The Deja Glitch by Holly James was such a fun spin on a time-loop storyline! Stuck in a 24-hour time loop, Jack has to find a way to make Gemma Peters fall in love with him—only she doesn’t remember him. I’m not usually a fan of a Groundhog Day type story, but this was a pleasant surprise and the loop didn’t feel overdone. I loved the connection of Gemma and Jack. Jack is such a romantic and has such a vulnerability as he tries to find a way to have Gemma believe they’re in this loop. And Gemma is so resilient—she’s stubborn, but she’s also relatable and genuine. Plus her best friend Lila is such a wonderful addition, she’s so bright and fun. There is a kind of insta-love element to this that I think would have felt a little less had we gotten some of Jack’s POV—I really wanted to get to know him more, but I liked where we did get some of his side too. Gemma is a great lead to follow and I liked the side plot she had with her family and the growth she has there. This is a closed-door, very cute romance that really had me smiling.

Gemma Rogers is stuck in a time loop unbeknownst to her, because it is Jack, the guy she literally runs into at the coffee shop, who has been living each day on repeat. After so many variations, Jack thinks he’s figured out how to move the clock forward, which includes Gemma falling in love with him. Gemma becomes aware of how stagnant her life is due to fear of heartbreak and how much that has been holding her back in numerous ways.

Rather than repeating the events in a predictable Gemma type of way, she starts to push her boundaries and really go after her goals. In the meantime, Jack is gently nudging her forward and supporting her. I really liked Jack, he seemed so smitten with Gemma and certain that she was already perfect the way she is despite her insecurities. As for Gemma, she had reasons to be wary since she was none the wiser about how each day kept happening over and over again, but her subconscious tells her to trust Jack and that he is not a stranger. Their developing relationship, which is new to Gemma and not so new to Jack, is fascinating to observe because of the contrasting timelines.

Even though it’s only one day, so many things take place that help Gemma see herself more clearly because she goes off script and this new path offers outcomes that she hadn’t imagined before. I admired the creativity of this alternative and just how much it opened Gemma’s eyes in comparison to Jack, who had been tirelessly coming up with solutions and patiently waiting on Gemma. Some parts are a little cheesy or melodramatic, because it’s in Los Angeles or a hub for celebrities and social media, but overall, it’s a cute story with lovable main characters and side characters and a great message.

There are people out there that will love this book. I am not one of those people. This book has a shadow of an outline that could have been a really interesting story, but “true love's kiss” was chosen instead.

What I loved; the idea that sometimes you need a little outside help to set your life back on track.

Jack thought he was the MC, but Gemma was the MC. I felt like the character of Jack would have been fine as any age or gender, romance wasn't what her life was missing. Disruption was what her life was missing. She was the one stuck, in fear of not being good enough. That's a story I would read and recommend.

I would also read a story about Lila. She was a badass, a real Ride-or-Die.

Thank you, NetGalley, Holly James, and Penguin Group for the ARC.

Gemma’s world is flipped upside down after she runs into a handsome stranger outside a coffee shop but is he a stranger? He looks oddly familiar….

While this book is described as a time loop, the majority of the story takes place in a single day which was a really fun twist on the trope and eliminated the repetitiveness that often comes with stories like this. I’m not usually the biggest fan of insta-love but Gemma wasn’t the hopeless romantic type which made this feel a lot more realistic.

I love love love Jack! He’s so sweet, supportive, and understanding. Total golden retriever energy! Lila was also extremely understanding and accommodating considering this all takes place on her birthday.

This book made giggle out loud and cry real tears which speaks a lot about Holly’s writing. I love when an author can make me feel all the feels. If I had to put my finger on why this didn’t give me the 5-star feels, I’d say some of the scenes felt more detailed and drawn out than they needed to be. I also think the final scene could’ve gone a bit differently but that’s just personal preference.

Overall, this was a great read! I do recommend reading this book and will definitely be checking out Holly’s other books.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for granting me access to read this book pre-release in exchange for an honest review!

I loved the Deja Glitch so much! My only complaint is that I didn't get to see any of the other many times that Jack attempted to woo Gemma. It didn't give me a chance to build up my hope that they'd get together or root for him. I understand that we had to see Gemma go through the whole day, but I wish we'd gotten to read through at least a couple attempts before we ended up in the middle of the story (I know Jack tells us some of them, but I wanted to experience them with him, if that makes sense).

A cute time loop romance told from the perspective of Gemma, who doesn’t know she’s living the same day over and over. Gemma crashes into Jack outside of a coffee shop. He subsequently reveals to her that he has been trapped in the same day for months, and she has to decide whether to believe his outrageous story. We only see one day of the time loop and Jack fills in a lot of the details about the previous iterations of the day. I liked that the book was an exploration of Gemma and Jack’s individual unresolved personal and career issues as well as the romance. A creative and lightheaded take on the time loop trope.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Gemma is out with her best friend Lila. Lila nudges Gemma to speak to a guy at the bar who turns out to be Jack. They hit it off and end up kissing by the end of the evening.

The next morning, Gemma runs into Jack at the coffee shop. He ends up telling her he knows her, and saying they’ve met before.. many times… and they’re stuck in a time loop. What happens next is very cute!

This was a sweet romance. Reminded me a lot of the Palm Springs movie with Andy Samberg. I thought Gemma was relatable and Lila made me laugh. Jack is a little too perfect, but I loved how much he cared for Gemma. The grand gesture at the end was adorable. The conflict with the father did feel a bit forced, but overall it worked. No spicy scenes, if you’re looking for those! I did enjoy the book and it was a quick read.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm always iffy about time loop novels but because the cover on this one is SO CUTE I decided to give it a try! The Deja Glitch certainly had me glued to the pages and I found the author wrote this one in a unique way that kept me interested. I think the romance was spot on and the characters were enjoyable to read about.

Gemma and Jack are stuck in a time loop, reliving the same day over and over. Jack knows what’s happening, but for Gemma, she has no clue. Jack is falling for Gemma after having the chance to get to know her for 147 days, but to Gemma, Jack is a stranger.

One night at Gemma’s best friend Lila’s birthday party, a night that Jack has lived multiple times with the same outcome, he decides to make a tiny change in the ending of their day. When Jack kisses Gemma and the loop starts again the next “day”, Gemma finally starts remembering little snippets of their time together.

This was such a great book! It was a sweet love story- clean and not spicy, but it did have some language in the middle and end of the book.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Okay let me start by saying how annoying the fmc was! I don’t think she was mature at all which killed the story a bit for me. I enjoy time loop stories when executed well. This one was mediocre. I did enjoy the fact that the mmc was the one who realized he was in a loop and tried to convince the fmc she was too so that was different in a way. But overall this book fell flat for me and was just average.

Give me a time travel/loop etc. book any time in any genre and I'll be happy! This one was a quick, fun and cute read! Thank you so much to Dutton for the ARC of this one!

Would rate this 3.5 stars if possible. This was a really cute, fun easy read. Was it outlandish? Absolutely. But that was the point. It is a perfect book to read when you need something fun and silly and full of grand gestures.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

ARC review

This was a cute time loop story. Quick read, satisfying ending, just enough from the side characters so it wasn’t completely flat.

A few takeaways that make Deja Glitch a cutesy, throwaway 3 stars - I won’t be rereading or really remembering much (ha!) about this book;

I get that the timeline necessitated all of these things happening to Gemma in one day, so I accepted that the hours in her day look different than mine…but maybe this could have been spread out over two or more days? We could see more effort from Jack that way, at least.

Speaking of Jack: I know nothing about him. Why does Gemma love him in one day?

Lastly, wrapping up the story by explaining what happened again to the side characters tied a tidy bow on the story, but it made the whole book feel like show (us living Gemma’s day with her) and retell (explaining that whole day and it’s significance when Gemma and Jack rehash everything on stage, and again when they walk Patrick through it).

Definitely a cute book, though. I want to hear more about Lila in LA!

I am always intrigued by Groundhogs Day type books & this one was interesting since it was almost a reverse where the main character wasn't in it. Sadly, it fell a little flat for me. It moved very slowly & unlike most Groundhogs Day books, this book spanned only one day. I would also say it was heavier on Women's Fiction & the main character bettering herself than romance but the romance part was cute. All in all an ok book but not really my jam.

“He spends every day chasing the woman of his dreams, and every day she can’t remember who he is.”

The Deja Glitch by Holly James is an amazing take on the time loop trope that will make you laugh and empathize with the characters in the novel! In this adorable read, Jack has relived the same day 147 times! One night he decides to flip the script by kissing Gemma, whom he literally has crashed into every morning at the local coffee shop. The next morning, Gemma feels a sense of Déjà vu, and when she crashes into Jack that morning – ruining her favorite shirt – a new series of daily events ensues which Jack is hoping will get them unstuck and out of this “warped fairy tale.” Jack has a theory that Gemma must fall in love with him to break the spell, but hasn’t Gemma only known him for one day?

This is the second book I have read by James and I love her writing, her creativity, how she intertwines so many thoughts and ideas seamlessly, and how feel-good her novels are! Light, fun, sweet: this is the perfect book to escape from your mundane or stressful day and cozy up with.

There was no feeling of Groundhog Day or 50 First Dates to me – James kept the book flowing naturally with the characters, events, fun storyline including famous people, psychics, scientists, and rock stars. I felt like I was transformed into a different setting experiencing how one action can create a “domino effect” in my own life.

I wish there was a little more steam to this rom-com, but a good, clean-read has never hurt anyone! There was a lot to happen in (what was to us) one day, but I think we are already suspending our belief a tad with this book anyway. I will recommend James and this whimsical, “cosmically designed” day to all my friends for this much needed breath of fresh air! I give this 4.5 stars!

Releasing August 1, 2023 – make sure to add this to your TBR pile! Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for this wonderful ARC! All opinions are my own!

“What, you don’t like a good time loop story? Everyone likes a time loop story.”

I'm convinced Holly James can't write a bad book. I loved Nothing But the Truth and I loved this one. Give me a ground hogs day, time lapse/loop book, throw in some sweet rom com, and I'm a happy reader. Highly recommend for a sweet feel good read. I can't wait to see what she writes next.

This time-loop romance was a very slow burn for me, but the concept was cute! Gemma and Jack get stuck repeating the same day over and over and over again. In order to break the loop, they have to fall in love...in a single day. The story isn't just about love, though. It's also about personal growth, forgiveness, grief, family dynamics, and more. By the end of the book, both characters had changed for the better. If you enjoy grand gestures, celebrity connections, ~influencer lifestyles~, and music, this book is for you.

Was it realistic? No. Was it a feel-good romance? For sure. I wasn't a huge fan of the entire story taking place over a single day (it felt like so many things were jam packed into that time frame), and I probably wouldn't rush to recommend this, but it was an easy read with a predictable happy ending.

*Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of this eBook in exchange for an honest review!*

This book had an amazing premise. A time loop but with a whole new twist on it. I loved the set up and plot, but the book itself was just okay for me. I think it was such a creative idea and would try another book by this author, but this one wasn't a hit for me.

I absolutely loved this book SO MUCH! I did not want to stop reading once I started! It definitely is swoon worthy and you fall in love with Gemma and Jack. I enjoyed the supporting characters as well! Everyone felt really developed. One of my favorite parts was when Gemma’s dad got a bit of redemption (I won’t say much more! Read it to find out!!)!! It was an honor to read this ARC from Holly James and I look forward to reading more of her books soon!

Book releases on August 1st and you are definitely going to want to pre-order it!

Really enjoyed this fun rom com book. Gemma and Jack were the perfect main characters and I always love when he falls first story line. I love that throughout the story Gemma gains confidence in herself as she grows and learns to love and trust.