I'd like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Although it wasn't an insta love, I felt like it needed a little more of a slow burn to it. One things started progressing - it really progressed and things happened pretty fast. I really liked Callum and Katie and thought they were a perfect match together. They had a great banter and I always love a good back and forth.

This is a perfect romance, it's funny and there's good chemistry with likable characters and it was relatable. I really enjoyed the side characters as well and how they all look out for each other.

A construction company threatens a small town with a hotel development project. Katie revitalizes the town's matchmaking festival to try and thwart their plans, but falls for the construction site leader Callum along the way.

This book was like a cute Hallmark movie with a little bit of steam. I feel like the romance was a bit rushed (not exactly insta-love but close?) so I wish that was further developed. I loved the small Irish town setting and seeing the community rally together for the cause. We see Katie struggle with finding herself and her place in the world while still honoring and preserving the past.

I didn't love it as much as Holiday Romance by Walsh, but it's a charming story overall that would make a fun vacation read.

Didn't love this as much as I did Holiday Romance, but it was still sweet and charming romcom. I loved the setting (and it makes for a perfect St. Patrick's Day read!) and found the relationship between Callum and Katie refreshing and quick. I'm a fan of the slowburn so I sometimes wish this took more of that angle, but it wasn't insta-love, which is good. It was funny and I really enjoyed the banter.

I read Catherine Walsh's Holiday Romance last year and absolutely loved it, so I was really excited to try another of her books! Let's just say this one didn't disappoint. Catherine's way of writing is absolutely spot on and I feel like she's insanely underrated!!

This story was the perfect romance read. The characters are relatable, the story is SOOO cute and there's also a lot of humour. What more could you possibly need? I fell in love with this tiny little place in Ireland as well as everyone who lives there and now I'm having a hard time letting it all go.

Definitely recommend this read, 4.5/5 stars!

☕ The Matchmaker by Catherine Walsh |
3 ⭐

Katie Collins loves Ennisbawn, her small Irish town and the people love her back. She is the young bartender of the only bar of the place. When developers with deep pockets arrive in the town to reestablish it as a concrete jungle, they have big ideas which will destroy all that Katie loves about the town. Now everyone at the village and our determined heroine have setup an idea to stop them.

🔸Would they succeed in saving their laid-back old place?

This is my second book by Walsh and she just writes the sweetest, feel good romances. This book had all the heart-warming vibes. However, I felt Katie had more chemistry with her girls than Callum, the hero. I loved reading Holiday Romance last year due to the romance between the MCs, but this felt off. I am just a sucker for small town love stories.

✨ Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the Digital Advanced Reader Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. ✨

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Published: 2023 (published)
Page Count: 382 pages
Genre: Romance
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HAPPY READING 📑

I couldn’t put this book down from the minute I picked it up. I adore Catherine Walsh’s writing, she definitely knows how to write a good love story. Reading this book was like a virtual hug, it was totally feel good. I loved the small town Irish setting, it was charming and homely. I was completely behind the villager’s fight to save Ennisbawn, and although the story was a little predictable, there was comfort in it reading it and it meant I could just enjoy the story. Catherine Walsh certainly knows how to write comedy and more than once I laughed out loud.

I’ve been a massive fan of Catherine Walsh ever since I read Holiday Romance last year (if you’ve not read it yet, I’d definitely recommend!). The Matchmaker follows Katie Collins who has lived most of her life in a small rural, Irish town. Their quiet way of life is under threat when a new development comes to town. Katie is not willing to go down without a fight though and before long the whole village rallies together to resurrect a festival which may just save them all.

The Matchmaker is a delightful read full of characters you will love and a story which flows with ease and fun. I loved the sense of belonging, knowing yourself and the willingness to stand up for what you believe in which comes with The Matchmaker and I easily got lost in its pages. This will be a brilliant summer reason.

Quirky small town enemies to lovers complete with an eye mask and pajama pants on a construction site meet cute and some swoony melty words - "It's because I don't know how I'm going to tear down your favorite place in the world when I can barely stand the thought of you getting caught in the rain" (I'm sorry what. 🫠🥰🫠😍)

Katie and Callum's story was a cute and quick read, hallmark-y with all the eccentric side characters that one would expect from a small town. The chemistry between the two was definitely there, but it felt like there was some depth that was missing. Also, even with the sweet epilogue, it felt like it tied up other characters and had an awkwardly abrupt ending to our FMC and MMC. Overall a fun story with another charming village to add to my want to visit list!


Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I would like to thank NetGalley, Author Catherine Walsh and the publishers for this Arc. I will give my honest review.
At first, I thought this book was about a love story in the beautiful land of Ireland, but it was so much more.
I loved it from the first page. The FMC is so funny! I would love to have a friend like her. Also I would like to adopt granny is the is available. This book made me really want to buy a ticket to Ireland and visit all the small pubs, in the small villages and help them out to save it from billionaires whom wants to buy it and destroy it. The friendship between all the second characters stole my heart.
The love story was too fast for me. The two didn’t spent so much time together and I didn’t feel so much chemistry.
But this book is soooo worth it! Highly recommended ❤️

This book was adorable. I want to live in this small town. I hope there are more book set here. The characters were each unique and well rounded. The plot was well thought out and made sense. Lastly, the romance was a slow burn but so so cute. I couldn’t help but root for them.

In trying to save her small town from destruction at the proverbial hands of a large luxury resort, Katie teams up with local friends to prove that this home of theirs will not being bulldozed for the sake of progress. In doing so, she brings back a longtime tradition of the Match Maker Festival -- but can she pull it off with the resort developer doing everything he can to sabotage her?

This was a great story. I wanted to go to the festival by the end. The whole town was so vivid. The whole conversation regarding the balance between bringing in new, honoring the past vs bulldozing the past was intriguing and honest.

#arc
#netgalley
#thematchmaker

Katie Collins lives with her grandmother Maeve in Ennisbawn, a quiet town in rural Ireland. Quiet, until Glenmill Properties bought half the town and started building a hotel close to her house.

The book starts with Katie strutting into the construction site, asking for the trucks to stop passing in front of her house so that she can sleep properly. The problems get worse when Glenmill, in the form of one Jack Doyle, decides to buy the town bar, where Katie works.

To avoid this happening, Katie convinces everyone to help her revive the old matchmaking festival, where her parents met.

One part I’m missing? The on-site project coordinator is cute, funny, and seems to like Katie. At least, he rerouted the trucks so she could sleep…

I don’t know how Catherine makes the books seem longer than they are. And not in a bad, boring way! She packs so much information in what she writes that I get the feeling I read more than the page number I’m at.

The plot is interesting and captivating. I wanted to keep reading.

The characters are amazing, we could feel the love of the town and they were great entertainment. My favorite person is the grandmother. I would love to learn more about Maeve.

If you are looking for an entertaining funny romance with small town vibes and lots of family feelings, give this one a try.

4.5*

I thought this was a cute story! Yes, it was a romance, but it was more about the small town that the main character lives in and her relationship with her family and friends. I loved how the entire town came together to try to save their town from development that they didn’t want by hosting a matchmaking festival. The festival was a labor of love and this story was quite a ride.

what to expect:
- small town vibes
- Ireland setting
- enemies to lovers
- meaningful relationships

The matchmaker tells the tail of a small town gal doing everything in her power to save her small town called Ennisbrawn from a big hotel company coming to bull doze over everything that makes up Ennisbrawn. Of course along the way feelings and emotions get mixed in and mixed up which adds to the whole ensemble. You my dear will just have to read the MatchMaker yourself to find out if Ennisbrawn is saved and who falls in love with who.

Callum is the best Book boyfriend! I totally loved my favourite part is how truly confident he is with his feelings towards Katie! No wavering whatsoever! Katie in the other had had so much on her plate that it’s amazing how she did it all!

Do you know that book hangover feeling when you've just finished a spectacular book and you find it difficult to begin your next read because the author is taking a bit too long to set the stage for the story and you know you'll eventually feel connected to the characters but why is it taking so long?
This book is the opposite of that - it draws you in from the first chapter and holds you until the very last page! There isn't a thing about this book I didn't love.
The small Irish town fighting to keep their way of life had a lovely David vs Goliath feel without consuming too much of the story. All of the characters were lovable - even the terrible businessmen trying to take over their town had a lovely redemption arc - this book will truly just tug on your heart and leave you with a big smile across your face.

This is my first book by this author and I'm so thankful for a chance to read one of her books in advance of the publication and think I have discovered a new favorite romance author. Truly can't wait to dive down the rabbit hole of Walsh's other novels!

This was such a heart-warming and fun enemies-to-lovers book! It was a super easy to get into and well-written read, thanks to the story being immediately touching/relatable and never boring. It has various themes weaved together with romance, which made it even better to read, for example the love and support of the community, adult friendships, grandparents-grandkids relationships, activism, and the landscape change we are seeing in villages, towns, and cities. This book is very relevant to the present moment but it deals with some very important issues with a light and positive outlook. I would definitely recommend to read it if you are intrigued by the blurb :-)

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The Matchmaker by Catherine Walsh is a lovely light hearted Irish romantic comedy that’s easy to read, makes you laugh, and keeps you engaged with likeable, realistic characters.

A "save our town" novel, The Matchmaker is fun and full of small town warmth.

A quick, light book with some characters with depth.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and provide my honest feedback.

What a cute book! I loved the little town, the characters, their drama and interactions. I was easily transported into the town and could imagine being there with the characters. The romance was cute. It was a quick, fun read.

Katie's little town is perfect. Until Callum Dempsey, a developer, comes into town and starts to ruin it with a hotel... and terrible plans for her pub. Katie plans to bring the matchmaking festival back to life in order to save the town. Will Katie save her town? Will fate have other plans for her and the evil developer?

Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader copy.