Unfortunately this book was a DNF for me. It felt like the author was trying to fit to many subplots into the main story and it made the book feel slow. I loved the premises of the book, however it didn't feel like it was delivering. I found Cath hard to relate to and chunky dialogue and unnatural/forced. There was also some sentences in this book that did not make any sense to me.

An enjoyable and undemanding read.

Rather predictable at times, but with some laugh out loud instants.

A good one to take on holiday!

I enjoyed the book, but there were some aspects of it I was not very happy about. I thought the author wanted to cram too many issues, subplots into the plot. It was the same with the characters. For example Leanne not only has prosthetic legs, but she is also gay. One special feature might have been enough I think. I was also quite surprised at Cath's behaviour sometimes. A middle-aged woman who raises three children cannot be so clumsy at the sight of a fit man. So, yes, it is an enjoyable read, I can recommend it to anyone who likes this "from enemy to lover" topic, but it won't be my favourite of the genre.

Show of hands (emoji’s work) what age group do you usually read when it comes to romance novels?

I think I’m usually reading about characters who are in their early 30’s late 20’s. As for The Accidental Housemate, I came across this gem of a book whose MC is my age, has three children (see how it’s ticking off all the relatable boxes), whose partner was an engineer (my engineer is still with me). What I absolutely LOVED about this book is how it had me in literal tears from the belly laughs throughout the entire book. I love this book.

A glimpse of life that focuses on friendship, grief, and motherhood, this book will wrap you in a warm hug and hold you tight, and keep you laughing long after the last chapter. Mother’s will get the hilarity of trying to be the best parent, but knowing all to well the critical eye others have for our parenting skills.

With a delicious romance, heartwarming moments between mother and her children, and captures the real and rawness of life, Sal Thomas is on my auto-buy list.

Don’t hesitate to pre-order The Accidental Housemate.

Happy Reading ~ Cece

I received a free copy of, The Accidental Housemate, by Sal Thomas, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Cath Beckinsale is a widow and mother of three, she needs help an thinks a lodger will be her answer. This book was a bit heavier than I thought it was going to be, I thought it would be a light chick read, but it had depth it. I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC, unfortunately it was a DNF for me. I loved the premise of the book, but it didn't hit the spot for me personally. I found Cath hard to relate to and most of the dialogue felt clunky and unnatural to me, though I think that is likely due to the translation to North American English. I think this book would be perfect for an older demographic, but since I am single and in my 20s, it just wasn't for me!

The Accidental Housemate is such a fun and easy read. The storyline is well-paced and full of realistic, relatable characters. This book is perfect for readers who love strong female characters, funny banter, and the strangers to friends to lovers trope!

Overall an enjoyable read but it really didn’t feel like a rom-com to me; it’s definitely more in line with a women’s fic novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Accidental Housemate by Sal Thomas an excellent and enjoyable tale.

This is a wonderful little story, that you will fall in love with.
The characters, setting, and ending will leave you with a very cozy and happy feeling.
I enjoyed the premise of this book it was very entertaining and easy to read.
The dynamic was great. And our characters are all funny and pretty realistic.
Thomas’ writing is full of humor and warmth.
Overall, this book was just a delightful, funny and cosy read, I couldn't put it down.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and One More Chapter for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I absolutely loved every page of this book! It made me laugh out loud and was so uplifting. A fabulous read that I can definitely recommend. I’ll be searching out more books from this talented author. Thanks for NetGally and the publishers for a delightful couple of days.

The premise of this book was cute and has been written before in several other books. A stranger comes to live with the main character and feelings develop over time. This book did not live up to previous books I've read before with this story line. The book moved slowly for me and just when I thought things were picking up, they returned to the slowness. The main character, Cath, wasn't very likeable at times. I really liked Dan and wish there was more of a build up between him and Cath. There were several humorous parts which helped me enjoy the book a little more. This book was just average.

I have to be honest a lovely story but it took over half the book to warm to the main character Cath. She had loads on her plate. I loved what she did the teenagers who struggled at school . Her lodger was gorgeous in my head and ace with her children. I loved her best friend and her slimming world attitude. Her father in law was fab. The book got better . A very neat ending.

I thought this story was surprisingly realistically which I enjoyed. Often times these kind of life events aren’t handled with care.

Cath is a single mom of three. When she was pregnant with her youngest, her husband died. She has a hard time moving on.

With a sudden loss of a job, she needs extra income. To make ends meet, she tasks up a lodger. She expected a student, but Dan is no teenager.

With more time they spend together, the more the attraction grows.

It's a lovely story written in a very realistic way.

got the ARC, all thoughts are my own

Cath needs to earn money so when someone suggests she takes on a student from America she agrees I my to find he's not the teenager she thought it an adult

The Accidental Housemate is a sweet and somewhat moving romantic/comedic-ish novel about starting over in "middle age" (I use that term loosely) and what it feels like to move on from the loss of a love.

The gist is this - Cath Beckinsale has lost her job as a teacher's aide due to frustrating and unfair circumstances. She's also just found herself with an empty bedroom as her eldest, Leanne, is off to university. So when a former colleague suggests she take on a friend of a friend as a lodger, Cath is willing to take in a fresh-faced teenager from America.

But the lodger isn't a teen - he's a 36 year old man called Dan who looks like he's been carved from stone. Cath, on the other hand, is a mess: a widow-ish after her longterm partner died of a heart attack, leaving her the single mum to two tweens and a baby she didn't even know she was pregnant with. Cath starts things off strong by discussing - at length - quantum mechanics on the way home from the airport and it devolves from there.

Slowly but surely, the two find common ground and even start to get on. In the meantime, Cath has turned to social media to help tutor some of her more troubled students in the GCSEs, and she finds herself at a crossroads and seriously considering being an "edutainment influencer."

There was much to like and much that frustrated me here. The good: it's an honest look at what grief is like. Grief is NOT linear, and neither is healing, and it's too much for any of us to expect it to work that way. The bad: Cath often behaved like a teenager, and not an almost-40 year old mom of three. I think it's good to show that mothers (parents, really) are human just like anyone else, but this verged on the absurd.

Overall, I enjoyed the read and I found a lot of the writing and banter to be quite sharp. But it won't necessarily sit with me for all that long. 3 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the ARC.

The Accidental Housemate was an enjoyable book, most books I’ve read recently have had main characters in their early 20s. Very rarely hitting late 20s. So to have characters in their late 30s made a nice change. The book had a distinct writing style, it did take a good 30% of the book to get into it. Possibly from being set in the uk. But once I was used to the style the book flowed nicely. A lot of the plot was predictable but in a good way, by the end you were routing for everything to fall into place for Cath.

Cath Beckinsale husband Gaz died, she concentrats on the children's she's not used to having a man around the house, but rents out a toom to one.

Lodger Dan pays 600 pounds per month from the room.
Turns out to be an Americatis rom Arkansas and who a mature university student.

Children Jack, Leanne and Erir. Cats a stay at home mum but dream to a science teacher..

But instead of being a stay at home want to be a scientist, something she was on track to becom after finishing school.

Reggie, Bradley Jada Malic all want science lessons all teenagers from her old school as she wishes to start giving private lessons. Leaves her thinking she can get learning onto their

'Everything is changing' and she doesn't it one little bit. Dan tells her 'crying is not hippy dippy. It's a natural reaction to feeling bad'.

Geoff and Sheila Cath's parent and step farther.

Starts a social media channel, sharing exam tips in science. It becomes extremely popular!

Dad has growns on Cath, people at the school gate say she got Dan wrapped around your finger. Cath emphasis that their just friends.

Website attracts the print media, and her stats have taken off.

Catches Eric spoken cannabis. But he tell her he wishes she was dead and wants his dad was alive!
Make Cath feel like she's letting him down.But Dan consoles her, but reaches in for a kiss.

Cath is nominate for an award and takes Dan with her to London. Their relationship grows.

How will it work out in the end? Can Cath keep hold of him without her clumsy personality causing thing making things full apart, you really have to read right up to the end to find out!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me a complmentary digital copy of this ebook in exchange for a full,
frank and honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.,,

The Accidental Housemate sucked me in from the first chapter and had me rolling throughout! This was well paced and honestly the perfect binge read when you're looking for something that'll make you feel good!

BLURB:
Cath Beckinsale is in a jam. She’s a single mum of three, with her 40th birthday in sight and a precarious hold on employment. And she can’t quite let go of her late husband Gaz, whose ashes are still in an urn on the kitchen table.

To make ends meet a student lodger seems like the perfect solution – after all, what’s one more child in the house? But when Dan flies in from the US with guitar and chest hair on display, it’s immediately clear that he’s no teenager, but someone who quickly sends life in an unexpected direction.

MY REVIEW:
To start with, this is not a romcom. It is a women’s fiction novel that follows Cath, a single mother, as she navigates her grief of losing her husband and her journey of finding herself again.

The writing and plot were fine, and most of the characters were likeable, but this needs to be marketed better.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for my honest review.

Not what I was expecting, as it was so much better. You really feel for Cath, even if you are the complete opposite of her, you can feel for her. Losing her partner and having to keep going, not just for the kids, but for herself as well. The more you get to know Cath, the more compassion and empathy you have for her. The aspect of this story I enjoyed most was how Gaz was still such a massive character even with how they treat his urn, it was such a refreshing and honest way showing how different people deal with their grief. Dan was the one that took me a while to warm to, but once I was warm, well he set me aflame with how he treated everyone else. This is a great read for whiling the hours, or just enjoying learning about how others deal with grief and loss.