I was kindly sent a widget for this book by Cathy/Her PA, so I want to thank them for that. Unfortunately, I wish I could've loved this book more. The plot was kind of glossed over by how porny it was- and no, I don't mean corny. They both just seemed like horndogs the whole time, and it really diminished the quality of their character. I think because I loved Roleplaying so much, I had high expectations for this book. Roleplaying was my first Cathy Yardley book, and I adored it so much. Do Me a Favor was vastly different from it. I liked that Maggie and Aiden had problems, and I liked how they grew as people over the course of the book. It seemed to me like Hudson's growing happened in the last 20% of the book, and all so quickly too. Willas problems didn't really present themselves til near the end too, and when they did present themselves, it was hinted that she just needed to have sex in order to write a sexy cookbook. I think Willa and Hudson were sweet, and I loved that he was a single dad, but I think I just hoped for more.

Cathy Yardley has carved out a refreshing niche for herself in the romance genre, focusing on characters in their 40s. I enjoyed last year's Role Playing in spite of some choppiness and this upcoming release is even better. The story is fairly simple, being entirely character driven. And the leads' chemistry is off the charts.

Finally a heartfelt romance for us grown folks! This has a good storyline, enjoyable characters with good development, great messages, and beautiful chemistry. Luved this read! ❤️

Unfortunately this one is not for me. The pacing I could not get into and I am only leaving feedback per Netgalley requirement. I have seen SO many positive reviews and opinions on this book so I am sure I am just an outlier.

I will be featuring this book on my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) in the near future,

I really loved Role Playing and was excited to see another romance from Cathy Yardley featuring characters in their forties. In Do Me A Favor, recently widowed Willa is 46 and single dad Hudson is 41. Willa is left her aunt’s house on an island near Seattle. The house needs some work, so Willa hires her neighbor and handyman Hudson to take care of it.

This was a light read with no third act breakup and a bit of steam. I liked that we get to know both Hudson and Willa’s families and thought the balance of backstory with present plot was well done. I also loved all the cooking and foodie themes.

Content flags: Willa’s husband died of complications from T1 diabetes

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

📚Do Me A Favor by Cathy Yardley
🎧ALC Review(Copy gifted by @brilliancepublishing, @literarymediatours & @cathyyardley)
🚨While reviewed copy is gifted, opinions are always my own.
Status: Available July 23rd, on KU

🥰Enjoyment: This is only my second Cathy Yardley title but I think its safe to say I’m a fan. I really enjoy her voice as a writer, and as an elder millennial I’m finding it nice to see some later in life romances, particularly when they’re approached with maturity and not toxic attitudes. This story just felt refreshing to listen to. The female narrator is not my favorite, but not so much so the I would say avoid, this was a perfectly enjoyable audiobook.

Read this if you like second act romances (is that a term and I just make it up). If you thrive on messy this might not be for you. Its a beautiful story of two adults starting over in life, and falling in love while they do so.

4 stars

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Montlake for the early e-arc of this book. I loved it so much and it made me laugh "sexy chef". I love a romance with older characters and we get a glimpse of the whole complex when the book mentions a lot of joy, creativity and grief. I loved the characters so much and I will definitely be reading more of the author's backlist soon.

An engaging older in life romance. Not that the couple is old. They are only in their forties. I did have to skip a big chunk of intimate details. I really also would have preferred the "f" word not be used. Interesting watching them grow into their life choices for careers. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

If you didn't know this before, I am a HUGE Cathy Yardley fan. Like I've loved every single one of her books and I was annoying last year when it came to Role Playing. This one did not disappoint for me.

This book had me squealing, every time they these two were close to each other and kept denying their attraction I was screaming. I loved them. I loved their journey. I loved their friendship and how it developed in to more. I loved the belief they had in each other and how they wanted to grow. I loved the funny moments in this. I was cracking up sometimes.

I loved this book so much and I'll never shut up about it and this author.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁:
💜 Cozy Romance
🫶🏻 Main Characters in 40s
🏘️ Small Town/Island
💕 Love after loss

Do Me A Favor is a fun contemporary rom com intertwined with the story of starting over. Our MCs are both in their 40s and are trying to find their footing in their new era of life. There was tons of humor, a splash of spice, relatable characters and a nice slow burn.

Willa and Hudson’s relationship developed slowly throughout the story but in doing so, you really get to see them grow individually and then grow together. 🥹

Pick up this cozy romance that is perfect to snuggle with under a blanket on a cool fall day.

From the author of one of my favorite romances, Role Playing, comes another quirky, over 40, rom-com!
This gentle romance is fun and sweet, with just the right amount of spice.

Willa is a widowed 46 year old former cookbook writer trying to find herself.
Hudson is a divorced 41 year old father of two, and a handyman with big dreams of being a Restoration expert.
They meet when Willa finds Hudson's dog Noodle in her garage during a particularly bad rainstorm on an otherwise idyllic Island in the PNW. It turns out they're neighbors! Willa inquired her great aunt's house on the island, and it needs a little fixing up. Enter Hudson the handy man. Turns out having him around also helps Willa get into the mood with her latest cookbook assignment for a cooking influencer known for his sexy recipes.

Tropes: Slow burn, found family, small town, dual POV, later-in-life romance, single dad, forced proximity

While nothing tops Role Playing for me, Do Me a Favor did not disappoint! Willa and Hudson find each other while finding themselves, and it's adorable. They each completely nerd out about their own obsessions, which is utterly relatable. (For Willa, it's food. For Hudson, it's clocks) I loved all the side characters as well, and would definitely read another novel set in this community!
The only thing that kinda fell flat for me was Willa's husband's death, which happens off page but is referenced quite a lot. Oh, and sometimes Hudson says something that seems completely out of the blue since the reader knows but it wasn't apparent that he did yet, but fairly minor quibbles. All in all, a fun light-hearted read!

Thanks to Netgalley, Montlake, and the author for the eARC! Be sure to check this one out next month!

"That's what he felt like, seeing her."

3.5 stars!

This is a good romance for anyone seeking main characters that are not in their 20s. With both main characters in their 40s, it was enjoyable to see characters with more responsibility and sense of self. A major bonus being that the characters are more straightforward and there is less miscommunication and nervous energy that goes around in circles.

The characters chemistry was good. I liked the build up of their chemistry and their dialogue, I would have loved however to have more scenes focusing on the two main characters involving the cooking and the playful nature of it (all personal preference). I would have loved for more scenes to showcase the sparks between them and just really highlight the romance between them, but the scenes we did get I enjoyed.

I enjoyed the set up of the plot and how the story and the characters developed with it. I thought that the majority of the story flowed nicely, the pacing allowed for the story to be an easy read. I think the ideas and themes of grief in the story worked well and are reflected well in the characterisation and character motivations.

The only things that hold me back a little bit is the fact that there were different things and sub-plots happening in the story, and I just wanted them to be expanded or to go somewhere with more purpose. I would have loved seeing more of the main female character's job and what was happening there, how that impacted her and the side characters, and just an overall greater development of things outside the slow burn of the romance. I think because I enjoyed the cooking aspect of the book so much I just wanted more out of it.

Thank you to Jannie for sending me an eARC, I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Willa moves into her great aunt's house on an island off the state of Washington. She's a widow starting over. She meets Hudson the local handyman. There's an instant attraction.

I enjoyed this book. There was some heartwarming and funny parts. Overall, a good Romance about "older" characters.

What a lovely surprise!
It's a sweet second chance at love story between two characters than dreamed about being something else but love and life had other plans for them,
The two of them have a bittersweet past but they find comfort, friendship and love in each other.
It's well written, easy to read and leaves you with a smile. A perfect summer read.

This was definitely more slow burn than I care to read these days but what I really appreciated about this book was that these are 2 very grown up people who have lived full lives (he's 41, she's 46) with a lot of heartache and sacrifice and grief and they acted like adults, they were honest about their feelings and their fears and their dreams and they didn't rush into things, they took their time, they were thoughtful and intentional and it was really lovely. I liked the side characters, loved the dog, loved both MCs, all in all, it was a very sweet and tender romance.

Content notes: grief related to widowhood, loss of husband due to diabetes related complications

2.5 rounded up to 3

This was my first time reading this author and I enjoyed the story even though I had a few issues with it. A few things I loved was the fact the MC's were both older. I believe she's around 47, and he's 41. I've found it harder and harder to relate to younger MC's, so seeing an older pair was really refreshing. I enjoyed the fact both were for the most part, normal people. There wasn't a billionaire to be seen. While I do enjoy those books, sometimes I just want two people who happen to run into each other in a normal way. The meet cute here with Noodle the dog was fantastic.

We find out that Willa is a widow and her husband had T1D and that it was basically a death sentence. That just...isn't how things work? T1D is also called Juvenile diabetes and it does sound like the husband in this book was diagnosed young and then just said "fuck it" as he got older and his poor choices caused his death? I just found this mind blowing. There are professional athletes that are T1D (Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens). There are people out there just living their lives who have this diagnosis, so to exaggerate it this much just felt weird and off. I honestly kept going back in the book thinking I missed a second diagnosis of something else. If you wanted to have the FMC be a widow, there are hundreds of other ways that could've happened that would've made more sense.

Another issue I have is the fact that the book kinda just ends? I wanted to know more about how Hudson put his clock maker courses to work! I mean, the dude goes away for a year, then returns with his certificates, and we never see him actually use any of those skills?!

There were a few editing/plot issues I noticed too. Like Hudson mentions something about "after your husband died" but she never told him about that on page. And that feels like something that should be on page for sure. And Willa never asks Hudson if he was married/divorce/widowed either. I'm guessing it just came up off page somewhere?

All in all, I'll probably give this author another chance but I'm going to be curious about how other reviewers talk about the T1D aspect and if the author ever comments on it.

📚 Review: Do me a favor by Cathy Yardley
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Random thoughts…..

I liked Hudson - and part of that is his family reflecting back on him. The openness of them.

I didn’t become invested in the characters and their relationship until ch 17. It’s the first time she did something relatable - up until then I found she was annoying.

Love the cover art. She’s exactly as described. And how can a cartoon character man be sexy at a door lean?? Really it’s not fair. But it reinforces that Hudson just has the natural sexiness and charm. That he completely uses to his advantage to fluster and melt Willa. And I identify with Willa so hard in that. Flirting-what’s that???

And Noodle is the best name for a dog.

And my favorite line? “It was so much better to just eat cheese and avoid reality for a while”.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for providing an advanced copy!

⭐⭐⭐💫

TROPES
🌶️ Small Town
🌶️ Single Dad
🌶️ Found Family

I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two MCs, Willa and Hudson. It was pretty similar to the one from Role Playing, which wasn’t a bad thing since these characters distinctively had different personalities. Both are trying to learn to put themselves first in life, which is harder than it sounds once you’ve already lived so much of it.

I love all the mentioned recipes. I have always enjoyed learning new ones and watching cooking shows on TV, so it was really fun to read as Willa tried to develop different recipes with a certain aesthetic in mind.

What let me down a touch was how Willa’s husband’s death was handled. It’s off-page and in the past, but I feel like it wasn’t actually fleshed out. It’s implied that it’s from complications related to diabetes, but also that it’s something he knew his whole life that would give him a shorter life than most. Considering discussions of diabetes in other books I’ve read, this fell a bit flat for me since I believe it impacted Willa’s characterization.

Got to love books with older MCs! such a cozy soft hearted read! I love the fact that the MCs have jobs that are not so popularly used in Romance books. such a cute read, definitely recommend you give it a go!

DO ME A FAVOR is a small-town, later-in-life romance set in an idyllic island on the PNW. when willa inherits her great aunt catherine's house, she took it as the perfect chance to start over after her husband's death. she's struggling to get back into her old career as a cookbook ghostwriter, because her latest project—a cookbook for a "sexy chef" influencer—has her completely stuck. but when she meets her new neighbor, the charming handyman hudson, their sizzling chemistry simply cannot be ignored... and, as a bonus, it provides the much-needed inspiration for her work. but with both of their pasts to contend with, willa and hudson navigate what it means to start a relationship as two forty-something year olds.

as a very firm proponent of later-in-life romances, i absolutely loved willa and hudson's relationship and how they fell for each other. not only that, but i really appreciated that the book didn't just focus on their romance—instead, it also talked about willa dealing with her grief over losing her husband and the series of events that followed, along with hudson's experience raising twins as a very young single father.

read if you like:
- older MCs
- it takes a village
- so much good food

thanks to netgalley and montlake for the advanced copy! DO ME A FAVOR comes out july 23rd.