A slow-burn modern romance with relatable characters and a compelling narrative that immediately drew me in. A perfect read when you want to escape life's stress with a book you can get lost in. This Book 2 in the series can be enjoyed solo, but will make you want to circle back and read Book 1 too. Enjoy!

It was surprisingly enjoyable. I enjoyed the writing itself moreso than the plot and the characters. In the beginning of the book I thought Stellar's issues were a bit much and heavy handed. The Lyle just went soooo far in the opposite direction. Also, some of the hippy stuff was a little cheesy. Ultimately it came together in an enjoyable way.

Honestly I am always a sucker for the fake dating/engagement/marriage trope because you KNOW they’re gonna fall in love. They’ve almost got to be a little in love already to behave this way, right? But they don’t know it (in fact they will staunchly deny it), and so I will settle in and be surprised and amazed with them.

It, of course, adds to the magic that they both ARE absolutely so into each other but are denying it for the same reason - specifically that Stellar is denying it and so why would Lyle not also deny it if not only to save face.

But they don’t pretend not to care about each other at all; in fact they’re so openly trying to care for each other in the only ways they know how that they end up sort of battling each other to try and keep score. Stellar wants it even. Lyle, if for no other reason than to show her it doesn’t have to be, wants it unbalanced.

It’s tender and sweet and messy and there’s an undercurrent of dread that still somehow manages to catch you off guard when it comes to the surface. And that chaos somehow puts them both exactly where they need to be to stop fighting the current.

I really enjoyed the inclusivity of this book. It was a great second installment in the series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Well, I really wanted to like this book, but it just did not do it for me. I wasn't overly enthusiastic about this author's first book, so I thought I'd give this one a try, hoping I would like it better. I didn't.

It was well-written. The characters just didn't grab me and pull me in. I was somewhat taken by "McHuge" from the first book, so I was pretty interested in him in this book. Still, there was too much lacking for me to get into the story and enjoy it.

I'm going to sum this up by saying it's probably just me. The story is definitely there, it just was taking too long and too much of an investment on my part to really get into it. I didn't feel that "pull" so I "pulled" the other way and kept putting the book down. Perhaps others will enjoy it more than me. I'm going to move on to something else now, hoping I'll enjoy the next book more.

This feedback was posted on 12/1/24

I wanted to like this book based on the description but it was hard for me to get into, almost DNF’d a few times.
I found it to be a super slow burn and too drawn out.
While I can appreciate loose goosey main characters I found McHuge’s vibe annoying. I don’t know if I’m just not in a good mood but this book was a miss for me.
I did appreciate the descriptions of the program and the nature and I didn’t hate the premise, otherwise this book was a no for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this arc for my honest feedback.

This wasn't the greatest romance but was one of those cute, light, and fluffy reads that makes a good palate cleanser. I felt there were too many tropes packed in and I didn't really feel the chemistry between the main characters. There wasn't a whole lot of character development but the plot was cute.

I'm just going to DNF this at 22%. Something about the McHuge nickname and he's seems a little too "enlightened" for my taste. I'm not really feeling the chemistry between these characters either.

I really enjoyed Maggie’s second book, though it can be read as a standalone and found the characters refreshing! This is the grumpy x sunshine story we are looking for, with deeply realistic characters who are just trying to find their way and work through their own stuff. The slower start should not deter those reading, as I found it was really helpful to see the roots of the characters and get into the story with a deep understanding of how/why the characters engage the way they do within their relationship. Great romantic read that’s entertaining, thought and emotion provoking that really will give you so much more than just a story!

The continuation of this series didn't disappoint. The journey Stellar and McHuge go on is wild and fraught with all kinds of interesting situations.

This book was so lovely! I enjoyed the action and their romance; the entire story tied together nicely.

My only qualm is the beginning. I felt lost in the first 40 pages. As a reader, you’re introduced to this character who has an edge to her. She thinks of herself as one apart. She’s small but she has spikes.

It got a bit messier after she had a seemingly satisfactory hookup, yet in the scenes after she was angry and harbored resentment towards this “kind”man. It was also difficult to orient myself to the location — she describes needing to take a far away job, but I didn’t quite understand that the hospital wasn’t a farther distance & was actually local to the area. It sounded like she had a faraway job in the sticks & just flew in for the concert where they met. Smoothing those bits out for readers would help us understand her dynamic with Lyle a bit more in the beginning, make it easier to see why he was still in the save area as her a year later, and help clarify the urgency of her staying in the area a bit sooner so readers can better understand what’s going on. To me it was hard to wrap my head around her anger and to get why she’d stay local if he had hurt her in some unforgivable way.

Another gorgeous book by Maggie North with poetry-like prose.

Overall: 5
Spice: 3

Stellar Byrd "needs something" according to her best friend. After walking away from a medical career and stumbling through gig work, she is obsessed with making sure her interactions with others are even and fair, she'll never take more than she's due. When Liz's family could utilize Stellar's medical degree to help their start-up business, Stellar will take any chance to doing something for Liz - even if it means spending the summer working alongside Lyle "McHuge" McHugh, the one-night stand she can't forget.

After loving North's debut, Rules for Second Chances, earlier this year, I was thrilled to get the chance to read the next story in the Maggie-verse. She has outdone her debut with this beautiful story. First of all - yay for complex main characters in their 30's! Stellar and Lyle each bring their own teenage trauma to their forced proximity which causes them to circle one another cautiously. I love that they can pair their strengths and weaknesses to be stronger together. North did a great job of giving just enough info on the couples on the Love Boat to add conflict and interest, while keeping the main focus on Stellar & Lyle. The side stories of sisterhood (both by blood & friendship) and the injustice of misogyny in the workplace added a lot to the story. The tension after the one night stand is perfect for inserting steamy flashback scenes that build the slow burn. North's writing about people and nature is so beautiful, it reads like poetry at times. I especially loved the consistent imagery of water/the river/rafting throughout the book.

The Ripple Effect by Maggie North

I would like to thank the publisher for allowing this book to be open the accesson NetGalley. I read this book while on the plane today and had a good time. This is my second book by this author; I don’t remember, especially loving her first book so I didn’t really have high hopes for this one.

However, it is evident that this author has grown in her technical skills as a writer for her sophomore effort. I really enjoyed getting getting to know her main characters and seeing her characters from her first book again as well. I really like the premise of this book it’s really interesting and well thought out.

The antagonists were also appropriately dealt with which I appreciated and the romance was good.

This is easily one of the best contemporary romances I've read this year. This is the second Maggie North book I've read and I'll be first in line to grab her next! I adore her ability to write MMCs who are a whole clothesline full of green flags and yet maintain plenty of tension and issues to work through; the way her love of the Canadian wilderness practically lifts off the page; and the details that make the locations and characters feel so real.

Stellar and Lyle are such a delightful couple and an interesting combination--a MMC who doesn't dare to be angry and embraces kindness as a shield, and a FMC who is absolutely vibrating with rage from being hurt in the past. Also, I was so delighted that they're both queer! I adore them. I adore Babe the dog. I adore the way this book took some of my expectations and twisted them in a completely satisfying manner. If this were in stores now I'd run out at this very moment to grab myself a physical copy and read it all over again.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

loved this romance with a nurse and psychologist and working together in the woods and helping other relationships . loved her found family and that they both were broken in some way and he was always positive.

A grumpy burnt out physician and a sunshine psychologist must fake an engagement to save his whitewater canoeing/ relationship therapy startup up.

This sounded like it would be right up my alley. But instead of was more like when there are too many tropes. Stellars is always focused on what she owes other people and what might make things even. And McHuge just goes along with everything all of the time.

This might have been a case of not the book for me? I think it was well written. But it was a struggle for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free ARC for a review.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book, with my honest review below.

The Ripple Effect was an inclusive and unique romance, complete with an adorable puppy but twisting all other romance elements just a bit. We had a little enemies to lovers going on but one sides (unless the enemy is yourself), a do good mission (but with some less pure intentions), and a lot of interesting mini mysteries and ‘how do they make this work’ in between. I enjoyed all of those things immensely and The Ripple Effect had enough ‘different’ takes for a romance to keep me engaged while also providing some comfortable and cute moments that fit the romance genre.

One thing I will say - if I hooked up with my best friend I don’t think they could ever become like a sister to me. I puzzled over that for way too long before deciding, but maybe you’ll find that part relatable!

The Ripple Effect by Maggie North is a cute follow up to her previous novel Rules for Second Chances. This time Lyle "McHuge" everyone's favorite psychologist is back and he's starting his own couple retreat. Former ER doctor Stellar J. Byrd has signed on as the medical expert and the two are drawn to each other, even though neither is looking for a relationship in spite of the fact they had hooked up once before. Their antics, as well as those of the campers keep this novel moving quickly and make it a fun read. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Cute easy read. Loved the couple but felt the character development wasn’t shown through much. Fell for McHuge.

I am so thankful to have received an ARC for this book. It was everything I love about a rom com and had all the goodness of a fake engagement trope, but it was also so much more than that. The main character felt unique and relatable as an unapologetically queer neurodivergent person. The occasional descriptions of excellent food and beautiful wilderness made me hungry - and hungry for adventure. The relationship was deep without feeling rushed and the ending, without spoilers, brought me to tears a few different times. When this is book comes out, do yourself a favor and read it!