Thank you NetGalley and Maxine Morrey for this ARC

This was a really sweet and lovely read, it is a good heart warming story with a sprinkle of humour which was good. I would highly recommend.

Felicity life is spinning out of control. She makes the decision to move to the country. She buys a farmhouse from the listing only and not see it in person and when she gets there she's shocked to find it's not quite as advertised. Thankfully, the owners brother, Jesse, gets wind of her moving in and comes to her aid. While a bit cheesy at times, the dialogue was believable and easy to enjoy. This book reminded me of the movie, The Money Pit. This was a nice read.

Maxine Morrey as a brand new author to me and after this I will look for more by her! It had me invested- loving her characters and laughing ouloud at times!

A cute romance with just the right touch of funny. I loved the characters and the storyline. Can't wait for the next one.

I have never read a Maxine morrey book that I have not enjoyed. This one has her style of amazing characters and I adored it

The story will sweep you away into the life of Felicity "Fliss," a city girl whose world unravels after a particularly humiliating social media encounter involving her ex-fiancé’s picture-perfect wedding. What starts as an attempt to drown her sorrows ends with her impulsively purchasing a rundown farmhouse.

This feel-good, slow-burn romance offers the perfect blend of heartbreak, humor, and healing. The dilapidated country house serves as more than just a setting — it mirrors Fliss’s own state of disrepair. Enter Jesse Woods, the “loveliest-man-ever” who is as competent with a hammer as he is gentle with a bruised heart. Their chemistry is warm and believable, slowly building trust in a way that feels earned rather than rushed.

The novel does a lovely job in its portrayal of personal reinvention. Fliss isn’t just looking for love — she’s learning how to stand on her own, rediscover her passions, and build a new life, literally brick by brick. The moments of domestic chaos, quirky village charm, and emotional honesty make for a compelling read that’s both comforting and inspiring.

This is a beautiful and uplifting story of second chances and the surprising beauty of starting over — even when the roof caves in.

A cozy, heartfelt read that reminds us sometimes rock bottom is the perfect place to rebuild.

I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and Boldwood Books and am voluntarily leaving my review.

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Reach for the Stars by Maxine Morrey is a slo-burn fixer upper rom-com.

Felicity leaves London for what is supposed to be a quant country life...only to have her whole world crumble around her.

Thankfully, she meets Jesse, who helps her turn things around.

A cute romance that will have you dreaming of a simpler country life.

Thank you to my partners, Rachel’s Random Resources, NetGalley, and Boldwood Books, and the author. I appreciate the gifted eARC, and I am leaving this review voluntarily!

1. 𝐇𝐮𝐦𝐨𝐫 • This one had me laughing right out of the gates. Felicity’s sense of humor is on par with mine, so I felt an immediate connection and continued to laugh all of the way through it!

2. 𝐒𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 • The peace and tranquility of being in the country and living a small town life. There really is nothing like it. I wouldn’t trade mine for anything, and it was pleasing to watch as Felicity fell in love with it.

3. 𝐁𝐚𝐦 • Have you ever been reading along like nothing is going on and then all of a sudden you read one sentence and it stops you in your tracks? Holy smokes - this one got me. Jesse’s reasoning for his harsh feelings for one of the characters is completely reasonable.

4. 𝐅𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐫 𝐔𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐫 • This kind of felt like I was watching the DIY shows on TV. The way that they met had me laughing and watching as their love grew while they found a way to fix her house was so fun.

5. 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 • Felicity didn’t have the best family life growing up, so when she finds the closeness of the small town, it is like coming home. She feels the love that they are willing to give quite easily and holds on for dear life.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me.

The story just wasn’t for me..
I’m still grateful for the opportunity for the arc though

DNF
I won’t be finishing this book due to feeling uninterested in the story
i will not continue to read

Love this book. It's emotional and funny. Felicity has some histories because of that she struggles to trust people or accept help. As she starts to live in the village, starts a new life, she begins to trust people and make friends. Her journey is not just romance, it's about rebuilding herself a future. Jesse is patient, understanding and kind hearted. He also has story of his own. Their romance is filled with undeniable chemistry, playful banter and tender love and understanding. If you love small town romance, personal growth, slow burn then this book delivers all of these.

If you’ve ever wanted to buy a crumbling farmhouse on a whim after a heartbreak… same, Felicity, same. This book was such a cozy, feel-good read with just the right mix of heart and humor—I adored the grumpy-sunshine vibe between Felicity and Jesse, and their slow-burn romance gave me all the warm fuzzies. The setting? Total countryside romcom perfection. I knocked off a star only because I wanted a little more emotional depth in a few scenes, but overall, this one left me smiling and swooning—an absolute delight!

Thank you NetGalley, Maxine Morrey, and Boldwood Books for allowing me to read the book in exchange for a honest review.

This was a DNF for me, sorry. If I persevered I may have gotten into it but it really wasn’t grabbing me.

This was such a delightful rom-com that I read it in one afternoon.

Felicity is a no-nonsense interior decorator who doesn’t let anyone get in her way until her scoundrel fiancée dumps her for another woman. This leads to a lot of wine drinking and bad decisions, including quitting her job. During her wine infused haze, she sells her condo and buys a fixer upper in the country-sight unseen. What she didn’t realize was how much it needed fixing and that it came with chickens! The laughter continues with disintegrating clothes, knocking down a Gorgeous Man (who happens to be a neighbor), thunder storms, and trees through her roof.

This is an absolutely delightful story, with many laugh out loud moments. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a quick paced romance.

Thank you to Net Galley for this e-arc book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Fliss is heartbroken, her life is in tatters, her partner had cheated on her and in the depths of her despair she buys a house in the country. She can do it up and then look to what she wants to do with her future.

This was a very good idea until a tree decides to make life difficult, if life in the country wasnt bad enough she now has to move in with the grumpy handyman Jessie until her house if fixed. But why is he so keen to help her.

Jessie doesnt want to get close to Fliss, but he feels a obligation, his cousin sold the property to her knowing how much of a money pit it was, he knew he had sold it to her for spite as he knew Jessie would have bought it in a heartbeat.

Living with Jessie is confusing, there are mixed messages at every turn, Jessie has a secret but when Fliss discovers it can she make a future with Jessie or will their demons hold them back.

I love a fixer up story, The characters are very well written and deal with some major issues with sensitive and careful handling, the story takes its time to get to the ending but it is so worth the journey.

Would definitely recommend.

Felicity gets completely blitzed after her fiancée leaves her and marries someone else - using the wedding package she paid for; sells her swanky London flat and buys a "fixer-upper" house in the country, sight unseen. Of course, when she arrives she realises the house is in a complete state and not exactly habitable.

She literally knocks the village good guy (and hot guy) on his arse when she nails him with a piece of 2x4 and while they try to be grumpy at one another it lasts for all of about a day before they decide they can help each other out.

Felicity was brought up without any real loving family and only had her Nanny for company. But then her father lost all their money and she was bullied at school. She then clawed her way to the top of the social ladder again only to be knocked off again when she lost her job and her fiancée. Everything she has ever achieved has been on her own and without any help from anyone - to ask for help or show emotion is a weakness!

Jesse is a widower in the village and it was his cousin who sold Felicity the uninhabitable house so he feels duty bound to help her out with fixing it up. He also forces his help on her as it's plain to everyone Felicity isn't capable of asking for it.

I liked the story well enough but I couldn't connect with any of the characters. Felicity was annoying and incredibly cliché while Jesse was a good guy but prone to putting his foot in his mouth every five seconds.

There was no spice and no real build up to them getting together. One minute they're friends, talking about their lives, the next they're making out and are suddenly a couple. Then there is a third act break up which again was completely out of nowhere and completely out of proportion for what the situation required.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me, I think others will love this but it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the arc. 🫶🏻

I love stories where the characters grow and progress to achieve happiness they had never thought possible due to trauma in the past. Such is the case with Fliss. The ride is fun and enlivened by her relationship with Jesse. I thoroughly enjoyed the situations and the locale of 'Reach for the Stars' and will look for more with this author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Unfortunately this book was just not for me. I tried to get into it but felt too much disconnect with the characters and where the story was going.