Kat has an imaginary love life with a man travelling on a bus past her 2nd storey window. Most days he passes her window at the same time and one day their eyes briefly meet. Kat imagines his name and imagines life with him. Things get complicated when they finally meet.
This was a romance set mostly in London in the present time. I loved the interactions between Kat and her neighbours. Cat dreams of being a C.E.O. but things don’t always go the way she wants at work and she is troubled over speaking out about a co-worker and how it could jeopardise her chances of promotion.

This book is not fun. It doesn’t make me want to fall in love, it doesn’t make me want to go to England, it doesn’t give me any hope for the idea of love. Somehow the main character attempts to paint herself as a feminist but constantly betrays that, and she belittles her love and her love interest constantly. Not worth it.

A four-star read that is perfect if you’re looking for a nice rom com. I enjoyed this story, but I did get frustrated with the drama and repetitiveness. I will admit that Kat did frustrate me at times, but overall, she won me over, I really enjoyed the underlying story as that won me over. The thing I loved most was the location of London, its somewhere I don’t get to often enough, so it was lovely getting a glimpse through another set of eyes.

"Double Decker Dreams" is the second novel I have read by Lindsay MacMullin and it was better than the first "The Heart of the Deal". I was drawn to this book by the cover and the idea of finding love on an iconic "British bus". It sounded fun and reminiscent of other authors I enjoy.

I think my biggest issue with both Lindsay MacMillan books was the pace, I had a hard time getting invested into the characters early on. I have such a hard time being open minded to the second half of a book if I struggle to read the first half. Lindsay MacMillian is clearly talented and if she can work out some of the pace issues in her novels they will be even better. The work drama in this book droned on to me and took away from the romance. Overall it had potential and I would read another of her books in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press publishers for allowing me to receive an ARC of "Double Decker Dreams" in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Lindsay MacMillan is my new favorite author. I ADORED Heart of the Deal when I read it as a galley, and I was thrilled to be approved for Double Decker Dreams, though slightly apprehensive as I was hoping it would measure up. Well, did it ever!

Once again, MacMillan delights with a cast of characters that are far too human to be referred to as characters! The people in the book are quirky, multi-layered, and entirely themselves. Each of them is so distinct, and there aren’t too many as to overcrowd the narrative. The main character gains awareness and applies that newfound awareness to make real change in her life, which was satisfying and (mostly) believable. Some of the themes these people grapple with are similar to Heart of the Deal (career/life aspirations, sexual harassment in the workplace, changing friendships as you age, and finding love), but they feel almost brand new. MacMillan shines in her character building, but her greatest gift is her writing style. It’s as if the author has peeled open the brain of a late 20-early 30-something and lay their soul to bare. There were SO many lines (paragraphs! pages!) that resonated, it truly makes you wonder “did she write this book just for me?!”. Not to mention that the WAY she writes about these topics is just beautiful. Also, who hasn’t dreamed of meeting a fancy British lover when traveling in London?

The plot itself had a couple of pitfalls for me, namely that the main character’s career/life trajectory changed so dramatically from how it started out/how she imagined it, but I thought the arc mostly made sense given the insight into her brain that we’re given. However, it still rang a little disingenuous to her personality which is why I’m calling it out here.

I am ecstatic to have dipped back into a book created by MacMillan, who seems to read my mind with so many of her takes on the world/life/love. I truly have never read a book by anyone else who has done such an exceptional job of writing about being at the precipice of career/life/love aspirations.

Is it clear that I loved this book? Wholeheartedly giving this a 5/5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

While I did really enjoy Double-Decker Dreams (and I was especially fond of the book due to Michigan ties), it doesn't quite make it to the 5 star category. (Although I'm trying to be a little pickier between 4 and 5 stars.)

An American spots a handsome young man from her "working from home window" and develops a crush and persona for him. What could possibly go wrong?

I loved the children in the classroom! So refreshing seeing the world from the eyes of children.

Thank you to NetGalley for (once again ... introducing me to a "new to me author") and the opportunity to review the advance read copy of Double-Decker Dreams. Also thank you to the author Lindsay MacMillan and to the publisher Alcove Press.

Ambitious and American, Kat has everything she wants…except a British boyfriend. When she sees a handsome man get off the double-decker bus outside her apartment, she dreams up a persona for him and eagerly awaits the chance to meet him. Will he be everything she’s built him up to be? You’ll have to read to find out.

Despite pacing issues, frustrating accent accommodations, and OTT drama at work, this was a nice, clean romcom. MacMillan’s background allows her to aptly write about career women who are redefining their success both in their relationships and careers. I loved the chance to take an armchair travel to London, where MacMillan's locations became characters, and live in a make-believe bookish world for a couple of hours today.

MacMillan explores what happens next after one discovers that there’s a discrepancy between one’s dream and reality. She highlights the importance of keeping our feet on the ground while we allow our heads to hang out above the clouds…and dream a little dream.

I’ll admit to humming Michael Buble’s ‘Dream A Little Dream Of Me’ as I turned the final page.

I was gifted this copy by Alcove Press and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

3 ⭐️. Although I appreciated several of the themes of this book - defining success in a career as well as a relationship is different for everyone - I didn’t like the generalizing, stereotypes, or whiplash nature of the main characters’ flip-flopping on practically everything. As a lifelong Midwesterner I was peeved to read that an “alarming percentage” of us are homophobic. I felt like this story had great potential, but the execution left a lot to be desired. Thanks to Netgalley and Alcove Press for the ARC.

Mixed bag
I have mixed feelings about this book. In some ways I really enjoyed it and in others it fell flat. The story is about a woman trying to make it in the corporate world but hasn’t got the love life she desires. Then Kat sees the man of her dreams on a bus and imagines a character for him. When she actually meets him she is disappointed but things are never as they seem. I liked the way the book deals with romance in a different way however by trying to write a romance without the spark the spark is also lost in the story. The drama towards the end of the book feels forced and I feel like the epilogue gave us more than the end of the book. It’s really hard to explain without spoilers. A light read with a hea but if you read romance for the spark leave this one alone. If you like something a bit different pick it up!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Mostly likeable characters in a very likeable setting. I have to mention tho, that being from a very rural town myself, I was personally disappointed with the main character's decision toward the ending, even if it did all work out eventually. ;) Nicely paced read, a smidge of angst, mostly humorous and fun.

I was drawn by this cover and British setting, and excited to dive in. In practice, though, I struggled with the pace of the story and couldn’t get hooked. I did not finish the book. Thank you for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I couldn't get into this story because of the florid and overblown writing style. Fewer embellishing words would have given it a lyrical tone, but as it stands it takes the reader out of the story and is kind of silly.

wonderful sense of place and a great meet-cute concept. I did have trouble identifying with the heroine who seemed a little bit self-involved, even for the genre.

And, despite the charm and buoyancy of the supporting characters, the author's use of dialect was a continual distraction that pulled me out of the story.

Still, the attention to place and the treatise on wish fulfillment---not to mention some carefully placed hurdles in the heroine's path--- will keep the reader reading.

Have you ever seen a stranger on a bus and then thought "He's the one?"

Kat is an ex-pat living in London. She's on the consultant fast track, gunning to be a partner at her firm. She has ticked off almost everything on her list except for nabbing a British boyfriend. One day, while looking out her window, she locks eyes with handsome man on the number 4 bus as it stops in front of her flat. She swears they have a connection and she creates a story about this handsome stranger. His name is Alexander and he's wealthy, well dressed and posh. But what happens when she finally gets the courage to meet him in person and he is absolutely none of the things she imagined? Will she still find him interesting?

I really liked this book. It was a quick romcom read. There were a few parts that seemed unnecessary (the epilogue did nothing for me) and a little glossed over (without specific spoilers, there's a work incident that feels like it was just thrown in to move the story along to the conclusion). But overall, I did really like it.

This was a fun, quick, read.

Kat is am American temporarily working in England. One day she spots a man on a bus and her imagination runs wild, until she convinces herself that he is her Mr Perfect. When she finally gets the courage to talk to him, she discovers he is not her British dream guy, but is instead a fellow American also working in England.

A sweet friendship blooms as Kat has to adjust her fantasy with reality. A cute clean romance.

'Double-Decker Dreams' is the second book that I've read by Lindsay MacMillan. Kat is an American consultant who moves to London for her job. While she's living in London, she has two goals. One goal is to receive a promotion at her job. Her second goal is to meet a rich, handsome British man who will fall in love with her, and she will get her rom-com happily ever after.

One day, Kat sees an attractive man on the double decker bus outside of her bedroom window. She creates a story in her mind about who he is: a rich British prince who falls in love with her and they live an amazing life. One day, she decides to meet him in real life and talks to him on the bus. She finds out that he is not who she imagined that he would be at all, but could that be the best thing that happened to her? Could she open up herself to love, even if it's not what she pictured in her mind?

I really enjoyed this story, but I felt like something was missing for me. The beginning of the book was really dragging, and I found myself struggling to push through all of the description about the fantasy version of her man on the double-decker bus. When the middle to the end of the book picked up, I found that it was rushed. I could have used more about the relationship building and developing. Overall, I liked the ending because it wrapped everything up in a satisfying way.

Thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC of this book.

This was so good. It was just what I needed. Who doesn't look for that perfect Rom-Com kinds love and romance on the real lives. That's why we read them and this book SO SO GOOD. I loved it. I love British Rom-Coms, to me there is nothing better than a christmas one to boot. I am already ready to reread it so I can recapture that warm fuzzy feeling I get when reading British Cozy Romances. Loved it!!
I just reviewed Double-Decker Dreams by Lindsay MacMillan. #DoubleDeckerDreams #NetGalley
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This book was good. I feel like it was very similar to a book I read a few weeks ago and found it hard to connect to the story because I was bored. I don't think that was anything to do with this story, just my book choices. I did however enjoy the setting of the story. I went to London a few years ago and really appreciated that.

British romcom about seeing the man of your dreams on a bus… dreaming about the life you could have together until you can work up the nerve to talk to him… then finally meeting him and he’s nothing like you imagined.

The main story was fine, but the side story about her job was stressing me out. I was getting so frustrated with how she was treated. It was a bit too much drama for me. But keep it in mind if you like some drama in with your romcoms.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Watch for Double Decker Dreams to come out June 6, 2023.

“Double-Decker Dreams” is a romance book by Lindsay MacMillan. At first I really connected with Kat - her leap into this whole romantic story after glancing at “Alexander” is something a friend used to do - it both amused me that she could leap that far into a fantasy and, like Jules, made me want to bring her down to earth. I did find Kat’s working story to be frustrating - from the harassment to the rejection of her ideas, but also the fact that while there are still “old boy” clubs, I think in today’s environment anyone would’ve been backing and looking out for Kat, not dismissing her. Even when she found her voice, it seemed that she could’ve been treated better by HR. I found Rory (aka Alexander) to be sweet - a genuine guy next door. Overall, this was an enjoyable story and a very quick read and it held my attention.