Member Reviews
YALL. Run to this book! I absolutely LOVED it. It was so wholesome and such a feel good book. I highly highly recommend.
The Sweet Spot is such a fabulous book! I loved how the well-developed, quirky characters evolved throughout the book. The story begins from the viewpoint of Felicity, and although the entire story revolves around Felicity in one way of another, the reader does not come back in contact with Felicity’s viewpoint again until the epilogue. The ending ties the book up into a perfectly-wrapped story that leaves you with the warm fuzzies.
So many of the characters were relatable and fun! I found myself laughing out loud at some of the dialogue, and I have not done that in a very long time while reading a book!
My one issue is that I do not feel the blurb about the book does it justice. There is so much more to this book than is stated in the blurb.
Thank you, NetGalley and Atria Books, for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed above are my own.
I loved act 1; it was witty, fun, well written, and I didn’t want to stop reading.
Act 2 switches POV to some different characters, and I didn’t enjoy it as much. It felt choppy and like it was written by a different author.
Act 3 was a little better but nothing compared to act 1.
I really loved Leo and Lauren, but Evelyn’s character may have been my favorite of the bunch. I found this to be hilarious and nonsensical, but in the best way. I should have waited until closed to pub day to read but once I started I couldn’t stop.
I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.
Charming read! This book felt honest and whimsical and joyful. I really loved it and can’t wait for more people to enjoy!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book of found family coming together in unexpected circumstances! The synopsis is possibly a little misleading, it really threw me off that the baby didn’t actually appear until halfway through the book. Overall it is much more character-driven than plot-driven, but I loved getting to know the wonderful cast of characters. Melinda, Evelyn, and Leo were my particular favorites. This would make a fantastic TV adaptation!
A funny, engaging and great novel. The ways in which the characters intersect and cohere is a riot. Everyone has quirks and foibles. It all revolves around baby Hank (Horatio) and his irresponsible parents. The relationships forged out of strange circumstances makes this entire book worthwhile.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Cute story, interesting characters. Quirky and over-the-top. Perfect way to spend a rainy Fall day inside! This was my first Amy Poeppel book, but it won’t be my last.
Thanks so much Atria Books and NetGalley!
Melinda (whose husband leaves her for a younger woman), Olivia (who loses her job because of Melinda), and Lauren (whose mother hires Olivia as a nanny because their family is overwhelmed) all find their lives intertwined.
I LOVED this book. I don't think the description does it justice (as it is a bit into the story when the baby is left for them). All of them are dealing with their own problems and it is amazing how they all learn to grow and help each other. This book was about community and leaning on each other to get through the challenging moments in life. I needed that.
This was a true juxtaposition between how a family is expected to live in such a prestigious neighborhood and school and what their family truly is. I greatly enjoyed the realness of Leo and Lauren and their three kids. Melinda suffered greatly but she realized that revenge is not the way to overcome problems nor find happiness. She found much more satisfaction in Dan and true connection with Olivia and Lauren's family despite her relationship with Felicity. This is a wonderful book about the realization that whom you think you should be as Evelyn and others believed is not what creates true gratification. Art certainly creates beauty but it comes in many forms.
Cute and funny story with quirky characters, most of whom live in a brownstone above the Sweet Spot bar. The house is chaotic and the chaos grows as more family members arrive, strangers become family, and a baby who’s related to none of them moves in (along with classroom pets and some unwanted rodents). I wasn’t sure where things were heading but I definitely enjoyed the ride along the way.
Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC of The Sweet Spot by Amy Poeppel. What a fun, silly read! Isn't that what everyone likes every now and then. I can't even pick which character I liked best because I enjoyed them all separately as well as together. They were all ridiculously quirky in their own way and got along beautifully. Everyone was respectful of each other's weirdness. Grandma Evelyn started out stuffy and uptight. Little by little you saw her turn fun and carefree just be being around everyone. I guess she figured, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. It was fun seeing the story play out and each person get wrapped up into one tight knit group. I highly recommend this free good, laugh out loud book about people that don't take life so seriously.
Some of Poeppel's other books have been on my radar, so I was excited to finally read something by her when I was approved for The Sweet Spot. Sadly, I struggled to get into this. In a lot of ways, it felt like the story was focused on just how wacky and zany people could be. The book is heavy on dialogue, which made it simultaneously feel like way too many things were happening while nothing happened because there was never time to really pause and reflect. There was a nice sentiment of found family.
This was a sweet story about friendship and found family. I think I probably would have enjoyed this more if I were a parent, but I still was able to relate to the friendships and had a good time reading it!
This is the first book I have read by Amy Poeppel and won't be the last. This book is about a group of quirky characters that join together to help raise a baby. This book had laugh out loud moments and is a quick read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishing company for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What a charming, fun story! Set in New York City, where the lives of several intriguing characters intersect -- it gets complicated, but never confusing. I particularly enjoyed the fact that there were great characters from many generations, from children to seniors. There's even an adorable baby. I look forward to recommending this book.
<i>The Sweet Spot</i> is a fun and cozy read. I follow a bunch of book reviewers on Instagram who rave about Amy Poeppel's book, but I hadn't had the opportunity to read one. Based on <i>The Sweet Spot </i> I can see why she has so many fans. I really enjoyed how she wove the characters together and even though at times the plot got a tad ridiculous (seriously, someone should have called CPS on those parents), it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book.
Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC of the book.
What a charming book!! I was surprised how much I loved this one. I had no idea what it was about going into it, and the way these characters weaved together so seamlessly was beautiful.
Lauren and Leo’s family move to a bigger house in New York that was owned by Leo’s mother. Their friends and neighbors become more like family, and they end up getting into lots of shenanigans. I don’t want to say anymore because the sweetness of the story may be lost.
Do yourself a favor and definitely pick this one up. A five star read for sure!
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Crowded, retro, 70’s style Waverly Place brownstone building / lovely Greenwich Village theme with lots of unique, quirky, entertaining characters: another enjoyable novel from Amy Poeppel.
I honestly focused on Lauren’s disorganized family gang a little more: nerdish professor husband Leo, three sweet- quirky kids, highly energetic-adorable dog: I loved each of them as soon as I got introduced with; including good hearted, artsy Lauren: a ceramic artist whose ability attracted social media attention and helped her gain enough followers to start her business.
The other two women’s stories were also interesting ( but I still wished to read more about Lauren’s family because in my opinion they deserve their own book)
Lauren and Melinda’s lives intercepted by their mutual connect with Felicity: a boutique owner, TV host, successful entrepreneur. The same woman is Lauren’s mentor who was encouraged by Lauren to chase her happiness. But chasing happiness also meant raising illegitimate child of a married man and steal him from his wife. That’s where Melinda’s revenge story starts. Melinda is the wife who has abandoned by her husband because of Felicity. She lost her PR job and now she lost her husband. She’s seeing red and she’s creative enough to find ways to avenge people who did wrong to her.
Felicity is her arch nemesis and poor Lauren is also at her sh*t list because she made a mistake to support Felicity to take a chance with her love. She didn’t know Melinda and she thought her marriage was already over when she gave Felicity the relationship advise.
Olivia is the youngest character who is caught in the crossfire, suffering from big debt, trying to soothe down Melinda which is impossible task when she also deals with her own anger management issues.
Both of the characters were flawed, relatable, eccentric. The story is a little long and there are enough materials for more than two books. But the writing style and characterization are amazing so I still enjoyed each chapter and took my time to absorb each stories. Normally reading a bunch of characters might be a little confusing and I don’t prefer it but this book is so exceptional and I still enjoyed to spend more time with those vivid characters.
Overall: I’m giving my four unique, smart female characters, dysfunctional family and girl power stars. I’m looking forward to read the future works of the author sooner.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
Thanks to @atriabooks and @netgalley for my gifted copy of The Sweet Spot, by Amy Poeppel. This fascinating novel with several main characters is out in February 2023, and I had the privilege to read it recently. In it, we meet Lauren, Olivia, and Melinda, three women who are brought together in various ways, and end up uniting because of a baby that “landed on their collective doorstep”.
Once I got the characters straight and had everyone figured out, I couldn’t put this book down! I had to know what happened and how everyone’s story wrapped up. It was easy to get pulled into these people’s lives, and the ins and outs of their daily routines, and then when baby Hank upends it all…it is lovely to watch them all come together to care for him, and on the way, mend a few broken relationships. There is a great deal of growth in this book as well, and I loved to see it.
I was very excited for the opportunity to read another book by Amy Poeppel, as I’ve enjoyed her other work. This story, while entertaining, took me longer to get through than most. It had many different characters, hard to keep track of each one at times. But, I did enjoy it.