With all the time loops I have read, you would think I would have grown tired of them by now. After reading this hilarious meet cute I can confirm that is not the case!

The Déjà Glitch
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This is a mostly single POV romance told from Gemma’s perspective as she goes through a day filled with Déjà vu while Jack tries to convince her they’ve lived this day before (147 times!) He’s an almost unwavering sunshine to her slightly pessimistic grumpiness but it’s a match you can’t help but root for!

It was a quick read and a lot of fun, a cute romantic take on being stuck in a time loop!

Things I enjoyed:
✔️ slow burn
✔️ found family
✔️ Jack’s tenacity

Thank you to @netgalley , @duttonbooks, and @hellohollyjames for a chance to read this creative and sweet romance

📖 I received a gifted e-book copy in exchange for an honest review ✍🏻


Read dates: 07/21/2023- 07/22/2023
Goodreads review posted: 07/22/2023
Instagram review posted: 07/23/2023

The Deja Glitch

4.25 ⭐️

This book was such a cute, comforting read! I don’t usually love time loop romcoms but this was wonderfully done, actually made the trope to its advantage!

Gemma and Jack must break out of a time loop, if only Gemma could remember Jack! This books is full of real characters and the sweetest gestures from Jack. Seen from Gemma’s point of view, we get to see Jack as well as her family and friends who’s relationships start to change throughout the story.

I read this book in a day, I was enjoying it so much! Check out this book when it comes out August 1st! Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC of The Deja Glitch!

Omg, gosh darn cutest book! This just made me smile the whole time I was reading it. Nothing hot or heavy, but just good old fashioned romantic comedy.

Oh, this novel was good, more than that. The way the story was set into motion and was written so beautifully, I was hooked from start to end, I couldn't put it down for a single second. my eyes were glued to my screen. I was curious about how novels written in time loops work, and this one gave me a great impression of those. I really like the concept and enjoyed that the entire novel is just based on events that are happening in one day, and I would say a good 12 hours straight, the flow of the character's conflicts, motivations, and everything in between was written so smoothly, there were no loose ends and it was a smooth transition to each scene. This novel is also an easy read and not too difficult to follow and it grabs your attention immediately. 10/10 would recommend and so happy that I got accepted to read this ARC

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free ARC copy of this book for my review.

Overall, this was a cute rom-com style book, but it was a bit over explained in places. You really have to suspend belief for most of the book to enjoy the story overall. Trying to re-invent Groundhog's Day yet again doesn't really work very well in this one.

2 stars for it was ok.

Time loop romances have a whimsical feel to it. Same thing happened for Gemma & Jack. Both stuck in an endless loop, they decide (or at least Jack does) to try out a theory of falling in love in 1 day that will help them get out of this situation.

This was definitely a fun & short read. Although the legitimate reason or science behind this time loop is never known in time looped romances, it's always fascinating to see the outcome.

<i>Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.<i>

Thank you PRHaudio, Dutton and Netgalley for my gifted arc and audiobook in exchange for an honest review!!

Time loop stories can get old quick, but not this one!!! This was told from the perspective of the person who couldn’t remember being in the loop. So we really only had to live through the day once and got a quick recap about the other days. This was such a fresh story, and I loved it! This day did seem like an extremely long day, but it was still all so perfect!

Also spoiler: you get Jack’s pov in the end!!!! Loved this. This is what I always want in romcoms where it is only one pov.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin for this ARC!

This book was alright. I had some fun times reading it. There were some great scenes and great moments with the characters. It didn't rock my world, I don't know if I'd revisit it, and it definitely had some things I'd change. But yeah - it was fun.

I was hesitant on a time loop trope. My experience with the trope is bad, one of my least favorite books I've read, so I didn't know what to expect. But I did enjoy this one! Jack coming to Gemma already understanding the loop and trying to get her on the same page made a big difference for me and made it a lot more enjoyable. I was rooting for him to get through to her because WOW Gemma did not want to listen to him.

Speaking of Jack and Gemma - Jack? Loved him. Loved him immediately. He was so fun and ya girl loves a simp. Gemma took awhile to grow on me, however. I do think this book could've benefited from her getting on board a bit sooner. I get it's a weird thing and I don't know how quickly I'd believe I was in a time loop, but for the sake of the plot I wish we didn't have to spend so much time trying to convince her of the plot of the book.

In general, and I do hate to say this, I do think this book could've benefited from being a bit shorter. I feel if it was edited down to be maybe 2o-30 pages shorter it would've felt a lot smoother and I wouldn't have gotten to the ending feeling like, "alright ok I'm ready for this to be over now."

All in all, it was a fun RomCom. I had a good time. I hope others will enjoy it as well.

I found myself skimming for dialogue which I never do.
Overall this was cute but the chapters dragged on forever. It felt a bit like a run on sentence. The plot and story was overall enjoyable though.

It was fine.

I didn't love it but there wasn't anything glaringly wrong with it. I normally love time loop books, but I got frustrated about half way through when I realized that these characters were in a time loop, but the reader only gets to see that in the prologue. I would have loved to have at least a couple of the loops shown on page. Because the reader didn't get to see the different time loop days, the romance just didn't hit like it should have. It felt rushed (Yes I understand she has to fall in love in a day, but it would have been nice to see a few failed attempts).

I just wish this would have been more. It was a great premise and a good overall story, but because of the story structure it just didn't hit like it should.

Not the typical time loop book. I wasn’t sure I would enjoy this, but I was very wrong. Such a cute rom-com. Yes, they are stuck in a time loop but he has zero knowledge of the day before and she has zero knowledge of the day they keep reliving. He falls for her and now it is up to him to prove time after time that she should fall for him too. Not your usual rehashing of the same day and same events, this books presents it in a new and refreshing way. Great summer read!

Omg I loved this book. I thought can I do another groundhogs day book this year? But it is written so differently than most. Yes they are reliving the same day but we don’t experience all of the repeats.
It’s a clean, magical romance. He falls first.

Loved it.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the eArc in exchange for my honest review

Such a cute rom-com! I really liked the added element of a time loop happening. I think it was so clever and reminded me of some great film moments. Very cute.

The Deja Glitch is about two “strangers” that have a meet cute in a coffee shop, but what Gemma does not know in that moment, is that she and Jack have met before. Stuck in a time loop, Jack has to get Gemma to fall in love with him over just one day in the hopes that together they can break the cycle.

If you are looking for a sweet, easy to read romance and you enjoy time loop stories then this one is for you. It was a solid, quick read. I really enjoyed that it also delved into Gemma’s family relationships as well, and I liked her best friend Lila. I kind of wish we had gotten to see more of her dog Rex though, which sounds weird but I LOVE when the characters dogs are a cute, quirky side character!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was a bit unsure of a time loop, but as the end of the story grew near, I just wanted to be stuck in the time loop for longer! Much like her first book, I finished this one in a day. James has a way of writing unforgettable and flawed characters who are well developed and relatable. I loved the family drama thrown in and the ex-boyfriend karma. I had a smile on my face throughout!

Holly James will delight readers of contemporary fiction in her sophomore novel, The Deja Glitch.

Gemma is a producer for a radio station in L.A. and trying to get by with her life. She's got her best friend, Lila, and an adorable dog to come home to daily. Her family situation may be messy, her dad betraying her to work with her ex boyfriend. But that won't stop her from kissing Jack at Lila's birthday party and setting everything into motion.

Gemma wakes up the next morning but it is the same day. With Jack meeting up with her this time at a coffee shop, he instantly knows who she is but she doesn't remember her. Yet Jack is set to make Gemma fall in love with her and change this Deja vu scenario that they are living in. Will he be able to convince her that life is currently a Groundhog day gone wild and he is there for every moment?

Fans of the movie 50 First Dates will adore The Deja Glitch, Holly James next novel. Told in a day and a half, readers are immersed into Gemma's lifestyle and the choices she makes to try to change the time loop. While Jack's point of view is featured at the end of the novel, I wish that his viewpoint was showcased more often! I'd have loved to see how he got into this situation.

This is a groundhog dog-esq book that centres around how one choice can have a domino effect on you and your life and it was just fine. It’s not the best book with this concept that I’ve ever read and I would honestly go as far as saying it has some harmful themes about forgiveness and who deserves your forgiveness. The best character is Lila, the influencer best friend, since she is actually fully flushed out and real. Jack and Gemma seem very 2D in comparison (I mean we don’t even learn his last name until about 75% into the story!)

In all, I think it’s fine, but unless you love the trope, I’d skip it.

Despite their repetitiveness, time loop books never seem to get old for me! I like how in this story, only Jack was experiencing the time loop, having to explain/convince Jenna every time they met (again) of what was happening. It was interesting to see how much progress they made each time, or like Jack noted with his "experiments," what seemed to work and what did not. The supporting characters were also fabulous, always making for a more enjoyable story overall.

I think the entire story felt a bit long altogether, but I did enjoy it and would add to your tbr if you enjoy a light magical realism romance!

This story reminded me of the movie The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (on prime if you want to watch! it was good!).

The Deja Glitch was a very cute rom-com and there was lots that I loved about it, but it also didn't totally match my expectations and I thought there was more that it could have done. Overall, I'm a sucker for contemporary rom-coms with mild fantasy elements and would recommend this to anyone who feels the same!

My spoiler-free thoughts:
I loved both Gemma and Jack and especially loved Gemma's development throughout the book, which I think was intentionally the main focus of the book. I wish we got to learn a little bit more about Jack, or see more from his perspective since he was aware of the time loop when Gemma wasn't. There were some threads about things in his life he needed to deal with that weren't necessarily picked up.

Because of the length of time the book takes place over, and what has already occurred before the beginning of the book, it felt a bit instalove-y. Some people are into that, and if that person is you then great! You'll love this book. However, I wish we got to see more drawn out emotional development from both characters.

My spoiler thoughts:
This book does not follow the typical narrative of a time-loop novel, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It takes place over the course of one day of the time loop, with five months of the time loop happening before the book that we don't see. I wish we got to see our characters experience more of the time loop together.

Because it only takes place over one day, five months in, we don't get to see Jack fall in love with Gemma. Gemma falls in love with Jack over the course of 1 day, and then suddenly gets her memories of the rest of the time loop back and realizes she's been in love with him the entire time (hence the instalove vibe). I wish we got to see more of both of their emotional development throughout the course of the time loop and how they dealt with it.

Thanks NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the eARC. All opinions are my own.