I really enjoyed The Beginning of Everything by Jackie Fraser! This is my first read of hers, but I will for sure be dipping into her backlog. The main character, Jess, has been a runner her whole life thus far – first from her family, then from her unhealthy relationships. Jess chose homelessness over remaining in an abusive relationship, and with the help of Gethin and his fixer upper of an old house, begins to slowly piece her life back together. I loved both main characters, and the book felt quite cozy to me, despite the serious subject matter that caused Jess to uproot her life. It was so refreshing to read a book about characters in their 40s, it was a nice change from the books I’ve been reading lately. I highly recommend this book!

Very heartwarming story about two middle age individuals. We don't usually get books with these characters so I really enjoyed it!

After escaping a bad relationship, Jess Cavendish is running and leaving it all behind, carrying just a few treasured belongings in her knapsack. She needs to start over, but that means sleeping where she can and making the most of her slim savings. Then, she comes across a recently sold, unoccupied house and decides that it couldn’t hurt to stay there while she saves up enough to get her own place. Gethin Thomas is also looking to move on after the end of a long-term relationship. He’s returned to his hometown, anxious to renovate the fixer-upper he bought and move out of his sister’s cramped guest room. When he walks through the door one morning, he finds Jess, who’s ready to run again, and surprises them both by offering to let her stay. It feels like the right thing to do, but Jess doesn’t want a handout. They strike a bargain: Jess will help with the restoration, furnishing, and decorating in exchange for room and board. While they peel wallpaper and shop for new furniture, an unexpected friendship develops as they bond over music and food, and slowly open up to each other about their pasts. When it’s time for Gethin to move in, he convinces Jess to be his official housemate and she agrees—so long as he lets her pay rent. The connection between them soon shifts to an attraction that seems both inevitable and overwhelming, and Jess must decide what she wants.

This is a good story with good, well-written characters. You can almost see the outcome of the "relationship" but it has to take a couple of twists before you get there. I had read another book by this author that I enjoyed so I thank NetGalley and the publisher for granting my request to read this newest one.

Far heavier than I expected. I don’t think the cover really portrays what you’re getting in this book. I was invested in their relationship and wanted to know how it ended, otherwise I would have quit. I think the dialogue in the beginning is great to show how unsure they are with each other, but the style got old really fast. It treated the abuse carefully and was well done in that regard

Thank you to NetGalley for this charming and heartwarming book! This book is a sweet and romantic book about new beginnings and friends to lovers.
Jess is trying to start over again with not a lot of options. After Gethin offers to let her stay with him in his fixer upper home love start to spark and their chemistry blooms. Their connection grows as they work on the house together.
It was a fast-paced and light book. It put me in a good mood and was the perfect relaxing summer read.
I can't wait to read more by this author! I highly recommend this love story!

I enjoyed everything about Jackie Fraser's 'The Beginning of Everything.' I loved going to Wales, the fact that the main characters were older, that childhood and abuse trauma was addressed, and all in a lovely and uplifting manner. I certainly will continue to follow this authors works.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

I really enjoyed this love story between Jess and Gethin. It's not often you come across a story like this between two middle-aged characters. I was reassured from reading this book that kind people like Gethin do exist in this world! But I also learned how their unkindness to themselves can be hurtful to others.

"It's the way he pays attention, I think, that makes me like this. I'd forgotten what it was like, when someone pays attention to what you say, learns things about you, and doesn't use those things against you but instead uses them to make your life...more pleasant."

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a lovely read! I really enjoyed The Bookshop of Second Chances, so I was happy to get a copy of this book. The book is beautifully written with excellent character development, and I really appreciated that the main characters were in their mid-forties, instead of twenty-somethings! This was such a nice reading experience that I was sorry to come to the end of the book-I look forward to recommending it to our library patrons.

I love books where the protagonists are a little bit older because you really don't see it much nowadays. Add in some very serious situations filled with emotion and you get a heartwarming book like this one. While it's clearly a fiction novel and most people would not make the choices that these characters did I found it to be so sweet. It gives you some hope for humanity!

This is an emotional book. Its a romance but its more ( well at least to me ). Jess starts over after being abused and having a horrible life.
There's growth. I love the plot , character development, and i loved the writing. I loved how the characters were in their foties.

Thank you Net Galley for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review. This is one of those books that takes time telling the story which is something I like. I love to watch characters develop. I think this book will be a hit for some and a miss for others. I'm somewhere on the fence between those two camps. Overall this was not a bad book, but it just was not my cup of tea.

This book won’t be for everyone, especially if you have triggers with domestic violence (offscreen). My one complaint was that sometimes the dialogue was too rambling - it was incredibly accurate for how people talk but it didn’t quite work for me.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell, and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy.

But ugh. Im sorry this book was such a slog

None of it made any sense to me, I did not connect with either of the main characters. They were supposed to be in their mid forties but I found that to be just one of many aspects that was utterly unbelievable. I also found the constant breaks/ transitions to be distracting and excessive.

I struggled a but with this one. It was a little bit unbelievable and a couldn't seem to connect with the main characters.

What a delightful slow burn. Seriously, I don’t know what kept me reading because at first, I thought Jess was a bit sad, and it might be a slog getting through it. She’s been through a lot, including an abusive relationship, and since it’s first-person POV, you’re really stuck in the mire with her thoughts. But maybe the quietness of the book feels like a relief to the noise of life. It’s a very thoughtful book. I loved the way Gethin is this steady, kind, and patient friend to Jess. He proves there are good people in the world. He’s not without his own issues. These two really take a while to trust themselves. Sometimes their inability to communicate properly is maddening, but this really felt true to life. When are we able to really be so vulnerable? In the last few chapters, I purposefully slowed down because I didn’t want it to end. I genuinely wanted what was best for this couple. I don’t know if this review is doing it justice, but I haven’t read a book like this before, and I loved it.

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this book.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell, and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy.

Jess is living in a tent in a cemetery when we meet her. She is glad to find an unoccupied house to live in for a bit while she starts her life over. After about a month living there, the owner, Gethin, shows up and Jess runs out leaving most of her belongings behind. She comes back later that night hoping to collect her belongings when she finds a note from Gethin, inviting her to stay. They begin a friendship and jointly make decisions to fix up the house. They are soon both living in the house and then realize they love each other.

I really struggled to connect with either of the main characters. They were supposed to be in their mid forties but I found that to be just one of many aspects that was utterly unbelievable. I also found the constant breaks/ transitions to be distracting and excessive. I found myself really having to slog to get through this book, unfortunately.

If you can sort of suspend reality and get into the fact that this is highly unlikely to happen...you may just love this.
I just am not someone that can really suspend reality, so unfortunately this was a miss for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance ecopy of this title. Jess is on the run. She has left an abusive partner, and doesn't have a support system to keep her safe. She begins squatting in a vacant house in Scotland, and soon is discovered by the new owner. Surprisingly, the owner invites her to stay and share the house with no strings atThank tached. Jess is wary, but soon falls into a comfortable friendship. Her roomie wants more, but Jess is wary. Will she learn to trust and accept love?

The book seems like it would be a good summer read. An unbelievable story about Jess, who has run away & is living in an empty house. The owner shows up, she runs out back, returns later hoping to find her belongings & he has left a note inviting her to stay. Crazy, unbelievable, who does that? I kept thinking "how old IS this kid anyway?" To find they are both in their 40's adds to the "yeah right" factor.
However, of course she stays, they have a friends relationship, the house is redecorated because he is conveniently wealthy. In the end, they decide they are in love & a couple. Predictable, summer, quick read.
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House & Ms Fraser for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I really enjoyed this sweet story, although it was a little slow in parts.

It was endearing to watch these two souls, work through their baggage and find out what their hearts really wanted along the way.