Sal Thomas has written an utter gem of a book with her debut 'The Accidental Housemate'. Set in Birmingham (where they say 'mom' not 'mum'!), 39 year-old single mother of three Cath ends up with an unlikely lodger, the hunky American Dan, who is a few years younger to help her meet her bills, after she loses her job thanks to an alcoholic colleague shifting blame on her.

Cath is a survivor, having discovered she was pregnant with her now toddler son in the aftermath of Gav's sudden death three years prior. She has a wonderful dry sense of humour while being a fierce mother for her three kids. However she's stuck in her grief with Gav's ashes still yet to be distributed, and, as her original dreams for going to university were put aside, after discovering she was pregnant in her late teens, still feels like she's missing something.

I devoured this book. I loved the chemistry between Dan and Cath. Cath has built up a carapace, afraid to move forward, and Dan is patient, kind and loving, but not unafraid to call her out on her shit. I also loved her 'Science Mom' storyline and how social media attention can be harmful when our real lives are missing something we find attention online to full that hole.

Sal Thomas should be commended for such a debut. This book has all the feels; its poignant, funny and smart. I eagerly await her next book.

Thanks to Harper Collins UK and One More Chapter and NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved this fun story about a woman who can't seem to get her life together and the man who appears to be one thing and turns out to be quite another. I felt the sort of mom-panic that Cath faces, the mishaps and misadventures while trying to navigate her way through the world. Dan is the perfect foil for her and the whole concept of using social media to teach, along with the pitfalls of succeeding at it, were all truly great. This is a hip and now sort of story; I'd highly recommend it to other readers and will share on my platforms!

Great debut book. I'll definitely be looking out for more books by this author in the future.

In this book we meet Cath, she is in a little bit of a funny. She is mum of three lovely children, who has sadly lost her husband. Everything seems to be falling apart, she is coming up to her 40th birthday, she barley has a hold on her job, and she is finding it hard to come to terms with her husband's passing and to find her own path in the world.

So Cath decides that she needs to take in a student to be able to make ends meet. Cath thinks that she is going to be getting a student who is looking for a place to live. However in walks Dan, American musician who is definitely not a child and who sends her world into a motion that she never thought that she would feel again after the passing of her husband.

A lovely storyline of finding yourself, finding your way in life and learning to love again when your world has fallen apart.

I enjoyed this title! Cath was a great main character and although I don't really relate to her I was able to read her story and enjoy nonetheless. Some of the plot points were a little unrealistic to me, but if you can look past those, this is a great debut! Also, the cover was SO cute!!

A funny, yet heartwarming read.

A story of Cath, a widowed mother of three and the journey to find herself again. She takes on a lodger Dan who's not quite what she was expecting.

The relationship between Cath and her daughter Leanne was sweet and she wasn't afraid to tell her mum what she thought.
Dan was charming and his interactions with Cath and her best friend were funny and made me chuckle.
As well as the lighthearted and flirty storyline it does touch on dealing with greif which I thought balanced really well and it did bring a tear to two to my eyes.
Overall a great enjoyable read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the download

Ended up really loving this. This reads more like women’s fiction with a dash of romance.

The “issues” and coming together with the couple seemed rushed. Would have benefited with a couple more scenes between the two.

The ensemble characters are lovable! This story deals with grief and will touch your heart, while giving you a couple laughs.

Single POV
Women’s Fiction, dash of romance
Closed Door
Single Mom
Age Gap/Younger Man
Lovable Ensemble Cast

The Accidental Housemate was a lovely read! The book starts slow, but hang in there. The characters are so whole and they will charm you as you read. Cath isn’t always my favorite, but she’s relatable and funny. This book has it all. Love, crazy families, romance, parenting, grief, and more. It’s almost like a therapy session/book rolled up together.

The Accidental Housemate is a heartwarming and entertaining novel by Sal Thomas. The story revolves around two strangers, Cath & Dan, who end up becoming housemates due to unforeseen circumstances.

The author does an excellent job of creating relatable and likable characters. Dan and Cath have distinct personalities and quirks that make them feel real and endearing. Their initial awkwardness and eventual friendship are portrayed in a realistic and charming way.

There were moments where I laughed out load. I was loving the story of Cath, her kids, her best friend & their relationship and I loved how Dan came into the picture. I was excited to see how Cath and Dan became close and I wanted more of that. The writing was great. But it just became to much about everything else in Cath's life. There were things I felt that could have been left out.

Overall, The Accidental Housemate is a delightful and heartwarming novel. I just really wanted more of Dan and Cath.

This Rom-Com just hit me hard, but in a good way. I absolutely loved this book. It just quietly crept into my heart and head and planted itself there.
I just reviewed The Accidental Housemate by Sal Thomas. #NetGalley
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Single parent trope? Say no less!

If there is one thing I love it is the single parent trope! And it was such a refreshing change for me to read about a single mom since all the single parent books I’ve read has been about a single dad!

This book was such an easy, fly-through-every-page book that I pretty much binged it!

I will say the writing style wasn’t my favorite but I still really enjoyed this book and would recommend to others!

Cath is a single mom to 3 kids after her boyfriend (really her husband minus the marriage part) died unexpectedly while she was pregnant with #3.

After she loses her job she realizes she needs more money and decides to take in a lodger. A student teenager from America is headed her way. When she picks him up from it airport she finds out he's not actually a teenager at all. He's an adult male, a very attractive adult male.

Cath and her awkwardness were definitely my favorite part of this book. She is 100% every woman in that way and I loved it!!

As you can imagine Cath and Dan (the lodger) become close and what ensues is what you'd expect in the end.

An enjoyable book that I'd probably recommend.

The Accidental Housemate by new to me author Sal Thomas, published by Harper Collines/ One More Chapter is a stand-alone romance that gives all the feels.
Cath, a nearly 40 year old single mom is still griving her late husband. A new relationship is far from her mind. But to better up her income, she decides to rent a room to a student. Thinking so what's one kid more ??
Far from it is Dan who shows up on her doorstep, and soon he's turnng her whole world upside down.
A great read that I enjoyed with characters I easily could connect with, 4,5 beautiful stars.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I’ll start with what I did like: I liked that this book was a good representation of how grief isn’t linear nor uniform to all. I liked Dan and Leanne. I liked how Leanne wasn’t afraid to call out her mother.
What I didn’t like: this was not a romcom. I would not have chosen this if I knew this was a tale of a single mother navigating grief and finding herself. I could not connect with Cath, honestly I just didn’t like her character. Also I sometimes forget that British English and North American English don’t always translate well. There were quite a few sentences in this book that made zero sense to me. I figure it’s a language thing.
I think this needs to be marketed differently. I’m a mood reader and I was really disappointed this was not at all what I was hoping for. Overall it’s a 2.5⭐️ at most IMO.

A fun, easy to read romance about the responsibilities of adulthood and the problems that come with life. I found this to be a quick lighthearted read and although it does have some deeper elements (loss, being a widow) this is mostly a feel good book that will make you laugh out loud.

The Accidental Housemate by Sal Thomas is a heartwarming and entertaining novel that tells the story of Cath Beckinsale, a single mother of three who is struggling to make ends meet. In a bid to ease her financial woes, Cath decides to take in a student lodger. But when Dan, a matured and charismatic musician from the US, arrives, Cath's life takes an unexpected turn.

The author's writing style is witty and engaging, and the characters are well-drawn and relatable. The chemistry between Cath and Dan is palpable, and their evolving relationship is both touching and humorous.

The novel explores themes of love, loss, and family in a poignant and thought-provoking manner. The Accidental Housemate is a delightful and heartwarming read that will leave readers feeling uplifted and inspired. Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a charming and enjoyable story.

A lovely lighthearted book with a great sense of humour running through it.
Cath tells her own story; she is a 39 year old widow with three children - Leanne is 18 and just about to embark on her university journey, Eric an almost-teen and Jack the toddler.
When Cath unexpectedly loses her job, she needs money so takes in Dan, a university student from America. She's expecting an 18 year old so is surprised when he turns out to be a drop dead gorgeous 30 something.
Quite predictable but I was on her side throughout, unlike others in her life.
Great characters, enjoyable story and 4 🌟 from me.

Solid debut, a feel-good story about a single mom of three, who is still on her journey through grief, yet life goes on and to make ends she agrees to host a student from the US, who turns out to be actually a grown-up, attractive man.

Not everything worked for me in this book – I expect the heroes of my age to be more mature and capable of communication among them, therefore, the third act breakup felt a bit flat, and I’m not sure Dan earned the right to be with Cath, I think he should have worked harder, not just grace everybody with his appearance at a certain moment. Still, I found Cath and her life very relatable and honestly depicted, especially the mom part, and though sometimes she was annoying, a bit judgemental and stubborn little cow, I fell in love with her as much as her adorable children.

Writing is great, grabs attention from the first page, there were some pacing issues in the middle of the story, but in general, I had a really good time reading it. So if you are into self-deprecating humor, socially-awkward, geeky characters, opposites attract and forced proximity tropes, you should give it a chance.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for the eARC in exchange of an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter (HarperCollins UK) for the advance reader copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed the accident prone, awkward life of Cath, her family and her new lodger.

This was an easy read with a a good amount of struggles that come with adult life.
The side characters are great and fleshed out enough that you don’t feel rushed with their parts in the story.

Overall a fun book which also touches on family dynamics and losing those you love.
I would recommend for romance readers.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed reading the accidental housemate. The author writes very well, truly engaging characters and writes from a new and fresh perspective of life, grief, and love after loss.

Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to review this wonderful book.

Summary: Cath Beckinsale has found herself a single mum of three after her partner passed away. Asked to offer a student a place to stay for a year, she agrees to help. But things don’t turn out how she expected

Review:

This was a funny, pacey romantic comedy. Easy to read and fill of laugh out loud moments.

The perfect strangers to friends to lovers trope. Full of funny banter, great female characters and a great storyline

A fantastic read