Member Reviews
Thank you @netgalley and @bookouture for an arc of Santa, Please Bring Me a Boyfriend by Sophie Ranald in exchange for an honest review. 🤍
Santa, Please Bring Me a Boyfriend is a very cute romantic comedy and a perfect read this coming Christmas. The story is about single mom Rowan, struggling to make ends meet with a job she barely enjoys in order to raise her daughter Clara. When she doesn't feel the Christmas spirit due to her circumstances, her friends arrange for her to receive a Christmas present everyday in December, like and advent calendar. Things get more interesting when the delivery guy, Alex, is quite attractive and delivers those Christmas trinkets everyday.
This isn't just a romance book for me. During the first part of the book, I thought of how sweet Rowan's friends are to arrange something special for her. They continuously remind her that she's free to do something for herself and no one else, that she can love herself also.
I wish I could've read more about Alex as much as I had read Rowan's POVs. I somehow didn't feel much of their chemistry (mostly due to the slow-burn, not really a fan of it). I also wished that I got to know more of Rowan's friends. Overall, this is a cute, feel-good story.
Rating Santa, Please Bring Me a Boyfriend ⭐⭐⭐/5
Rowan is such a strong character. I think the friendships really drive this story. Her friends are the ones sending these gifts and it's so sweet but also super fun. I liked that Rowan and her daughter Clara were growing closer again through the process. I liked her friendships she made within work and how she grew in her role being a realtor throughout the story.
The romance between her and Alex is cute. And at the end it gets pretty steamy. No spoilers here though.
A fun Christmas romance!
Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!
Nothing gets me in the Christmas spirit (3 months in advance!) like a good Christmas romcom!
Rowan is a single mom who is decidedly in an unchristmassy spirit as she faces Christmas alone. Her ex is engaged, her daughter will be with him and his family for Christmas, and she works a terrible job. Her best friends decide to lift her spirits by surprising her with an incredible advent calendar full of surprises and adventures, each of which is delivered by Alex (cue love interest).
I loved the premise of this book, and felt Rowan’s anticipation of her surprises and her fleeting meetings with Alex throughout the story, and the beautiful Christmas imagery put my mind right there in the festive season. It is a verrryyy slow slow burn novel and took me a long time to get in to it. I admittedly initially considered not finishing it, but I was so glad I stuck it out! It came together really nicely, it just took a long time to get there for me.
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for my ARC in exchange for my feedback!
3.5 / 5!
I love a good romantic comedy book and I love Christmas – and Santa, Please Bring me a Boyfriend does the perfect job of blending the two and creating a funny, warm-hearted, festive read.
The story centres around Rowan – a single mum, struggling for money living in London with her teenage daughter Clara, and ready to move on from her ex, Paul – who has a new love in his life.
December the 1st comes around and Rowan is feeling decidedly unChristmassy – until her friends arrange for special advent calendar to be delivered to her flat. With the same handsome delivery driver suddenly appearing on her doorstep every day, Rowan starts to look forward to her advent calendar for more than just the hand-picked gifts from her friends.
It was a lovely and feel-good story, with plenty of laughs, some characters that I couldn’t wait to get their comeuppance, and a celebration of the importance of a really great set of friends! Very heart-warming and the perfect read for the build up to Christmas. Get yourself some mulled wine and a box of Rowan’s favourite Quality Street and curl up with this in December – you won’t be disappointed!
I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Yet another easy Christmas read! Cuel up to read over the holidays.
I liked this book…that would be enough, but I really could not put it down….the advent calendar with so many different gift ideas was innovative. Family and friends…love and romance…starting over…surprises…the ex and his new love…did I say great friends? This talented author has included all of the components necessary for a quick fun read…romance that is cozy and quirky. That being said, there is also a theme of survival for single moms…teenage daughters…the father who needs to step up…this is not a silly read that is so light the reader wants to stop reading…it is a meaningful romantic book that would make a delightful movie…this book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Curl up with a warm blanket beside a toasty fire…be lost in the story. As to the title, it would defer me from picking this book up and buying it…glad I don’t go by cover pages or titles when choosing a book to read. I would have missed a good one.
This holiday romance book was a fun read that has me in the Christmas spirit three months in advance! Rowan is a single mom to Clara, a teen who can be very bratty one moment and sweet the next. Rowan works for a terrible boss, has been single for years, and is a bit down in the dumps going in to the holiday season. Her amazing best friends decide to do something special for her, and Clara begins to develop feelings for the delivery guy (Alex) bringing daily gifts from her friends.
There was a lot to like here! First off, there was plenty of holiday atmosphere. Talk of decorating the tree, shopping at extremely busy stores, and snowy weather. Rowan’s friends are fantastic and I adored the premise of the advent calendar gift to make their friend feel special. That gave me the warm fuzzies and I could feel Ro’s anticipation! I enjoyed seeing Rowan develop from a total doormat character to one unafraid to make a big move at work and to turn things down that aren’t right for her. I liked the growing friendship and attraction between Rowan and Alex too, of course! I was worried at one point that we were in for a big miscommunication trope but thankfully that wasn’t the case.
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the eARC of this fun story in exchange for my honest feedback.
Okay, the cover art on all of these Christmas novels is so cute lately!! This one has to be one of my favorites. It gives me Four Christmas vibes. Anyway, the story was cute but honestly, the thing that a lot of the holiday novels are lacking this year is that emotional tug that I love in my romance novels. I think a lot of people just think of Christmas novels as a cute and fun read but I want there to be depth. Maybe that's just me. Anyways, cute, but probably something I would only read once.
A fun, cute holiday rom com that totally put me in the holiday spirit... this one was paired perfectly with warm chai tea and a snickerdoodle cookie!
Rowan is a single mom to Clara, whos currently being overtaken by the terrible teens. Her and her ex boyfriend, also Clara's dad, enjoyed an occasional fling until he was suddenly engaged to someone else. Her job as an estate agent isn't going so hot and her car is pretty much on her very last leg. Rowan is all of us in one way or another. Thats what makes this story so absolutely relatable. Seeing that she's down this Christmas season, her girlfriends organize her an advent calendar for all of December until Christmas. Opening a Liberty advent calender package, Rowan is given the very best 25 days of her life. Some fancy products. Some experiences. And a whole lot of finding out what she's made of. Throw in a sexy delivery driver and this is the absolute very best Christmas novel I've ever read!
Sophie Ranald is one of my fave authors for a reason. She hands down outdid herself with this one! First off, I can't be the only one to Google the Liberty Advent calendar and SWOOON. Anyways.... This was truly a magical read. The story was simply perfect! Everything Rowan saw and did made for the most perfect Christmas book yet! Definitely made this lifelong Grinch excited for Christmas this year. 🎄
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Thank you to Bookouture, Sophie Ranald, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
As the title suggests, this is a Christmassy read! Single mum, Rowan receives an advent calendar with a difference from her best friends. They’ve arranged for a present to be delivered to her every day, but when she meets the delivery guy Alex, she begins to wish that he’s the only present she gets at Christmas! I liked Rowan’s character and thought she was very relatable. She’s a hardworking single mum, with a trademark teenage daughter and annoying ex-husband! I loved the idea of an advent calendar where a different present gets delivered every day and found myself waiting, like Rowan, with anticipation as to what the next present would be!
The story was fun and flirty. Alex is a good character, and I liked the chemistry between him and Rowan. I found Rowan’s job interesting, although I have to admit I found it hard to picture her working as a high-end, big money-making estate agent! The storyline is told from Rowan and Alex’s perspectives, although we do find out lots more about Rowan than Alex. Alex’s storyline seemed a little bit mysterious for me, and there was obviously something which he was hiding. The book was well paced and held my attention throughout. I loved the London location, and the whole story was fabulously festive, perfect for this time of year!
This was a super-easy read! It was light-hearted, romantic and made me smile in all the right places! Would definitely recommend!
This was so cute. It’s very slow but it worked for this story. I wish that Alex and Clara interacted more so that we could see the, form a bond but I had a good time.
I received an arc through netgalley.
Sophie Ranald writes really great stories that are fun to read but often address deeper struggles. Santa, Please bring me a boyfriend was no different covering parenting a teen, harassment at work, self confidence and friendship. The main character Ro is set to spend Christmas alone and her friends decide to cheer her up with an advent calendar with daily deliveries. Through this calendar, she connects with a love interest. I enjoyed this book. I gave it three 1/2 stars because while I loved the friendship theme I wasn’t sure about the connection between her and Alex. And also the storyline with Alex’s sister seemed underdeveloped. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
This book was super cute! I really liked their whole dynamic and their banter was completely adorable!
This book had so much potential, but it just didn't work for me. At times the book moved so slowly and I found myself bored. There wasn't the slow burn that I love in romances. The relationship moved at a turtle pace and then bam they were together. I wish their would've been a better build of the relationship between the two main characters. The book was just average for me.
This book seems like something that should have rated a lot higher for me, but there were just a lot of misses. Really only pulled itself into 3-star range because the writing style was at least good and the plot more or less moved along well, but really unlikable characters.
The main character is far too woe-is-me about EVERYTHING - her job, her friends, her finances, men, her kid…. She's just... not very nice. So it's hard to get into the story when she hates or at least judges everyone and everything. Plus the stupid shagging-the-ex-just-for-something-to-do was gross and mentioned way too often. If she really wants her ex that bad, why is she mooning over the new guy? And then we’re supposed to believe she suddenly finds the magic off switch to wanting him just when he becomes available.
I found the mother-daughter relationship awkward. Commentary on parenting struggles is fine, but the mother seems to actively dislike her daughter, which makes it weird. Whole scenes are just them sniping at each other. And then the dichotomy between her constant internal worry about money, but then she splashes out for pretty much anything she wants, while her friends are buying her what amounts to thousands of dollars’ worth of Christmas gifts.
Based on the plot, it should have been a good book. But the resent-the-world attitude pretty much ruined it.
This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Bookouture and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
Brilliantly crafted story that you won’t want to put down.
It took me a while (12 chapters) to actually get into this book. I wanted to see more of the romantic relationship between Alex & Rowan. But instead this book focused more on Rowan's struggles in life. Nowhere in the blurb, it is revealed that Rowan is a single mother and the appearance of Clara took me by surprise. I didn't like Rowan's ex Paul very much and I was glad when she gave her a piece of her mind. I also loved seeing the relationship development between Rowan & Clara. Alex was also a very good guy but sadly, I couldn't feel the romance at all. I also didn't care about any of the characters because I felt like I didn't know them enough. Though Rowan's friends Naomi, Kate and Abbi were great and always tried to lift her up and I loved their bond. The ending however was weirdly perfect with everything falling into place and Rowan & Alex confessing their feelings for each other. I just wish there was more focus on the romantic aspect in this book tbh.
I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review
Funny and relatable - this is exactly the sort of book that I’ve come to expect from Ranald. Whilst it is a quick read, it is highly enjoyable and definitely likely to put a smile on the face of fans of the genre. Jingle all the way!
Bring me a boyfriend any day of the week. Really liked and enjoyed this story from Sophie Ranald. I so want more. Loved it.