This was a good read. Jenny’s thoughts were what most females and moms think about. Her son Charlie was a great character. Luke was a great male character in this story.

The scene and character development was great. I was seeing this book play out like a movie in my mind. The story line was funny yet tragic.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this advanced reader copy. These are my views and opinions of this book.

DNF @ 23%.

The premise is interesting enough, but the characters are too bizarre and annoying. What started as quirky in our FMC turned into a very weird way for a mother to behave, and her babbling was incessant, I also felt that we should have had some more plot by a quarter of the book, and we’d really only breached the back cover.

Thank you so much for the e-arc and I look forward to trying another one soon.

Jenny is having a seriously bad go of it. Her car wont start, her job is in jeopardy and her home literally fell off a cliff. She’s always tried to deal with everything with aplomb, but really what is a single mom to do? She has her beloved son to think about and has always and only wanted to make his life the best it could be and to never know of her hardships. With almost nothing left, she is trying to figure out what is next. Turns out her next is so fabulous. Her temporary neighbor Luke invites them both into his camper van for a fantastical road trip. And it is fantastical and so much more! It is eye opening, allows her to recognize what a strong smart woman she is and always been, helps her to reconnect to her estranged family, reflect on her life choices, find her own happiness, develop a healthy adult relationship with her beloved son, heal her heart, be open to love, discover her love of travel, reconnect with her passion of writing and more. Luke is a good and kind man dealing with his own emotional demons and loss. Together, they each find themselves and find their happily ever after. A wonderful story to read and or listen.


I received a copy of this book from Netgalley.com in exchange for a fair and honest review.

4.5 stars

What a delightful book! I loved so many things about it, and I had more laughs, and tears, then I expected. Jenny's desire to find joy again after everything in her life seems to fall apart will likely resonate with many readers. Jenny is such a likable character, and her conflicts and struggles make her all the more relatable. She shows that while she sometimes may feel like a disaster, that is not truly the case for her, and it's not for us, either. At the core, this is a story of learning to accept oneself. There is a bit of a romance angle, but thankfully it is not a key focus. This was the perfect pick-me-up book that I needed at this time.

Johnson's writing quickly pulls readers in. She easily balances emotional, heartfelt moments with humorous ones. Her style reminds me of Sophie Kinsella, and I look forward to reading future books by Johnson.

A fun, gentle read about a woman navigating changes in her life.

Jenny is a single mom who is dealing with a teenage son who will be leaving soon for university. On the day she learns she may lose her job, she and her son return to their home only to find that due to torrential rains, it is starting to slide off a cliff and into the ocean. Saved from falling over by a surly neighbor, Jenny and her son must find a way forward. It turns out her neighbor , who lives in an RV, is not so surly, and offers them a chance to move forward. Traveling the roads together, the three each find what they need.

Fun, well developed characters and a good storyline make this an appealing read.

Single Mom down on her luck with her 18 year old son Charlie. She loses everything which seems unlikely but this is fiction. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as enjoyable as I had hoped which is likely more of a reflection on me and not the author.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC. This opinion is strictly my own.

Single mom Jenny’s life falls apart in a single day. She finds out she’s being laid off, her ancient car finally breaks down for good, and thanks to erosion from record-setting rains, her home literally falls off a cliff. Newly unmoored, she and her teenage son embark on a spontaneous RV tour with a new friend…and Jenny discovers a side of herself she didn’t realize existed.

This book was super wholesome and heartwarming. What I didn’t expect is that it’s also laugh-out-loud funny. The main character is super snarky and the voice feels like a Sophie Kinsella novel. The complicated family relationships are emotionally compelling and realistic. The book gets a bit slow in the middle, but overall I was thoroughly entertained and read it in two sittings. I’d absolutely recommend this as a summer read.

And they all lived happily ever after. Good rom-com, characters with problems, grappling with life. I received this digital arc from NetGalley and Harper Muse. This review is my own words and beliefs.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this story, it flowed so nicely and there were layers to each character. Such a funny and heartwarming read. Four stars!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC for an honest review.

This book absolutely was not a disaster! I adored it to pieces...

While Jenny James life may be a disaster at the moment, she manages to make lemonade out of lemons thanks to her neighbor (and hero!) Luke who offers her and her son a road trip in his camper after her cottage literally falls off a cliff. This is a book about finding yourself, forgiveness, facing complications and fears, letting go and starting over. There is great dialogue and witty banter. The personal growth off all the characters is a marvel to watch. The characters are filled with flaws and broken in their own way, but each are honestly trying to become a better person. There is just as much sweetness as there is emotional depth. The relationship between Jenny and Luke...From strangers to friends to something extra special...pure JOY!

5 stars

I almost quit on this book pretty early. The first part was a bit hard to get through with how things were going for Jenny. I am so glad I stuck it out because it was SO sweet in the end! Although you have to wonder at the intelligence of heading off on a road trip in a motorhome with someone you know very little about, Jenny, Charlie, and Luke all quickly worm their way into your heart and you will not be able to stop reading until you see where their journey takes them. The relationships and problems are real and relatable, the setting is a character all of its own, and the story unfolds easily and cleanly. You won’t regret this feel good read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

After a string of really bad luck, Jenny James decides to begin again. Jenny and Charlie (her 18 year old son) join their neighbor, Luke, in his campervan on a road trip. Each new destination is decided by pulling a random prompt from a hat. As each mile goes by, Jenny has time to reflect on her past and think about what her future might hold.

This is a heartwarming, cozy read. I enjoyed reading about the relationship between Jenny and her son and how they reconnect on the road trip.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Jenny James Is Not a Disaster is an engaging read. How many of us readers have wished that tables could be turned and a new life could be started and problems averted? Jenny James has set her life on the standards she was brought up on, giving her boy a stable life and a stable home. She has forgotten how to be free and careless until her life turns upside down and she is on the verge of drastic changes. She goes on a wild trip with her son and her new found neighbor and friend Luke and together they let down walls that were carefully constructed through the years and live fully. The story gives lots of food for thought on life and the choices one makes.
I thank the author, her publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

Thank you to @HarperCollins and #NetGalley for the digital ARC of #JennyJamesIsNotaDisaster. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

This is a sweet, heart-warming read about a single mother and her 18 year old son who is having the worst. week. ever. First their car dies. Then they lose everything when their house falls into the sea. And then Jenny's laid off from her job. So when new acquaintance Luke invites them to join him for a short holiday in his motorhome, Jenny says "why not" and goes all in on the wandering life-style.

This book is about relationships - familial and romantic (I really enjoyed the goofy relationship between Jenny and her son, Charlie). But it's also about learning to let go and finding your joy.

Jenny James is having a “no good, very bad, horrible” week. Her old car won’t start, her cliff side house falls into the sea during a bad storm, and she loses her job. Luke, who’s camping in a nearby field in his motor home, rescues her and becomes a sounding board for her. She, and her 18 year old son Charlie, need to make plans for the future, but Jenny has a difficult time knowing what to do. Luke suggests she and Charlie travel with him in his motor home for a week or two to give her time to sort things out.
Jenny Jones Is Not A Disaster, by Debbie Johnson, tells of their adventures, the reconciliation with her family, and their budding relationship. It’s a funny and sweet story of two people with lots of emotional baggage who find their way to each other. There is some language scattered throughout the book.

Here is my review as posted on Goodreads and Instagram:
Poor Jenny James! Just when you think things can’t get any worse for her, her house falls off a cliff and she loses everything! From there, a delightful summer road trip adventure begins. While this book includes a lot of sadness and heartbreak, it is equally adventurous, heartwarming, and hopeful! If you are looking for an easy summer read that’s not just all fluff, I’d highly recommend reading this book! I am so thankful to Harper Collins for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Jenny has worked hard in a boring job in coastal England to provide a not that great of a life for her and her son who is about to leave for university. When disaster strikes, her life changes. What started out as a book about a quirky main character turned into a Hallmark movie plot. Cute but not what I was expecting.

I’ve read one other Johnson book, which I absolutely loved. I was expecting the same with this one but unfortunately I DNF around the 30% mark. When it rains it pours , and that’s the same with Jenny on one particular day. I loved Jenny’s character, she’s hilarious but I found the story to be too slow for my liking and found myself bored at times. I will definitely check out more of her work though.

Loved this. It was touching and real, no fake meet cutes or relationship problems. Everything worked naturally. The trio of Charlie, Jenny and Luke on a road trip was adorable. Nice to just read about people loving each other for once. No deep squabbles (some past issues) and no overwhelming sadness. Betty was the best.

I loved Jenny James Is Not A Disaster. This is my first Debbie Johnson and i’ll certainly be adding her books to my future reading list. The set-up for this book is fabulous!
Jenny James is a single mother to her eighteen year-old son Charlie and as the story opens, we find her facing a horror day. Firtly it’s pouring with rain, then she has car problems, which later transform into a car that wont start at all. In between her car issues, she discovers that the owners of the carpet store where she works as an office manager have decided to close the business, leaving her without a job.Is all this bad enough? Why no. Having met up with Charlie and caught the bus to her cottage on the Norfolk coast, Jenny discovers that the rain and the sea swell have combined to massively erode the cliff, leaving her house destroyed along with all her possessions. At this point Luke who has been living in a motorhome parked in the field next door, enters the story. What ensues is a thoroughly entertaining journey for the three of them during which Jenny discovers her inner strength and resilience. I loved reading about the gorgeous places they visited and the way Jenny faced her fears, firstly at a series of amusement parks and subsequently by reuniting with her estranged parents. I loved that both Jenny and Luke were driven by guilt and a sense of loss and that they heled each other to come to grips with those feelings. While the various topics dealt with in this story could make for very heavy reading, the story is charming, filled with witty dialogue and plenty of uplifting moments. Jenny’s journey was one of seeking her joy and for me, it has been a joy to read.