4.25 stars

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love Liyah + Daniel 🥹🫶🏻 The most grumpy gal and the sun-shiniest guy have their worlds collide after not seeing each other since summer camp 14 years ago. Now, they’re forced to work together on a project that is important to them both, and it slowly forms into a friendship between the two of them, plus two other friends: Siobhan + Jordan. The 4 of them become the SSC (you’ll find out what that means in the book) and form a group that meets weekly! The meeting notes continued to crack me up throughout the entire book 🤣 I love moments like this in books where the characters and their personalities are able to shine through and truly make me LOL! Also, Neen is such a fantastic character, and I absolutely love how they know Liyah so well and can calm her down and give her a friendly reality check. (We all need a Neen in our lives!) I could’ve kept reading their dialogue all day!

I love Liyah and Daniel’s friendship, which turns into a secret friends with benefits relationship. They both see the other for who they are. Liyah even says to Daniel in one part of the book that she can be herself around him and he gets her. The vulnerability within their friendship is incredible, and they’re really able to help each other in some difficult moments. When Daniel said, “Thank you for sharing this with me, Liyah,” I was a puddle on the floor. The text messages and emails?? I ate it alllll up. So good. And the declarations of love…. Gahhhhh I love them.

And I cannot forget about Sweet Potato!!!! The precious baby 🥹🐈 I love that Sweet P is such a great companion to Daniel.

There is so much representation in this book 🤩

This beautiful book comes out 9/12/23!! Check it out!!

TW: death of parent (off page); sexual assault (off page)

DNF @ 15%

There were so many things going for the book Thank You for Sharing: the solid representation, the second chance romance, the fact that Liyah works in a museum. And because of those things, I really, really wanted to like this book. But for some reason, I just didn’t. Some books you immediately vibe with, and some you just don’t. And this was one of the don’ts for me unfortunately. The writing style fell flat, the characters fell flat—maybe that’s the reading slump I’ve been in, but I just couldn’t get into the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the free e-book in exchange for my honest review!

Thank You For Sharing is a truly touching and well written novel that hits on a number of tropes and social issues. Rachel Runya Katz has created a wild, wonderful, beautiful world and a number of amazing characters as well. The characters are diverse in background but also have diverse personalities and interests.

Lyiah and Daniel are Jewish POC and were friends and then had a teen/camp romance. They left their teen years not talking and randomly met again in adulthood then found themselves working together. And as you can imagine things have been tense. But as they talk they find common ground and maybe a bit of romance. While this novel starts a bit slow it definitely gets faster and is well worth the read.

I am a huge fan of the friends to enemies to lovers trope, of diverse characters and casts which this novel has in spades (religious, race and LGBTQIA), and of the outdoors (yay camp)! So this was an extra fun novel for me. I will also mention TW: mention of previous SA; death.

Lyiah and Daniel are former friends/teen camp romance who find themselves reunited as adults on a plane and then as partners on a work project. For some reason Lyiah holds a grudge against Daniel about something that happened at camp but I’m not entirely sure what it was. The story unfolds as a typical slow burn romance but they are so annoying because they aren’t talking about their feelings nor being truthful about their feelings with each other or themselves! But alas, that does make for a good book. And reiterates the importance of sharing feelings and talking to one another!

I appreciated the diverse characters. Korean, black, Jewish, non-binary, bisexual. It was great to have more than white straight people in a story (coming from a white straight person). I particularly loved Neen and their ability to call things out. I also enjoyed Siobhan.

Tropes/Highlights:
Slow burn
Second chance romance
Friends with benefits
LGBTQ
Forced proximity

Recommend to: all you romance readers out there! It was very mild on the spice though.

Enjoyed this one very much. The characters were relatable and well-written.
Would definitely like to see more by this author and/or in this universe (I feel like Neen's story would be hilariously intriguing).
Read if you love:
Second chances
Dual POV
Forced proximity
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review eARC.

Right out of the gate, the author has beaten us over the head that the character is both Jewish and Black. Three heavy-handed mentions in as many pages starts it off like a manifesto instead of a novel. And then she jumps down the guy's throat for not perceiving her correctly, at the same time verbally accosting him for also being biracial. Way to make me hate a character right off the bat.

By 20% in, she's at least calmed down on the aggression. She concedes to her friend's wishes to be nice in group settings, but she's still conceited and self-centered. The level of angst in this book is more fitting in a high school novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fun read. The two main characters have a history. They both have been though difficult times. I felt like Liyah was hanging on to the past a bit much, but I enjoyed the story and the journey of Daniel and Liyah.

This book is just delightful! The design of the main characters and dual pov was so so well done, I liked that both main characters had very realistic challenges but they came into the book with these fairly work through with therapy (or with sisters who are therapist) and didn’t expect their love interest to solve them. I also loved the found family aspect, and in general the really strong side characters that helped make the main characters feel like they were more real outside of just their love story. I was also a huge fan of the way representation was taken as just a fact while recognizing the challenges associated. My only complaint if I felt like the ending would have benefited from one more chapter with either the support group or in therapy to close some of the loops. Excited to see what this author writes next, thank you so much for access to an early copy!

Liyah Cohen-Jackson and Daniel Rosenberg were best friends at camp as teens until a perceived betrayal split them apart. When they meet again fourteen years later as seat mates on a plane, their feud picks right back up. Both Liyah and Daniel are surprised to find themselves working closely together in Chicago as the marketing firm Daniel works for is hired to consult with the Field Museum where Liyah is a junior curator. As they work more closely together and meet with friends outside of work, Liyah reluctantly lets down her thorny exterior to let Daniel back into her life.

I found the representation in this book to be really beautiful in its inclusivity. Both Liyah and Daniel are Jewish BIPOC, and they have friends who represent a broad spectrum. There is also a non-binary side character who uses they/them pronouns.

I absolutely love the Speakeasy Survival Club and the inclusion of their meeting notes throughout the book. The way that this group of people is thrown together initially and then builds a beautiful found family over time was so lovely to witness.

The romance between Daniel and Liyah felt like a really delicious slow burn. It was apparent from the very start that there was chemistry to spare between them, but that Liyah would never move beyond her extremely casual stance on dating unless she finally found someone she could trust enough to let in. I nearly squealed when reading that Liyah and I share the same favorite teen movie and thought it was so sweet when she shared it with Daniel.

Recommended for readers who love: 🏕️ camp friends turned camp enemies turned adult enemies to friends to lovers 🍹 support group but with drinks 💜 bisexual heroine 🐈 a cat named Sweet Potato🦖 dinosaur bones 🛌 only one bed in a snowstorm 🧱 building trust through vulnerability

TW: mention of past sexual assault; previous death of a parent

This felt like a slice of life romance, the characters seemed so real and well written. The pace was a little slow for me until about half way but I loved getting to know Liyah and Daniel. Obsessed with a love interest with a cat.

There is a lot I enjoyed reading this book - there were moments of real sweetness, vulnerability and honesty. I especially liked the scene with Daniel's family celebrating the anniversary of his father's death. There were other moments that made for wonderful reading, but overall for me there wasn't enough of a flow to the novel overall. I felt the Friday night notes broke up the storyline a bit too much, and felt a bit over the top. As a Chicagoan myself who worked at the Adler Planetarium (right in the Museum Campus by the Field Museum) I was annoyed with the casual way Liyah was able to sleep at the museum at her leisure with no consequences. Liyah was a tough character to get behind, and Liyah and Daniel's original arguments in middle school, seemed like such small potatoes to be so majorly worked up over as an adult. Sure, she could have some slight animosity but even with multiple attempts of Daniel to apologize, Liyah was still holding that as a grudge. I was glad there was lots of multicultural representation and overall a diverse group of characters. The book ended up dragging on for me a bit, and there wasn't really a strong plotline to keep the pages turning so while enjoyable it wasn't the best for me personally. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up. Thank You for Sharing is a wonderfully Jewish story, even when the main characters (both Jews of color) aren't talking or even thinking about their Judaism.

Liyah and Daniel have a meet-disaster almost a decade and a half after a romantic-turned-disaster summer at camp (I generally don't like when characters are hung up on their childhood camp romance, but for reasons that are shared later in the book, it made more sense than this plot line often does). When work pushes them together, they start spending more and more time together on and off the clock.

This wasn't so much grumpy/sunshine as prickly (Liyah)/soft (Daniel), and I loved it. Daniel was a big soft cinnamon roll, and he was able to perceive what Liyah needed and be that for her, even when she was reluctant to admit it.

CW: grief due to loss of parent -- Everyone's experience with grief is different, but there are so many elements of Daniel's experience of losing a parent in your 20s that just felt so spot-on. There's an early scene in the book where Liyah and Daniel agree to go to Yom Kippur services together, as a middle finger to people who see Jews who aren't White show up to synagogue and ask them if they're lost. As the yizkor (memorial) service starts, Liyah asks Daniel if he wants to leave, as some people have a custom of not staying in that service if their parents are still alive. Daniel is flustered, mumbling and giving non-answers about why he's not getting up, and when Liyah realizes what's happened, she feels awful. I read this scene, and must have screamed at how real it felt. Daniel's awkwardness in his own position, his awkwardness for how him staying for yizkor put Liyah in an uncomfortable position (even though he shouldn't have to think about that), and the emotions that come with the first yizkor after someone dies. There were so many other moments, big and small, where Daniel's experience and feelings and how he handles them were so raw and emotional in a way that's rarely represented in books, and it certainly made me feel seen.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an eARC of Thank You For Sharing in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Griffin for the chance to read this book.

I requested this book when I saw that both the FMC and MMC were people of color and Jewish backgrounds. It was refreshing to see some atypical representation. However I ended up DNFing at 20%. The book was so wordy that it detracted from the story for me to the point that I was uninterested. I’m sad because I was really looking forward to this one.

This was such a wordy book I couldn’t get past the first 25% of the book. I also had an issue with the words used to describe the characters of color.

4/5!!
this book was like coming up for fresh air and it completely got me out of my reading slump!! the pacing was consistent and just right and the characters were so relatable and AMAZING

This debut novel is undeniably commendable. Although I initially struggled with the pacing of the story telling.

Among the memorable moments, the Yom Kippur scene and the episode where Liyah and Daniel found themselves stranded overnight during a snowstorm stood out as they exuded a remarkable chemistry and profound connection. These scenes not only fostered a strong bond between the characters themselves but also forged a meaningful link with the reader. Witnessing their gradual unfolding, as they shared vulnerabilities and built mutual trust, was an odyssey intertwined with their past wounds, yet both displayed a maturity that complemented each other seamlessly.

If there were one aspect I could alter, it would be the abundance of club meeting notes, which at times felt redundant and leaned towards excessive exposition rather than immersive storytelling. Moreover, the novel exhibited an initial excess in addressing race, with the topic cropping up nearly every other page. This propensity towards overemphasis occasionally bordered on contrived and wearisome.

I was on the verge of a DNF but the latter half of the book proved to be a redemption, captivating my interest and allowing me to finish the book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy this book. It never hooked me in and the FMC was insufferable. Parts of it really dragged and the group hang out reports were random and not funny.

I really enjoyed this debut novel! It was funny and poignant, and Daniel and Liyah were an endearing and very complex couple! I really appreciated this book for the diversity of characters—their race, religion, and sexuality added depth and layers to their stories. I look forward to reading more from this promising author!

Liyah and Daniel were childhood summer camp sweethearts who have a chance meeting on a plane and then end up working together. The only issue...Liyah all but hates Daniel. I loved the dynamics of Liyah and Daniel's relationship throughout this book...from childhood sweethearts turned enemies (on Liyah's side at least) to friends to lovers. It was a lovely ride.

What I liked:
- Liyah and Daniel's experiences being biracial and Jewish. I liked reading about their experiences attending Jewish holiday services. As someone who is not BIPOC, I've never had these types of interactions, but I'm sure they are based on real experiences people have every day. These interactions in the book made me angry that the characters had to go through them (and even angrier that real people have them daily).
- The SSC meetings and notes. I loved the meeting notes spread throughout the book. They were a fun addition for me and made me laugh a couple times.
- The slow burn. Danial and Liyah are in multiple situations where I was expecting something to happen but nothing did...for example, spending the night in the museum due to the snow storm. I thought for sure the one bed trope was about to happen, but nope...nada. The slow burn was for real.
- Daniel, in general. I loved him. He was so supportive of Liyah.
- Jordan and Siobhan. They were great side characters. I'm hoping the author will write a follow-up book with them as the main characters.
- Neen. Loved them. They were absolutely the best friend Liyah needed because they don't hold back when she's being obtuse or a bit of a b.
- Sweet Potato. I want this cat in my life.
- Therapy representation. I appreciated how much this book talked about the positives of therapy.

What I didn't like:
- Liyah was a bit unlikeable for a good portion of this book. She's had a lot of stuff happen to her, so I tried to have some grace for her, but come on...the world doesn't revolve around you, Liyah. You can't treat people like crap and then blame it on them when they get upset with you. Also, your opinions are not the only ones that matter. I appreciated, however, that she had some character growth by the end.
- Jeff. He is a terrible boss. Absolutely awful. I wanted to punch him.

Overall, I'd say this was a 4.5 star read for me.

Read if you enjoy:
- Friends to Lovers trope
- Second-chance Romance
- Supportive friends
- Therapy
- Cute cats
- LBGTQIA+ rep

I chose not to finish this book. I just could not get into the story and I wasn’t looking forward to picking it up.