Beth O'Leary has done it again. A fantastic book with characters you cannot help but love. This lady has a way with words and is not stopping for anyone.

It's the lead up to Christmas at the Forest Lodge Hotel, a luxury hotel on the brink of bankrupcy. To Lucas and Izzy the hotel is everything, they love working there and want to save the hotel...as long as they don't have to work together to do it. One event last Christmas means Lucas and Izzy are sworn enemies and there's no way that's going to be any different this Christmas...or is it?

If romance is your go to genre, you'll definitely enjoy this festive novel. It combines all your favourite romance tropes- enemies to lovers, forced proximity, miscommunication and grumpy vs sunshine characters.

Personally, I found the pace a little slow for my liking and I got really irritated with the main characters. At points I could happily have banged their heads together and yelled at them to get out of their own way. It grated on my enough that I did consider DNF at one point. On the flip side, I liked the storyline around saving the hotel, loved the hotel guests and I was properly invested in The Ring Thing. I am glad I finished the book for those reasons.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I really enjoyed this novel by Beth O'Leary. It's probably my second favourite of hers, after The Flat Share; a very close second. It made me feel happy and safe, and I wanted to be in their world a bit longer.
It was slightly uncalled for, the way Izzy based all of her anger on one moment, but O'Leary makes up for this by explaining the situation.
I liked the side characters too. I think they always play a big part in a well rounded romance.
Every time Izzy and Lucas were together in a scene, I found it very hard to put the book down to get back to real life.

Christmas is fast approaching at the Forest Manor Hotel when disaster strikes and the ceiling collapses. Sworn enemies Izzy and Lucas are forced to spend more time together to help save the hotel, otherwise they may be out of a job soon enough. But they soon find that there is a thin line before love and loathing. Will something blossom between them or will their competitiveness keep them clashing?

I’ve enjoyed all of Beth O’Leary’s books and this one is no different! Fans of enemies to lovers and grumpy x sunshine will eat this up. Izzy is bouncy and warm, a friend people person; Lucas is a bit more straight laced and logical. There is a small element of miscommunication but despite the fact that I don’t like this trope usually, it worked well here. I liked seeing their relationship blossom over the course of the story, it’s a bit of a slow burn but there’s plenty of other plots and characters in the story. The small family run hotel with the returning guests really adds to the cosy vibes of the book, it reminded me of a feel good Christmas film! Another hit from Beth O’Leary!

The Wake-Up Call is the fifth novel I've read from Beth O'Leary and once again she delivers a swoon worthy romance that’s equal parts funny and thought provoking. In this novel we follow our main protagonists Izzy and Lucas who are sword enemies forced to work together to save Forest Manor, the hotel where they both work. Reading Beth's books is like slipping on your favourite cardigan and climbing under a blanket, her prose is so cosy and I felt very immersed in this story. The settings and places she describes felt very real and it was almost as if I could feel the busyness of the hotel. Like most of Beth's novels, Izzy, and Lucas both have their own problems to work through and I was screaming with delight when they finally realised, they were meant for each-other! I really recommend this book particularly as the festive season is approaching.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Beth O'Leary is very much one of my comfort authors at this point. I can just rely on her for a nice cosy, lovable read.

Lucas and Izzy were both great characters and I was routing for them both! The book is written from both points of view and I just loved getting to know them as individuals. The hotel having long-term residents and staff made for some great side characters that just elevated the story perfectly!

I can't wait for O'Leary's next book as always and I'm looking forward to seeing how my friends react to this one!

I enjoyed this, but did think Izzy in particular was far too childish. I know there were reasons for her behaviour, but I can't see why Lucas was attracted to her. I liked Lucas and it was good to hear his side of things. The ending was well-written. I liked the hotel as a setting. Lots to like. With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For me, Beth O'Leary just keeps getting better and better.
This was such a brilliant and heartwarming read, which is set perfectly around the run up to Christmas.
I really enjoyed the joint POVs and I was rooting for both characters, both in terms of them getting together properly and for them to flourish as individuals.
I loved the setting too - you actually feel like you're right there with them in the hotel.
The Ring Thing was a great way to propel the story forwards and I genuinely cared about each of the main characters and the peripheral ones too.
Was it frustrating that they were both too stubborn to talk about what happened under the mistletoe last Christmas? Yes. But when it was revealed what had actually happened, I found it so satisfying.
I also liked the chemistry between Izzy and Lucas and found that the moments when they were away from the hotel - the divorce party, the hotel room and their time with one another when they get together - were some of my favourites.
I just couldn't take the smile off my face as I read this and it was such an easy 5 star read for me.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A very festive and heart-warming read! The latest from Beth O'Leary features her usual engaging writing style, and more twists and turns than I was expecting from a romance book (my jaw literally dropped at one point).

While I wasn't quite as obsessed with this as I was with The No-Show, I still really enjoyed the book, and felt like I had stayed at Forest Manor Hotel myself! The characters of Izzy and Lucas were so well-written they felt real, and I have a feeling that they'll be sticking around in my brain for a while to come.

This was true romance, chick lit at its finest. Boy meets girl, they work together. Girl declares her love for him, he laughs and they then have a hate hate relationship. As thing progress they come together but to review further would ruin the story. Suffice to say I loved it and heavily invested for both of the main characters, could never truly pick a side so sat on the fence! The story is also about saving their workplace from bankruptcy. This author knows how to weave a story and how to use sub characters to strengthen to story

thought this was a lovely, fun read! tropey romcoms with a bit of grit and strong characters are my cup of tea, and i think o'leary executed it really well this time<3

The wake up call was a pleasure to read. By far one of my favourite books I've read this year… I loved every minute… I laughed out loud so many times!!… All of the feels and then some. Just adored this story So heart-warming… I loved…

The Wake-up Call by Beth O’Leary follows two colleagues Izzy and Lucas as they try to help save the hotel they work in from collapse but this means working together and yet the pair can’t be in the same room without arguing or winding each other up.

With each chapter alternating between both characters POV we get an insight into how they are both thinking and feeling in each situation and also see how the other is interpreting things differently too and this worked really well for this book. The author writes from both the male and female perspective perfectly and this helped to really connect with each of them.

There is a love hate romance burning through the middle of this storyline that at times had me laughing away and at others wanting me to bash their heads together but there are also many tender heartfelt personal moments too which added more depth to this uplifting story.

There is a wonderful sense of support in this novel with everyone trying to chip in and do what they can to try and help each other in this very odd set up and it brings a comforting feeling and one of hope.

This was one of my favourites by this author it was easy reading, witty and sparkling with romance the perfect book at the perfect time for me.

Another fantastic book by Beth O’Leary, she never disappoints. The same kind of light-hearted, clever and romantic read than her other books and couldn’t recommend enough. Beth is my comfort author and now I’ve finished this I’ll be (not so) patiently waiting for the next!!

This is an enemies-to-lovers romance and is a standalone story. I found it really slow to start with and difficult to engage with the characters. However, as the story developed I started to enjoy it. Set in a failing hotel in the run-up to Christmas, the two main characters hate each other and do everything they can to undermine the other. I liked the twists in the plot and did enjoy the way the story developed.

Izzy and Lucas are the two main characters and although I came to like them eventually, their lack of communication drove me crazy. I realise this is a well-used trope in romance stories but this pair took it to extremes. Saying that, they were nice people and were likeable as were the other characters who work and reside at the hotel, except of course the protagonist, but you aren't supposed to like them.

Overall, this story is an easy read and a good storyline. Beth O'Leary's first two books, The Flatshare and The Switch were great but since those I don't think they have been so good and this book sits with the latter. Still, this will appeal to lots of romance readers, I am sure.

I always enjoy Beth's books and this one was just as brilliant. It was funny and festive and a jolly good read. Five stars isn't enough for this book but that will have to do. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review

The Wake Up Call by Beth O’ Leary
I give this book 4.5 stars

Forest Manor Hotel is quite literally falling apart. The race is on for sworn enemies Izzy and Lucas to save their beloved hotel - and their jobs.
As their bitter rivalry turns into something much more complicated, Izzy and Lucas begin to wonder if there's more at stake here than the hotel's future.

A charming cozy romance from an author l love. Told from an engaging alternating dual pov writing style which allows the reader to really get to know both the main characters. Set in a hotel (workplace) during the festive season, with the enjoyable addition of some great guests,owners,staff to add depth to the storyline. The author has done the enemies to lovers trope so well and the hunt for the owners of the rings was my favourite part.The epilogue for me was perfect. This is a “really readable” book and I wish the hotel was real so I could go stay there!
With thanks to Netgalley,Beth O’Leary and Quercus books for my chance to read and review this.

Always have loved Beth writing and her books and this one was just adding to the collective. A lovely story about Lucas and Izzy with a lots of will they won’t they! Set in a lovely location too.

Brilliant as always!

I love the characters of Izzy and Lucas. Two feisty characters who both work at forest manor hotel. I love the setting of a hotel struggling to maintain its solvency following the pandemic and cost of living crisis. All the peripheral characters are also wonderful, eccentric and very real.

This book will have you laughing out loud, groaning in exasperation, and cheering them on as lucas and Izzy battle to save the hotel and also work out their relationship!

I loved this enemies to lovers romance. It has plenty will they, won’t they moments, and there’s several elements of mystery in it which all get wrapped up nicely in the end. I appreciated the author adding an epilogue which really finished the story off nicely. This is a beautiful HEA story, which I could fully imagine eventually being made into a movie. I would highly recommend