The author has a great voice and Ruby walks the line between awkward and weird, and fun. The romance is a super slow burn and the village’s secondary characters hold their own.

Overall, there was a lot of telling when I needed to see important parts, like Ruby and Brochan’s conversations where they got to know each other. Anne is supposedly Ruby’s new friend but they only talk twice? I know a year is a long time to cover, but important sections were missing the necessary detail to keep me invested.

It was self indulgent at times. Her tartan dress is described and then in the same scene she complains about romance novels where the woman’s clothes are described. C’mon. The food and whisky descriptions were great while uneven pacing, a rushed resolution, and confusion over the point of the book made me frustrated.

Ruby Spencer's Whisky Year by debut author R. Bilow, published by Berkley Publishing Group, is a great read, a well written, beautifully thought out and beautifully told story that I enjoyed reading from start til the last page.
Ruby Spencer is a restless woman who's already through a lot. And now she's moving to Scottish Highlands for one year - writing a cookbook. Who wouldn't not, giving the opportunity?
And then is there the male main character, Brochan. The bearded handyman is the perfect counterpart to Ruby's character.
A fantastic read, 5 stars.

GOODBYE FOREVER. MOVING TO SCOTLAND.

Well if I didn't enjoy the HECK out of this book. Brochan is the dreamiest MMC and I'm such a sucker for small town romance. Especially when it involves Scotland. I admired Ruby's tenacity in moving to a foreign country to start over after deciding her high stress job wasn't worth. We are all here for that energy.

The two main characters had time to grow and get to know each other, making their union that much sweeter. If you love Outlander, small town romance, open-door steam, and "let's save the local pub" energy- look no further!

I was so looking forward to reading this book, but sadly, I found it only just okay.

Ruby quits her job as a food writer, where she's worked successfully for years, to spend a year in Scotland writing a cookbook. She moves to a small town and almost immediately develops a thing for the hot local handyman (as one does). There's love, found family, and a journey of self-discovery—all the standard themes that making "moving abroad" stories so cozy.

Unfortunately, I just didn't think this book was fleshed out well. The relationship went from 0 to 100 without the two characters ever really speaking, so it didn't feel very believable. Pacing was clunky. Also, the MC had a bit of a wide-eyed ingenue thing going at times that I thought didn't match up with the rest of her character. It was a fine book, overall enjoyable enough that I don't regret reading it, but ultimately I do believe it was underdeveloped.

I'd give this 2.5-3 stars.

What a great wonderful debut!! This is one of the those books that seriously becomes one’s very own comfort read. I loved it so much. It was a cozy, fun and a very light read sort of romance that gave me all the giggles and butterflies. I can’t enough for it to be out and about in the world so that I can start recommending it

A charming debut that really grew on me as it went along! There was a moment, early on, when it felt like the dialogue was almost a little too repetitive — how many times does the heroine need to make vague exclamations about being in Scotland? — but once that dropped off, the rest of the book flowed much more for me as a reader and it was all too easy to fall into the immersive setting. Bilow has written a wonderful, cozy romance with a terrific setting that made me want to pack up and travel immediately. I wasn't completely sold on the third-act dark moment — I think Ruby and Brochan both should have done a little more making up to one another after that, and there wasn't enough page count left over for anything significant — but overall one of the best debuts of the year for me so far!

It was fine but I just had trouble getting into it. I don't think I was in the right mood for it at the time

I adored Ruby Spencer's Whisky Year-- so lush, and descriptive, it felt just like being back in one of the little Scottish towns that have haunted me in the very best way since I visited in 2019. If you like your romances with a side of self-discovery, windy isles, and mouth-watering food descriptions, don't miss this one!

Definite slow burn on this one, and those drive me crazy, lol. Not as steamy as I usually like, but it was a sweet story set in Scotland. I loved the food aspect of the story and wished a few recipes where included in the back of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

CW: death of a parent (childbirth, past, side-character), parental abandonment (past, side-character), family tensions

Ruby Spencer had it all in New York. A great job, dates, but she's restless and decides to Eat, Pray, Love her life, giving it all up and move to Scotland for a year to write a cookbook. She lands in a cozy cottage, befriending the local barkeep, the town mayor, and most importantly the local buff and bearded handyman.

This was very much Ruby's story as she figured out what she wanted out of life, her relationships, and realizing she didn't need to settle for any aspects of her life. She finds a found family with the townspeople as she finds herself in the middle of town of the town drama. I really enjoyed the slow burn romance with Brochran as they both figure out how to love with all of their past hurts. The romance was soft and just a great addition as Ruby learns it's okay to start over and find your place at any age.

I really enjoyed the tone of this one, the style of the writing. I am immersed and honestly debated multiple times while reading quitting my job and moving to Scotland.


Steam: 3

An American food writer rents a cottage in Scotland, sight unseen, to spend the next year writing a cookbook, trying all the whisky, and maybe finding a hot Scotsman. In exchange for room and board, Ruby puts in some hours at the adjacent pub, which conveniently has the kitchen her cottage lacks. The pub has some good whiskey and a friendly vibe, if a little quiet… and then a local guy shows up as the handyman at proprietor Grace’s request, to make a few minor repairs to the flophouse, as the cottage is affectionately known, and Ruby is smitten.

Overall, I liked this book and the story but I felt like a few things were missing from the story.

This was a very cute book! I really enjoyed Ruby's story and how she was trying to become a person who she was proud of and do what she was good at. I loved that the setting of this was Scotland because it all just sounded so beautiful. Ruby goes to Thistlecross and starts working on her cookbook. She encounters a little town full of fun characters and it doesn't hurt that the town handyman, Brochan, is good looking. This definitely gave me grumpy/sunshine vibes (for those of us who like that trope). Since she's working on a cookbook I would have loved for recipes to be included because I am a huge sucker for that. Overall, I really liked this story and can't wait to read more from this author in the future.

This book provided a charming and wonderful look into living in a small Scottish town. The people that become family and the place that becomes a home. It all warms you heart as you follow Ruby’s journey and can’t help routing for her to get everything she wants from life. It was refreshing to read about a woman in her mid-thirties feeling totally lost, recognizing that in herself and making the choice to seemingly start over in a place she has never been. It was inspiring and a joy. I now desperately want to visit Scotland and eat everything from Ruby’s cookbook! I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone looking for a story about love , friendship, and finding out place in the world wherever that may be.

Delicious food recipes, fantastic settings as dreamy cottage in a tiny Scottish highlands, a chance to taste barrels of Scotch and charismatic, handsome Scottish man! Isn’t this book definition just like the definition of stairway to heaven! Food critic Ruby Spencer didn’t buy a stairway to heaven but she definitely rented that lovely and also a little dilapidated cottage by changing her scenery from Manhattan and Scotland to get more inspiration for her new book!

Her muse is definitely reserved, sulking, bearded, handy man Brochan stops by to fix things in her place. Both of them carry their own heavy baggages from their past relationships. They eventually become friends and of course when the attraction is palpable, they cannot resist to want more than friendship!

This book was a little slow for my taste, it dragged a lot and there are some repetitive chapters. Ruby also nagged me a lot with her actions that violated Brochan’s trust.

But overall the settings, the recipes , the attraction between Ruby and Brochan were positive strengths of the book I wanted to focus on. I’m rounding up my 3.5 stars to 4 enjoyable, dreamy Scottish and whiskey in the jar dum a doo, dum a da stars!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I enjoyed Ruby's story and what isn't to love about Scotland and hot Scottish men? I loved the town and the townspeople. I was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon.

Major props to Ruby Spencer, the main character in Ruby Spencer’s Whiskey Year, by Rochelle Bilow. Ruby comes out of the year with a new home, a new man, and a new career. If I had a year of whiskey, I’d just come out paler and more bloated than when I went in.

Seriously, I absolutely adored this contemporary romance which did include more than a few homages to whiskey, but also gave us wonderful food writing, very swoony attraction between the main characters, some wonderful secondary characters who create Ruby’s found family, and compelling descriptions of rural Scotland. Like very compelling. Like, I looked up cottages on AirBNB compelling.

Alongside the romance, Bilow charts Ruby’s journey after she purposefully sets herself adrift – leaving New York City and landing in a strange town in rural Scotland. Ruby’s goal is to transform her career from food writer to writing her first cookbook. Bilow’s experience in the food writing industry lends itself to her visceral and incredibly appealing descriptions of not just food, but also the art and soul of cooking for others. Ruby is my kind of heroines, a mature, sensible adult. Her decisions all had reasons behind them and consequences afterward. Her hero, Brochan, is a GORGEOUS BEARDED SCOTTISH HANDYMAN. So, that’s all I have to say about that. Except, yumm.

I highly recommend the contemporary romance filled with loveable characters, a bit of life wisdom, and descriptive writing that will make you want to start your own whiskey year.

This was a good story that I think library patrons will enjoy. It was little overlong and could have done with some extra editing, but the characters were enjoyable.

Escape to the Scottish highlands for a romance full of delightful secondary characters who you wish were your neighbors. For fans of Jenny Colgan and Diana Gabaldon, Ruby Spencer's Whiskey Year is a fun escape with a heavy dose of self discovery.

3.8.
I love the way she talks about food, but found that to be the highlight of an otherwise cute but average story. And I hate the cover. Just hate it.

This romance was a total delight. I want to live in Thistlecross. I was both parts hungry and swooning over Bilow's writing. I will absolutely be suggesting this read for my Romance Book Group!