I always know when picking up an Abbi Waxman novel that there will be quirky and there will be fun. Christa Comes Out of Her Shell was no different.

Christa adores her life studying snails on an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean. When family calls and asks her to come to LA because her missing father of over ten years has been found alive, she must go- leaving her snails for now. Christa, known as the "wild child" back in the day, immediately has cameras and reporter's mics thrown in her face. Luckily, she has her Mom, sisters and handsome family friend Nate to help her navigate the messy waters together, especially when secrets come out... for she, must finally come out of her shell.

I found myself laughing and highly invested in Christa's story, especially the family dynamics that were at play. Every single time I felt that the novel/plotline would go one way, I was surprised to find another twist thrown in that I was not expecting. While some may classify "Christa" as a romance because it does have that, it's also about finding your family once more when life turns to chaos and learning that you can lean on them. Some of the sexual scenes however; were unnecessary and I wanted more about Christa's love of life/science. Beautiful backstory, maybe a little off-putting with some of those romantic entanglements. But, of course, I am waiting anxiously for Waxman's next- as I know it'll be just as delightful!

This was fine, but I had trouble connecting with it. It is not a bad book, but it was just not for me.

There is just something fun about Abbi Waxman's writing. her characters are always so well developed and Christa is no exception. Christa likes her quiet life, but her once famous father who was believed to be dead shows up and throws her life into a tailspin. this was a good, fun, light read. perfect summer book!

one of my favorite romantic comedies, and one that makes the weirdest zany plot (supposedly dead dad pops up in Alaska and wants a broadcasted family reunion, and shit keeps hitting the fan) feel believable and real and utterly delightful.

Christabel Liddle has been famous since childhood. Just not really by choice. Her dad, Jasper, did animal shows for PBS until he disappeared in a plane crash when Christa was two. After many months, he was presumed dead. Christa made lots of TV appearances with her mom after her dad was gone, got into lots of trouble during her teens, and made quite a name for herself in the public eye. Since growing up, she has become a zoologist and stayed out of the spotlight living on an island in the Indian Ocean. Until her dad suddenly reappears after 25 years and Christa travels home to LA to be with her sisters and mother to figure out where her dad has been this whole time. Christa is once again thrust into the spotlight, and doesn’t know whether to trust her dad or not. She also might be falling in love. It’s a tough time to be Christabel Liddle!

I loved this book full of strong women characters that aren’t afraid to be themselves and voice their opinions. I also liked all the science and animal facts in the book. A interesting book for many reasons! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Dysfunctional family drama, a quirky second chance romance, and a touch of smart comedy—this is the summary of another heartwarming and entertaining Abbi Waxman novel that never fails to surprise with its well-constructed, nerdy, and absolutely lovable main characters and their inner struggles.

Christa Liddle may just be one of my favorite protagonists of all-time! After a tumultuous childhood after her famous father's disappearance and a particularly impressive flameout in the spotlight as a teen, she's hidden herself away both figuratively and literally, studying sea snails in the middle of the ocean. She's thrust back into the spotlight when her father returns alive, well, and ready for one heck of an apology tour. Christa has such a wry wit and is great with the one-liners! And who couldn't relate to her endearing antisocial tendencies?! An amusing, fast-paced, read that isn't easily forgotten.



Genre:Relationship fiction
Themes:Bouncing back
Storyline:Plot-driven
Characterization:Sarcastic
Mood:Steamy; Amusing
Style:Engaging; Fast-paced




endearingly antisocial (as she says when explaining why she prefers the company of snails: “Humans talk so much and look at you expectantly, as if you’d been paying attention”), and it’s satisfying to watch her come out of her shell as she accepts the chaos of her family and learns to make peace with the past.A fun novel that manages to blend romance, family drama, and animal facts

This book took me some time to get into. I was intrigued by the story but as it continued I wasn’t a fan of Christa and how she was just letting everyone dictate what she should be doing. She seemed tougher in the beginning and for someone who hates the spotlight I hated that the family pushed her into it. I think the middle of the book fell a little flat to me and it took me a long time to read. I did really enjoy how Christa finally came into herself in the end though.

This is such an intriguing book a very fascinating plot. That’s the question. What would you do if your deceased parent came back to life and now everyone in the world is looking at you. Krista is studying her nails and when her father comes back from the dead she is thrown into the spotlight. Romance is very sweet and you can see that he struggles when she isn’t by herself. I really liked the surprises in the plot the way Krista really had to find out what she wanted and fight for it. This is the book I would recommend.

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for this advanced copy through the #BerkleyBesties program. All thoughts are my own.

This was my first book of Abbi Waxman's, but she has been on my radar for a while. I'm glad I was given the opportunity to read this book as I was surprised by how much I liked it!

Christa Liddle is the youngest daughter of Jasper Liddle, a famed zoologist that was the star of hit docu-series Jasper Liddle's Big World in the '90s. Her family was thrust into the spotlight when Jasper was lost and presumed dead after an airplane crash in the Alaskan wilderness. After a tumultuous childhood in Hollywood, Christa has retreated to a remote island in the Indian Ocean to focus on her scientific studies. But one day, Jasper appears out of thin air, alive and well after two decades, and Christa has to return home to have the spotlight on her and her family once again.

This was a pretty bingeable read. Imagine if Steve Irwin showed up alive after all this time and the insanity that would ensue, and you have this as a novel. I loved the Liddle women and their inability to put up with the shenanigans surrounding their family, but I especially loved the B plot of the romance between Christa and childhood friend Nate. It had just the right amount of romance where I wouldn't define this book as a romance book, but had enough to keep me interested in that subplot. Overall, I really enjoyed this concept of Christa figuratively "coming out of her shell" to embrace her role in her family after hiding away for so many years.

I definitely plan on picking up Abbi's backlist as well as keeping an eye out for any future releases!

This book has a little of everything. Family dynamics, love interests and exes, a missing and presumed dead father, snails and science, commercialism, and the impact of having an internet presence without giving consent. All that and a quirky main character who has to rethink some of her truths.

Christa is one of three sisters who grew up in the spotlight of their father Jasper's wildlife TV show. She became the cute face of the show and a fan favorite. Along with the show, there is a product line of stuffed toys (similar to beanie babies). This was a money-making machine. And then Jasper's plane crashes in the wilderness of Alaska. 25 years later, he walks back into his family's lives.

Christa has distanced herself from her family for years, literally going half-way around the world, studying snails off the coast of Africa. When her family calls her back home, it's for news they never thought they'd hear. Jasper is back, and his agent is ready to start making money again.

Where did Jasper go? Why did it take 25 years to come home? The media is abuzz with theories and aren't giving the family a minute's rest.

This was a quick read and thoroughly enjoyable.

My thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is what first introduced me to Abbi Waxman, and I have loved her ever since. Even though I didn't love Christa Comes Out of Her Shell quite as much, it has a lot of great qualities. For one, I will always enjoy Waxman’s writing. It is consistent, sharp, and clever, and I love the way she tackles things like rocky family relationships, the importance of therapy, and exploitation which are all discussed in this story. The plot for this book is definitely out there as many readers have mentioned, and Christa’s age doesn’t quite match up to her current situation, but these are things that I didn’t even think about, and I found myself lost in the story and characters.

I listened to the audiobook which was very enjoyable, and I loved Jesse Vilinsky & Jonathan Todd Ross as the narrators. Vilinsky sounded a little young to be the voice of Christa, but I kept forgetting that she is only mid to late 20s, so ultimately, she had the perfect voice for her. There is some spice and a lot more romance than I was expecting, but the banter between Christa and Nathan was adorbs and I wanted them to be a couple. There are annotations in the book which was a nice little touch that I’ve been seeing a lot recently, as well as all chapters having a unique title (mostly animal-related) with their scientific names below. Despite all of the book's great qualities, there was still something missing for me, and I can’t quite pinpoint what it was. I do however wish it had been about 50 pages shorter. This is still an entertaining and interesting read though, and I definitely recommend it!

This one was such a sleeper for me. I had never read anything by the author and took a chance on it. So glad I did. What a quirky book full of quirky characters that have some weightier issues to deal with.

I love that Christa was a strong willed woman doing what she loved. As if it isn’t enough that’s she’s had to deal with her father dying in a plane crash when she was a child, she is now having her life disrupted as he is found to be alive and well.

While this is listed as a romance and published by Berkley Romance, I love that this one explores more meatier issues of coming of age, dysfunctional families and being yourself. The romance almost takes a backseat to all this and the friendship that first developed between Christa and Nate. And the witty and charming banter between these two. Kept me wanting more.

Since the media takes such an interest in Christa’s family and their reaction to their father’s return, there are all types of media between the chapters covering the story. I really enjoyed this break to the story and while it could have been a real hindrance to flow, I liked the added value. And this is purely a me thing, but I love chapter headings. There was a type of vegetation or wildlife as the chapter heading along with a sketch of it. Fits totally in the quirky vibe.

I love Abbi’s writing style and found it easy to read. I will definitely be looking up her other novels.

Jesse Vilinsky and Jonathan Todd Ross narrate Christa and Nate and made the story leap off the page. I loved listening to them bring it to life and thought their narration added to my enjoyment.

I just… love Abbi Waxman’s books so much!?! This is another easy 5 stars from me — unique plot that’s absolutely ridiculous and intriguing, the best, most lovable, complex characters, a sweet romance, and hilarity at every turn. Christa is one of my favorite protagonists now.

Side note: request for more authors to include witty footnotes in fiction!!

Abbi Waxman writes delightfully quirky characters that have a bit of neurospice and I love them all for it. Abbi has yet to write something I don't love (hello THE BOOKISH LIFE OF NINA HILL). Anyway.

A long thought dead dad. A gal that prefers studying sea snails to interacting with humans. Sisters who couldn't be more different than said gal, and a story that will keep you on your toes and will creep into your heart.

Christa Comes Out of Her Shell is a fantastic read. Highly recommend.

I received an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Christa is happy working on her research on snails when her famous father suddenly returns from the dead. As the family reunites and rehashes their perspectives of what happened before his disappearance, they also have to deal with the media hounding them and looking for a story. Christa would rather go back to her research and does not want to forgive her father, but the public perspective forces her hand. Overall, a story about a family who went through their own difficult experiences and are trying to work through their feelings about their father's sudden reappearance and the pain he caused. Christa's character seemed to jump around a bit, but the parts where she talks about her past with her sisters and mother were the stronger parts.

It was so hard to connect with Christa sometimes because of her fierce independence and shy nature. I am a shy person, but I am also pretty social with my friends and easily need companionship, so it hurt to watch Christa pull away and not really put herself out there for a while. I loved the blend of science and discussions about the earth and ecosystem with a bit of family drama thrown in.

There's nothing quite like the return of a dead parent over twenty-five years later, and boy, that was some DRAMA. Between all the drama and pulling Christa from her solitary life blossoms a new romance. The romance was probably my favorite part, though sometimes I felt like needed to be a bit more of the bigger plot points. Some of this was maybe a bit on the eccentric side, but overall, I had a good time reading it!

I will go with a 2.5 as I wanted to love this book but felt it lost its way. I like quirky characters and dysfunctional families. I loved the naturalist ecology anti social aspect. But my main problem is that the author was wildly inconsistent in her characterization of Christa. I just couldn’t hit the believe button that she was real. I will give props for excellent representation of her trauma from abuse as s minor. That alone wasn’t quite enough for me.

I will read anything Abbi Waxman writes! I was very excited to see this title become available for summer reading!

The cover is so fun and I notice new details every time I look at it. There are also creatively titled illustrations at the start of each chapter which added a lot of charm to the book.

Christa is an interesting protagonist that I was rooting for the whole book. As an introvert who likes obscure topics myself, I related to her very quickly. She surprised me a few times which kept the plot exciting. There’s a little romance mixed in with this coming-of-age story amidst a family crisis. I think lots of different readers will find something to enjoy in this book and recommend everyone add it to their summer reading list!

Christa Comes Out of Her Shell by Abbi Waxman was not what I was expecting. I've read other books by this author and really enjoyed them. This one was just ok for me. I did enjoy Christa and Nate but the rest of the characters didn't do it for me. The book was all over the place and at times hard to follow. I will definitely read this author again!