3.5⭐️ While second chance romance has been a hit or miss for me, I do find myself enjoying them more and more. The adorable cover of WHAT SHE’S HAVING sold me right away.

This is the second book in the series, featuring alternating POV, multiple timelines, and characters from the first book, but this can definitely still be read as a stand alone.

I listened to the audio format and enjoyed the performance by dual narrators, Michelle Price and Paul Bellantoni.

*many thanks to Dreamscape and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

What She's Having is the second book in the Big Love from Galway series, and it delivered—though with a bit more emotional intensity than I expected. After falling in love with the first book, Curves for Days, I was excited to dive into July and Joe’s story.

July Tate and Joe Anderson were once in love, but spent years believing false assumptions about each other. Now, after a long time apart, fate brings them back together, and the feelings may not be gone yet. Both characters have grown, matured, and endured their own struggles, which makes their journey to reconnect both frustrating and beautiful.

What I loved most about this book was the community in Galway. There’s a strong sense of belonging and support that’s really hopeful.

The book also talks about serious issues—abuse, depression, and homelessness—and does so well. The tough topics helped me understand the complexities of Joe and July's characters.

That said, I did find myself frustrated with the communication (or lack thereof) between July and Joe at times. Miscommunication is really one of my least favorite tropes! Just talk to each other. Though, by the end, I was rooting for them to work things out.

What She’s Having is a warm hug in a book and an emotional second-chance romance. July and Joe are both likable characters, and I really felt for them.

If you haven’t read the first book, Curves for Days, I highly recommend it, though you can definitely dive into What She’s Having without having read it first.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the arc of "What She's Having" by Laura Moher.

This second-chance romance brings high school sweethearts back together in a heartwarming attempt to reconcile their past. The story explores the complex reasons behind their original breakup, with both characters needing each other’s perspective to find closure and growth. However, the novel tackles an overwhelming number of heavy topics—such as abusive parents, homelessness, eating disorders, mental health issues, depression, suicide, loss of a parent, and weight shaming. Unfortunately, this abundance of serious themes made it difficult for any of them to be fully explored, leaving the story feeling somewhat disjointed and unrealistic.

This was perfect!
Highly recommend if you are looking for a romance where lovers lost connections and find each other again many years later!!! This was so emotional and beautiful

There were some political undertones in this book and I’ve decided I’ve had enough of them. I’m tired of not voicing my opinion and having authors “sneak” in their views so that we all have to agree if we want to rate it good. I guess that means I’m not giving them good ratings anymore! Sorry, but I just wanted a plus size romance and not your opinion on society.

This is a contemporary adult romance with a first love turned second chance, What She's Having was deeper than anticipated and had A LOT going on. Maybe too much. The story covers the relationship between July and Joe, but along the way also tackles abuse, toxic relationships, depression, homelessness, co-dependency, and eating disorders.

Overall, I"d say this book was okay. If I had read the physical copy vs the audio, I may have liked it more. It's written as a dual POV with two audio narrators, but when the male narrator was doing July's voice, EVERY TIME it sounded like someone new and was, for me, SO distracting. It may have been due to the writing - with fragmented sentences and slang, but again, it was odd and very distracting.

As for the character's and the story itself. The main characters July and Joe were likeable. Cinnamon roll main MC is a favorite of mine and Joe was that indeed. I did LOVE how July and Joe came through for some struggling kids in their community. I have a heart for found family, especially when it involves supportive, positive role models for teens and young adults.

That said, the sleeping sex scene was weird. Joe buying a spot right across the road from July's was a little creepy. Their lack of communication was so incredibly frustrating. These misses combined with the male narrator female voices took the story to a mediocre place for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the audio arc!

This book was not what I expected but was such a pleasant surprise. I was anticipating a lighthearted read but it was a more complex 2nd chance romance.

Absolutely loved the dual POV and how letters were incorporated throughout to really build Joe and July's history!

Liked the book so much I went and read the 1st book in this same world although each one can be read as a stand alone.

Thanks for the ALC NetGalley and Dreamscape Media!

I received an ARC, From NetGalley.

If I could have stopped listening to this car crash I would have, but I was in too deep.
I think the most annoying part were the narrators voices, then the story line. It was a 12 hour book and it didn’t really go anywhere.

DNF @ 28% of the audiobook. I am sad I didn’t like this one! I read the first book in this series last summer and really enjoyed the arc of “Curves for Days,” the small town of Galway, and looked forward to the sequel. However, the MMC Joe showed up after 20 years and his inner monologue felt so creepy to me, ogling July and referring to her in his POV as “my girl.” Just icked me out sadly since they were only together for 2 months as teenagers… to still have such strong feelings after 20 years of no contact (which I thought could have been resolved with a little bit of work on either of their ends), the chemistry just didn’t make sense to me, and I don’t think the audiobook narration did Joe any favors.

I really enjoyed this book! The story was very interesting and I could not stop listening. Would highly recommend!

What She’s Having is the second novel in the Big Love from Galway series. I adored the first novel, so I was ready to listen to the second one. We have romance books with some spice to them that also tackle difficult subject matter. I was not expecting that when I listened to Curves for Days and was pleasantly surprised by that novel! Moher handles this mix extremely well!

While you needn’t have read Curves for Days, it does help. We have a different couple, Joe and July, that are the focus in What She’s Having versus Rose and Angus in Curves for Days.

I won’t go into the triggers in my review, you can go to the author’s website for that. https://www.lauramoher.com These issues are not detailed in the novel, but might be worth noting if you can be triggered easily.

I love that Moher has plus-sized main characters that are are realistic. They are realistic in the fact that deal with many kinds of real-life situations and the after effects.

I did have issues with the narrators in this book as they are the same narrators from the previous book. It was hard for me to separate the different storylines with the couple in this book from the first. **This is a ‘me issue’ and not a problem with the narrations.** I especially had issues with the male narrator as for me he was a perfect Angus in Curves for Days. Paul Bellantoni just captured Angus perfectly and I was crushing on Angus so much in the first novel! I think the same narrators made it hard for me to connect with July and Joe in this novel, especially when Rose and Angus made appearances.

These books have some spice to them! It’s almost too spicy for me, but not quite! I saw on Facebook that Moher had to mark the book with post-its when she gave it to her son so he knows where the sex scenes are so he could avoid them! And that post entailed what happened when her son took the book to a trivia night: It’s hilarious! If she was my mom, I don’t think if I would be able to read the sex scenes either! Too much detail for an adult child to read what their mom wrote, or even vice versa!

I am looking forward to the next book in the series which comes out in March 2025! I will definitely be listening to or reading it!

First, I will say that sadly, I was not a fan of the male narrator for this audiobook. His tone felt too mature, like maybe a decade older than he was supposed to be, might’ve just been me though? His female voice also really took me out of the experience at times haha I won’t take a full star off for that though. Now, the storyline was really good, I was excited to hear about July after reading the author’s first book in the series! There were times where the miscommunication was driving me a bit crazy, especially for their age, but also tracks for people that were kind of stuck in their high school relationship trauma. The epilogue took off the other half star for me, I just really wanted more of an update and it felt incomplete and a bit cheesy. Overall, the book was enjoyable though!

This was a great second book in the series. I loved the storyline and the high school history from the two main characters. I also loved how she took Masiy under her wing. The narrorators were perfect!

I could not connect with the story, it was a slow pace and very unrealistic storyline to keep up with.

I really enjoyed this book. It is such a good feel story with a happy ending. Very relatable. I highly recommend this book and will suggest it for my friends on goodreads.com.
Thank you very much for allowing me to listen to it.

Geda

What She's Having by Laura Moher and narrated by Michelle Price and Paul Bellantoni is a good listen. I particularly enjoyed Mr. Bellantoni's accent. Michelle's was VERY southern. ;) Both narrators did a nice job.

When Joe met July in high school, he knew that she was the one. When his parents abruptly moved him across the world, he was shattered. Joe wrote July letters for days, professing his love, until one day, he gave up after not hearing back.

To this day, July dreamt of Joe. Often, she thought about him and wondered why he destroyed her life by moving away abruptly and never telling her why.

When Joe cleans out his mother's home, he finds a box containing all the letters he sent July years ago. He is shocked, stunned, and downright heartbroken that she never received the letters. He thought she had received the letters and chosen not to respond.

Joe sets in a motion to reunite with July and tell her about the letters.

Both characters have a lot of baggage about not hearing from the other. July is still heartbroken about Joe, and Joe is still reeling from never hearing from July. Both characters have a lot of baggage to unpack, and hearts need to be mended.

We follow as they are reunited, and Joe tries to rekindle the past relationship. While they were both the love of each other's lives, there may be too many hard feelings to move past.

There are many entertaining characters in the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the advanced listen in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 stars

This second chance romance is a cute rekindling between high school lovers. There is a lot to unpack in the reasons for their initial breakup. Both main characters need each other’s missing perspective to gain clarity and move on in life. There are a lot of trigger warnings (abusive parents, homelessness, eating disorders, mental health, depression, suicide, loss of a parent, weight shaming). It ended up being too much going on that it didn’t do any of the topics the necessary justice. Instead new hot topics were added, leaving it feel unrealistic. The pacing felt off, some parts were repetitive while others jumped into a new heavy storyline rather quickly.

This is a second in series, however I read as a stand alone and was not confused at all. Listened to audiobook and enjoyed the dual narrator.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced reader copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Releases on Aug 20, 2024.

This book left me with some unanswered questions. I like the idea of two characters who fell in love as teenagers and were separate finding their way back to one another, but I felt like it just resolved itself too easily. Both of the MCs clearly lacked the ability to communicate with one another what they were feeling which would have remedied a lot of the tension between them. The conflict just wasn't... "real" enough? I think that's why I struggle with this one.

⭐️ 4/5
🌶 2/5
🩷 4/5
🎧 4/5

📚 This story was a huge tug right at my heart strings 🥺😭 No one died.... but this second chance romance love story was one that needed to be told.

These characters went through agony to survive their own trauma, and become who they are as adults in their 30's. Now that Joe finally knows the truth about the past, he has no choice but to face July and tell her what really happened all thkse years ago.

July has to learn to open up and try to trust Joe again, and find a way back into his arms, where she is safest. Which was incredibly difficult for her to do once you learn her side of the story 💔

💔 Second Chance Romance
❤️ MMC with love letters
💔 FMC with a journal
❤️ Small Town
💔 Past Trauma
❤️ No sugar-coating
💔 Unravelling secrets to each other
❤️ Burning Lust
💔 Very Reluctant Love
❤️ Miscommunication, but HEA

🎧 I have been on an audiobook binge this month, and Dreamscape Media are killing it every single time 👏 I love the audio, love the cast.

🎙 Narrators - Both narrators did an excellent job 👏
Both of them absolutely BROUGHT all the emotions the characters would have been feeling.
Only feedback - the male narrator sounded around 45-55 and the character was around 36. My brain struggled with that to some degree.

SIGHHHHH I love this series.

When July lost the love of her life as a teen, she has avoided making any real attachments since, but when Joe walks into her restaurant, she can barely hold herself together.

When he explains what happened, she understands but can she reopen her heart to the man her almost destroyed her?

I really loved the first book in the series and I set the bar really high. The author has created a world that includes beautiful plus sized women who are vunerable and so sweet that I get super attached.

My heart broke for both July and Joe. He just disappeared on her one day and she never heard from him again and she fell into dispair. I loved how gently the book tackles severe depression. Joe's father literally midnight moved them to another country and it was some hellish abuse for Joe and he didn't know his letters weren't being sent. UGH I was so sad and mad...

The story was devastating and heartfelt and I was completely invested.

I need the next installment NOWWWWW

This second chance, small town book will warm your heart.

There is a ton of miscommunication and I'm not usually ok with it in books but I understood the need for it here so get both the books in this series today!

4.5 stars