A quirky romance about a pregnant woman, her group of friends, and finding herself while experiencing the beautifully challenging world of motherhood.

Trish Kirkpatrick is all about her career, and then she finds out she is pregnant and not entirely sure who the father is. More than that, she is also coming to terms with her mental health and the impact that pregnancy has on her body.

With a ton of interesting messages, I was curious about where A Bumpy Year was taking me. Unfortunately, I feel like the plot lacked focus, talking a bit about everything and then about nothing at all.

It was still a fun read, just a bit underdeveloped.

This story was cute, but desperately needed to pick a lane as it was about everything and nothing simultaneously. There were several storylines happening in this book, that would’ve been just fine to stand on their own. First, there’s the story of found family, and Trish’s is EVERYTHING. I love how this group of friends have just taken each other in, and are unfailingly loving and supportive of each other regardless. There’s also the story of the woman who’s pregnant and the father could be one of two guys-classic Lifetime stuff right there. There’s the budding love story which is absolutely Hallmark quality content. Scott is adorable, but this plotline wasn’t as in the forefront of the story as it should’ve been-I wanted more. Finally, this story offered sort of a round about commentary on mental health. I feel like it had the ability to say some really powerful stuff on the matter, but it really didn’t cover the issue the way that it should’ve. Again, I wanted more.

I was given an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Head of Zeus. All opinions are my own.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Head of Zeus and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

I didn’t get into this one as much as I’d hoped. It was a nice enough book, just didn’t pull me in.

This book wasn't as good as I was expecting but it wasn't horrible. It would be a good book for a vacation/beach read where you want to be entertained but don't want to exert a lot of mental effort to follow the story

I started off this book in a bit of a slump but thankfully it gripped me almost straight away. The pacing was quick and nothing dragged, just a lot of giggling about pregnancy and men. I want to start of my review by providing a trigger warning for the book. This book does contain references to birth and mental health. I know in my case at least, I was surprised by how much I related to the main character Trish and her journey to motherhood.

‘A Bumpy Year’ starts off strong and I find the characters really enjoyable. I was sort of reminded of books like ‘The Love Hypothesis’ and ‘The Hating Game’ in its style and pacing. However Trish is a little older than the characters from those books and I found this story only relevant to me (I’m only 25 y’all) because I have two children and I’ve been through similar situations. If you haven’t been pregnant or single with a child, you might not really relate to the story. Just a warning.

What I will say about the plot, of course with no spoilers… is that I wouldn’t really consider this a romance. Just my personal opinion but Trish goes through self discovery, healing from trauma and journeying into motherhood. I was under the impression that this book would at least have spice and some sexual tension… but again, without spoilers I can safely say that it has zero. I actually really wish Scott had a lot more scenes and dialogue too. Maybe I’m just a bit perv but really for me there was just not nearly enough romance in this book. More like a sprinkle.

I guess it comes down to would I recommend this book and the answer is yes I would, especially to mothers and anyone over 30 who has a better chance of relating. There was some very funny dialogue and some cute scenes that make it well worth the lack of spice. I definitely will be looking out for this author again.

A Bumpy Year follows the story of Trish, a career-driven woman who finds herself unexpectedly pregnant and unsure of the father. What sounds like a salacious premise becomes a story of family, found and otherwise, love, and personal growth.

I had a lovely time reading this book. The slow burn romance was really sweet, and I loved the relationship between Trish and her friends. I also thought that Trish's family life and her depression were really well-explored.

I do wish that this novel had done a better job with Trish's interiority, though. She's a closed-off character, but often she will tell us she has felt a certain way only moments before... but we never see any evidence of that feeling. As a result, the emotional impact of her story becomes oddly muted. I also thought that her lack of self-awareness, particularly around her love life, was taken a bit too far.

That said, I really enjoyed my time with A Bumpy Year and read it quickly. I recommend it for anyone looking for a quick, enjoyable contemporary romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for giving me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.