A review by boldconfused
Penelope in Retrograde by Brooke Abrams

4.0

 

Okay, so after reading Night of a Thousand Darlas and Penelope in Retrograde, Brooke Abrams has officially made it to auto buy status for me.  I love the wit, the banter, and the relatable chaotic characters that she creates. I can also see her MCs and plots becoming same-y. Because Liza from Darlas, felt similar in personality to Penelope. In spite of that, I’m still enjoying her books. I need a new one ASAP. 

 

In this story Abrams blended humor and heart in a story about what happens when someone returns home to the version of themselves they thought they’d outgrown. Loved how she manage to still put heart and cute flirty moments in between the funny unhinged shenanigans. 

 

The sibling and parent dynamics were spot on. I was kind of on the fence about how I wanted the romance to play out but thankfully the choices that were made gave the story a satisfying ending.  

 

My only real critiques were that the story started to feel a little too long towards the middle end. But it got back on track and finished strong . Also, the astrology was more of a light garnish than a main ingredient. There was way more talk of moon phases and what phases symbolized than zodiac signs. 

 

Overall I highly recommend. When I finished this book, I realized her writing style reminds me of another author that I like named Sara Goodman Confino. If you’re familiar with her books then you will get what I mean. If not, I recommend her book Don’t Forget to Write. It’s so good.