Review of The Do-Over by Sharon M. Peterson – ★★★★★

The Do-Over is an absolute gem that masterfully captures the humor and heartache of starting anew after an embarrassing breakup. Our protagonist's journey, fueled by her anti New Year’s resolutions, is both relatable and inspiring. It’s a refreshing take on self-discovery that speaks to anyone who's ever felt the weight of expectations.

Nate, the intriguing neighbor with a mysterious scar, adds a delicious twist to the story. Their chemistry is electric, and the banter is hilarious, making their fake relationship feel like a whirlwind of fun and emotion. I loved how their connection blossomed, proving that sometimes the best relationships come from unexpected beginnings.

What truly sets this book apart is its heartwarming message about self-acceptance and the importance of living life on your own terms. The balance between humor and genuine emotion kept me hooked from start to finish. Sharon M. Peterson has a knack for creating characters that feel real, making you cheer for them every step of the way.

Overall, The Do-Over is a delightful romantic comedy that leaves you with a smile and a warm feeling in your heart. It’s a perfect read for anyone looking for a story about love, laughter, and embracing who you really are.

— TL;DR: A delightful and inspiring romantic comedy about self-discovery, fake dating, and embracing authenticity, with relatable characters and plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. Highly recommend!

3.75⭐
Genre ~ contemporary fiction
Setting ~ Texas
Publication date ~ August 1, 2022
Est Page Count ~ 330 (48 chapters)
Audio length ~ 9 hours 18 minutes
Narrator ~ Elise Roth
POV ~ single 1st
Featuring ~ debut, awful mother, curvy girl, fake dating, single parent, friends to lovers, slow burn, no steamage

Perci (28) is a people pleaser, but she's ready to make a change when she's publicly humiliated by being dumped on the radio.

Each chapter begins with a funny Mimi~ism. My favorites are:
"A good friend'll help ya bury the body. A great friend knows how much rat poison you'll need."
"Silence may be golden, but duct tape is silver and it's real cheap."
Besides these nuggets of wisdom, Mimi was a great grandma to have on your side.

I winced every time Perci's mom opened her mouth because I just knew a rude comment would come out. She's someone who is always worried about what someone thinks of her. Always has something to say about Perci's weight, love life and life decisions. She even still picks out her clothes! A real annoying meddler. Perci has had enough and has no choice but to pretend she is dating her unhandsome neighbor, Nate. Good thing he goes along with the plan.

Nate is raising 8 year old, Lilah. She's a great kid that knows fun facts like "kangaroos can't fart". I didn't know I needed to know this, but now I'm thrilled I do and you do, too. Nate is a pretty sweet guy and I can't even be mad at him for the 3rd act breakup because I can relate with him on this aspect personally.

Perci has a wonderful best friend, Mathias. He's so supportive and gives good advice. I'm glad he found his own happiness, too.

Overall, I really liked this debut. Light on the romance, which I didn't hate because it's more about personal growth and learning to love yourself for who you are.

A story about growth and gaining confidence in one’s self, this was a nice read and different from my usual books!

“When life gives you lemons, give them back and ask for grapes. You can make wine with grapes.”

Read if you enjoy
- Closed Door Romance
- Personal Growth
- Fake Dating
- Neighbors to Friends to lovers
- Plus Size FMC
- Single Dad
- One POV

Rating: 4⭐️

Things I loved:
- Mimi (grandma) and her Mimi-isms opening each chapter.
- A Cool Grandma with no filter and undeniable support for FMC. She was spunky and very down to earth. Loved her personality!
- Lots of comedic moments
- Growth of Perci through the story learning to grow into her own person, comfortable with changes.
- The anti-resolutions approach!
- Her relationship to her BFF, who was in love with her sister. You get a side storyline that’s enjoyable and fun to follow.

Things I didn’t love:
- The romance was not the main focus. I guess that was on me as I went into the story thinking it was going to have more of a role in the story.
- The way the conflict of the story was resolved. It was like brushed off. I felt the big issues were lightly addressed within the family. I guess it is the dynamics within the family and many may exist like that. This is really just my personal take on it.

Overall, a nice story to follow as we follow Perci gaining confidence and love being in her own skin.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

Sharon M. Peterson is a great wit. Perci is a fantastic narrator and all the characters feel so real. I laughed out loud many times and also cried, so you know it’s good. The only reason this isn’t a five star for me is that I wanted more of the romance part of the book. I loved the depth of the mother-daughter relationship and the added dimension of the family relationships, but I would have loved more scenes with the dating portion of the story. I just needed more! I need to know what Nate was studying! I’m going to be thinking about that and other delightful parts of this book for a long while.

Really wanted to get into this one but have read a lot of faking dating romance and this one fell short. May be over saturation on my part but just couldn’t immerse myself in the book!

This story took my by suprise! I expected a cute, standard romance but it was so much more than that! It was a story about a woman finding her place in life and becoming happy and satisfied! Such a great read :)

The Do-Over was just so much fun to read! I truly enjoyed my time reading this engaging book. Whilst predictable, it was no less charming !

4.25? stars

This was a fun romcom. I liked the plot and the major characters. The efforts the protagonist makes toward body acceptable and positivity are nice, and a lot of her challenges are relatable. I also love her name (Persephone!), and I mostly liked the way the relationship developed between her and her love interest. I’m looking forward to seeing what else the writer comes out with in the future.

It’s taken me a while to get round to reading this book, not sure why because the premise sounded great. The goods: I loved Mimi and all her Mimi-isms; I loved the premise; it was an easy read. I found the book passed a few hours but I wasn’t gripped by the storyline.

Absolutely loved this book!

The writing style was really good and I look forward to reading any other books from this author in the future :)

Perci is sick of making New Year’s resolutions and not sticking to them so following on from a break up she makes a list of anti resolutions. But can she stick to these and what will happen?

This book was laugh out loud funny. It was also so nice to have a realistic main character that ate all the food, that was not perfect and all round really nice. I also loved the fake dating troupe and how this all panned out - again this was really realistic. I really enjoyed the plot and how the character found herself over a number of months and enjoyed her life a lot more. This was a great read that I didn’t want to end. This was my first book by this author and I’d definitely read more.

Absolutely fantastic!! I found myself giggling and smiling to myself ALL the time while reading.
It is full of rom-com tropes and is the perfect book for almost any romance fan. Perci is discovering herself throughout the book and the journey she goes on could speak to anyone.
One of the standout qualities of the book is how well Peterson writes her characters. They all are wonderfully written, they all go on a personal journey along with the main character. I could sing praises for every one of them but ill limit myself.
Many authors fall flat when trying to write a plus-size main character, but Peterson did not miss it. It felt authentic the whole time and Perci felt like a real person who I just wanted to hug. She not only felt real at the beginning at her lowest but became a new person more confident in herself by the end. As much as I wanted her to make different decisions, she always made the one that was most realistic to what someone would really do.
I also loved Mimi and the little "mini-isms" at the beginning of each chapter reminded me of my grandfather and the "larry-isms" that my family tells. My overall favorite was Lilah. As someone who works with kids outside, she just captures "weird animal girl" energy.
I definitely will be keeping my eye on Shanon M Peterson to see what she writes new because I absolutely loved this book.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free ARC copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Especially heartwarming story, very relatable relationships and laugh out loud funny family moments. Full to the brim of moments that are tender, honest, sometimes tense and in places hilarious. I would recommend this book. Every chapter starts with a life advice quote from Mimi and it's something I looked forward to, for every single chapter; what a great thing to include.

The Do-Over is a fun, rom-com request kind of book. I loved reading about Perci and her witty sense of humor!!

This was a very light hearted romcom! I enjoyed The Do Over very much. When I read the description, I knew this was a book I’d immediately pick up and buy in the store. So I knew I had to have a chance to read the ARC. It was so enjoyable and adorable and so so sweet. I found myself laughing out loud while reading it. This is definitely a fave read of mine!

Absolutely loved this book!, who gets dumped over the radio like that and the fact her hairdresser didnt even know it was her being spoken about. Brilliant, - i had the audio-book as well as the ARC ebook from Netgalley and it worked brilliantly - it meant that i never missed out on this book if I wasn’t reading i was listening. Definitely one to recommend

I laughed from the very first chapter – the main character being publicly dumped on the radio is a great hook into a heart-warming romantic comedy.
And what a great name for a female MC – Perci! The Mimi quotes at the start of each chapter had me chuckling. I'd say they were the best bits, but I would be lying as there are so many "best bits", from the curvy heroine to the annoying sister, the awful parents, and the gorgeous Nate.
This will keep you entertained and is definitely a feel good, uplifting story.

I had the pleasure of reading the ARC of this book thanks to @netgalley and today is it's Release Day!

After a very public break-up, Perci creates an anti New Year's resolutions list to implement a do over in her life. Stop dating, Stop trying to lose weight, Stop trying to please her mother....some of these are easier said than done!

Perci is a delightful character and I really enjoyed her journey to take back her life. Her budding romance with her neighbor, Nate was sweet and I was definitely rooting for them. But the real stand-out in this book is the relationship between Perci and her mother. The complicated dynamics of their relationship were so real and raw. It made this book hit different than other rom-com books I've read recently.

And of course, I can't forget Perci's grandmother, Mimi. Each chapter starts with a quote from Mimi offering hilarious and insightful life advice.

Definitely pick this one up if you are looking for a fun read with a solid message about being true to yourself.

A little slow to get going, but stick with it. This was a breezy fun read with charming characters and a lovely slow burn. I especially loved Mimi's dry wit.

Overall—a great debut novel!