Lisa Darling-high-flying TV exec, twice-divorced mother of two, and perpetually overwhelmed woman of a certain age-already has more than enough on her plate. Between wrangling a teenage son, organizing a PTA cheese-and-wine night, supporting her best friend through cancer treatment, and tackling a new perimenopause symptom every other day, she barely has time to breathe-let alone attempt that Instagram DIY panelling project she keeps fantasizing about (not that she'd trade a night of wine with her girlfriends for power tools anyway).
So when the annoyingly handsome New Yorker Zach Russo swoops in to take over her best friend's role at work, Lisa braces for a battle of wills. But as their clashes grow more heated, she chalks it up to her HRT needing an adjustment. That is, until one steamy (and wildly ill-advised) moment between them changes everything. And then another. Suddenly, Lisa finds herself facing a question she never expected: Could these long-forgotten feelings be about more than just hormones?
Fun, frank, and fabulously real, Lisa Darling is the romantic comedy heroine we've all been waiting for! As a mother of four and a working woman in my forties, I found this laugh-out-loud funny and deeply relatable.
Lisa's chaotic, never-ending to-do list felt all too familiar, from navigating single parenthood to shouldering PTA responsibilities and supporting a friend through illness-all while rediscovering herself as a woman. Her unexpected chemistry with Zach brings a delicious tension to the story, and her junior colleague Daisy's ridiculous TV pitches had me in stitches.

While mostly lighthearted, the book also touches briefly on serious topics like eating disorders, adding depth without losing its breezy charm. It's refreshing to read a romance centered on a woman in her late forties—one who's still vibrant, desirable, and figuring it all out. If you're looking for a fun, sexy, and utterly relatable read, Lisa Darling is the perfect pick!

It's about time we get a romcom featuring a perimenopausal women as the main character! I'm coming up on my mid-30's but found myself laughing hilariously at menopause jokes and insights. The spice, the struggles with the ex-husband, all written so well. I love how well this book balanced it all out - incredibly well done!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Zippy Publishing for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book blends women's fiction and romance. I enjoyed following Lisa’s journey as she rediscovers passion and navigates single motherhood with teenagers during the chaos of midlife. The teenage angst and mistakes felt really relatable. Some scenes were funny, though I hoped for more humor throughout. I liked Lisa’s romance with Zach, but it didn’t strike me as particularly swoon-worthy. Overall, it was an okay read—neither one I loved or disliked.

For those of us “of a certain age “, hot flashes and mood swings are usually no laughing matter, right? Well, enter Lisa Darling, a menopause mama who might just change that mindset. I haven’t read that many romance books that deal with characters going through the Big Change, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the description of this one. There were so many relatable things about this character, from her feelings of not being able to do all that is being asked of her (not to mention the things she’s taken on that she should’ve said no to), to the frustrations of trying to be patient with a surly teenager, to juggling work and home at the same time, Lisa is like so many of us in real life. Add to that an ex-husband who talks a good talk, but never follows through, and you’ve got a heroine who is ready for some fun in her stressful life. This is where the hunky new man on the job comes in! You find yourself rooting for this lady who needs something to go right in her life, and it’s so satisfying to see her becoming the strong woman you know she could be, This isn’t your dime store paperback romance that’s 85% sex and 15% plot. Costello has you pulling for Lisa long before things get steamy. The storyline is quite engaging, as are the characters. I’ll be looking for other Jane Costello books in the future! Thank you to NetGalley and Zibby Publishing for the opportunity to read this eGalley.

Happy Pub Day to this super cute rom com about a perimenopausal divorcee mom navigating life’s complications and victories.

This made me laugh out loud several times, and I loved how authentic the characters and relationships were.

Thank you @zibbypublishing & the author for allowing me to read this perfect romance in time for Valentine’s Day! I think it is a great story for the middle aged perimenopausal ladies out here (me).

Shout out to our Bookstagram book club The Hot Flashes started by @electric_bookaloo - we are reading this for our monthly title. We needed this one - it brought me much needed levity and entertainment this week.

QOTD: The protagonist has a constant to-do list. What’s one item on your to-do list today?

my answer: catch up on my posts ✅

#happypubday #currentlyreading #romancereader #romancereading #recommendedreading #bookreviews #itsgettinghotinhere

Super cute, fun and a bit spicy tale of a single mom juggling parenting, career, a possible love interest and perimenopause. Well balance, engaging and relatable.

It’s Getting Hot in Here is the perfect blend of humor, heart, and heat, making it a must-read for anyone who loves a rom-com with a little extra life experience thrown in.

Lisa Darling is juggling all the things—a demanding career, two kids with big personalities, PTA obligations, and the chaos of perimenopause. Her plate is already overflowing, but when swoon-worthy Zach Russo enters the picture, suddenly, things get even hotter (and not just from hot flashes!). Lisa’s journey of self-discovery, second chances, and unexpected romance is both laugh-out-loud funny and deeply relatable.

The witty banter, real-life struggles, and steamy (yet messy) romance made this book a delight to read. If you love a rom-com that celebrates the highs and lows of midlife with plenty of laughs and swoon-worthy moments, It’s Getting Hot in Here is a must-read! 🔥💕

I had my eye on this book, and when #thehotflashes book club decided to read this for March, I was thrilled to receive a copy from @zibbypublishing to review.

It’s so refreshing to read books, especially romances, with characters that are my age (or at least in the vicinity). This story follows 47-year-old divorcee Lisa Darling in first person as she juggles her job as a TV executive and raises two kids in her primary custody. She also has a best friend with cancer, a PTA volunteer micromanager and the symptoms of perimenopause are affecting it all. Add in the new attractive American at the company who everyone in the office is fawning over as he temporarily fills in for her best friend while immediately giving her grief over her in-progress projects and it’s a lot for one woman to handle.

The characters in this story, especially Lisa and Rose were very relatable to me. I loved that Lisa was a list-maker. The story was very readable, if you know what I mean. I picked it up and immediately settled right into the story. While I admit that Lisa sometimes frustrated me with her parenting style, inability to resist guilt trips or say no at times, especially at her age, it left her with plenty of room for character growth and it made for a very satisfying culmination of events. I would not have been so diplomatic about being criticized for my volunteering efforts.

The story was entertaining and fun with relatable characters. I laughed throughout even if I did feel like Lisa jumped to some conclusions with love interest Zach, who I thought was a lovely bonus to the story. Recommended for the relatable characters and fun romance.

This novel is about a British woman in mid-life named Lisa Darling, who is juggling her career in tv production, being a single mom to a 10 year old and teenage sons, the PTA, and perimenopause - and that’s before a handsome new American co-worker comes to the office.

This one has a sort of light Bridget Jones/Sophie Kinsella vibe. I appreciate books that feature moms and other older characters as the protagonists and still allow them to have romance, and even more love the acknowledgement of the perimenopausal stage of life. Not the best of its genre, but it was a cute read.

3.5 stars

Thanks to Zibby Publishing for the widget for this book. We are reading this book for our book club called The Hot Flashes and trying to read on all thing perimenopause or about menopause. While the main subject of this was not perimenopause the MFC is going thru it and thru many other things that real life women go thru. She is a single mother ( I can say that because the ex has minimal involvement) with 2 sons and one is a teenager(enough said). Even though it does have romance in it. The takeaway for me was based on her relationship with her kids and her best friend and of course the to-do list. Also the many hats that we wear.

Lisa Darling's life is relatable to a whole group of women experiencing life in their mid-forties. Hot Flashes, health, work, family and friends are hard to balance. Keeping all the balls in the air, while falling in love will come with it's many ups and downs even when you may not know it is happening. Funny, witty and pleasant story. Just wasn't one of my favorites, hence the rating. I would enjoy a bit more with a larger problem that wouldn't have been so predictable.

Thank you to Zibby Books for the advance copy. I will always support and read your titles!

This was a DNF for me. The first DNF of a Zibby Books author. I don’t like to read much about a book before staring, but that can lead to choosing books that aren’t for me. I thought I was picking up a book about menopause. I want wrong about that, but I didn’t know it was going to be a steamy open door book also. For that reason I had to put it down.

Well, this is relatable! A fun, poignant, entertaining read with a lot of heart. Thanks to the author, Zibby Books, and NetGalley for this advanced copy and the opportunity to share my thoughts.

Lisa Darling is a TV executive and divorced mother of two facing midlife, hot flashes and all. She is supporting her best friend and co-worker through her cancer fight and is not feeling particularly friendly to her friend's temporary replacement Zach, even though he is overly qualified and cute to boot. Lisa's balance of all things children, job and Zach make her wonder if she needs to adjust her hormone therapy jut to make it through a day!

I seem to be in my perimenopause/menopause themed reading because this is the third book in the past two months that I have read featuring a character dealing with life's second puberty. I do think it's fitting having turned 50 last month so I'm not complaining that there are now some fictional characters facing the inevitability of getting older as a woman. This novel did start a bit slow for me, but most do to be honest, and I soon got very into it and found the story, the characters and the humor to be quite enjoyable. I love a single mom romance (even though I am not a single mom) and thought this novel did a wonderful job capturing women at this age and the humor we need to keep going.

4.25 stars

Thank you to Zibby Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC to review

I loved this book! Apologies for a late review, the flu hit the family and slowed me down. With appreciation to Zibby for maybe my new favorite from this publishing team. Thank you to LibroFM as well for the audio review copy (and supporting the Zibby books each month).

What can I say? Midlife is a whole roller coaster of all the things, hormones, caregiving, wanting more from life while wanting to be happy with what you have right now... It's Getting Hot in Here gets that, and with steam to boot, and Jane Costello does indeed capture the marvelous chaos of women's lives today, that menopause is far from an end point and that women can want all the things, and to be a priority in their own lives, no matter the chaos that surrounds them.

A fun, flirty romance with a lot of very real-life moments interwoven throughout! Lisa’s to do lists are even funnier because we know we all have made very similar ones, as are all the apps she downloads to her phone! Amongst the chaos, I found this book to be uplifting, empowering and made me feel seen.
A single, working perimenopausal woman with two teenage sons, Lisa is juggling the chaos that entails while supporting her best friend, Rose as she faces a serious health crisis. When Rose takes a leave of absence from work, her replacement Zach Russo steps in and on Lisa’s toes. Is the fact that her temp rises whenever he’s near a symptom of menopause or maybe something else?
Lisa is so relatable as she tries to balance work and committing to volunteering at her son’s schools; as she tries to allow her moody son to enjoy his teen years yet be responsible and respectful; co-parenting with a less than present ex; as she tries not to rely on her parent’s for help but can’t possibly do it without them; and as she tries to manage the symptoms of menopause and the impact it has on her body, her hormones and her mental state. Costello masterfully balances these real-life dilemmas with laugh out loud moments.

Absolutely hilarious a book about a middle age woman her life her relationships. I completely related to parts of her story laughed so hard I had tears running down my down my face.I will be recommending it to my girlfriends.#netgalley #Zibby

I had an absolute blast reading IT’S GETTING HOT IN HERE by Jane Costello! This rom-com checked SO many of my boxes, and had me giggling up a storm. As a woman in my mid-forties, I found it quite easy to relate to the main character, Lisa Darling. She’s around my age, a hardworking mother of two, has an awesome sense of humor, and most importantly, is a great friend. I truly appreciated all of the references on aging and menopause throughout. I’m definitely the target audience for this book! Ha!

THINGS I LOVED:

- 40-something protagonist
- Reflections on motherhood
- Strong female friendship
- Insight on raising teenagers
- Perimenopause experience
- PTA mama drama
- Perfect amount of spice/steam
- Multiple LOL moments
- Lisa’s never-ending to-do list

Costello’s latest will certainly appeal to the 40+ perimenopausal mothers with teenagers crowd! Hahaha! If you enjoyed IS SHE REALLY GOING OUT WITH HIM? by Sophie Cousen or PICK-UP by Nora Dahlia, then you gotta read this. It has the same “divorced mom finding love again at the workplace” vibes. 4/5 stars for IT’S GETTING HOT IN HERE! It’s out now!

Jane Costello's IT'S GETTING HOT IN HERE was the perfect antidote to everyday hurry, hustle, and chaos. This laugh-out loud rom com offered all the feels from empathizing with overwrought and wonderful Lisa Darling encountering the sizzling Zach Russo and facing the raucous and terrible realities of living divorced, mothering, and striving while putting everyone and everything before herself and coming to wonder if there might be another way to thrive. I dove in and so enjoyed this book -- a definite recommendation to my friends. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

Lisa Darling is a mom to two boys and a high-powered TV exec who’s doing the best she can to keep juggling her career, her kids, PTA fundraising, a sick friend who needs her, just to name a few of the balls she’s trying to keep in the air. When Zach Russo, an exec from the network’s LA office, steps in as a temporary backfill while Lisa’s friend is on medical leave, the sparks are undeniable, leaving Lisa to wonder if it’s just a hot flash or her hot new coworker that’s making her sweat!

Perimenopausal FMCs are having a moment, and as a mother and career woman in the same age range and stage of life as Lisa, I am here for it! Lisa is smart, funny, self-deprecating, and completely relatable! I love the banter between her and Zach (when he calls her “Darling” - *swoon*) and their steamy chemistry, but I also love that it’s not the only focus of the story. The to-do lists she makes to keep herself on track are humorous and endearing (will that poor kettle ever get descaled?) and the writing style overall is so funny and engaging. I found myself nodding in recognition, laughing out loud, and totally connecting with Lisa Darling! This book is a gem!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Zibby Publishing for providing me an advance copy of this book.