I really liked this book. Sure, the MC was a depressed mess that swore men because she’d been hurt. She mistakenly started a movement she wasn’t ready to lead. But she was realistic and owned up to all her shortcomings. She realized she misled people and she faces it. The poor way she treats others is a reflection of how bad she feels about herself and I like how she gradually comes to this realization. She isn’t perfect but an example that everyone can and should strive to do better. It would have been nice to see her more fleshed out but I got the message of the story and I enjoyed it. The book had its weak points (exes all met at one place the SAME day?) but overall I really thought it was a nice read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of THE SECOND YOU'RE SINGLE by Cara Tanamachi. This book was so cute and fun. I devoured it in about twenty-four hours. Jack, the MLI, was so hot and sweet and very easy to root for. Sora, the FlI, was hilarious, just such a voicey narrator and so relatable, especially with her deep love of bacon and her adorable one-eyed dog. These two had so much banter and tension and longing and it was great. I also loved the theme of Sora's growth—that she needed to learn how to take risks and "be the nail" and go out and get what she wanted in life. It was just a lovely read all around.

I haven’t read anything by Cara Tanamachi before but I will definitely be looking for further books from her. Thoroughly enjoyed every moment spent lost in this delightful rom-com that was well written and kept my interest all the way through. #Highlyrecommend!

rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️.5

Tropes:
-friends to strangers to lovers
-second chance
-he falls first

This was a fun and quick read! This is a new to me author so I was excited to jump in!

Sora is a witty and funny character, i feel like i relate to her in ways so it was easy to want to see what she was going to do next. I loved the empowerment she had “sticking it” to the commercial side of Valentines Day. It helped her peers feel heard and helped her work through her struggles regarding the holiday too! Once Sora decides she is staying single for the month of February... BAM! in walks someone from her past that may just put a wrinkle in her "going solo" movement.

Jack is a freak lumberjack teddy bear that i just want to snuggle forever. DID I MENTION HE BAKES!?!? there is no need to say more with that… he is perfection.

Sora and Jack must navigate their rekindling and see if they are ready for relationships. Will sora be able to give up her singles movement and truly enjoy all the things Jack can give her? You’ll have to read it to find out!

You should read this if you love a good friends to strangers to lovers, second chance, he falls first and an adorable one eyed rescue pitty 🥺

Thank you to netgalley, St. Martins Press and Cara Tanamachi for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

Sora deserves love. She deserves a lot more than she has been given in the past. She also deserves a great family and needs to work through turmoil within those relationships. When Jack (re)enters her life, it could be her dream come true and all she deserves. But, he has some strange entanglements that can prevent it going forward. I recommend this sweet book to someone who wants a happy, quick read.

The Second You're Single by Cara Tanamachi was seriously a cute romance debut!

(I'm going to keep this one shirt and sweet and a bit different than my usual reviews...)
In a nutshell, I loved this book and everything about it!

❤️ Sora and Jack are so cute and their journey was a fun one to follow
❤️ Freelance writer/muscle-bound baker.... Can we say awesome?!
❤️ Friends-to-Lovers
❤️ Writing is compelling and fresh
❤️ Heartwarming rom-com that absolutely stole my heart
❤️ The story is well-written, engaging and delightful on all levels
❤️ Tanamachi's writing style drew me in straightaway
❤️ Adorb pitbull
❤️ Fun-Filled & Delightful
❤️ Inhaled this one in maybe 4 sittings
❤️ I will definitely be picking up her books in the future!

I'm so excited to add a new author to my "instant buy" list.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

St. Martin's Griffin,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this eARC!

The Second You're Single has some redeeming qualities to it, but most of it tended to grate on me. Sora is not good at relationships, as evidenced by some seriously bad news boyfriends and an ex-husband that leaves a lot to be desired. When she runs into said ex-husband at the grocery story with his kale-obsessed, Lulemon wearing stick of a girlfriend, she implodes. Then decides to turn it into a story for the magazine she writes for. Her editor loves it so much that she wants to turn it into a full month blog experience. It's perfectly timed for February, where her least favorite holiday of the year, Valentine's Day, resides. The problem with having a short-sighted blow-up and presenting it to the world without thinking it through is that when it blows up in your face you either try and fail to succeed at it, or you end up with egg on your face. And that's precisely what happens when less than two weeks into her month long solo adventure she reconnects with childhood friend Jack. Jack, it turns out, is pretty amazing, and has a huge crush on Sora. So the two get jiggy with it, and Sora increasingly makes excuses, and puts herself in an awkward place with Jack trying to stay on brand. She's also a sloth, who makes poor personal choices (besides publicly swearing off dating) and tends to assume the worst of everyone. Some of this is through no fault of her own, as her mother basically told her to be agreeable growing up so she didn't anger her father. And her sister Nami is a female sibling version of their father, accusing Sora of being selfish while being wrapped up in her own little world and expecting people to accommodate her. The ending was a nice recovery, and I loved the secondary sideline about Jack's niece being a cancer survivor. But I didn't like most of the characters. I thought the obsession with bacon was over-the-top. And the need to point out that every character that didn't qualify as a villain was part Japanese and part something else was weird. I appreciate diversity in characters, but it needs to be organic instead of a listing of their ancestry. I know this was trying to be fun and a shout out for everyone who hates Valentine's Day (I do, actually), but this story just fell flat for me. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I adored this witty, humorous, creative and well-written rom com. Fierce and fun to read. Brilliantly plotted and executed.

I really like the overall idea of this book, but I found the story fell flat for me. I wanted to like this book, but it did not work. I feel like I need to see more of Sora and Jack as kids. Quite honestly, I did not buy them necessarily ending up together only because I thought there was a lack of character development. I spent a chunk of the book wanting to feel like they should be together, and I just didn’t feel it.
Thank you, Netgalley and St Martin's press, for this arc.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This had a great premise but it fell s little flat. I wish there was more dimension to the characters and their relationship.

This was a childhood friends to lovers book that just didn’t hit the mark for me. Thank you to Netgalley for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review, all opinions expressed are my own.

The beginning was so cute, modern and full of potential. After the love interests become physical that’s where the plot sank for me. Sora came off too unlikeable and the unnecessary obstacles just felt like filler plot points. Jack’s character and his family dynamics were great.

Jack and Sora. Cute premise. Sora is a freelance writer who comes up with an idea for “solo February” right before she runs in to an old classmate, Jack, who apparently had a huge crush on her growing up. That could be plenty on its own, but this story throws in exes on both sides who don’t quite want to let things go, a nosy boss, overbearing mother, bridezilla sister, and a few other obstacles. It just got…tiring to read. And when Jack jumps straight to falling in love, when in Sora’s words it’s been “a nanosecond” I just…was disappointed it went the immediately-in-love trope. And frankly disappointed at Jack’s inability to pick up on any of Sora’s hints, when she was very transparent about her job. And I was bummed she let herself obsess over a man, instead of working on herself, which was the whole point. And further frustrated by the miscommunication that happened, like clockwork, 78% of the way in. I know it’s a formula. But come on Sora. Anywho. it was still a cute read, but I wish it had sucked me in more.

What a charming book, and I highly recommend if you are reading this to stop and go to your local bookstore and pick up this book - because it is so perfect for the holidays (even though it is about Valentine's day...) ! I believe that It is a truth universally acknowledged that anyone who reads this book will find it absolutely unputdownable! Cara Tanamachi is a new author to me, but I now will read everything she writes, and I will continue to do so. Forever. What a wonderful, fun romance! I think everyone would enjoy the sweetness, funniness, (and it is brilliantly funny), the fun and spectacles of this book, while appreciating all the while the simplicity of true love and of this well-plotted love story. Wonderful, captivating writing gives this novel the depth and ability to pull in any reader. Vivid, descriptive story-telling, with interesting characters that have depth to them, and are skillfully rendered. At the end of the book, they seemed more like friends than book characters to me. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough because I JUST HAD TO KNOW how it ended. I highly recommend this author and I can't wait to own this novel in print.

I loved The Second You're Single by Cara Tanamachi. I've lived in Chicago all my life and like the mc, I am also an Asian woman who doesn't fit the stereotypical viewpoint of how Asian woman look. This book gave me so much hope and also made me feel good about myself, and now I think I might be able to find love someday too. The way I'm writing this review makes it sound so serious, but this book is very lighthearted and humorous.

I love the storyline of the romance about how the two people came together and he takes care of her when she isn't feeling good this book was approved by netgalley and the publisher.

After declaring Solo February, naturally the next minute Sora is going to run across a "sexy lumberJack in an apron over a red plaid flannel shirt" in the grocery store. Because that's just how that works.

Please tell me Michael Buble's Haven't Met You Yet is playing in the background.

Overall this was cute, but it felt like there was a lack of substance. I would love some more elementary school flashbacks because I just don't know if I'm buying the instalove on this one. We didn't really get a chance to see beyond that. There were silly moments. Like when they were talking about the fake wedding....llamas for flower girls and how he had the stomach full of bees because he was crushing on her. But we didn't really see too much depth from Sora or Jack. The story focused on the drama in past relationships rather than them moving forward together.

All in all, this is a fairly light hearted quick romcom, best served with brunch. Extra bacon.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my review!

*ARC Review*

I just could not get into this book. From the start I had a lot of trouble acclimating to the female lead, Sora. I found her humor to be a bit harsh, her obsession with bacon to be overboard (I love bacon but I don't feel the need to bring it up consistently), and I found her friend's name troubling. While Arial is a cute name, I could not stop thinking about the font.

The banter did not feel genuine, I did not care for the storyline, and I was sick of the characters from the beginning.

Seriously good! This book was a fantastic romantic comedy. The characters were lovable, and I was so sad when it ended. I loved it!

A cute Valentine rom-com if you can get past the extraneous details at the beginning. Everyone's flaws do tend to make it difficult to keep going but it is delightful and has some good messages if you make it to the end.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC.