Something we reviewers often say is that the hardest books to review are the middling ones; the ones that aren’t terrible but aren’t great and are just kind of okay. Unfortunately, Jack Strange’s début, Look Up, Handsome, doesn’t quite get to ‘okay’ levels; it’s billed as a rom-com but is neither romantic nor funny, the characters are wooden and there’s a LOT of overblown introspection, which leads to an overall feeling that the author is telling the reader stuff rather than the story evolving organically through character action and interaction. Worse, it’s an over-idealised, Hallmark Christmas movie in book form, which is just not my thing.

Quinn Oxford runs Kings & Queens, the only LGBTQ+ bookshop in Hay-on-Wye (famous for its literary festivals and many bookshops) and for the last few months he’s been ignoring the letters telling him he’s going to be evicted just before Christmas. The restoration of the local castle is being undertaken by the building firm run by his mother’s new partner, Harold, who wants to convert the shop – which is housed in the site of the old chapel – into the castle’s ticket office and information centre. Quinn has told nobody about the letters and the coming eviction - even his mother is on Harold’s side - and he doesn’t know what to do. The shop is more than his livelihood; it’s a safe space for the area’s queer community, and Quinn hates the thought of losing his ability to be there for the people who need help selecting a book, a sympathetic ear, or just somewhere they can be themselves.

Best-selling romance author Noah Sage - on whom Quinn has something of a hopeless crush - is doing a book signing at the winter festival, but an accident with a glass of champagne sends Quinn running to find a clean pair of trousers and he almost misses it. He and and his friend, Ivy, are almost at the front of the queue, and Quinn is sure he’s caught Noah glancing at him, but Noah’s minders arrive to hustle him away to his next event so they never get to actually speak.

Quinn had thought Noah leaving the signing meant he was leaving Hay, but later that day, the pair run into each other again at the nearby cemetery, where Quinn has gone to visit his father's grave. The next morning, they bump into each other again, this time outside the local coffee shop, and manage a slightly longer conversation during which Noah confesses to not wanting to be in Hay. Quinn is saddened by this; he can’t imagine living anywhere else and wonders why Noah feels that way.

But he doesn’t have time to moon over the handsome author. With some shoving from Ivy, Quinn decides it’s time to stop letting life happen to him and to step up and actually do something to try to save Kings & Queens. As word starts to get out – thanks to help from Noah and a friendly TV journalist - the battle to save the shop starts to gain momentum as townsfolk and visitors alike get behind the campaign, which eventually attracts national media attention. With just days to go before Christmas, will Quinn be able to save his shop?

There’s an interesting secondary plotline about Noah’s mother, Hermione, once a famous actress who is now something of a recluse and rarely leaves her home in the neighbouring village. Twenty years earlier, and with a couple of Oscars and a BAFTA to her name, she’d been all set for mainstream Hollywood success when a sex scandal tanked her career. I liked the way the story explores the costs of fame and the way we view celebrities – especially women – and I appreciated Hermonie regaining her voice and taking control of her narrative. I do think, however, that her hiding away for twenty years because she fears the locals are laughing at her, and thinking that the media is just waiting for her to show her face before pouncing on her to stir it all up again is a bit of a stretch. Today’s newspaper is tomorrow’s fish and chip paper and all that.

The romance between Quinn and Noah is pretty much non-existent. They have zero chemistry, I have no idea what they saw in each other, and they’re so bland and uninteresting that I didn’t care about either of them. There is no spark of sexual tension or attraction between them and the book’s single sex scene is all build up and no action. Write a sex scene or don’t - I get that not every author is comfortable writing them and that’s fine – but if you’re going to do it, then do it; don’t half-arse it.

Being in Quinn’s head the whole time means we have absolutely no concept of who Noah is as a person. All we know is that he left Hay at sixteen, hates coming back and has no intention of staying; and he’s a best-selling romance author who is gay, but doesn’t write queer romance. [I’m heading into spoiler territory here, but I think I have to mention that for over half the book, Quinn has no idea that Noah has come to Hay with his boyfriend, Matty – who is obviously a dick. Noah is not happy with him, but they’re still a couple when Noah is regularly flirting with Quinn, and they don’t break up until later in the book. (There’s no physical cheating though.) ]

Quinn is just as poorly characterised. He’s gay, he owns a bookshop, he’s got a crush on Noah, and he’s still struggling to process the death of his father, who was his friend and his biggest supporter. Quinn’s tendency to run from confrontation leads to his doing nothing about the potential loss of his livelihood until the very last minute – how on earth has this man managed to run a business for any length of time?

The secondary cast isn’t at all memorable, although perhaps Ivy deserves a mention for being the person who gives Quinn the necessary (and metaphorical) kick up the arse he needs to get moving on saving the shop.

A couple of things don’t add up. At one point, we’re told that Hermione is “old Hollywood” – which I think of as 1940s - but she’s not that old! And the scandal happened twenty years ago, but Noah is in his late twenties/early thirties, so he’s too old for that to be right. Then there’s the fact that Hermione’s autobiography is published just four months after it’s delivered. A showbiz autobiography in which she sets the record straight would surely have had to go through rounds and rounds of fact-checking by lawyers as well as all the usual editing processes, and I can’t believe that could happen in such a short space of time.

Oh, and surely, any romance author worth their salt setting a story around Christmas time knows mistletoe has white berries, not red ones.

This is the first novel I’ve read by Jack Strange, and I think it’ll be a while before I pick up another. Look Up, Handsome tips the scales at below ‘middling’ because the plot is trite, the characters are flat and two-dimensional, the romance is a non-starter and there's nothing in the story that enabled me to connect emotionally or invest in it - I just didn't care about the fate of the shop or the characters. This kind of twee, overly sentimental story just isn’t for me, and I freely admit that I considered DNF-ing several times and probably would have done so had I not committed to write a review. But I did (finish) and I have (written a review). My work here is done.

I absolutely ate this book up!
The book is set in Hay on Wye and having been it just added to the experience. I felt I was there with the characters.
Quinn and Noah were just how I wanted a romance story to be. I loved them both, Noah being Mcdreamy..
This is the most perfect cosy Christmas read. It is one for the tbr and one I will definitely recommend all day long.

I absolutely adored this book ❤️
I fell in love with the characters and never wanted it to end
Cute and funny and it’s the best book to curl up with this winter
A perfect debut novel from Jack Strange
I loved it so much that I’ve ordered a signed copy
❤️🧡💙💚

Quinn and Noah make engaging lead characters in Look Up, Handsome. Author Jack Strange then envelops them in a fight against the man who wants to close down Quinn's bookstore. A subplot involving a disgraced actress adds to the excitement of the novel. When I say excitement, I do mean that the novel in interesting if a bit too long. Its biggest drawback is how predictable it is.
I recommend the novel. Many, if not most, gay romance novels are predictable and we still enjoy them.
Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Look Up, Handsome is a really cute festive romance.
It follows Quinn as he finally takes steps to try to save his LGBTQ+ bookshop due to eviction. Along the way he meets Noah Sage, a successful and handsome author.
Reading their story was great. I loved how their relationship developed.
Ivy has to be my favourite character. She is such a great hype woman. Helping as best she can.
This is a great festive read and I 100% recommend it.

⭐⭐⭐ - DNF @ 42%

My rule is to 3-star DNF's to not affect the overall rating.

I really wanted to enjoy this, but it was probably a result of my mood that I DNFed. There was too much going on in this story, far too much. I was expecting a cute Christmas romcom read, and it wasn't hitting the marks it needed. I might come back to it at Christmas, but even then, it was the most Christmassy read.

Set in Wales, UK, this book delivered a heart-warming, small-town romance/rom-com novel that should be read before the holidays to get yourself into the spirit.

Quinn Oxford owns Hay-on-Wye's only queer bookshop situated in an old chapel, and it's a place that is safe for anyone to come in, feel welcome and able to be themselves and even ask questions. When the store is threatened with closure by Quinn's stepfather, who owns the building, Quinn must figure out how to save his store, potentially by stepping out of his comfort zone. He usually pretends that problems don't exist by simply ignoring them, as if that will make them go away. When he receives his final eviction notice, he and his BFF Ivy need to come up with a plan.

Enter Noah Sage, Hay's most famous romance writer, who's returned to his hometown for a book signing, with intentions to leave right after. Those intentions are thwarted by snow, and he's stuck for a bit.

This being a small town, Quinn and Noah run into each other with frequency, and slowly but surely, something develops between them.

I really enjoyed the relationship building in this book, I enjoyed Quinn's awkwardness, and I really enjoyed watching him grow a spine. He initially views himself as a failed writer, despite his degree in English Lit. The death of his father some years back, who also owned a bookstore, has made him withdraw, and he's never really warmed up to his stepfather. As his livelihood is threatened, Quinn, awkwardness and all, finds that once the news makes the rounds, the locals want to help him in any which way they can to keep his store.

There be drag queens, and a famous reporter, storming the castle, and Quinn's mother who finally finds her formidable spirit again, too. Told entirely from Quinn's POV, we get great insight into what makes him do what he does, and glimpses of what Noah's back story is, until Noah eventually, albeit reluctantly, tells Quinn why he's unwilling to return to Hay full time. Noah's mother Hermione's story is also fully explored, and it was heartbreaking to hear what she has gone through. Seeing her reclaim her life was wonderful to watch unfold.

The writing style lent itself very well to the story told within the pages, with lovely dry humor, and the ever present English stiff upper lip making an appearance every so often as well. While this isn't a light read, as one might expect from its title and description, considering the themes within, the book explores dealing with adversity, and how different people react in different ways, and how a community can come together to save something worthwhile.

This appears to be the author's debut novel, but hopefully there are more books on the horizon. Recommended.

I was lucky enough to visit Hay-on-Wye, the town of books, earlier this year, and so when this book appeared on Netgalley, I had to request it. The owner of Hay’s only queer bookshop fighting to keep his shop open, a quirky best friend, and a sexy author that keeps appearing at the best times? It sounded like a perfect Hallmark movie.

Well … it was, like a Hallmark movie, very cute. And very cliched. Which is sometimes needed in a romance novel, and I’m not complaining about it. The thing that was disappointing about this book was the fact that I felt like the majority of the time I was being told something, and not shown … there was a lot of stuff happening in the book, but I didn’t get a sense of the characters or places at all. The descriptions of people and events were generic, and so many scenes began and just either faded to black or ended abruptly. This book had so much potential, but it felt unedited, and this is where it fell short. Nevertheless, I loved Hay (and the gay bookstore there, Gay On Wye) so I wanted to finish the book. I feel like Look Up, Handsome would’ve benefitted from some more editing, but it’s definitely cute and an easy (if somewhat frustrating) read.

I received a copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

Having spent time in sweet Hay-on-Wye, I jumped at the chance to read a romance set there! I loved the sense of place and the cozy holiday vibes that this book evoked, but Quinn, our primary perspective character is up against a lot of challenges and they just keep coming as the novel goes on. I loved feeling like he'd grown and spread his wings by the end, but would have liked to see a little more of that growth on page. His relationship with Noah had some very charming moments, but the pacing was a bit stilted as Quinn and Noah found their way to each other. Overall, this book was very charming and will make for a fun little holiday escape for anyone who picks it up!

Quinn owns a LGBTQ+ bookshop which is facing closure.
This story follows the journey he goes on to save his shop with support from the community. Alongside the ever growing romance between himself and Noah the handsome author..
I really did enjoy this cosy, festive read. I loved that it was set in Hay-on-Wye and I now definitely want to visit.
I loved all the characters.
Quinn was awkward but relatable and I was really rooting for him when he found his voice.
Ivy was hilarious and the perfect best friend for Quinn, I need someone to tell me my aura colour daily too.
Noah was the classic mysterious love interest.
Hermione however I feel was such an interesting character and had such a great storyline but I was left feeling more could of been told for her story.
Overall great read and will definitely recommend.

Thank you Netgally and OneMoreChapter for this ARC in return for an honest review.

This was a lovely, Christmas-y cozy read that will be absolutely perfect for the upcoming holiday season. It is relatively undemanding in terms of overall plot, which is both a blessing and a detriment to the overall story.

Quinn is a fun, anxious mess of a lead character. I fully understood every decision he had made to get him to his current situation, even if it was frustrating to follow him at times. The story of his bookshop, and his friendships with the townsfolk (especially Ivy), are both so lovely! Hermione the mysterious town pariah (and one-time world famous actress) was such a fun character.
On the other hand, I never quite bought into the romance between Quinn and Noah. Noah, since we never get his PoV, just felt like a largely blank slate for Quinn to love, and by the end, I didn't leave convinced of their longterm prospects as a couple.

I really loved this book, I thought it was extremely cute and the characters were so loveable. I live near Hay on Wye and the description is very true to life. This is a MM Romance and also includes found family. I will definitely be reading this again and I look forward to reading more from Jack Strange in the future.

Do you ever just read a story and know that you could happily exist in the world on page? Well Look Up, Handsome is the world that I think I would love to live in. It’s cozy and quaint and cutesy! Noah and Quinn had me kicking my feet and giggling like I was the one being romanced. Loved this! Wishing I had saved it to read over some cocoa while the snow falls.

I was hooked on this from the 1st chapter, and read the whole book in a couple of days. The vibes were so cozy, and i loved the main character, and his amazing bff Ivy, I could not get enough of her. I really enjoyed the whole story, the romance was sweet and I am definitely looking forward to reading more from this author! A great way to start on my cozy holiday romance reads :)

I really enjoyed this book!
It's a funny emotional book which centers on Quinn, he owns the local LGBTQ+ book shop in hay. During the book festival an author, Noah is talking about his book at an author talk. Noah grew up in hay but ran away at the age of 16 leaving his mother in the town. His mother is a famous Hollywood actress who's career was destroyed by a man. And she has became a recluse.

There is a lot of storyline in this book and I don't want to go into to much detail as it may spoil the story! It was all interesting, funny and I almost got what I wanted from the story. It was a good HEA and It also made me want to read anything by Jack strange!

I really enjoyed reading Look Up Handsome, it was written really well and I loved the storyline and how it all played out. I felt so sorry for Quinn but loved his interactions with Noah and Ivy, in fact I loved how he interacted with all the characters. I felt the characters were created realistically and they really brought the story together. For a debut novel I really think Jack Strange has a fantastic book on his hands, the wit and the cosiness of this novel is superb and I highly recommend it to all.

Look Up Handsome
Author: Jack Strange
⭐️ Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book would probably be your cup of tea if you like cozy holiday romance books, grumpy sunshine trope vibes, bookstores, and fun side characters.
This was a super sweet and quick read that is absolutely perfect for when you want to cozy up with a warm cup of something and feel that holiday comfort. I not only enjoyed the main story and characters but the side characters had good feel to them and I loved how the whole thing intertwined to create such a dynamic story.
A big thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins UK and One More Chapter for allowing me to have an ARC for this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book had small town businesses, fighting bigger company powers, drag artists, lots of writers, and Christmas magic.

Simply a sweet holiday romance with a cozy setting in a bookshop. Quinn owns and operates a LGBTQ bookstore that's being threatened with closure. A community comes together, including a famous romance author, to save the bookshop. Quinn and the author, Noah, form a bond over the love of words and fall in love.

Stange is a debut author, and I look forward to his next book.

Thank you, HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter | One More Chapter

Set in Hay-on-Wye, this queer romcom follows Quinn Oxford as his LGBTQ+ bookshop faces closure at the hands of his step father.

Quinn is devastated and close to giving up but the town rallies round in support for the only safe place for the queer community in the area, a place that everyone knows is needed.

At the same time, romance author Noah Sage returns to his hometown for Hay festival and, Quinn is delighted to meet him. The romance that blossoms between these two is sweet, slow and not the easiest.

While fighting for his bookshop, Quinn takes on the role of ghost writer for reclusive star, Hermione Sage, Noah’s mother. I expected this to cause tension between the two MC’s but was pleasantly surprised that Noah was on board.

This is a super cute, easy read for the festive season.

Thank you to One More Chapter and Netgalley for the ARC!