Member Reviews
Romances are a great break from serious reading, the type you have to read twice to decipher. But I did a lot of fast reading with Weekends with You, searching for some excitement and plot to encourage me forward. Author Alexandra Paige offers a great set up of a romance in London, between a florist and a photographer. This couple lives in the same house, but because of work they barely see each other. Yet somehow the background and characters were not enough to get me rolling. Urban goings on were kind of slow. In addition the romance is in tiny bits, and frankly I was disappointed in our heroine’s decision to even give this guy the time of day. A lukewarm get together once a month? She thinks in her head one way but her actions are quite different. Even the ending was not very satisfying. Perhaps a repetitive romance reader would feel differently but this novel was not a winner for me. Thank you to Netgalley for letting me give this earc a try.
This charming, swiftly-paced book captures the adventures of a girl and her friends across 12 chapters, with each chapter depicting a weekend from their lives. The unique storytelling approach offers a slice-of-life glimpse into their world, blending just the right amount of chaos and romance. While it skims on deep character development, it still allows you to connect with the characters meaningfully. Highly recommended for those in search of a light, enjoyable read filled with both mischief and love.
I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This was a cute book told in little snippets for each month. Lucy is a flower designer in a small London shop. When she has to move, she moves in to a warehouse flat with 7 other people. Each month, the group gets together as a family to do an activity planned by one of the flat mates. Henry is a photographer who is on the road but comes back once a month for the Warehouse Weekends. Lucy falls for Henry and their relationship has several starts and stops over the course of the year. Can they make a go of it.
I like the book and it was a fun read but I felt like Henry was not very developed. Maybe because he was never around during the month like Lucy was? I enjoyed reading about the fun things they did as a group on Warehouse Weekends. I would have liked to hear more about Lucy and the flower shop she works at or What Hendy was doing while he was gone.
3.5/5 stars
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
This one was a bit of a miss to me. I had a hard time connecting with Lucy. She seemed disconnected from herself. She and Henry were never on the same page but Lucy also never really connected with her longtime boss or other friends either. The most interesting part was the 'Loft' and all of the roommates and they seemed to be mostly glossed over.
Then there was the whole relationship. -They were never in a relationship and yet Lucy treated it as a relationship?
Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for an arc of Weekends with You by Alexandra Paige. This is her debut novel and I think it fits right in with Fallon Ballard and Christina Lauren. This book is a romcom starring Lucy Bernstein who works at a flower shop in London and moves in to a warehouse conversion with 7 other roommates, one being her best friend. Once a month, the 8 housemates spend a weekend together and one of them plans it. It is a super cute idea for a house share like that. In walks in Henry Baker, but he is only there on the Warehouse Weekends. Lucy is navigating changes at the flower shop and now living with 7 others is a transition and a crush in Henry.
Fun story of roomates in a loft who are all different and interesting and have fun most of the time.
Weekends with You by Alexandra Paige was an absolute joy to read. Lucy, a florist, moves into a huge warehouse building with eight flatmates. She has eyes for Henry Baker, a traveling photographer who is only home one weekend per month. There were times when it felt like Lucy was just selling herself short by pining for Henry, including maybe not committing to a future beau with the gusto that she might have otherwise. The supporting cast of characters was fabulous - found family for the win!
I adored the incorporation of flowers into the storyline and Paige's prose was so smooth. Thank you to @netgalley for the chance to review this book - all thoughts are my own.
I'm not sure how different my review will be from a lot of others. I just couldn't fully get behind this book. I liked all of the characters, except Henry, which is a big problem considering he is the main love interest. He was cold and manipulative and there was no chance I was rooting for him and Lucy to get together. I was disappointed Lucy allowed herself to be manipulated and I have to believe if the book went further, they would either be miserable or not together. I hope any woman reading this doesn't think that the guy treating you like this is the one for you. Please, please lift your standards.
The roommates were great and the only reason I'm giving 3 stars. I could have read a book about their dynamics and went more into their personal lives without having the "romantic" storyline at all.
I would only recommend this book if you're looking for an example of what type of guy not to fall for. On the other hand, you can use Oliver as the example to look for.
Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC.
What a sweet rom-com! This story is perfect for fans of Beth O'Leary and Josie Silver. It also reminded me a bit of Lease on Love by Fallon Ballard.
Lucy is a florist living in London when she meets Henry, a traveling photographer, and they become studio/roommates. They share a warehouse space with a number of other young creatives and, once a month, plan a weekend together hosted by a different roommate. Each chapter details that month's "Warehouse Weekend," and Henry and Lucy come together to find out if what they have is more than just friends.
I loved the big cast of characters, the London setting, and the flower shop. Overall, this was a warm and lighthearted story. At moments, it reminded me of New Girl, with the group of friends sharing a space and shenanigans. There is a chapter set at a B&B in Ireland that is extremely cozy!
My only critique is that since so many roommates are involved, it was hard to keep track of them. I wished for more depth from each, but perhaps the author is setting up future books. ◡̈
This was a fun, quick read for me. The descriptions of the warehouse apartment she ends up moving into with her friend were perfect, and I liked the love interest. I love the way monthly roommate nights were described, and it brought back memories of the time I lived with roommates and some of the fun I had with them. I was rooting for the main character and wanted to see her find the success she was looking for with her partnership in her flower business. This was a new-to-me author and I hope I keep running into books by her in the future. Thank you NeGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
If this book does anything, it will inspire you to reminisce on your roommate days or cherish the ones you currently have. Warehouse Weekends are the new goal! Paige's writing and development of each roommate's personality is spot on.
However, it wasn't enough to overcome the relationship development between Lucy and Henry. It was a very slow progression. Lots of dithering and dancing around. The insta-chemistry didn't grow for me. Ultimately, I did not feel like they were healthy together at all. It just did not come together well enough for me at the end of the story to feel like a happily ever after. I needed more than just Warehouse Weekends to ship Lucy and Henry; I needed some insight to their banter in between months and how they were truly connecting. BUT, I wouldn't doubt if that was the vibe we were going for. I also really would have loved to dive more into Lucy's progression as a business owner. I was rooting for her to take her future into her own hands and make it happen, but that just is not who Lucy is at her core.
Great if you're looking for found family, slow burn, and top notch writing.
This was so cute and beautiful romance book. I had a great time reading this one specially for the protagonist and her progress through the book.
The author has written down the characters so beautifully that they kept me hooked till the very end of the book.
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and the author for an early copy of this book.
Rating- 3.5
Weekends with You was, for a debut, an enjoyable read that had many plot points and characters that I appreciated, though I did find there to be a handful of things that I did not vibe with that much, which brought my rating down.
The aspect of found family is something that I will eat up every single time, and I think the author did a really good job showing the beauty in creating a family of your own choosing. I thought the flatmates all sounded like a truly fun time to be around, and the idea of Warehouse Weekends is something that I definitely would not mind partaking in- though I will say it sounds like that crew suffers an awful lot of hangovers. I thought that their friendships with each other were believable, but I had trouble feeling a true connection between Lucy and Henry on really any level, let alone a romantic one.
Their relationship felt a bit insta-love to me, which I am never one to gravitate towards. I was a little thrown by how sudden Lucy and Henry's relationship began, and I had a hard time rooting for them, especially when a lot of what could have supported their relationship to the reader- late night calls and facetimes, Netflix dates and text conversations, etc.- were not shown. We were told that they happened and were supposed to believe that they helped strengthen their connection, but I think allowing the reader to experience them, too, would have given us more to support their relationship. With Henry only being in the picture one weekend out of every month, I really think that we needed more of their relationship on the page.
I honestly felt myself rooting for Oliver more than Henry and think that Lucy deserved more than what Henry was able to give, but such is dating in your 20s. Maybe it is because I, too, have believed a man hung the stars when in reality he couldn't be bothered to answer a text message, but I just thought she held on too tightly to a man that, for the most part, strung her along until she was convenient for him. And though the author did try to give her moments where she focused on herself and her goals, she was always, in my opinion, too quick to go back to the man she was trying to get over.
Overall, I thought this book had a lot going for it, and could certainly be a good fit for some romance readers! I look forward to seeing what else this author writes.
As a debut author, I would definitely check out more of Alexandra Paige's work. Her writing style is so natural and her flow is beautiful. Weekends with you was sorta romance sorta cozy. I appreciated the plot of flower shop in london. It took me a while to truly feel sparks between our two main characters Lucy and Henry, and honestly I didn't really like Henry, he seemed too immature and douchey right off the bat. I wish we had a little more of Lucy's past in NY as well. Ultimately, this was a light read and I look forward to more of Alexandra's writing!
4.5 stars
I thoroughly enjoyed this debut romance, with a unique timeframe and setting. Eight flatmates sharing a warehouse apartment in London..Each of them has a unique personality and their banter is spot on. There.’s a spark between Lucy and Henry, but navigating it is tricky between their shared living space and Henry’s traveling photography gig. He’s only home one weekend a month, so the story is told in monthly vignettes. A fun read that was a perfect start to my Spring Break readathon!
Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for this digital ARC in return for an honest review!
4.5 stars rounded down.
This book drew me in from the very beginning. I loved the idea that we get a snapshot of every monthly hangout and learn what has changed from month to month. I thought that the narration was lovely and I loved learning about all of the seven flatmates. I was worried at first that I wouldn’t be able to keep them straight, but the author did a great job at differentiating them so it wasn’t confusing at all.
I didn’t love Henry as a character - he’s too wishy washy and essentially strings Lucy along. But unlike some reviewers I actually really enjoyed the romance between them - almost as if they had an invisible string tugging them together without them even knowing.
It’s hard to believe that this is Alexandra Paige’s debut novel - it was such a fun and cozy read that I couldn’t get enough of. Thank you to Alexandra Paige, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the eARC!
This is a cute, quick read. I loved the protagonist, Lucy, and reading about her job as a florist. I loved her quirky roommates—all 7 of them!—and their once-a-month weekend adventures around London. The premise, in which Lucy gets involved with one of these roommates, Henry, who travels for work as a photographer and is only home a few days a month, is interesting. But, Henry is a drag and I could rarely see what Lucy sees in him. But, this is an enjoyable book, which I received from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
A storyline that draws you into the plot from the very beginning. Lucy and Henry’s tumultuous relationship keeps the readers on their toes. At times, you both want them to succeed and hope they do well with others. Readers will enjoy experiencing their magic.
This was a unique story written over the course of 12 weekends in one year. 12 chapters total and even though they were long, they went by so quickly. Lucy and her flatmates have the best friendship, for all of us found family lovers - this one is a good one! With Lucy and Henry, I could have done without the insane rollercoaster of emotions that was each of the 12 weekends. I went from happy to sad to mad almost every one. Granted, the ending made it worth the read and the laughs I got throughout were great. I wish I had a friend group like this to adventure with once a month! Especially if we could adventure around London with each weekend planned by a different flatmate 😍
3.5/5
I thought this book was overall really cute, and I totally want to be a roommate in 2B! They know how to have a great time, and I always looked forward to heading what their next warehouse weekend adventure would be!
I enjoyed the banter between the roommates as well as between Henry & Lucy. I wish there was a little more back story - like Henry, why are you the way that you are??
Would recommend this book if you enjoy a roommates to lovers situation, as well as seeing supportive friendships.
Thank you Netgalley & Avon for the opportunity to read & review this book!!