First and foremost, I feel I should lead with the opinion that this book needs to be included in a LGBTQ+ category. It’s honestly a bit off-putting to read about a “non-straight” character dating both sexes without any prior warning. I certainly can’t relate to it. I wouldn’t necessarily expect a reader who is part of that community to read a romance about two straight characters and find the story relatable. This situation definitely knocked my overall experience, and therefore my review, down a peg.

That being said, the story was pretty good, and I feel that Howe did a fair job of depicting how those of us who live with anxiety and/or depression can sometimes feel.

TL/DR: decent read, needs LGBTQ+ categorization

•𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘵. 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯’𝘴 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.•

Haleigh our plus size heroine is a wee bit of a disaster . She’s trying to find her place in the world while attempting to fall out of love with her best friend. This leads to members of her family and friends setting her up on different dates, that range from offensively bad to hilariously outrageous to absolutely perfect. But Haleigh soon has to decide what is the best choice for her.

This book was so cute. It has great representation for plus size women as well as the LGBTQ community. You find yourself rooting for Haleigh and hoping for the best! This was such a relaxing read, seriously binged it in one night.

3.5/5.
Overall I liked a lot of this book. The story. was cute and I liked the variety of representations. The dates were fun and funny to read. I feel like some plot elements needed a little more expansion and depth. I am not a huge fan of FMCs that are a "mess" as a character trait and don't have basic life skills. I found the dating scheme to be an overly convoluted way to get the main characters together without one of them having a more major revelation. It's still a cute read if you can overlook a few flaws.

I loved this book, it was a great friends to lovers story and Haleigh was so relatable. The banter between the characters was great, and the dates were hilarious and frustrating. I also loved the added aspect of there being actual competition to the MMC, it made the characters feel more real and the overall story less predictable. Overall a great story!

You guys, "How to get a Life in Ten Dates" is an absolute delight! Haleigh Berkshire is fed up with the dating world, so she decides to let her family and friends set her up on ten dates. What could go wrong, right? But then, out of nowhere, her best friend Jack—who she's been secretly crushing on for years—decides to join the dating game too. Cue all the feels! The dates are fun, the banter is hilarious, and watching Haleigh navigate her feelings for Jack is just the best. If you’re looking for a cute, laugh-out-loud read with a side of swoon, this one’s a must-read!

This book had me laughing out loud from the start. I absolutely devoured it on holiday. If you are looking for something relatable and witty this is the book for you.

I really enjoyed this book. I love a good friends-to-lovers and this one delivered it in a sweet, romantic and rather hot package! Also, I loved that not all of Haleigh's dates were terrible, and that some were just not good fits - not all dates are bad! Also, I loved Brian. Does Brian get a book? Please? He was such a sweetheart and I loved their banter. Of course I wanted Jack to "win", but I have to say, Brian's appearance made me a little torn!

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC of this book! What a fun read. I love a good laugh out loud romcom when you can actually feel the chemistry between the main characters. Friends to lovers isnt always my favorite trope, but it was done very well here. I also was a big fan of having a curvy leading lady. Get it girl!!! You couldnt help but cheer for her. I will definitely be recommending this to my friends.

Thoroughly enjoyed reading it! The characters were engaging, and the plot unfolded nicely. It provided a thoughtful perspective on individuals navigating life with anxiety.

This was the first book I have read by this author and I really loved it. I’m always a big fan of books that have curvy FMCs so that immediately drew me to this book. I really loved both Haleigh and Jack and the chemistry and banter they had. I also really loved the cute questionnaires that Haleigh had her dates fill out. The questions had me laughing so hard. Would highly recommend if you enjoy a good friends to lovers romcom.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This was my first Jenny L. Howe novel. It will not be my last. I am definitely going to check out her earlier works. While this book was a bit predictable, it was a cute and witty read. I enjoyed the characters and especially loved the dates.

Definitely a perfect beach read!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This book had a little bit of everything! I loved all the disastrously funny dates, the ability to focus on mental health importance without making it the whole book, and also throwing in some body positivity! The tribe of people behind the main character in this book would make anyone jealous. Jenny Howe really knocked it out of the park with this one.

this was a super fun and cute read that puts a fresh spin on the "friends to lovers" trope. the dates are hilariously awkward, and it’s easy to get invested in haleigh’s journey. the book does a great job of balancing humor with some serious topics like body image and mental health, without getting too heavy. i do think mmc could’ve used a bit more development, but overall, this is a feel-good rom-com and an easy read!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me this ARC in return for my truthful review!

I picked up this book because of the fun description (I'm very much a girl who loves reading about a turned around love life), and once I found out that it was about a plus sized woman, I was super invested.

I liked this book a lot. All of the characters were different, but likeable (except for the ones I'm pretty sure we're not supposed to like, looking at you Bradly Cooper [not that one]), and it was nice to see ther personal growth between relationships.

With a premise of a beloved best friend that the MC has loved for so long, it's very obvious that they're going to end up together in the end. And while I'm okay with that, I was kind of hoping that there would somehow be more of a doubt that Haleigh would end up with Jack. Her relationship with Brian was really nice, and it wasn't until Jack confessed his feelings that things started to go south. And not even that badly? A good relationship doesn't mean that the couple has to share every interest together, so when Haleigh made a fuss about Brian not reading, that was kind of an ick to me. I wish the reason she didn't pick Brian was for something bigger, but in the end, we all knew she's loved Jack since forever.

All in all, it was a fun, short read. I loved the humor, the different (and sometimes horrible) dates, and the coming together of two people who really mesh well. Would reccomend to any of my romance loving fans.

I ate this up! I loved the twist on friends the lovers trope. Hallie and Jack's friendship was a true best-friend relationship with sexual tension that they tried to avoid. I have not read a story where family and friends set the main FMC on dates to prove she can be happy single. Throughout all the dates Hallie went on, she did a good job of adding humor to the tragic dating world out there. I did love that Brian was on a successful date and seemed like a truly wonderful guy. It's just a case of not being the right person. I am happy that Jack threw himself into the dating wringer to be with Hallie. I wish we had a Jack POV, but that might be because I am a fan of dual POV. I would recommend this to friends for fun and a romcom read!

Appreciated the author wanting to highlight fat joy, I feel like often with romance books about fat people, it’s always focusing on issues and not just letting fat people live and enjoy their lives. While body image issues are something that is a reality for most fat people, sometimes I just want to read something that talks about bodies in neutral or loving terms.

Now to the book, I could painfully relate to Haleigh’s dating woes. It’s hard out there! But it’s always appreciated to be able to listen to someone else’s stories and not dwell too hard on your own.

This book was a cute friends to lovers story and had me wishing for Jack’s POV. Also appreciated the conversations about mental health and anxiety.

Jenny Howe’s “How to Get a Life in Ten Dates” was a hilariously adorable read. The “friends to lovers” trope is given a new twist with a series of quirky, awkward and sometimes downright disastrous dates set up by the FMC’s family and friends.
I loved the descriptions of the bad dates that Haleigh’s loved ones set up for her but it was nice to see that one of the dates (Brian) developed into something more.
I would have liked to see more character development for Jack. Other than his battle with anxiety and his tendency to shift blame he didn’t see to be more developed than any of the background characters. That being said the books coverage of mental illness was spot on and handled in a very appropriate way.
Overall this was an enjoyable read with a clever premise.

This was the first book I’ve read by Jenny Howe, but I sure hope it won’t be the last. How to Get a Life in Ten Dates was a great read!!

Such a good read that I enjoyed! I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

A fairly typical best friend romance but still very enjoyable. After numerous bad dates, Haleigh lets her family and friends set her up on 2 dates each in order to prove to them that she can attend her sister's engagement party without a plus one and be happy. The first 6 dates are a bust but her roommate manages to set her up with a veterinarian who Haleigh connects with and gives up his second set up, it's only down to her best friend who Haleigh thinks is her perfect match to set her up on 2 dates.