The Best Life Book Club was “a breath of fresh air” read for me. Karissa is settling into a new life in a new town with her daughter after being betrayed not only by her husband, but her best friend. She tries to keep a positive front while meeting her new neighbors, Alice, her sister Josie and Margot. They decide to start a book club. All the friends have some issues, trauma with job loss, mother issues, car accidents and death of spouses. These four women all bring good ideas to their group and good changes come their way. Thoroughly enjoyed this read. Good plot line and characterizations.

I have to admit that I'm not usually one to go for books about book clubs, but I'm really glad I gave this one a chance. It has a little bit of everything: friendships, romantic relationships, family, personal growth, community, and of course books! There are so many literary references throughout the story which makes it really fun if you're an avid reader. And, it takes place in WA state, so reading it really felt like home to me.
There were laugh out loud moments, moments where I teared up, and many times where I simply couldn't put the book down. A great read!

_
Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC of this title. These are my honest thoughts.

As someone who found a book club after moving to a new town, it quickly became my favorite thing! Not only for the shared love and discussion of books but also the friendships that have been formed because of it. All this to say, I adored this book!

We, as the reader, get the pleasure of following along on the journey of four women. These women also happen to make up The Best Life Book Club.

Through the books they read, experiences they share and ultimate growth as individual characters, what starts as a way to distract from their own troubles quickly turns into a bond that Sheila masterfully intertwines between each of the women and the growth they each encounter.

There is so much to take away and love about this book. Much like a book club, what stood out and resonated with you may not be the same for others and this book is the perfect pick for a book club for this very reason!

For me, Karissa’s story resonated with me the most and I loved the overall theme of the importance of friendship.

This book is set to release May 7th! Read it alone, buddy read or recommend it as a book club pick but for sure grab this book and enjoy the journey or better yet, journeys!

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

“We all need stories, we all love stories, but we also need to love our own stories. Books should encourage you to do that. They shouldn’t be a substitute.”

Before I get into the review, I would like to say thank you to a few important people. First, thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for approving me to read this advanced reader copy! Also, thank you to the author, Sheila Roberts, who wrote this amazing novel. Your writing is incredibly beautiful, and I am so happy to have been given the opportunity to read “The Best Life Book Club” as my first ARC book!

This fun, lighthearted book had be hook as soon as I read the synopsis. This novel takes you through 4 women’s daily lives, and their personal struggles. These new friends decide to start a book club, and each person ends up learning different life lessons from the books they read.

Each chapter starts with a quote from a book they read from their book club, which I thought was a great addition to this book. This novel is written in third person point of view. Since you are following 4 different characters, it took a little while for me to follow who was who, but after getting reeled into the story, I began figuring out each of the characters, and their own plots that contributed to this book. After finishing this book, I was feeling genuinely happy, and I cannot wait to read more books from Sheila Roberts!

This is a cute book! All the appropriate moments to give you the warm fuzzies.

A little predictable at times but sometimes you need a book like that to make you feel good. I love how the women all felt down in the beginning and found themselves in each other.

Super cute! And another reminder of how important books can be.

Thanks to NetGalley, Sheila Roberts, and Harlequin Trade Publishing. I have written this review voluntarily.

At the beginning of "The Best Life Book Club" our protagonist is moving into a new house in the rain. Sounds lovely ... until we find out why the move away from the city was necessary. Her cheating husband and her former best friend decided that they were better matched. It was simple for the husband to just move next door to be with his glamorous, beautiful new love, but more of a challenge for the spurned wife to start over.

The reader feels the struggle and the loneliness is front and center until the neighbors at the new place come together to be friends and book club members. Many tropes of romance novels fit together nicely for a satisfying romance read. No particular surprises but a fun trip to the Pacific Northwest.

The Best Life Book Club was such a cute and fun read. The story is about Karissa Newcomb who moves into a new neighborhood because he husband cheated on her with her neighbor which is horrible. She also has a nine year old who has to move to a new school along with moving to a new home. I absolutely loved the different point of views throughout the story. There were a lot of very funny plots to where they needed to do something quickly in order to fix something. The ladies end up starting a book club which is a great distraction for their real world problems. Throughout this story I laughed a lot as it had a lot of funny parts. I definitely recommend this book as it was a great read!

A book about a book club. Fabulous! I found it hard to pinpoint a plot but essentially a few ladies of varying ages get together and form a book club while their own life storylines change and progress over the short timeline. Things just kind of happened in the book in their own timing. Everything was random and it jumped around a lot to different perspectives without actually announcing who it was. It gave me a bit of whiplash. However, you could figure it out eventually. I think I just like it more when every narrator has their own chapter.

The romantic development was okay. It was unfocused in my opinion but it did wrap up nicely in the last few pages.

I think a lot of people will like this book. It just wasn't for me.

Everyone should have a chance to belong like to a book club like Sheila Roberts created. What an amazing group of women. All distinctly different and perhaps that is why this book club works so well. They are so supportive of each other and take the good with the bad. This was a lovely story about rebirth, redemption and renewal of lives. It was an enlightening read and one that will lift your spirits long after you have completed the story.

I very simply did not enjoy this book. The writing felt very amateurish to me and the characters were one-note, not complex at all. The story felt like it was dragging and I struggled to finish it. I had high hopes because I really love stories about female friendship, but this one just didn't pan out.

Sweet story that reminded me a little bit of a hallmark movie. Nice feel- good book. I think the character development could be a little better. But overall a good story.

I loved the characters and the book club theme. I don’t know if it was the format I received or the publisher/author choice not to title each perspective with the characters name, but it would be helpful.

I like the theme of female friendship through book club. The women in the book club have real struggles and go through a process of healing and rediscovery.

The flow of reading was disrupted by the abrupt point of view shift. I had a difficult time following the story and keeping track of each character. Another reviewer suggested labeling each chapter with the character name, which would alleviate some confusion.. Overall the book was a fairly good read although it could have been shorter.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ms. Robert's new book, THE BEST LIFE BOOK CLUB is a charming, heartbreaking tale of four women who meet and start a book club. It stars Karissa Newcomb who is starting over with her daughter after divorcing her cheating husband. She moves to a beautiful town in Puget Sound. There she meets and forms some wonderful friendships with her neighbors, Alice and Margot. They each have a crisis happening in their lives. They need something new in their lives to look forward to, so they form a book club. Alice's crabby older sister, Josie, joins too. Their friendship's blossom as secrets, drama and life problems are shared. What problems do each of them face? Will they overcome all their fears and difficulties?

Come along on a journey of hope, love and faith in THE BEST LIFE BOOK CLUB. The author delivers a dramatic tale of four ladies who are each dealing with many life obstacles. This story is beautifully told and captured my heart completely. There were a few tender moments that brought tears to my eyes. I love Ms. Robert's books and she has an engaging cast of characters and a wonderful heartwarming plot. This is a truly splendid summer read!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I just loved this book. I don't know if this book found me at the right time in my life, but this story just emanates hope and determination to not give up on yourself even when you feel like things couldn't get any worse; and that starting over is not always a bad thing. The four main characters are each a delight and bring their own charm and sass to the story line. Its great to see women from different walks and stages of life hold each other up and cheer each on as they find their inner confidences to keep going and overcome hardships. There is also a great will they/wont' they story line that kept me going throughout the story. I was really bummed when the book was over, I wouldn't mind more from this author with these characters.

The Best Life Book Club by Sheila Roberts is the first book I’ve read by this author but I’ve heard of her many times before. It follows a fun group of characters who start a book club to get through all the changes and challenges in their lives. As a book lover, I appreciated all the book references and I loved Karissa and her new job in publishing. It did start to drag a bit and then was rushed at the end, but overall I really enjoyed it!

I received an advanced copy from netgalley in exchange for a review and opinions are my own.

One of Sheila Roberts' best! Karissa is newly divorced, starting fresh in a new town with her young daughter. She has a new job working at a regional publishing company and is attempting to rebuild her self-esteem after being betrayed by both her ex-husband and former best friend. She slowly builds a community of supportive friends and neighbors, including Margot (recently laid off), Alice (a grieving widow), and Alice's sister Josie, who has a chip on her shoulder. The women bond over their book club, and each finds a new chapter of their life unfolding. The book is sweet without being overly predictable, and there are some laughs despite the grief and setbacks the characters endure. Definitely a "comfort food" read. Those who tend to roll their eyes at a "glass half full" viewpoint may find it Pollyanna-ish, but I will recommend it to my library patrons looking for an uplifting read.

Thank you to Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing / MIRA for providing me an advanced review copy in exchange for my opinion. Look for this book on shelves in early May!

I can never go wrong reading a book by Sheila Roberts! The characters were great to read about. Reading can definitely bring you joy.

I enjoyed the Best Life Book Club. I will say there are a few characters in the book and sometimes it can get a little confusing. I loved the banter between the women and how they supported each other. I also felt that the ended was just a little rushed. This story is a feel good and it’s about friendship, starting over and slow burn romances. A quick and fun read from Shelia Roberts. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing/MIRA and NetGalley. This is my own opinion.

This is the first book I've read by Sheila Roberts. The Best Life Book Club is women's fiction and a really enjoyable read. The four main characters all have things in their life that have caused problems ~ family relationships, a divorce, a job loss, and an issue with panic attacks. They become friends and start up a book club for the four of them.

The characters are really great ~ I enjoyed each of them and definitely would love to be friends with them. Each has so many good qualities and reading about the friendship between them beginning and then flourishing was wonderful.

There are a lot of life lessons in this book, but it's not preachy. It's simply a very good story about four women who become good friends. It's an uplifting, happy read that I'm recommending to all my friends.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and publisher for an ARC at my request. All thoughts are my own.