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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
I received an advanced copy of this book from net galley. I was excited to read it based on the description, and thought it was only going to be a 3 star book in the beginning. It felt like information was just being thrown at me so it took a while to catch on. Also, the main character seemed to be pretty oblivious to what was obviously happening in her life. But, after the first few chapters I became absolutely enthralled by the book. The ending was predictable, but it still had me on the edge of my seat waiting to see how she was going to tie it together. I swear my heart was racing from anticipation during the final 15% of the book. I highly recommend and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
I received this free arc thanks to NetGalley, but I just couldn't get into it. I stalled about a third of the way through, and I kept giving myself time to see if I was interested in picking it back up... but nope. Just not it for me.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
My Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️
General Thoughts: This is the second book I've read by Sarah Ready. After reading "Wished," I felt I had a pretty good idea of what to expect in this one. And I was not wrong. Both Sarah Ready books I've read have been fun, creative, lighthearted, and whimsical magical realism books a la Lake House or Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants variety. In this case, a magical watch allows the character to dream of her heart's desire.
Magical realism can be hard to do well. I thought Sarah did a good job. I did have a few questions about how certain things worked. Maybe I just read when I was too tired, but I felt a few things warranted more explanation. However, I enjoyed the book all the same.
Spice Meter:❤️🔥. Spice is there, but light and not very detailed.
Romantic Tropes:
-single first-person POV
-magical realism
-cute
-contemporary romance
-interconnected standalone
Disclaimer: I received a review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thanks to the author and Netgalley.
Reading Order: This is the third in an interconnected standalone series. I jumped in with the fourth one, and then went back and read this one. I think you can jump in wherever you want in this series, but I do think series are always better read in order.
You can read more of my reviews on Insta @mylastromancenovel.
General Thoughts: This is the second book I've read by Sarah Ready. After reading "Wished," I felt I had a pretty good idea of what to expect in this one. And I was not wrong. Both Sarah Ready books I've read have been fun, creative, lighthearted, and whimsical magical realism books a la Lake House or Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants variety. In this case, a magical watch allows the character to dream of her heart's desire.
Magical realism can be hard to do well. I thought Sarah did a good job. I did have a few questions about how certain things worked. Maybe I just read when I was too tired, but I felt a few things warranted more explanation. However, I enjoyed the book all the same.
Spice Meter:❤️🔥. Spice is there, but light and not very detailed.
Romantic Tropes:
-single first-person POV
-magical realism
-cute
-contemporary romance
-interconnected standalone
Disclaimer: I received a review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thanks to the author and Netgalley.
Reading Order: This is the third in an interconnected standalone series. I jumped in with the fourth one, and then went back and read this one. I think you can jump in wherever you want in this series, but I do think series are always better read in order.
You can read more of my reviews on Insta @mylastromancenovel.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this title.
This was a cute story. The premise is cheesy and so far fetched but I liked that Ready didn't make the dream world idyllic which helped ground the story a little more. The twist at the end made it a little too over the top for me so bumped it down from 4 stars to 3. Otherwise a cute story that was an easy, enjoyable read.
This was a cute story. The premise is cheesy and so far fetched but I liked that Ready didn't make the dream world idyllic which helped ground the story a little more. The twist at the end made it a little too over the top for me so bumped it down from 4 stars to 3. Otherwise a cute story that was an easy, enjoyable read.
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is my second novel by Sarah Ready. I love her creativity and ability to craft a story that exists beyond time and location. I really enjoyed reading her novel, Switched, but I struggled with this one.
Fiona Abrey is a businesswoman and single mother with no time for love or life’s simple pleasures. When she falls asleep with a magical watch, however, she’s transported to a “dream life” on an isolated island. In this dream life, she’s a married mother of two, and her husband is, of course, a gorgeous hunk.
I think what made this story hard for me was not that Fiona lived her “real life” side by side with her “dream life.” It’s that she supposedly lives in two different bodies. Dream-life Fiona is given the body of a selfish woman who plans to abandon her family and take off with her husband’s best friend. Her dream body also looks nothing like her real-life body. A large part of the story, Fiona is falling in love with her hunky dream-life husband and having him fall in love with her, but when she wakes up in reality and returns back to her dream life, she finds that without her “spirit” (for lack of a better word) her dream-life body and its original persona has treated Aaron and their children horribly. Poor Aaron then seems to be living with a woman with split personalities: this woman is attracted to me and (eventually) loves me, but this woman also rejects me and wants to leave me immediately. As a reader, this made me feel horrible and interfered with the “magic” of the story.
Overall, this was still a good read. I may just be sensitive to angst and stress, which were more prevalent in this storyline than in Switched. Although this is book 3 in a series, it stands alone. I’ve already started book 4 and am excited to see Max Barone (the amazing man Fiona rejects in her “real life”) get his happily-ever-after.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Fiona Abrey is a businesswoman and single mother with no time for love or life’s simple pleasures. When she falls asleep with a magical watch, however, she’s transported to a “dream life” on an isolated island. In this dream life, she’s a married mother of two, and her husband is, of course, a gorgeous hunk.
I think what made this story hard for me was not that Fiona lived her “real life” side by side with her “dream life.” It’s that she supposedly lives in two different bodies. Dream-life Fiona is given the body of a selfish woman who plans to abandon her family and take off with her husband’s best friend. Her dream body also looks nothing like her real-life body. A large part of the story, Fiona is falling in love with her hunky dream-life husband and having him fall in love with her, but when she wakes up in reality and returns back to her dream life, she finds that without her “spirit” (for lack of a better word) her dream-life body and its original persona has treated Aaron and their children horribly. Poor Aaron then seems to be living with a woman with split personalities: this woman is attracted to me and (eventually) loves me, but this woman also rejects me and wants to leave me immediately. As a reader, this made me feel horrible and interfered with the “magic” of the story.
Overall, this was still a good read. I may just be sensitive to angst and stress, which were more prevalent in this storyline than in Switched. Although this is book 3 in a series, it stands alone. I’ve already started book 4 and am excited to see Max Barone (the amazing man Fiona rejects in her “real life”) get his happily-ever-after.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Fated was another twisty-turny read from Sarah Ready. I've been really enjoying the "Ghosted" series, and I was very excited to see Fiona's story as she has been in the earlier books. While I was definitely intrigued with the premise I will admit to being doubtful that she could pull off merging the dream world and the reality but what a creative and unexpected twist. Can't wait to read the next book and have Max get a relationship with "sparks"!
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.
Fated captivated me with its blend of magical realism and romance. Fiona Abry, swamped with running her family's Swiss watch company, receives a family heirloom that allows her to dream of her greatest desires. These dreams transport her to a serene tropical island where she's married to Aaron and has two kids, starkly contrasting her hectic city life. Fiona's emotional journey enchanted me as she fell for her dream husband and idyllic life despite knowing it was not real. The story beautifully explores themes of desire, reality, and love. This book left me reflecting on the balance between dreams and reality, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a heartwarming, imaginative romance.
Fated is about the story of Fiona, a woman who runs her family’s watch company in Switzerland. One night, she receives a gift from her mother a watch that is a family heirloom that allows her to dream her hearts desires, and there, she meets the man of her dreams.
This is my second time reading Sarah Ready and the Ghosted series. Sadly, I started backwards, with Max’s story, but this book was a delight either way, complementing a lot his character for me. It is not better than Wished in my opinion, but a very very good book just the same. At first, I was confused as to why the main character dreamed as someone else (but no spoilers), and it took me a while to fully connect to the story… but as it went on, I felt like everything was explained and I loved the plot and the twists and that small town feeling of founding family.
For fans of Seven Year Slip… you’ll love this one! It’s a book with that special touch of magic, soulmates, fate kinda romance.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and Sarah Ready for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This is my second time reading Sarah Ready and the Ghosted series. Sadly, I started backwards, with Max’s story, but this book was a delight either way, complementing a lot his character for me. It is not better than Wished in my opinion, but a very very good book just the same. At first, I was confused as to why the main character dreamed as someone else (but no spoilers), and it took me a while to fully connect to the story… but as it went on, I felt like everything was explained and I loved the plot and the twists and that small town feeling of founding family.
For fans of Seven Year Slip… you’ll love this one! It’s a book with that special touch of magic, soulmates, fate kinda romance.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and Sarah Ready for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!