A lukewarm 3 stars. Competent writing, but the pacing felt off. I really expected the plot to focus more on the blind dates, but they were barely a footnote. Side stories like Cecily’s relationship with Will and office politics took precedent, but without the depth necessary to carry the story. It was only semi enjoyable and I never felt truly invested.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an advance copy of Back After This by Linda Holmes!

Back After This was a really fun read! The narrator had a great sense of humor and that made the storytelling style so engaging. Holmes' familiarity with the podcasting world shone throughout the story. I am not very familiar with podcasts - I don't listen to them often, and I certainly don't know anything about the behind-the-scenes world of them - so this side of the story fascinated me. I'm glad that Holmes chose to dedicate so much time to that angle.

The chemistry between Will and Cecily was electric - Holmes struck the perfect blend of witty banter and sparks with this couple. I love how she juxtaposes their unique, funny, sweet, and totally serendipitous meet cutes with the very meticulously orchestrates first date that Eliza plans for Cecily. I loved that one of the messages of this novel is that, while online dating and other more targeted ways of meeting people *can* work, you still can absolutely meet The One out in the real world. I think that's a message that so many people need to hear today, in this world where we've become increasingly reliant upon our phones for social interaction.

I did get pretty frustrated with the novel somewhere between the 50-70% mark because some of Cecily's choices are just so thoughtless. She's a very bright character, yet she's so clueless when it comes to personal relationships. I also am very much not a fan of the miscommunication trope and Cecily's mistakes with Will in particular are rooted in an unwillingness to actually talk to him about the obstacles to their budding relationship. That said, I felt like this aspect of the novel was redeemed by Cecily's tremendous growth by the end of the book. I'm really glad that I kept reading - I was very close to posting a bit of a rant on my Instagram stories 😂 but Holmes successfully turned the story around and by the end, I felt really happy with how everything wrapped up.

I really enjoyed reading Back After This, especially timed perfectly for Valentine's Day! I recommend reading this book if you:

✅ Love to watch reality dating shows / dating competitions
✅ Are a sucker for loveable canine characters
✅ Love the friends with benefits trope

This story was just *too* cute for words! Cecily is hilarious, and honestly, all the characters had me giggling, but she’s just so effortlessly lovable. Like, if sunshine and good vibes were a person, it’d be her. So, Cecily’s job is on the line, but her boss comes up with a *wild* idea—she has to go on 20 dates (yes, 20!) and spill all the details on a podcast, with a famous influencer leading the way. But the moment she had *the* most adorable meet-cute with a guy chasing after a runaway dog, I just *knew* this whole experiment was doomed. Like, come on—mystery dog rescuer? Instant rom-com magic! I’m such a sucker for this kind of story—sweet, funny, and full of swoony moments that make your heart do little happy dances.

This book is good, better than good. It is romantic comedy with laugh out loud moments. The main character works in podcasting. Cecily is a hard worker that can't say no. As a result she is often taken advantage of and not well treated at work. She is dedicated to her friends and worries about them losing their jobs if the company is sold or tanks. Very rarely, does she put herself first. When Cecily is offered a role in the making of a podcast in which she will get dating advise from the "guru" of dating, she accepts the job with the provision that her friend will not lose her job. Cecily's dislike for the program and her wish to keep her friend employed makes for many laughs. I thought the main character was funny and likable although I get frustrated with her lack of self-confidence. This book would be a great read during spring break -- don't wait for the summer beach read. I also want to say that as a senior citizen I find some rom-coms "too young" for me. This book is not one of those. Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the complimentary digital ARC. I feel privileged to have received it. This review is my own words and in no way coerced.

Another Linda Holmes book with smart, likeable characters and a swoony love story! This was such a fun read start to finish.

Linda Holmes has become one of my favorite authors. Since I had read (and enjoyed) her first two novels, I was thrilled to get approved to read her latest book early that’s entitled “Back After This.” I will say I put off reading this book a few times because of its description and I tend to read Linda’s books as palate cleansers. Shortly after I began reading, I was relieved my concerns were unfounded.

Set in Washington, DC, the book follows Cecily Foster, a longtime podcast producer. She gets an opportunity to fulfill a long-time goal and host her own show, but there are a couple of conditions. The show has to involve Cecily’s dating life and she has to be mentored by Eliza Cassidy, a self-professed life coach/influencer with a large number of followers.

The description online does a good job of giving the reader the basics of what this book is about and who the characters are. I enjoyed getting to know Cecily, Will, and the supporting characters around Cecily. I also appreciated the author’s efforts to describe the world of audio and how much work goes into podcasts.

Overall, I loved this book. The author (along with a couple others I like) has a way with writing her characters and how they interact with each other that I enjoy. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC.

2.5 stars

I've heard nothing but great things about this, so perhaps I am in the minority here, but this book was a bit of a letdown for me. I was obsessed with the premise of this book (very much almost like the anti-How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days), and I genuinely think that it did have good structure and a lot of potential.

My biggest issue here was that the FMC seemed almost completely emotionally detached from everything. Perhaps it was just a lack of the inner monologue talking about how things affected her, but it really took me out of the story. This emotional detachment bled into the relationship that bloomed between her and the MMC, making it feel unbelievable most of the time. They had a cute story with how they kept running into each other, but seemed to lack chemistry and any real build-up. There was a big focus on keeping witty banter between the characters, rather than actually developing the relationship.

I found myself getting bored during what was supposed to be the climax of this story, which is not something that happens very often for me, and I was just kind of left wishing for a lot of things when I finished it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this ARC!

Back After This is about Cecily, a podcast producer who has an offer to do her own podcast about dating with the help of a well known influencer/entrepreneur named Eliza. Eliza gives Cecily a makeover and sets her up on a bunch of blind dates, some good and some not so good. And...it is all being recorded for the podcast. Before she gets started she has a very interesting meet cute with a guy named Will and they seem to hit it off. While she is in the hands of lifestyle guru Eliza, Cecily must not try to meet anyone on her own and let Eliza find her the perfect match. Which is hard to do when she keeps bumping into Will at the most random times.
This book is very heartwarming, sweet and funny. I really liked Cecily as a character, she is a caring person with a great sense of humor. She unknowingly learns a lot and grows from the advice that she didn't know she needed from Eliza. You really want her to win in the end. I also love a good podcast and found it interesting to know more about what it takes to produce one, but it reading like a how to guide.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Ballantine Books in return for an unbiased review

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

"Back After This" is, in my opinion, another slam-dunk from Linda Holmes. I really enjoyed her previous two novels, and this book was no exception. Holmes writes characters who are warm, flawed, charming, and struggling with real problems. I strongly identified with our main character Cecily's career challenges and was rooting for her to succeed. The romance, though not center-stage, gave me butterflies and progressed in such a delightful way that I grinned many times. If you want a feel-good book, read this one or anything else by Linda Holmes.

Happy Valentine’s Day! And what better way to celebrate than a review of super cute new romance coming out!

This was Adorable with a capital A. I loved the premise is much, and I found all the chance encounters between the MC and her love interest to be charming. I also just loved all the relationships between every character (not just romantic) because I thought they were well done, especially the dialogue and quirky conversations.

I saw some other reviews where they thought there was too much talk about audio production, but I appreciated that because a) it’s clearly important to the MC so it helps round her out, b) I learned some things which I always enjoy, and c) it helped this stand-out a bit from the many romance novels out there.

However, my least favorite part was probably how all the set-ups were handled. I would have preferred if they were incorporated more organically instead of the weird summary style the author chose because they felt disconnected from the story as a whole. Other than that, I really enjoyed this and think you will too!

Thank you to Random House - Ballantine and Netgalley for this ARC. Back After This is out 2/25!

Twenty blind dates. One runaway Great Dane. And a meet-cute that’s technically a dog heist. If that doesn’t scream rom-com magic, I don’t know what does.

Cecily Foster is perfectly happy staying behind the mic as a podcast producer—until her boss and an influencer convince her to document her return to dating for the world to hear. Suddenly, she’s the star of a viral social experiment, juggling awkward setups, questionable date activities, and a growing suspicion that the best connection she’s made might be with the guy outside the experiment.

I found Cecily to be so relatable, and there are little tidbits of advice in here that sound like they came directly from my therapist. 😂 Also, when I get back into dating, I am 100% utilizing the dummy date idea. It’s GOLD. 🥞

I loved this book—the podcast details were fascinating, the romance was top-tier, and the vibes were absolute perfection. If you like your rom-coms with smart humor, chaotic dog energy, and just the right amount of pining, make sure to add Back After This to your TBR! Huge thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC—this one drops February 25!

Cecily is a talented podcast producer. In desperation for job security and secretly a reason to believe in love again agrees to a modern dating series as the "bachelorette" . During the process she must decide to follow the rules or to just simply following her heart after a hilarious meet-cute with Will, "the waiter" who is off limits according to her dating coach.

This is my favorite Linda Holmes book.

It did start off rather slow, but in classic Linda Holmes fashion, she hooked me at some point, and then I just couldn't stop reading.

I audio-booked her other two books, but thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books, this was my first physical reading experience from her, and it was so easy to picture the characters in my head.

I absolutely loved the characters, Will was a "wear your heart on your sleeve" kind of guy and Cecily was a people-pleasing, need to help kind of girl. Their chemistry was fire from the meet-cute, and I think the growth was handled very well.

I think I wanna read this again as an audiobook down the road. I felt very invested in Cecily's journey.

Cecily Foster, an overworked podcast producer, is eager for more in her career. She agrees to a dating/self-help show with influencer Eliza, going on 20 blind dates in exchange for the chance to produce her own show. Along the way, she keeps running into Will—who isn’t part of the show and whom she’s been told to avoid. Yet, their paths continue to cross in unexpected ways, and their connection grows despite the rules. It took me a while to get into the story, and some parts felt drawn out while others, like the dates, could’ve used more detail. Overall, it’s a light, fun, non spicy and easy read with a peek into the podcast production world.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for providing an advanced reader’s copy 🤎
PUB DATE: February 25th, 2025

This was a cute story and I enjoyed the premise and the meet cute. Having this set in the podcasting world was interesting but I also felt it got a little to technical at times. I love a Bachelor-like plot but the dates actually played a very small role in the plot which was very surprising to me. They almost felt like an afterthought. I also wish the female main character showed a bit more growth. Toward the end she was making progress but there were still a lot of bad people in her life that got away with it and I felt unsatisfied with the conclusion. Overall, this had lots of potential but missed the mark for me in a few ways.

I've been a big fan of Linda Holmes since my podcast-listening days and so far I've enjoyed her foray into fiction. This book was really a stand-out for me. As much as I liked her first two books I felt like this one took it up a notch in nearly every way. You can tell that Linda is doing a lot of writing what she knows here, which gave some really fascinating insight into the podcasting world. The characters are wonderful, flawed, and relatable in their own ways and the chemistry between Will and Cecily had me full on kicking my feet and laughing out loud with delight. There were several impactful scenes/bits of dialogue that gave me that stomach-twist of recognition when you see yourself and your experience reflected on the page. I can't wait to read whatever Linda writes next.

A fun rom-com by the author of Evvie Drake Starts Over, which I also loved. Cecily is a sound producer for a dying podcast company in Washington, DC. She's given up on love after a disastrous failed romance years ago and several uninspiring first dates since then. Her boss is grasping at straws, trying to keep the company alive, and comes up with the idea to do a dating podcast. With Cecily. It involves going on 20 first dates and then getting critiques from said dates so that Cecily can improve her skills and find her true love. It just so happens that in the midst of the first dates, she happens to meet someone who just MIGHT be the man she's been waiting for.

This was a cute story. I enjoyed the love story of Cecily and Will, and wish there was more scenes with the 2 of them. The podcast plot was original, but I lost interest when none of the guys seemed enjoyable. Fun read overall!

This fun novel is about Cecily, a podcast producer who longs for a bigger role. She also has been single for four years, and her boss tells her their company is not doing well and he needs her to not just produce but be the subject of a podcast with a semi-famous influencer who will set Cecily up on 20 blind dates as the podcast documents her search for love. But things get complicated when she also meets someone on her own in the middle of all this.

I just loved this book, so enjoyable to read. The banter and romance is great, but it’s also about so much more than that - career, friendship, families, and more. And as much as I also love the ultra unreal celebrity romance books, I also just love a book that has a romance between main characters who are not perfect or super humanly gorgeous, but regular insecure people with their own foibles, and this book does that so well! (Think Curtis Sittenfeld or Rainbow Rowell.)

I am a long time fan of Linda Holmes, going back more than 20 years to her recaps of The Amazing Race on Television Without Pity, and her first book Evvie Drake Starts Over was one of my top ten books of 2019. I wasn’t quite as enamored of her sophomore effort, Flying Solo, so I’m thrilled to say she’s back to form with this one!

4.5 stars

5⭐️ Captivating! Holmes crafts characters and a story that sucks you in until the last word.

**Thank you to Boldwood Books, Inc. and NetGalley for the eARC**

Cecily Foster, a podcast producer is about to end up on the other side of the mic and the subject of a dating, self-help podcast. And she is dreading it. If it wasn’t for the promise of saving the company and her friend’s jobs, she’d turn it down. And what would happen as soon as she agrees to twenty blind dates? She meet the sweetest man. Over and over again. Will she find love on the podcast? Or will the chance meeting be her dream guy?

I cannot give this book enough praise. Such a good storyline and probably the best meet cute I have ever read. And it involves a dog! Cecily is a character you want to love and root for, and Will, her love interest, is a down to earth, all around good guy. The pacing is great and keeps you surprised and interested from cover to cover. Read the book!

Thank you so much for the publisher for the review copy!

This book was delightful, and I found the unconventional romance quite charming, the characters were easy to connect to. I think what moved the novel forward was the clever and witty banter between the characters!