Dnfing. Not engaging at all. I find myself completely lacking a care for what the characters do. Thanks anyway for the ARC.

I have come to accept that Beth O'Leary's books just aren't for me. And that it is okay.
I know many people who love her books, which is fantastic. I really want to love them, but I find the writing style isn't to my preference. I tried reading The Flatshare last year and also DNF'd it.
I DNFd at 17% after trying to read the book for months. I found what I did read to be very slow and I didn't feel any chemistry between the MCs, making me wonder how they eventually end up together.

I hope other people like the book!

Beth O'Leary always delivers! So hilarious at times, poignant when it needs to be, and the chemistry is off the chart. I'll read anything she writes and she just keeps getting better and better.

3.5
The Wake-Up Call by Beth O'Leary was another fun read by this author. Her writing has the same cadence in every book so her books all have the same "feel". I thought the premise was cute and I liked both Izzy and Lucas.

I always enjoy O'Leary's work, and this is no exception! Rival coworkers in a small English hotel must team up to save their jobs and the hotel by finding the owners of lost rings left there. Romance with a fresh take on the “enemies to lovers” trope.
Thank you to NetGalley for the arc!

A Charming Romcom with a Delightful Enemies-to-Lovers Twist

Synopsis:
The Wake-Up Call takes us on a delightful journey into the lives of Lucas and Izzy, two hotel receptionists at the charming Forest Manor. From the very start, their mutual disdain for each other sets the stage for a romance you won't want to miss. Forced to collaborate due to staff shortages during a business downturn, they stumble upon a cache of unclaimed wedding rings at the hotel. Inspired to return them to their rightful owners, Izzy's efforts result in a surprising reward, one that could turn the tide for the struggling hotel.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of the busy season, Izzy and Lucas find themselves drawn to each other in ways they never expected. Can their budding attraction overcome the years of animosity that have fueled their enmity? Will past wounds and misunderstandings threaten their chance at true love?

My Thoughts:
This is a charming romcom that had me laughing, swooning, and occasionally reaching for the tissues. London's picturesque backdrop, coupled with an array of endearing side characters, adds layers of charm to this heartwarming story. Izzy's vivacity and Lucas's determination, tempered by a generous dose of heart, make for a compelling pairing.

But what truly won me over was the ending – an epic love story finale that warmed my heart and rekindled my belief in happily ever afters and true love. If you're looking for a fun and feel-good enemies-to-lovers romance with a London flair, this book is an absolute must-read. "Love's Lost & Found" will leave you believing in the magic of love and hoping for your own happily ever after.

The Wake-Up Call by Beth O’Leary was a sweet, slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance read.

This is the story of Izzy and Lucas who despise each other, but work together at a hotel facing serious financial trouble. They can hardly stand to be in the same room with each other, but they end up being forced to work together in an effort to return lost rings to former hotel guests in hopes of earning a reward that could help save the hotel. As they spend more time together, they realize there is an attraction burning between them, but how can you be attracted to someone you hate? Eventually, they both start to wonder if maybe they don’t actually hate each other after all.

Overall, I thought this was a cute read. I enjoyed the adventures they had in competing to return the rings to their rightful owners. I also liked the progression of how the main characters progressed from enemies to enemies with benefits to lovers. However, I was frustrated with how stubborn they both were in admitting their true feelings for each other. Things would have been a lot easier for them if they could have just been honest with themselves and with each other. I was also very happy with the ending. Everything was wrapped up well and left me believing they would live happily ever after.

This was a fun story - I loved the hotel, forest setting and “the ring thing.” At times it was hard to remember if Izzy and Lucas hated or liked each other - which I am sure was the point but also frustrating to me as a reader. I do love Beth O’Leary books - she has become a must read author for me!

This was a fun holiday read. I liked the concept and the play on 5 golden rings from the Christmas song. Thank you for the chance to read it.

This was a delightful, cozy enemies-to-lovers, workplace romance. It felt like a Hallmark movie with a much better plot and dialogue. I loved Izzy and Lucas and the chemistry between them.

Talk about mixed signals…Izzy and Lucas have that and so much more. The dynamic between these two had me laughing and loving the sizzle between them. Even through all the bickering, there was no doubt that there were feelings between them. But could they figure out what feelings they have before the hotel closed?

The Wake-Up Call is fun rom-com that had me wanting to read just a little more or a lot more. I could not wait to get home from work and have “me time” to read. The story moved quickly with good detail to the surroundings and characters. I love the Forest Manor Hotel and the history that comes with the old place. The people who stay in that hotel have become friends of the hotel. The employees who worked in the hotel were invested in making it a successful business again.

I recommend The Wake-Up Call to anyone who is looking for a fun rom-com that is easy to read.

This book was adorable, and it was different than many other romances I've read, which I appreciated. I just felt like it was missing something. I wasn't very invested in either character, which was surprising because they both had interesting backstories. I think that the characters just felt a little flat to me. I didn't care too much what happened to either of them, and I think I would've preferred to hear more about what was going on in the hotel. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for this ARC!

I loved this one! As always, I am drawn to O'Leary's characters and their lives. She makes you care about them and be invested in their choices. This novel features an enemies-to-lovers trope as well as a second chance at romance. The novel explores trusting one another with your truths, and showing someone who you are deep down inside.

‘The Wake-Up Call’ may be my favorite yet by Beth O’Leary! Izzy and Lucas’ workplace (a particular charming hotel in the Forrest workplace) bantering and rivalry was laugh out loud funny instead of groan worthy like so many are. I quickly fell for them both and their chemistry sparkled. All of this was set against just the right balance of silly and serious from the characters populating the novel to Izzy and Lucas’ backstories and families (birth & chosen!). So many books don’t get this balance right, but O’Leary got it spot on. I loved every moment with these characters and their resolution was classic, perfect rom com without feeling boring or derivative!

I love Beth O’Leary. I really do. I did not love this book.

Izzy and Lucas work the front desk together at Forest Manor Hotel, a charming English countryside hotel that will cease to exist beyond the Christmas season without costly repairs. The improbable solution? Izzy and Lucas are tasked with tracking down and returning a handful of lost wedding rings to their owners. Izzy did it once, and the hotel was generously rewarded … maybe they’ll ALL do that!

One problem: Izzy and Lucas “hate” each other. She’s bubbly … he’s stoic … apparently that’s a deal-breaker. Well, that and the fact that Izzy actually IS attracted to Lucas and his oft-mentioned muscles and wrote him a Christmas card a year ago confessing her feelings, only to find him kissing her roommate instead.

As with almost every story like this, things aren’t as they appeared, yet the reader will spend almost the entire book suffering through Izzy’s rotating lust/resentment cycle and Lucas’ bottled-up desire for her, because neither of these grown adults will open their mouths and talk about what happened a year ago or how they feel about each other now. (Of course that doesn’t stop them from behaving like horny teenagers when the mood strikes.)

The saving grace? There are some great secondary characters and the holiday season and lovely setting add a nice dose of charm. The ending also turns the mood around. Had it not taken so long to get there, and if the more appealing aspects of the story had been amped up, I would’ve liked the story more.

As for Beth O’Leary? I still love her. I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

★★ ½

This was such an enjoyable read! The story was very heartfelt, and true to Beth's writing style, I laughed out loud a couple of times :) Although I did like the romance, I thought this part could have been thought out better, as I think there were definitely some parts that worked better. The ending was too cute, though! Wouldn't change a thing about that. All in all I can highly recommend this!

This book was such a joy to read. Beth O'Leary’s comedic timing remains on point, as always, never distracting from some of the more serious moments in the story, or the depth of emotion lacing her characters’ words. I walked away on such a high, so so tempted to just jump back to the beginning.

This was a fun, lighthearted, rivals to lovers romance!

Izzy and Lucas work at the same hotel, a beautiful but struggling place they both love very deeply. Their feelings for each other, however, are just as deep, but it’s a deep dislike. Izzy is well known as a sweetheart, to everybody except Lucas, who she acts extremely competitive towards. When she discovers several wedding rings, accumulated for years in the lost and found, she makes it her mission to find their owners - and she immediately makes into a competition with Lucas.

But as she gets closer to Lucas, she realizes that her intense feelings of dislike towards him may be something else entirely.

I loved the cast of characters - especially the guests at the hotel - and found the character development to be very enjoyable. It was such a fun and original setting to read a romance in, and I loved their rivals to lovers story!

3.5 stars. This was a cute enemies-to-lovers story with great setting — an old manor house turned B&B in the English countryside. But sometimes the characters took the “enemies” thing too far and got on my nerves. And apparently Beth O’Leary didn’t get the message that we all hate the miscommunication trope, because this is the miscommunication trope on steroids. Overall, a fine, run-of-the-mill romcom with a tiny bit of holiday cheer. But not as enjoyable as the other O’Leary books I’ve read: The Switch and The Flatshare.

I mostly enjoyed this, but it definitely wasn’t my favorite book by Beth O’Leary. I enjoyed them trying to find the owners of the ring, but didn’t feel as much of the romance. Miscommunication doesn’t usually bother me, but their lack of communication was so bad that it did this time. I enjoyed the cast of characters that were staying at the hotel. I’ll definitely check out future books by Beth O’Leary.