Sweet romance in a small Scottish town🌊🏘

3-3.5🌟 stars
I was attracted to this book by the small town Scottish setting which gave a nice sense of history and camaraderie. The two romances in Because of You increased possibilities for an enjoyable romantic novel but made it drag on a bit and less focused. I actually became more interested in the MM secondary romance for pining vet tech Paolo. Skye, the lead character, and her love interest Bear both had career woes that were quite similar and their slow build relationship was okay but not wildly enthralling. And I am not a reader who likes too much or too explicit lovemaking in the romance, but here there was almost a total lack of PDA or even private displays of passion or affection. Others may indeed consider this a plus.

Thanks to Joffe and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Thank you for letting me review this as an arc!
As much as I wanted to enjoy this story I found it really hard to get in to and a confusing book. Personally, I was getting really confused who’s part I was reading until I got a few lines into the chapter.
This is very much a non spice romance novel following Skye fleeing her town after her boyfriend cheats… it was a heartwarming, healing romance read which did become fairly predictable. If you are looking for an easy holiday read this would be a great.

Oh my goodness, what a beautiful story. I just could not get over the characters. So sweet. I loved it. Highly recommend.

First off, thank you for letting me read this book early than the published date! Overall, this novel is a non-spice romance novel following Skye fleeing her city to a small town where she encounters Bear. This novel is is one for the people that want to read a heartwarming and healing story of the main character as she essentially redefines herself following the loss of her career and boyfriend in 24 hours. There is growth that you get to see a bit within each character but there is not really any unknown to the novel where things are a bit more on the predictable side. This is not a bad thing per se because if you want a light hearted, easy and sweet romance novel that is not explicit then I would recommend this novel.

The only thing that I will say is that throughout the novel, you do get to follow Skye's adventure but you will also be reading about Paolo's love story at the same time which arguably could be another novel but from how the author wrote it, I can understand why it wasn't.

This is a somewhat confused and confusing tale. Often it's difficult to tell whether the scene described is in the present or if it's part of the character's past experience or backstory.

The narration is written in a linear chronological format without the misunderstandings, plot turns, etc. traditionally found in romantic fiction. It makes for a rather predictable storyline in which the reader is able to guess the happy romantic outcome from the very first page of the novel. The tension between the two main characters erodes almost immediately after their first stormy encounter. A more gradual change in the couple's relationship from poor to love would have made it a far more enticing read. The novel does boast an interesting group of secondary characters whose stories are just as engaging, if not even more so, as that of of the two main ones.

Many thanks to the publishers and to Netgalley for the ARC.

First off, if you're trying to avoid spice then this is a good romance for you as it is nonexistent. This is a heart warming and emotional slow burn that is a sweet read. I enjoyed it but I have enjoyed other books by this author way more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Skye thinks she’s got it all: the right career and the right guy. But when she catches her boyfriend cheating on her, everything seems to fall apart. She flees Edinburgh to the one place she’s been able to find peace, in order to put the pieces of her life back together.

While there were charming moments throughout the book, I will say there was a bit of bait and switch between the synopsis of the story and the actual story. I expected to read a small town, grumpy/sunshine story, and while the author did deliver that in someways, in others she fell off the mark. The story not only follows Skye’s storyline, but Paolo’s as well. Now you may be thinking Paolo is the love interest, but he is in fact another character in the novel with his own love story. I feel this was a disservice to both their love stories as we don’t really get to see as much page time between the love interests as I would’ve wanted. I would just as readily read Paolo’s own story, and I’m not sure why the author made this choice. This caused the book to drag significantly. I wish she would have committed to a story line and stuck with it. As if that’s not frustrating enough, there’s a miscommunication trope thrown in which doesn’t do the pacing any favors. There wasn’t much romance and this felt more like a woman’s fiction book, which is fine, just not what I had signed up for.

Also, in the novel Skye mentions she lives in Edinburgh and in the synopsis it says she flees London. A minor quibble, but something the author might want to revise.


There are elements in the story that did work for me. There is a found family element that I very much enjoyed and it was lovely to see Skye so readily welcomed. The parts where we did get to see Skye and Bear interacting were quite lovely. Ms. Turner was able to beautifully convey the Scottish landscape that definitely made me want to visit.

A note about the spicy: it’s nonexistent. We get a kiss on the cheek at the 80% mark and a full kiss at the 94% mark.

Overall it was an okay read.

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for allowing me access to this cute one! It releases at the end of the month and it follows Skye, after losing her career and boyfriend in one day, she retreats to the coastal town of Eastercraig, hoping for solace. Instead, she encounters Bear, a rugged and brooding local who isn't thrilled with newcomers. Despite the rocky start, Skye soon forms new friendships and begins to see past Bear's tough exterior. It's heartwarming and full of charm! It's a slow-burn romance that I recommend to anyone who likes second chance romance!