The cover of the "The Ripple Effect" reminded me of "Under Loch & Key" so I was excited to read this one - but this one doesn't have any Loch Ness smut, if you're looking for that. I didn't read "Rules for Second Chances" which is where I assume we meet McHuge and Stellar. So this was my first rodeo in this world. I found the first half slow and wasn't very engaging. Stellar is so in her own way in the first half but her character arc and love story felt slow and then rushed once I reached the halfway point. I did find the second half charming. I liked the side characters and their relationships with Stellar once she softens to other people. And I found the plot with rival whitewater company was fun.
3.5/5 stars

Fun journey on the love boat! I loved the quirky characters and the delightful plot twists.. there’s even a lovable dog in there.

Maggie North is EXCEPTIONAL at writing books that have plenty of heart, introspection, and character growth and The Ripple Effect is no exception.

In the second book in this series, we follow Stellar and McHuge as they build a new business focused on McHuge's PhD research and his love of whitewater rapids.

Stellar's character development focuses on her healing from her burnout and from the professional fallout she experienced at the local hospital. She starts off the book giving up her career in medicine and instead focusing on bartending and doing odd jobs. When she helps McHuge with his business they of course get closer emotionally and help each other with their problems.

McHuge's character development revolves around being afraid to get angry (ever) because he scares people with his ENORMOUS size. He also is building his new business after being involved in bad press that implies he doesn't know what he's doing. Although I didn't relate to his problems, it was still very much a great part of the story.

I loved seeing all the side characters and how they came together to help each other throughout the entire book. It's a great book- especially for people who like romance books with more emotionally intelligent characters or strong introspection.

I like the way Maggie North writes, making this an easy 5 star for me. I can’t say I was totally engulfed in the story line, but she keeps me entertained and easily engaged. This was a cute weekend read.

Thank you to St Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the chance to read and rate this book!

The Ripple Effect was a really great read and definitely would be great to read in the summer!

Maggie North’s writing is so beautiful—it really stays with you. She does an amazing job of bringing the characters to life and capturing their emotions in a way that feels so real. I found myself highlighting lines I loved!

The characters, Stellar and Lyle, were fun, though I wasn’t a huge fan of Lyle’s nickname "McHuge”. But overall, they had great chemistry. Stellar is dealing with a lot of personal stuff, and working with Lyle at a quirky marriage retreat forces them to face their past and their feelings for each other.

The setting, a secluded retreat in the Canadian wilderness, really added to the story. It’s not just about romance—it’s about learning to trust and be vulnerable. There is also a lot of development with the couples attending the retreat, which made things even more enjoyable.

It’s a sweet, heartfelt romance with a nice mix of humor and emotion. It took me a little while to get hooked, but once I did, I couldn’t put it down.

Maggie North’s The Ripple Effect is a solid follow up to her wonderful debut novel, delivering the same rich setting and strong character chemistry that made the first book so enjoyable. McHuge remains a standout—his mix of tenderness and sheer physical presence makes him an incredibly endearing character, and I loved seeing more of him. The relationships feel authentic and engaging, and North’s writing brings both the world and the emotions to life beautifully.

Initially the burnt out physician and a sunshine psychologist storyline had me very intrigued and I dove right into this story. Unfortunately my interest dwindled quickly and I found myself bored with this book. I didn't find myself excited by the characters or what was going to happen next and I don't know if it is a matter of timing and/or circumstances or if this book is just not my style but I have decided to DNF for now.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

✅ Lyle McHugh (aka McHuge), PhD psychologist & self help author who runs a therapy startup/relationship camp & Stellar Byrd, 33, burnt out ER Dr who is spending the summer as camp Dr.
✅ Set in the same universe as Rules For Second Chances (hi Liz & Tobin)
✅ Stellar & Lyle had a one night stand a year ago
✅ fake dating to do damage control
✅ grumpy sunshine and she’s the grumpy one
🌶️: a little

A gorgeous book that will make you want to go to the Great Canadian Outdoors!!

Huge thanks to St. Martin’s Press & Maggie North for an ARC of The Ripple Effect!!

I honestly picked it up at the perfect time - much like our Stellar J Byrd, I’ve been hit by burnout. Because of this, reading The Ripple Effect has been healing & wholesome, giving me some of the strength I’ve needed to recharge.

The dynamics between Stellar and Lyle are mature, kind, and sweet. They learn to navigate a ton of awkwardness in the name of their business, and learn many things about themselves along the way.

Make sure you pick up this sequel to Rules for Second Chances when it comes out!

I enjoyed the slow burn between Lyle and Stellar that built throughout this book, but there were too many side stories going on for me to follow along with. It took away from the main plot a bit and I struggled to understand the depths of the main characters.

The Ripple Effect picks up shortly after Rules for Second Chances left off: Liz and Tobin, reconciled, recommitted, and expecting, have launched The Love Boat: a couple’s therapeutic white water wilderness retreat, based on their friend Lyle McHuge’s doctoral research that helped save their own marriage. Aimed at teaching couples to observe, improve communication, and weather the rapids of life, Liz’s early birth and maternity leave is a device for her dear friend Stellar J. Byrd, an ex-emergency room doctor, to step in as the camp’s medic and, with funding under threat due to unsavory chatter about McHuge’s singledom, his fake fiancée. It’s revealed that the two had a one-night stand a year ago, and Stellar, scared by the glimpse of a future filled with everything she wanted and feared with Lyle, ghosted him. Days on the river are bookended with pithy pep talks, empathetic debriefings, and therapuetic exercises, served with delicious, local, gourmet food crafted by rising farm-to-table culinary genius Jasviner Singh (the descriptions are mouthwatering). When McHuge’s professor shows up with his own team–including a couple who cancelled from the Love Boat’s tour–Stellar thinks it’s deliberate sabotage, and McHuge is unconvinced until it becomes clear someone is poaching his intellectual property for their own gain, adding a mystery element to the adventure.

The character development in Maggie North’s novels is nothing short of amazing. Stellar, the child of con artists, is familiar with pulling a con, and posing as Lyle’s fiancée feels like one. She extricated herself from her parents and their lifestyle, sent a copy of her student loans from medical school when her dad tried to reach out to her for money, and had a job she loved in a remote clinic–until she realized her was a diversity hire who got tapped for the worst shifts, least interesting committees, and was passed over for raises and promotions by mediocre men. A whistleblowing attempt ultimately led to her dismissal in disgrace, and she’s still smarting from experience of practicing medicine, and missing it. The opportunity with The Love Boat will help her get solvent again, repay a debt she feels she owes her friend, and maybe allow her to make amends with Lyle. Meanwhile, Lyle is still moving past his mentor and professor’s theft of his graduate work, and trying to make a go of this new venture alongside his non-swimming boating dog, Babe. Stellar and Lyle need to learn to trust; additionally, Lyle has to learn to harness, not unleash his repressed anger, and Stellar needs to learn to let go of her anger and pessimism to form deep bonds. For both, this maiden voyage is an opportunity to begin to unpack their adolescent traumas and share their vulnerabilities.

Getting to know the other couples on the trip is a sheer delight: Lori and Mitch, a solid, older lesbian couple contrast with Petra and Trevor, young and awkward–Trevor’s constant criticism and attention seeking .Journalist Brent and his companion Willow, invited to experience the Love Boat and hopefully right some of the wrongs Brent wrote in a previous article. and Sloane, Stellar’s estranged half-sister, a Hollywood actress who agrees to show up to offer a celebrity endorsement to replace the person who bailed for the other trip.

Names are carefully chosen and significant: Sloane Summers is dark Stellar’s sunny opposite; McHuge’s professor, Dr. Fisher, is trawling for student work to pawn off on his own; Brent is as clipped as his name sounds when uttered. And the writing, overall and without error or misstep, is deliberate and lush, rich with boating metaphors, medical metaphors, and observations of the natural world that emphasize not just the setting, but advance the plot and characterizations to form a cohesive, tight whole. North uses the river environment to great effect, describing Lyle’s voice as “a slow eddy, calm and welcoming;” Stellar notices a cedar tree with a trunk twisted and split by a winter storm, spiraling strands of bark and wood still connected to the stump. It’s broken yet whole, a tree yet not a tree…” which is as apt a description of herself as any other. Life lessons are woven throughout, like beaded gems on a tapestry: stay curious, not judgmental; don’t let the future distract from the present; work with your body, not against it. In North’s hands, even gimmicky concepts like compliment badminton transform into meaning and become an enzyme for change.

For more wilderness adventures with therapeutic effects, read Out of the Wilderness. For other romances where the great outdoors figures prominently, I recommend Bear With Me Now, Into the Woods, and Unbearably Yours.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #TheRippleEffect via #NetGalley, courtesy of #StMartinsPress, in exchange for a fair and honest review. A review will post to HLBB in June 2025.

This book was not for me. The premise was great, but I had a hard time getting engaged in the story and the characters. I couldn’t connect with the characters and found myself skimming just to be finished with it. I think the story was just very slow and I never could just get pulled in, and unfortunately that made it a very tough read for me. I found myself reading a few pages and then putting it down because I was bored. I did like the diversity included in the book so props for that.
Thanks Net Galley and publisher for the advanced eARC.

Beautiful and soft and sweet. I loved this book and the romance within it so much. The setting was perfect for these characters and their stories.

I’m such a fan of North’s writing, her ability to paint a vivid picture of the beautiful BC setting in this series, her understanding of human nature and the inner conflicts that make us stand in our own ways, and her deftness with a turn of phrase that makes the simplest look or touch resonate well beyond the read. As with Rules (book 1 in this series), we get a complex portrait of a woman at a crossroads in her life, blended with an emotional and lightly steamy romance. One of my favourite kinds of stories. With a strong emphasis on interiority in the prose, we think and feel along with the heroine as she navigates her need to keep life transactional against an unavoidable desire to let go and receive without always trying to balance the scales. The workplace struggles she continues to wrestle with a year after leaving her job were so relatable, leaving me rooting especially hard for her to find success in her new venture. The setting is fabulous (though I may be biased as a BC resident). The relationships are thoughtfully drawn. The romance is grounded in mutual care and also full of powerful, heart-tugging longing. While this can work as a standalone, I recommend reading book 1 first, as this does feel like a continuation of not just the romance, but the central friendship and career plot that were embedded in the other book. Also, it’s lovely. Pick up the series for the love stories, but stay for the smell of trampled pine needles and glacial runoff, and for North’s smart, insightful prose.

4.5 stars rounded up

Maggie North sophomore novel is a hit! It’s just as good, if not better, than her first, and I already miss adventuring through the Canadian wilderness with the Love Boat crew. Huge thanks to St. Martins and the author for including me in the traveling ARC program!

Last summer, burned out doctor Stellar Byrd straight up ghosted Lyle “McHuge” McHugh, her best friend’s husband’s best friend and business partner, after an epic one-night stand. McHuge, a sunshine/teddy bear/gentle giant psychologist, co-owns a whitewater canoeing and relationship therapy start up. When the camp suddenly needs a medically trained canoe guide, Stellar reluctantly steps in. The hits keep coming — McHuge’s credibility (and the camp’s future) is threatened by his singleness, so Stellar offers to fake an engagement to salvage the camp’s reputation. Will they fall for each other for real? You already know.

There’s so much to love about this book I barely know where to begin. The setting is absolutely epic. You can’t read this book and not feel like you’re exploring the forests of Canada. Maggie North’s writing is so immersive and vivid, it completely envelops you in the atmosphere.

The characters are equally stellar (ha!). Both Lyle and Stellar have been deeply hurt and cope in their own ways. As they navigate their fake relationship and the trials and tribulations the campers through at them, they realize that before they can forgive those who hurt them, they first have to forgive themselves. Their journey to find this peace is beautiful and deeply moving.

Of course, we can’t forget the side characters! The campers have big, memorable personalities, but never feel over-the-top. Even with a large cast, I had no trouble keeping track of everyone.

The only thing I didn't absolutely love about this book is that the middle drags a little. It's not a deal breaker and I absolutely still recommend it. Plus, the last 20% makes it for it for being so unputdownably amazing. If you hit 80% late at night, just accept that you’re going to be a zombie the next day.

Make sure to read Rules for Second Chances first, then pre-order The Ripple Effect so it’s waiting on your doorstep on June 17!

Oh I simply loved this book! I think the author really found her groove with this sophomore novel set in the same world as her first. Stellar is a chaos demon whose upbringing and life experiences have left her floundering. Lyle (aka McHuge) hides his vulnerable insecurities underneath a hippie/feel good veneer. And they’re perfect for one another! And they made me laugh! Thanks to SMP for the ARC.

2.5 ⭐️
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In The Ripple Effect by Maggie North, burned-out ER doctor Stellar J. Byrd takes a job at a relationship therapy camp run by Lyle “McHuge” McHugh—the man she’s been avoiding since their awkward hookup. When bad press threatens the camp, they fake an engagement to save it, but their growing chemistry makes it feel all too real. With humor, heart, and a lively cast, this summer might just change everything for Stellar.

I really wanted to love The Ripple Effect, especially with its beautifully described Canadian setting. Unfortunately, I found it hard to stay engaged. The pacing was slow, and I couldn’t connect with the characters—McHuge, in particular, was more irritating than endearing.

The romance felt like it was trying too hard, and the story dragged so much that I almost DNF’ed it multiple times. I often found myself skimming just to get through it. That said, I did appreciate the diversity in the book.

If you're on the fence about this one, I’d suggest borrowing it from the library before committing to a purchase.

3.5 rounded up. I loved the concept of the book, the setting and the conflict. I had a hard time with how the characters communicated and then fell in love so quick when it was also a slow burn? If that makes sense. I loved them individually. The FMC was burnout from the medical field during the pandemic and then taken advantage of at her job by her peers. I totally get why she’d be so hesitant but I was also frustrated with how she kept it all to herself. She seemed like a very vocal person and always showed her emotions but for that to be such a secret was a little odd of the character. But the MMC? Loved him! He was so patient,kind and understanding. Of course he had his on shit going on too but I think he was so loveable.

Thank you to net galley and saint martins press for this ARC.

The synopsis really pulled me in! Unfortunately it ended up being a slow start for me but ended up enjoying it overall!!

Maggie North delivers a vivid and immersive story in The Ripple Effect, set against the stunning Canadian wilderness. The novel takes place at a remote love camp, a retreat designed to help people work on their relationships. North’s descriptive writing truly brings the setting to life, making it easy to picture the dense forests, serene rivers, and rugged beauty of the backdrop. As a Canadian it felt downright local.

One of my favorite parts of the book was Lyle and his deep connection to nature, his quiet strength made him a standout character. The wilderness camp itself felt like a character, adding depth and atmosphere to the story. I loved reading about them on the river. Sometimes they absolutely did have to fall in.

While I enjoyed the overall storyline and the tropes woven throughout, I struggled with Steller as a main character. Her lack of trust and closed off nature made it difficult to fully connect with her. The main conflict at the camp felt expected, but it still provided enough tension to keep things interesting.

By the end, everything wrapped up in a satisfying way, leaving me with a good sense of closure, I like my happily ever after.
The Ripple Effect is an enjoyable read, especially for those who appreciate rich descriptions and a strong setting. Despite my reservations about Steller, I would still recommend it to readers who love a good romance.

I wonder if maybe we will have a second book with her sister?