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thereadingraccoon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Book Review: From the Jump by Lacie Waldon
From the Jump is an adult contemporary romance about a rule follower that decides to start saying “no”, taking more risks and ends up falling for her friend.
Liv Bakersfield (note: not one of my favorite romance character names) is fed up with the uninspiring graphic design jobs given to her by her firm when she impulsively says “no” to a bone broth campaign. She is promptly put on leave by her boss to work on her “personal issues” but she spontaneously decides to join her college friends on their trip to South Africa instead. Once there she finds herself in close quarters with Lucas Deiss her attractive but emotionally distant friend of over a decade. In both South Africa and back at home Liv will be forced out of her comfort zone and into breaking some of her own self-imposed rules all the while falling for a man that she never considered a possibility.
I really enjoyed this novel about a woman taking risks in her life with both career and love. Lucas was a dreamy male main character that was aloof without being mean or emotionally stunted. I appreciated how their childhoods caused them both to play it safe in their lives but still left space to fall in love with a friend they knew and trusted.
4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
bailey_story's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 | mostly fun, happy and fast-paced friends to lovers rom-com (triggers: body image, negative self-talk, disordered eating)
jenna_troppman's review against another edition
4.0
3.9 stars. What a lovely beach ready book. I enjoyed learning about their friend group although I thought the pack was a tad much. Simone had a little tooo strong of opinions about some relationships and was my least favorite friends. I feel like some storylines and things didn’t really get worked out but I honestly didn’t mind. I was really just here for the friends to lovers trope and the author did it well!
abimac's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
3.0
A fluff piece. V enjoyable, but nothing life changing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
allikenyouread's review
4.0
this actually may be my favorite friends to lovers book! there’s a plot beyond the trope, and i really love how she sets up each friend. it’s like sally rooney, with a more optimistic tone.
scottonreads's review against another edition
5.0
One of my favorite beach reads last summer was The Layover by @allaboutthat_lace. So you can only imagine how PUMPED I was to receive an early copy of her latest, From the Jump, via @netgalley.
And it did not disappoint! Y’all this was FUN. I could not put it down, and devoured it in one sitting.
Our gal Liv is typeA af, and a real rule follower. Fed up, she finally says no and makes a choice for herself. What follows is a very authentic story of Liv trying to figure her shit out. Some wild shit happens, and she leans on the support of her college friends including the very smolder-y Deiss.
I’m always a sucker for a slow burn, friends to lovers story. And this was all that but so much more! A trip to South Africa! Safari! Fabulous supporting characters that added just enough humor and drama.
This one isn’t out until July 5 - sorry to be such a tease
And it did not disappoint! Y’all this was FUN. I could not put it down, and devoured it in one sitting.
Our gal Liv is typeA af, and a real rule follower. Fed up, she finally says no and makes a choice for herself. What follows is a very authentic story of Liv trying to figure her shit out. Some wild shit happens, and she leans on the support of her college friends including the very smolder-y Deiss.
I’m always a sucker for a slow burn, friends to lovers story. And this was all that but so much more! A trip to South Africa! Safari! Fabulous supporting characters that added just enough humor and drama.
This one isn’t out until July 5 - sorry to be such a tease
scottonreads's review
4.0
One of my favorite beach reads last summer was The Layover by @allaboutthat_lace. So you can only imagine how PUMPED I was to receive an early copy of her latest, From the Jump, via @netgalley.
And it did not disappoint! Y’all this was FUN. I could not put it down, and devoured it in one sitting.
Our gal Liv is typeA af, and a real rule follower. Fed up, she finally says no and makes a choice for herself. What follows is a very authentic story of Liv trying to figure her shit out. Some wild shit happens, and she leans on the support of her college friends including the very smolder-y Deiss.
I’m always a sucker for a slow burn, friends to lovers story. And this was all that but so much more! A trip to South Africa! Safari! Fabulous supporting characters that added just enough humor and drama.
This one isn’t out until July 5 - sorry to be such a tease
And it did not disappoint! Y’all this was FUN. I could not put it down, and devoured it in one sitting.
Our gal Liv is typeA af, and a real rule follower. Fed up, she finally says no and makes a choice for herself. What follows is a very authentic story of Liv trying to figure her shit out. Some wild shit happens, and she leans on the support of her college friends including the very smolder-y Deiss.
I’m always a sucker for a slow burn, friends to lovers story. And this was all that but so much more! A trip to South Africa! Safari! Fabulous supporting characters that added just enough humor and drama.
This one isn’t out until July 5 - sorry to be such a tease
smill12's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A good beach read. Loved the MMC! All the heart eyes for Lucas Deiss.
reignitedreader's review against another edition
5.0
From the Jump follows Olivia (Liv) Bakersfield on her journey from the known to the unknown as she leaves her monotonous “treadmill” life to fly off to Africa with her college friend group. After reading Waldon’s fantastic debut, The Layover, I was excited to see another colorful-covered book coming up in publication. I absolutely loved this book and I would absolutely give it five stars.
Waldon’s voice is fresh and witty and I found myself commiserating with Liv and adoring her friend group right along with her. Waldon creates dynamic characters that jump off the page. Their friend group’s complex history is woven into the text in just the right way. I usually hate flashback scenes but I found myself eager to hear about how the five friends acted in college after they first met. With the addition of Liv and Deiss’ childhoods, I felt like I really knew the friends. I was sort of the silent member of the group watching everything unfold.
The plot of From the Jump kept me guessing. We open on Liv in college and then find ourselves in her office meeting Elena, her eclectic coworker. Then suddenly we’re in Africa and inside a car with Deiss, beginning to feel those first sparks of something that’s undeniably more than friendship between him and Liv. I love a good friends-to-lovers trope and this romance could not have been more perfect, even if Liv despises the word. Waldon created a lot of tension between the two that went on for a while. I loved it.
The dialogue is engaging and well done. I felt like I could insert myself into their conversations on every page and I thought Waldon did a great job creating distinct voices for each of the characters.
Avoiding spoilers, I’ll just say that I was really surprised by the plot twist after Liv’s return home from Africa. Wow. My stomach twisted as I read and I was actually anxious for her! It was shocking and really raised the stakes for Liv’s trajectory for the latter half of the book. Plus we then get those adorable scenes of domesticity between Liv and Deiss which warmed my heart.
The ending was dramatic and had my heart pounding in all the right ways. I kept feeling like yelling at Liv to just talk to Deiss but I knew she wouldn’t hear me. But in the end, it all culminated in a beautiful image of friends as family, a theme that came up throughout the text that I really appreciated. My final note: I love that Liv is a cat person. I’m a sucker for a book character that also loves cats.
I’m so glad I had the chance to read this book, it was such a fun read and perfect for this upcoming summer! A big thank you to Penguin Group Putnam for sending the digital ARC through Netgalley for an honest review!
Waldon’s voice is fresh and witty and I found myself commiserating with Liv and adoring her friend group right along with her. Waldon creates dynamic characters that jump off the page. Their friend group’s complex history is woven into the text in just the right way. I usually hate flashback scenes but I found myself eager to hear about how the five friends acted in college after they first met. With the addition of Liv and Deiss’ childhoods, I felt like I really knew the friends. I was sort of the silent member of the group watching everything unfold.
The plot of From the Jump kept me guessing. We open on Liv in college and then find ourselves in her office meeting Elena, her eclectic coworker. Then suddenly we’re in Africa and inside a car with Deiss, beginning to feel those first sparks of something that’s undeniably more than friendship between him and Liv. I love a good friends-to-lovers trope and this romance could not have been more perfect, even if Liv despises the word. Waldon created a lot of tension between the two that went on for a while. I loved it.
The dialogue is engaging and well done. I felt like I could insert myself into their conversations on every page and I thought Waldon did a great job creating distinct voices for each of the characters.
Avoiding spoilers, I’ll just say that I was really surprised by the plot twist after Liv’s return home from Africa. Wow. My stomach twisted as I read and I was actually anxious for her! It was shocking and really raised the stakes for Liv’s trajectory for the latter half of the book. Plus we then get those adorable scenes of domesticity between Liv and Deiss which warmed my heart.
The ending was dramatic and had my heart pounding in all the right ways. I kept feeling like yelling at Liv to just talk to Deiss but I knew she wouldn’t hear me. But in the end, it all culminated in a beautiful image of friends as family, a theme that came up throughout the text that I really appreciated. My final note: I love that Liv is a cat person. I’m a sucker for a book character that also loves cats.
I’m so glad I had the chance to read this book, it was such a fun read and perfect for this upcoming summer! A big thank you to Penguin Group Putnam for sending the digital ARC through Netgalley for an honest review!