They’re kinda rude. Paige is slightly a pushover. I like how it’s realistic to men who have PTSD. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

so i kinda have mixed feelings about this book

we have a break u p (from an old relationship), a solo trip to Hawaii and new love (kinda)
So I love the chemistry between John and Mia, but then things go for a big change.
The PTSD from the Army made this book/relationship so complicated, it was both good to show this type of thing but also bad for a romance book , the relationship felt something that I cant explain something not right like bad codependency issues. maybe

it was a cute romance (had its fake relationship them also)
Mia family and best friend was fun in this book

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this book and voluntarily give my honest review.

I highly recommend this book. The Ohana Cottage is the perfect summer romance, beach read. It’s sweet, funny, and cute. I am planning a trip to Hawaii this year, so I was all into the setting and fun in the sun. Who doesn’t love a vacation romance in a beautiful setting?

The Ohana Cottage by Megan Reinking is a fun, sweet read about Mia and John. Mia travels to Hawaii to get away from her Ex. She ends up staying at John's airbnb. John is an ex army vet and struggling with PTSD. Overall it was a great read. Most likely to finish in one sitting. And who doesn't love a setting like Hawaii!

Great way to end May (that rhymes 🤭)
The Ohana Cottage was a joy to read. It’s a closed door romance about Mia who is vacationing in Hawaii in a cottage she’s renting that belongs to John. John is suffering from PTSD and Mia helps him a lot to get out of his shell and encourages him to seek help. The setting is magical and beautiful and she eats a lot of papaya. John is so sweet and adores Mia and it’s a happy read!

This is a cute romance novel set in the shores of Hawaii.

Mia Taylor is from the cold freezing state of Minnesota and after her break up with her boyfriend, she goes to Hawaii on a solo trip. She rents out the Ohana Cottage, where she will stay for a month till she decide her next step in life. Meanwhile, John Byrd, a former Army Veteran, is shutting nearly everyone out but when Mia Taylor rents out his cottage, things began to turn differently.

This was a predictable romance novel, and you do feel like you are watching a Hallmark movie. However, nearly all romance novels are having predictable story line so this was no different. The story is told from Mia's and John's perspectives each has conflicting feelings towards each other. Nevertheless, the author manage to take the reader to the shores of Hawaii so thus makes the reader feel like they are in Hawaii. Of course, the ending is predictable with the couple ending up together and living happily every after.

If you like a story based in Hawaii, and a romance novel, then you can try this book out. Worth 3.5 stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

I was interested in this book for two reasons: I thought it was be a great summer-y read and I was very interested in the military and PTSD rep being from a military family. While it did accomplish these two points, this was just a huge disappointment. Maybe I wasn't the best audience, I'm not sure but I could not recommend this book to anyone.

I understand that we read romance for the feels, but ya girl needs it to still be realistic, otherwise give me magical realism or fantasy. If it's not either of those, I need the plot to be realistic otherwise you completely lose me. And there was just too much that wasn't realistic. In this story, our MC decides she needs to get away after a breakup with her on again off again boyfriend of many years. So she sets out for Hawaii by herself for a month. Which totally works because her super cool #girlboss lets her telework for the month. How Mia can afford a month in Hawaii on an editor's salary (because OF COURSE she's in editing, for a small local zine in Minnesota, no less because that's going to make you tons of money right?) - doesn't seem plausible. Not to mention that the whole time she's there she barely works at all, but her boss lets her then extend for another three weeks because of course she falls for the airbnb owner and must stay to spend more time with him. WHO can afford two months in Hawaii PLUS their rent back home on a small-town editor's salary?!? *rolls eyes* Oh and during this period her mom and BFF just decide to surprise her and show up because after only two weeks she lies to them and tells them that she's dating someone and they have to see for themselves so they fly out for like 2.5 days from Minnesota because THAT'S plausible. Welp, now she has to keep up the facade so enter in the dumbest fake dating scenario that dissolves two seconds later when she decides to tell her mom and friend the truth. UGH people just COMMUNICATE! I just can't. Oh and some random townie just hands her kid over to Mia to babysit after TWO WEEKS of knowing them? WTF, just no.

Aside from all of the above the writing just wasn't good. I believe this is a debut for the author so I am hopeful that her writing will improve as she continues working in this field but it just read very juvenile.

The PTSD rep was good and the military sub-plot was unique which I appreciate. We also love that our hero FINALLY went to therapy. More men in therapy please! But otherwise, this was a story that has been written a million times before.

I'm sure die-hard romance readers will fawn over this, so if that's you, then go for it. I can't say that I would recommend to anyone though.

The Ohana Cottage is about Mia who recently broke up with her long-term boyfriend and went to Hawaii to take a break from everything back home. She rents a cottage from John who is a Army veteran where intends to stay until she knows what she wants to do next in life.

Mia and John are complete opposites.
John is quite, reserved and suffers from severe PTSD which makes it hard for him to lead his social life the way it was before joining the Army.
Mia, however, is extoverted and outgoing. She tries to help John regain contoll over his life and integrate him properlly back into society. During this, Mia and John get closer and closer and eventually fall in love with one another.

If you are looking for a simple, lovely short read with summer vibes you should maybe give this book a go.

📚 Review for “The Ohana Cottage”
By: Megan Reinking

Book at a glimpse:
😐☀️ Reserved Male/Sunshine
👱🏻‍♂️👱🏻‍♀️ Dual POV
🏝Close Proximity (neighbors)
🌊Fake Dating
🌺Hawaii
🪖Military Male ❤️
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Steam: 🔥 (Kiss to closed door)

⚠️TW: PTSD and Iraq Combat Vet

Mia, recently broken up from her long time boyfriend and embarked on a self reflection journey to Hawaii. She booked an Air BNB that was hosted by John, an Iraq war combat veteran suffering from PTSD. They instantly found each other attractive and after spending time with Mia (because she told her family she was now dating the reserved, *hot* tenant), John realized she was special. As he suffered PTSD from a tragedy in Iraq, he hasn’t been able to feel himself since his honorable discharge. Mia happened to be the first thing to help him *feel* since returning home.

Slowly, he begins to open up. But the conflict becomes harder when they both question, can he come to terms with the past and really open up, or will his barriers be too much to take on?

When I saw the preview for this book on @netgalley, I was instantly drawn to the storyline because of the Hawaiian setting and the military hero. As a military spouse, I was hesitant and expectant going into this novel but really loved how Megan Reinking navigated the conflict. I love that she brought mental health issues to her platform and prioritized seeking help and normalizing therapy.

Rounded up to 4 stars because it is a great storyline idea and I loved the idea so much I wanted more 🤗. Would love even deeper character development and even more thoughts and feelings. But Megan did an outstanding job for her first novel. What an accomplishment! Hope to see more from this author!

Thank you @NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Book:The Ohana Cottage
Author: Megan Reinking
Pub Date: 6/2/22
Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Review~

The Ohana Cottage is a fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, and vacation romance. This book is the perfect summer read!!

Mia just got over a breakup and decided to take a break and leave Minnesota to go on vacation in Hawaii all alone. John is the owner of the cottage she is staying at.

John is a very grumpy person who has a load of baggage. He is a very closed off person. John and Mia started to see each other often and maybe she could be the one to change him to being more open.

Overall this book was so cute and fun to read. It is the perfect romance to read in the summer. I highly recommend reading this book!!

This book was a simple and cute romance and I really enjoyed it from start to end. Whilst the first chapter felt like a list, the rest of the book picked up until the inevitable 75% romance breakup. For this book, it just seemed like it didn't quite fit and was just brought in to cause conflict that was unnecessary.

I, for one, loved the chemistry between the pair throughout the entire novel, not up until a certain point. Mia had just enough wit to battle with John and still make the book the perfect summer read.

The PTSD element is not something I had seen before in a novel, and whilst I dont know anyone with PTSD, it seemed to be written in fairly well and accurately.

Overall, this is a cute, short summer read and I really enjoyed it, even past the 75% breakup. If anyone is looking for a quick-paced summer read, just know, you've found one with the Ohana Cottage.

This sounded it would be right up my alley, but sadly was not for me!

Thank you Netgalley for the ability to read this!

I was able to finish The Ohana Cottage in one evening. Set in Hawaii, it made me wanting to hit up the beach at sunset with a fresh papaya!

The beginning stages of Mia and John’s relationship seemed forced (I would’ve been more drawn to the flirty bartender who actually spoke to me!) but as the book picked up so did their chemistry.

I love reading a dual POV, however the character perspectives were written quite similarly, they didn’t feel overly unique from each other despite them having two entirely different personalities. There was more telling than showing, which made it difficult to get to know these characters beyond surface level.

Overall it was cute, fun and easy to read! I just wish the Mia and John had some more depth to their characters.

A cute, dual POV, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity summer romance set in Hawaii, with a splash of ‘fake dating’ at the beginning? Sold!

Bubbly, all-American girl Mia Taylor travels to Hawaii, in desperate need for an escape after breaking up with her on and off again boyfriend, Sean. There she meets John Byrd, a closed off army vet, who also happens to be her (very attractive) Airbnb host 👀

This was a short & sweet read and I really enjoyed it! I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a quick, easy read to get you out of a reading slump. I do wish there was a bit of spice but I loved the characters together, loved the beautiful descriptions of Hawaii (currently dreaming about a solo trip to Hawaii where I hopefully meet a sexy, mysterious man and fall in love……) and I loved the ending! I also appreciated that the author touches on mental health (PTSD) and addresses it in a way that felt really authentic.

I saw that this is book 1 in “The Hawaiian Getaway” series and I think I can guess who the next book will be about... Looking forward to reading more from this author!

The Ohana Cottage seemed like a promising story about two people who were really lost and their journey to finding themselves. I especially wanted to pick this book up because the main character, Mia lives in MN just like me. I always love to have little connections with the characters. As a debut novel from Megan Reinking, it was a good start. But I can’t overlook the major issues I had with this book either.

Mia lacks boundaries with everyone she meets, especially with John, the other love interest. I normally wouldn’t have an issue with Mia being so over the top but John is very clearly suffering with PTSD and her behavior with him seems completely inappropriate and unhelpful. However, the writing suggests that there’s just something uniquely special about Mia that somehow majorly changes John and his issues in a matter of days….and I just don’t buy it. I feel like it’s really making light of those who struggle with severe trauma. Characters truly felt surface level and I felt that the writing was focused more on telling instead of showing. For example, we were told a character went to therapy and was working on their issues but we didn’t get to see any of those changes. Mia’s ex boyfriend and that whole relationship didn’t even need to exist in this book, it added nothing to the story and her ex wasn’t even part of this book. I guess what I’m trying to say is that although this book was a quick read, it wasn’t the book for me.

You’ll enjoy this book if you enjoy quick romance books with minimal plot and closed door romance. You also may enjoy this book if you like vacation romances.

3.5 stars. Cute, quick beach read. I finished it in one evening- literally a perfect vacation read. I enjoyed the characters and the setting. The typical 3rd act breakup was rather abrupt and then got resolved predictability. But overall a fun debut- I will keep my eye out for Megan Reinking’s future books- hopefully Paige & Matt will get a book!

Hawaii is one of the top ultimate holiday destinations, and I cannot think of anything more romantic than going there alone for a month and finding out that I'm renting out my cottage from a handsome single man.

This is a cute romance story, a debut novel with its flaws and lacks, but it is a promising first book and I would definitely read more from the author. I particularly like the strong female character who is not afraid of initiating things and takes the first step. (And I can totally relate to the papaya obsession!)

Thank you NetGalley and Megan Reinking for this opportunity to read an Advance Review Copy.