This was charmingly written and sweet to read. It took a bit to get into it but once I was I really enjoyed it.

First of all thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this in advance.
I loved the premise of the book and I went into it knowing it would be a cute and fun romance read and hoping for a happy ending. But I loved it way more than I expected.
I see myself in Gigi in the way she hopes for the best and daydreams for a story, for a connection. When she said "I want a story. If I can't have a story, I'd rather be reading my book", I was like omg this is me!
I loved all the different characters we met in this story from her friend Dory, to the other bus tour passengers (some were impossible not to love like Charlotte, others were an incredible surprise like Jenny and Francis) and the love interest... I saw it coming when the tour started but then I got conflicted. But I knew where Gigi's happy ending was and it was super adorable.
Gonna end this with another quote of Gigi that I absolutely love and that it represents my love for reading... "There's never a need to read, there's just a desire. At least for me"❤️

3.5 STARS - Gigi, Listening, the new book by Canadian author Chantel Guertin, follows Gigi Rutherford, an American romance bookshop owner who finds solace after losing her parents by repeatedly listening to the dulcet tones of the audiobook actor who narrates the book that brought her parents together decades before.

For her thirtieth birthday, her friends send her on a ten-day trip in England where, none other than Zane, the audiobook narrator, will be the bus tour's guide. Gigi imagines their own meet cute, but things don't go according to plan in this story that is a blend of a travelogue, a journey of self-discovery and a sweet but tame romance with a side of slightly creepy stalking.

This is a slow burn and rather chaste romance that had its sweet moments and some good banter between Gigi and another character. But I often felt bad for Gigi and her over-the-top obsession with Zane that made her seem more like a teenage BTS superfan, than a 30-year-old business owner. Her issues felt overbearing at times, but the addition of a quirky group of secondary characters - a delightful band of misfits - brought some enjoyable levity. I particularly loved the vivid descriptions of England - I even jotted down a few places to add to my itinerary for a (hopefully) upcoming trip to that country.

This is a story about the impact of grief and learning to step outside your comfort zone to live your life to the fullest. Fun, predictable and a great pick for light romance loving travelers who want a bit of an escapist read set in the beauty of England.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Kensington Books for my advanced digital copy which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

Gigi owns a bookstore that she inherited from her late parents. She is obsessed with the voice of a romance audiobook that started her parent's love story.
Although her friends have encouraged her to go on dates, she can't get Zane out of her head and heart. When her friend gets her a trip to Irland on tour Zane works on it for her birthday. She's scared but ready to start her own love story.

The premise of this story was super intriguing because one asks if will she fall for Zane or someone else on that your. The adventure is endless

Gigi makes more friends and takes on new things - which is what we want to see

I loved the twist and turns and the world they won't they. As well as the mystery of Zane however I do wish Gigi was a little more grounded in reality.

She hung on to Zane for a way to long for that to be healthy however the lovely thing was the growth she made and the realizations - Although I felt it took too long to happen it did happen which was glorious

A sweet read that shows us how women can grow and flourish out of grief

Oh my heart!!!! This was exactly what I needed. I loved Gigi. I LOVED this premise and story line. I loved the writing.

This was just rom-com done PERFECTLY.

Absolutely adorable book!! I loved the story and how the characters’ lives intertwined during the tour. And the setting has me dreaming of taking a UK bus tour!
“Mishaps make memories. But don’t let the rest of the story pass you by or you might find an ending you don’t like.” I’m so glad it was a great ending for Gigi.

Gigi, Listening by Chantel Guertin, was just a fun light hearted read and I enjoyed Gigi and her love for love and her trip to London to meet someone who she is sure is her soulmate. She meets amazing people on her 10 day bus tour, and the experience she has and how she is a different version of herself at the end of the tour.

Thank you @kensigntonbooks and @netgalley for the gifted galley. This book releases on March 28, 2023 and is a perfect addition to read on your spring break!

I love how real this story was. The plot isn't far fetched and straight-out-of-movie as the blurb made it seem (and what it felt like initially) I adore the characters who are so well fleshed out and Gigi is a great MC.

The author (Chantel Guertin) took time to build a backstory for each side character which helps us to connect (there are quite a lot). These lovely people fill in the puzzle and bring out the big picture.

What I disliked the most was the lack of development and reasoning behind Zane's behaviour. I believe that the characters and descriptive settings (which are so well written) were fantastic but the external event was lacking and wasn't memorable.

This is…fine? It has some good things going for it: bookstore owner, tropey romance, England holiday, etc etc. Unfortunately, it just falls flat. I could not get into the main plot line of tracking someone down because of their voice—it felt a bit creepy, tbh! There were some cute moments and it was okay to listen to, so I can’t fault it too much. I wouldn’t rush to recommend this one to anyone.

2.75⭐️

I loved the characters and themes of this novel. It was engrossing and I loved that it was true and a non spicy romance (something I find lacking in romance novels these days)

Instead it was a balm and calming to see the romance blossom between Gigi and her love interests. Furthermore. This contemporary romance was focused around bookstores and tours which were excellent settings.

I’ve always enjoyed my experience in London and this novel was written in a wonderful way.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this e-review copy!

Gigi goes on a spontaneous tour of England to meet the man of her dreams in person.

Please keep reading to the end, but I just have to say first off that Gigi's obsession with Zane based solely on his voice, and the fact that she is now going to meet him without him knowing anything about her by taking one of his tours, seemed very stalker-ish to me and was very off-putting. HOWEVER...

Once I forced myself to get over that, I did enjoy the book! I enjoyed the fact that Gigi was a book-lover and owned a book shop. I loved touring England with her, and absolutely adored the characters on the tour with her. I appreciated the fact that we were able to get to know more about the other characters and even saw some growth from some of them. Some of the places that they visited and stayed at seemed absolutely charming and made me want to visit England even more than I already do. I will say that Gigi's aversion to churches, while it did play an important part in the development of the plot, was not very believable.

With all that being said, I would still recommend this book to anyone looking for a charming, light read set in England. Bear in mind that although a relationship does develop, it was very subtle so the book didn't really feel like much of a romance. However it was still a good read, especially if you've caught the travel bug but have no plans to travel any time soon! Gigi, Listening is available March 28th, 2023.

Thank you to NetGalley the publisher, and the author for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Gigi Rutherford goes to London for a 10 day bus tour of the English countryside to meet Zane, her favorite audiobook narrator and potential soulmate. Along the way, she meets a quirky group of travelers on the tour and Taj, the bus driver. In the end, will Zane be the one?

This was such a cute romance with a touch of self-discovery along with way. It was very quick and easy to read. Books about book lovers are always so fun and this one did not disappoint. Gigi owns a bookstore and loves romance novels. I loved the book references throughout the story. I got excited to see the names of books and authors I’ve read before!

I was a little nervous that I was not going to like Gigi because her obsession with Zane could be seen as borderline stalker behavior in the beginning but she turned out to be a great main character! She had so much personal growth throughout the book. The travelers that Gigi met on the trip were so unique in their own way and I enjoyed how each got their own backstory. It added so much depth to the story.

I’d recommend this book to those who like to read rom coms and books about book lovers!

Gigi owns a bookstore that had belonged to her parents. She only sells romance books and has her own ideas of her dream man. She believes he's the narrator of a book that meant a lot to her parents love story. She's obsessed with Zane's voice and researches him on the internet and believes he's the man for her. Zane's family run a tour bus business in England. For her 30th birthday, Gigi's friends buy her a tour as a gift and her opportunity to meet Zane. Gigi heads to England hoping to find her ever after. Good main story with the side stories of the other passengers on the bus.

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

I really enjoyed Gigi, Listening. Gigi is 30 and as a birthday gift from her friends, they sign her up for a bus tour in England led by the narrator of her favorite audiobook, Zane. When she gets to the tour, things don’t go as planned and he doesn’t show up. So for the first few days of the tour we get to meet all of the other people on the tour with Gigi, including the bus driver Taj. They don’t get off on the right foot but one thing leads to another and Gigi has conflicting feelings for Zane and Taj.

I really liked that this story was spread over the 10 days of the bus tour, with different stops along the way. It reminded me of a bus tour I took last summer, except mine didn’t have any romance.

There were parts of this book where I laughed and parts where I cried. I would recommend this book!

GIGI, LISTENING is a sweet, fast-paced romance with plenty of book and travel-worthy descriptions to entice readers. Gigi falls in love with the voice of the narrator of her favorite romance novels so her friends send her on a tour of England in which he is the guide. There are colorful characters on the tour bus with her and, as can be expected, the tour guide/Voice is not quite as Gigi expected. A classic rom-com with an easy flow even if few real surprises. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

I love GiGi! Falling in love with a voice on an audiobook is so endearing, Tracking him down in another country is a tad bit nutty. When Gigi friends gift her the trip for her birthday she leaves behind the stress of her everyday life for the adventure. Will meeting her "crush" end with the happily every after her beloved romance books all offer or will he be the toad that doesn't turn into a prince?

After reading this book I wanted to sign un for a bus tour immediately!!

I was so looking forward to reading this book but I'm so sorry and disappointed that it didn't work for me. Especially because it's from one of my favourite publishers.

The plot is so interesting. But it's slow paced (mainly because of uninteresting events and unnecessary conversations).
I wish Gigi hadn't found Zane's profile on social media. I began to lose interest the moment she found everything about him.

This was such a fun read! I enjoyed Gigi's backstory -being a bookshop owner (with only romance books!), in Ann Arbor MI (right up the street from me) - and all the references to different romance authors. It kept me engaged and connected as the story progressed.

The obsession over the audiobook narrators voice being such a huge part of this storyline felt a little over the top/unhealthy to me at times. I understand it in the context of setting up the story and progressing the narrative, but that was one part of the FMC that I couldn't quite relate to.

This is the first book that I've read by this author, but I'll definitely be checking out some of her other work. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy to read and review.

This was a nice read. I didnt love it but i did not hate it either. It was an interesting piece of material. But good nonetheless!

This was like an amalgamation of all the romance books mentioned in passing, but with no spice and very little chemistry. I wanted so much more ... SOMETHING. I liked all the characters but I loved nothing in particular.