3.5/5 stars, rounded up

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I think I liked this? But it was really long for a rom-com book and some parts definitely felt like they dragged.

Also, the only word I can use to describe this book is chaotic. From the story structure to the main character’s narrative to the pacing to the relationship between our 2 MC’s, it was just very wacky and inconsistent, to the point where I almost feel like it was intentional?

I liked the cast of characters in this book, I liked the silliness, I liked the second-chance romance, it was just so weird.

But maybe that’s what makes Romina and Alex so good together, they have matching weird, chaotic energy and who am I to judge?

This is the third book I attempt to read by Sarah Hogle and it confirms that maybe this author isn’t for me. I didn’t love this book. Couldn’t connect to the story or characters. 😔

DNF @ 20%. This book just wasn't for me (and that's fine because not every book is!). I really struggled through the beginning understanding the "flower magic" and it just didn't keep me interested. I also felt like a lot of the characters were written immaturely. I was bummed to not like this one, but think it could be a great read for people who typically like "witchy" books. Despite being a DNF, I still think it would've been 3 stars if I continued on. Just can't bring myself to read books I'm not loving these days considering how long my TBR is.

i want to live inside a sarah hogle book: full of magic and baked goods and romance and small towns and banter and everything that's good on earth. you deserve each other is still the only romance novel i've ever given five stars. no one is doing it like her.

my only complaint from this book is i wanted MORE: more sisters, more nieces, more small-town cuteness, more pastries, more quirky landlords. i want to know if the sisters get their business back, i want to read about our couple's happy family farm-y future. (i love alliteration.)

this book is a lot — A LOT of big feelings from the get-go, a lot of grand declarations, a lot of over-the-top quirkiness. all of it would've bugged in another book. but here, as with every hogle book, all of it is fun and weird and wonderful.

It’s been years since I read a Sarah Hogle book so when I requested this ARC and realized she was the author I was so excited! I loved this book, quite literally everything about it was top tier.

The town of Moonville and its magic was so cute and charming, I adored the setting.
Romina and her sisters/niece and their friends are so quirky and funny and lovable, I loved everything about them and their relationships.
Alex and Romina are such a powerfully matched couple, their chemistry was palpable all throughout and I loved getting to see the old Alex, the new Alex, and the new Alex coming back into his old self. I really was rooting for their HEA the whole time.

The plot twist in the second part wasn’t necessarily my favorite, but I did understand how it was necessary to the story and I love how it all came together.

My favorite little touch was the chapter headings being different flowers and their meanings. It really set the tone for the chapters well and tied into the whole book and Romina’s job/life really well.
I do believe this is going to be a series, especially with the small hints dropped towards the end about one sister, so I’m absolutely excited for the next installment, if so.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton, and the author for this ARC.
Publication date 4/2/24

Read if you like:
😘 First Loves
😬 Fake Dating
🥈 Second Chance Romance
✨ Magical Realism
💐 Meaning of Flowers

This was such a cute read! This is my second book from Sarah Hogle and I can’t wait to continue to read more from her!

I love the laugh out loud moments with the fake dating plot that Romina gets herself mixed up in hoping for money from Trevor’s dad. Trevor is her chaotic landlord and oh my gosh I loved him so much! He was truly the most adorable!

I loved how Romina and Trevor are fake dating due to a misunderstanding made worse when their respective exes they each have feelings for still come into the picture too…

I loved the way the story came together and the magical realism with the plants and their explanations of what they have meaning for and the impacts of pairing them together was such a beautiful part of the plot.

Thank you so much to Putnam for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Many times I open a new book at the end of another. After finishing this book, I would rather ruminate on this story and all the colors between the pages-colors of love, of uncertainty, of destiny. The story of Rumina and Alex is complex, filled with the heartache of the past and the hope of the future. I can only hope the story will continue with ones of Zelda and Luna.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Old Flames New Fortunes by Sarah Hogle
Narrator: Valerie Rose Lohman
Rating: 3.5 stars
Pub date: 4/2

Thank you so much to PRH Audio for my complimentary audiobook and to Netgalley and Putnam for my advanced copy.

Set in the charming town of Moonville, Romina Tempest's flower shop, which she owns with her sisters, is in desperate need of an investor. When Romina finds out that her potential financier is getting married, she jumps at the chance to get involved in the festivities and ask for a loan. The financier turns out to be marrying her ex’s mother, which makes things tricky because Alex, her ex, is also attending the festivities, and he broke her heart years earlier.

Somehow, she ends up fake dating her best friend, Trevor, and they decide to use that ruse to make Alex pay for hurting Romina eleven years ago.

That actually sounds more confusing than it is. Hogle's knack for crafting quirky characters and amusing situations made this an enjoyable read, and the excellent narration by Valerie Rose Lohman made it even better.
Romina's journey to reclaim her lost love, Alex, while navigating a fake relationship with her colleague Trevor, has some funny moments along with some heartwarming ones. The dynamic between Romina and her sisters is sweet. I love the small-town feel and am always ready to read anything witchy.

This may not have wowed me, but it's easy to get lost in. The pacing was a bit slow, and I wasn’t a fan of the big plot twist at the 60% mark. After reading other reviews, this seems to be a polarizing plot point.
The witty banter and unexpected twists keep the pages turning, leaving me eager to see how Romina's magical mishaps will turn out. Overall, this book is a charming choice for anyone seeking a romance with a touch of witchy whimsy.

Read if you like:
*second chance romance
*fake dating
*gardening
*witches
*surprise twists
*single POV

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in return for an honest review!

Let me first start off by saying You Deserve Each Other is a book that I read a couple of years ago when I got back in to reading and it made me love Sarah and her writing. I was so excited to get an ARC for another book of hers!

This second chance romance book follows Romina in her small town of Moonville. I loved the fantasy/magical elements of the story, where her and her three sisters possess some witch-like magic. I enjoyed the magic elements. They were fun and added to the story. The little family Romina has formed with her sister, niece, and two friends, Trevor and Morgan was adorable! Their banter and back and forth friendship was wholesome and fun. Romina was dealing with trying to move on from her past relationships and bonds she had previously. I liked that she was able to recover from her past and turn a new page with Alex. She was strong, funny and had a lot of love to give.

Alex, boy oh boy he was cute!! Definitely gave the nerdy, cute, and super sweet vibes. He was definitely boy obsessed the whole time, which is a big win for me as a reader. I felt their love and yearning for each other and when they finally got together, I was squealing inside with how adorable they were. Some of the things Alex did had me swooning!

I did find the beginning a little slow and thought the fake dating part was a little silly, as it was clear Romina and Trevor were not a couple. The book did pick up after that and I enjoyed that it was split within two parts due to the plot progression. Some of my favorite moments happened towards the end of the story. I wanted to hug both Romina and Alex by the end as they missed so much time together, but the acceptance and happiness they found showed they'd do it all again for each other :)

Overall, I enjoyed this one! I only wished there was an epilogue as I'm aching to see the characters in the future!! Also, I would enjoy a book on the two sisters and their romance.

I read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Twice Shy is my favorite Sarah Hogle book. I really wanted to love this one, but unfortunately this trope is not to my taste.
Miscommunication and lies, especially when people 'love' each other so much but spend years apart because of it? I feel like so much time is wasted. It's like, all the cute flashbacks don't matter because they stuffed up anyway by being unnecessarily cruel to one another.
I liked the witch aspect, and the sisters and Trevor. I'm guessing Zelda and Morgan might be next?
I appreciated that the perspective of a good stepmother was explored too, as it isn't done often.

I can’t tell if this rating is because I adore Sarah Hogle books more than life itself or if this book was actually good?? I’m currently sitting at a 3.5 star (rounded up) because it had the sweetest moments! But as another second chance romance, literally NOTHING will measure up to You Deserve Each Other. And I know that’s not fair to compare books in that way, but it just didn’t hit the same as YDEO and those are my feelings so 🤷🏼‍♀️.

(This review contains spoilers.)

Sarah Hogle has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Her words are so descriptive and imaginative in a warm yet whimsical way. Her way of writing banter between characters is just hysterical; she might be the funniest author I know. And, of course, the romance is just delightful - so captivating how she builds the dynamic between the two main characters. Sarah mentioned this is steamier than her usual and I felt she delivered. The magical and witchy town of Moonville is also easy to envision and sounds lovely. Each character is so unique and the different relationships explored and developed are beautiful. I adore all of the women (leads and sides), and Romina is no exception. I rarely laugh as much from her quotes as I did for this.

What I struggled with in this book was probably Alex. While their romance was very sweet, I had trouble seeing how Romina loved him back then? From the flashbacks of them being in high school, I couldn't pinpoint why I felt the lack of chemistry between the two at any point back then. And then possibly my biggest gripe is that his introduction of his son as a surprise/plot twist in the book, which is just a personal preference, but I'd like to be aware that the lead(s) have children before going into it. Also, I thought he was an inconsistent character personality-wise, especially when he was coming on pretty strong to her despite her having a (fake) boyfriend.

Overall, I am extremely fortunate for the chance to read Sarah's novel. Definitely a reread, as it is a comforting romance that still gave me the feels and a moment to escape into this cozy town.

After loving Just Like Magic, I was so excited to dive into Hogle's next book. Unfortunately, this one didn't have quite the same hold on me that that one did and I found myself a bit disappointed.

There's a lot of good things going on that I really liked:
- The town! Moonville is a great setting.
- The witchy-ness: loved and could have used even more!
- Romina and her backstory: she's just so wonderful and I wanted only the best things for her!
- The whole community and their hijinks: loved Romina's sisters and niece, loved Trevor and their (far too brief) foray into fake dating.

Unfortunately, the romance didn't work for me. Second chance and miscommunication are tropes I generally dislike, but then add on two characters who are *obsessed* with each other and I'm running in the opposite direction. (It reminded me of Wyn/Harriet from Emily Henry's Happy Place and that was one of my most detested romances of all time, just not for me.). To top it off, the pacing felt really off and I just never was able to click in and fly through, it felt like it took a really long time to get through it.

I do think this book will have its audience and that people who like Happy Place will love this one. While this wasn't for me, I'm looking forward to whatever Hogle does next.

This was a cute read I just had a bit of a hard time getting into it. I can see a lot of people really enjoying the whimsy and magical aspect of this book but I think it was just a me problem that I couldn’t connect. The beginning was kind of chaotic with so much going on and so many characters being introduced, I had a difficult time keeping everyone straight.

Old Flames and New Fortunes was a hard book for me to rate. I did not love the beginning of this book. It felt chaotic and immature and it was hard for me to root for the characters. I felt that parts were just silly under the guise of being funny.
.
Once we got past the fake dating, the romance between Romina and Alex was cute. They were very much a case of right person, wrong time.
.
Here is what I did enjoy:
witchy vibes-the flower magic was unique
It was whimsy
second chance romance
love the cover
.
Thank you netgalley and G.P Putnam’s Sons for the opportunity to read this book.

Thanks to Putnam for the ARC.

I loved the happy witch vibes in this book! The concept is so fun: Romina Tempest uses the language and meaning of flowers to help manifest things in peoples lives. This is a sweet and quick read with fake dating and second chance romance that will fill up your magical bucket.

Old Flames and New Fortunes is a whimsical and charming small-town romance following Romina, a witch who uses the language of flowers in her craft, and Alex, her former high school boyfriend who returns to their cozy hometown for his mother's marriage. The story is full of banter, tenderness, humor, heat, and so much fun happenings around the quirky and quaint small town. Alex and Romina were so much fun together, from the beginning you can see their obvious chemistry and connection. Alex was so infuriatingly smug and sweet, it was a delight to watch him fall over himself for Romina and the potential to be with her again. I loved how the two balanced each other out so well, the little snippets of their high school relationship was so adorable and added a perfect layer to the history of their coupling and reunion. However, while I rated this 4 stars, it was a 5 star read for me until 60% in when a secret is revealed, it came out of nowhere, and honestly, I don't see any merit of it in the story or Alex and Romina's love. Besides that, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of this romance and cannot wait to read more from Sarah Hogle!

Read if you like:
🌼Magical Realism🌼
🌼Second Chance Romance🌼
🌼Small Town🌼
🌼So Much Banter🌼
🌼Flower Language and Meaning🌼
🌼High School Sweethearts🌼
🌼Then and Now🌼
🌼Opposites Attract🌼
🌼Forced Proximity🌼

This makes me sad, but I think it's time for me to break up with Sarah Hogle's books. I wanted to love this one so badly, but it just didn't work for me. The beginning vibes between the main characters was very reminiscent of You Deserve Each Other and I should have taken that as a sign to let this one go. It's not outright hate, but they were so immature and antagonistic that it made it difficult for me to root for them to get their second chance at first. There was also so much going on in the first half (financial issues, a wedding, fake dating, etc) and too many characters and plot threads to follow. I still don't understand the magic aspect of the story (are they really witches???) and I felt that it all got dropped in the second half as the story shifted.

Speaking of the second half, OOF. That reveal at the 60% mark made me kind of ragey. It was so sudden and introduced so nonchalantly that it left me stunned.


*** SPOILER ***


Honestly, the entire plot line about Romina's intense desire to have children and her previous motherhood role felt strange to me. Alex having a son was dropped into the story so casually that I thought I misread it at first.


*** END SPOILER ***

I did like that there wasn't a third act break up and that Romina and Alex were given page time to reconnect with one another. The second chance aspect worked overall for me because I don't think anyone is making the greatest choices or has the maturity to speak openly and honestly at 18. There were some really sweet moments in the book (the awkward "then" scenes were so cute), but sadly it wasn't enough for me to love this one. I think many Sarah Hogle fans will enjoy this one though and the issues I had with it are definitely an "it's me not you situation".

Audiobook Review
Overall 3.5 stars
Performance 4 stars
Story 3 stars

I both read the ebook and listened to the audiobook of Old Flames and New Fortunes and thought Valerie Rose Lohman did a pretty good job. She was perfect as Romina, but I did have some trouble occasionally distinguishing between characters. For example, she voiced Romina and Alex pretty similarly at times. Overall, it was an enjoyable listening experience.

CW: financial concerns, death of parent/loved ones (past), strained parental relationships, previous toxic romantic relationship

*I voluntarily read and listened to an advance review copy of this book*

This is my first book by Sarah Hogle and let me just say, I am a fan!

This is a total cluster at first, but like it's supposed to be that way so I mean that as a compliment. Romina pretending to date Trevor to get his cousin off his back then having to pretend in front of his ex and hers and THEN deciding it's a good idea to keep doing it because it'll make their exes see what they missed? Amazing. And honestely, Romina and Trevor's friendship is hilarious.

Romina and Alex however- phew. 🥵 First of all, love to see a man so obsessed. AND THE JEALOUSY! But also, the way they tease each other and the tension between them is just delicious.

The magic element is fun and I love Romina's family so I'm excited to see more of them! (At least I really hope we see more of them- it was certainly set up for it!)

This book is another rave from Sarah Hogle! The brilliant mind behind You Deserve Each Other and Twice Shy (WHICH WERE AMAZING I read those as arcs as well), has illustrated a magical realism steamy fake dating with second chance at first love in this novel! Sarah sets up a setting to make you feel like your apart of the story then someone reading the story. She truly has a gift and I wish more people would give newer romance authors a chance because not everyone has to write like Emily Henry (which I read Beach Read before it came out and I knew it would get a lot of attention) or Christina Lauren. Something so unique was the flower chapter headers and the little description! This isn't super spicy and steamy, it's poetically steamy and it gives me all the feels! Thank you thank you thank you to the author Sarah Hogle, the publisher, and Netgalley! Give this a chance!