Another brilliant book from Kristen Bailey, who is fast becoming one of my favourite romance writers.

The book opens with Jack and Zoe, who meet moments before Zoe’s world implodes. When there paths collide again weeks later, the spark is still there…but is there room in all the chaos for them to explore it?

I couldn’t put this book down from the first page to the last. I loved how the dual narratives gave a full 360 view of their relationship. Textbook Romance had all the heat and humour I enjoyed in Sex Ed and it was such a treat to be reunited with some of the characters from that book. The ending is beautiful and apt. All in all, reading this book made me happy whenever I read it. I actually feel I could read 100 books in this setting, written by this author and never get bored.

Thank you for the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.


It was such a treat to be reunited with Ed and Mia from Sex Ed

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute, easy fun read. I really enjoyed reading about the journey the characters take together.

Thank you to @netgalley for the ARC.

This is my second book by this author and I was not disappointed.

Zoe and Jack meet at a wedding for some mutual friends. At the wedding, Zoe gets a call from her teen daughter who has received a picture of Zoe’s husband with another woman. Zoe is devastated and needs to get home to her kids. Jack helps her.

Fast forward a few months and Jack sees Zoe again at the school he has begun working as a sub. Zoe is still in the midst of dealing with her marriage falling apart, but she and Jack strike up a romance. Will it last?

I enjoyed this book, however, I wanted a little more at the end. I felt it was rushed to a conclusion.

Kristen Bailey confirmed herself as an autobuy author for me after my favourite Christmas read of last year, Five Gold Rings (If you’ve not read that yet, get it on your list for this year!) Textbook Romance has just solidified that decision.

I’m not a *huge* romcom fan but sometimes you just need a nice light read, and for that reason I’m careful with which ones I pick up. For me, Textbook Romance has just the right mix of comedy, romance and spice blended with some heavier topics and emotions.
I LOVED all the characters in this. Not just Zoe and Jack, this has a whole carousel of side characters, the ones you can’t stand (Liz and Brian), the ones you’re rooting for (Gabe, Lottie and Dylan, Dom, Mia and Ed) – they all contributed to making this a fun read. I found myself waking up early to finish it, and looking forward to picking it up, always a good indicator of a good read. The little nods to current pop culture (e.g. RAYE) were fun too!

I am so looking forward to Kristen Bailey’s next book!

I honestly went in to this with pretty low expectations but I am pleasantly surprised to say this has exceeded it and then some. This story was so fucking cute. I laughed more than once and felt the pain too.

Zoe is a teacher who has been married to her husband for 20 years. They have 2 amazing kids together. However, its revealed that the husband has been having an affair for a while and it shatters Zoe. She ends up meeting this man, Jack at a wedding the same day she finds out about the affair and though it's slow going they begin a pretty passionate relationship. With the age gap, the betrayal, kids, and a few other obstacles, it's a pretty bumpy ride going into new territory for Zoe.

I loved loved loved Jack and Zoe. I really felt the sparks. Their ride was addictive. If I didn't have to deal with real life I would have never put the book down. The side characters were just amazing as well. Ed and Mia had me cracking up. Beth was such a sweetheart. Dylan and Lottie were such amazing kids and truly had Zoe's back. Dom and the twins were an adorable hot mess. Every character made this book fantastic. Brian and Liz can properly shove it where the sun don't shine.

I was highly surprised by this book but was well worth the read!

Kristen Bailey makes it look so easy! Her writing is warm and effortless with believable characters who are wonderful but still flawed. This is funny and messy, but not chaotic. There’s character arcs and growth. There’s pining and caring. Side characters are warm and necessary. With four kids all playing a role, Kristen has deftly managed a relatively large cast and kept it so interesting. It’s steamier 🌶️ than some of her earlier novels which is not only fun, but feels necessary for us to believe in Zoe and Jack. More please!

Kristen writes a wonderful hero who is slightly rudderless and she’s done this amazingly well with Jack. He’s nearly 30 and moving from job to job without any particular direction. There’s good reasons for this though; messy, kind, real life stuff that makes sense. Zoe is in her early 40s and meets Jack on the day her marriage implodes. As well as a betrayal, she's got young teenagers who are justifiably traumatised. When Jack starts work at Zoe’s school they begin a ‘situationship’ - but it’s more than that because Jack is such a honey. He’s a problem solver and a caretaker and Zoe is just what he needs.

It’s first person dual POV - we get to feel their attraction, and the effects of all the little moments. Zoe takes longer to fall for Jack, but considering all the factors at play this makes sense. Yes there’s a third act breakup (kind of) but it’s necessary for both of them. If you know Kristen Bailey, this will be an auto-buy, if you don’t, hop right in! Highly recommended💖

Thank you NetGalley, Kristen Bailey and Storm Publishing forth ARC. Opinions are my own.

Zoe & Jack ❤️

💒Math teacher Zoe is at the wedding of her colleagues Ed and Mia when she meets Ed’s friend from university, Jack. The two start speaking when Zoe gets a call from her teen daughter that Zoe’s husband Brian has been spotted with another woman.

🐓When Jack starts working as a substitute teacher at the school after the holidays, Zoe is surprised to see him again. Despite the 14 year age gap, there is a really strong connection between the mom to two teens and the thoughtful man who has given up so much for his family.

📚Kristen Bailey writes stories that show so much heart and soul, and a healthy serving of steam on the side, and her latest kept me hooked to the very last page. I loved that Zoe and Jack are part of Ed and Mia’s circle, that they work with Beth from the Callaghan sisters series and they all support our couple in the best ways. Despite the age gap, Jack shows so much maturity, love and caring for Zoe and her children. It’s so soon after Zoe’s break up with her husband and this is handled sensitively.

Read an eARC copy courtesy of Netgalley and the publisher
My rating 4/5 - ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pub Date 29 Jul 2024

I loved getting to catch up with Mia and Ed as Sex Ed is my favorite book from Kristen Bailey! But I didn't love all the emoji talk - maybe I'm just showing my age but I definitely don't know the meanings behind the majority of them 😂

Overall, Textbook Romance is a delightful rom com that had me laughing out loud so many times!! I also really like the way you get to catch up on previous characters, yet it still works as a standalone for those who haven't read her other books.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

I have never read one of Kristen Bailey's books, but the cover really snagged my attention, and I loved how she started the book - I was captured right away. And then I couldn't put the book down!

This book is about Jack, a young botanist who is slightly adrift in life after helping his family for years during a time of need, and Zoe, who discovered her husband had an affair and is still working through the shock waves with her two kids.

I loved each character's little details, and found myself way more invested in the side characters like the kids and the friends than I generally am in books that I read. I found Jack to be so. dang. likeable and Zoe to be so. dang. relatable.

Truly the only two things I have notes on are that I found the ending fairly unrealistic, and that I wanted more spice (what can I say? I love some spice) but truly, I really liked this book and am excited to read more by Kristen.

I knew i would enjoy this books. I enjoyed the ending because I thought it would be completely different so it was a surprise.

3.5/5. Thank you Netgalley for gifting me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I had a fun time with this one! I don’t always enjoy an age gap but with both the characters being older, I didn’t mind it this time. I also enjoyed that this book tackled more real life problems and I liked that the ending seemed realistic. We got a look into two people searching for love while dealing with the ups and downs of actual life. It was a winner for me and I want to check out more books by this author.

Another great read from Kristen Bailey. I kept this one for my holidays and it was a great choice to dip in and out of an such an easy read. I loved the storyline and the characters are just so fabulous. Everyone needs a Jack in their life. The characters in general are everything you want in a group of friends. It’s a real feel good read 🤗.

Thanks to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read and review #TextBookRomance

A fun read that offers alive after betrayal! Age gap and a mom feeling young again. It’s lovely if you like British conversations and family stories.
Trigger warning: cheating husband

I liked this book, it had a lot of witty banter and left you genuinely rooting for the couple. Jack is swoon-worthy despite his bad-boy/player history. However, the beginning felt a bit slow and the end a bit fast. I felt like Zoe never really got over the age gap difference- which I feel would get in the way later in their relationship? All in all, it was a good book and I wonder if I would have liked it more if I was part of the targeted demographic.

Zoe (42) and Jack (29) meet at a friend's wedding and the chemistry is immediately apparent. But at this point, Zoe is still married and is also a mother of 2 teenagers, so she has a completely different lifestyle to Jack, who is over 10 years younger. And just at their first meeting, Zoe finds out that her husband is cheating on her with her best friend...
A few months later they meet again as Jack has taken a job at Zoe's school and they get to know each other better. Jack supports her and also plays a big part in rebuilding her self-esteem.

I still couldn't really connect with the characters - probably because I'm in a completely different lifestyle myself. Nevertheless, they were two lovely and sweet characters whose story you can follow.
I could also understand their conflict, on the one hand because of the recent separation and on the other because of the age difference. And then Jack's professional dream also came into the picture, which he almost sacrificed because of Zoe....and I'm telling you, if that had happened, I would have really freaked out!

the only thing that "bothered" me is that everything went a little too smoothly. I would have liked more drama with the shared custody or generally more insight into this difficult new life situation. Everything went so "easily" and "smoothly", even with the children and Zoe's new relationship...I just would have liked to experience more emotion....

This one needs to be made into a movie! I loved the fun banter and a May/December romance except with a female being the older partner. Teachers will cheer over this story because Bailey really grasps the camaraderie of school colleagues. I loved Kristen Bailey’s “Five Gold Rings” but she knocked this one out of the park too!

So pleasantly surprised by this sweet Rom-Com, it had more depth than I anticipated. There were some truly brilliant highlighter-worthy moments describing what it is like to be a mother, wife and teacher, that I will absolutely go back to!

The book is about Zoe Swift, a 40 something married mom of two teenagers, and Jack Damon, a 29 year old jack of all trades, still discovering who he is after a tough family situation. They meet a mutual friend’s wedding, and after Zoe marriage implodes shortly thereafter (10,000% unrelated to Jack), they end up working together at the same school, and things go from there!

What I super loved about it was that it felt like these were real people, with actual depth and feelings, and messiness and imperfections. It was such a refreshing surprise. And it was witty and funny and loaded with funny innuendo (never sending some emojis again—what an education!) and clever situations. It was a little bit steamy at times for sure, but I wouldn’t put it past level 1 in terms of spice. Not closed door, but not all out spice either.

I did struggle a teeny bit with some of the British slang, and found some new gems to use when I’m pissed (bellend. Glorious!) but nothing too wild. The third act breakup seemed to happen both a little too fast and a little too slow, but not a deal breaker.

Wow this book was written for ME. I love seeing divorce rep in books… the emotions are so raw and hard to explain if you haven’t gone through it. Zoe’s perspective and inner thoughts while her life crumbles was so validating as someone who’s gone through it. And she’s a teacher?? Yes please. This was HILARIOUS, hitting the nail on the head writing about the ups and downs of being in the education field. Jack’s character is adorable and witty. I found myself identifying with Zoe on so many pages, especially the scene where her kids leave for the first time to spend time with their dad. Dating after divorce can be scary, weird, and amazing and this book would be a unique gift for someone going through it.

This was a fun, uplifting romance that was laugh out loud funny in all the right places. Zoe and Jack were both easy characters to root for and their romance was sweet and just spicy enough.

Perfect for lovers of Sophie Kinsella! I loved Jack & Zoe. The characters in this book were well rounded and I found the whole romance to be completely believable and sweet. I loved all the references and banter throughout. I now need a peri peri chicken from Nando’s stat. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.