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A review by rainymorningreads
Accidentally in Love by Belinda Missen
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.
This was a well-written, sweet and inspiring story about finding yourself, change, grief, and falling in love. Katherine is our 30-something protagonist living in London and working at a prestigious museum. When she is passed up for the promotion she worked for and knows she deserves, she quits her job. She takes a leap of faith and moves back near her family to open an art gallery of her own and yes, maybe fall in love.
I enjoyed this book a lot but not for the reasons I was expecting. If you follow any of the books I read, you know I love romances. I requested this on NetGalley because I thought I was getting a sweet, lighthearted romance. Everything from the cover to the synopsis made me think that’s what I was getting. I was honestly taken aback by the more serious tone of the book and the fact that there was no romance at all for the first half of the book. I need witty banter, flirting and sexual tension! Yes, there was some towards the end but not nearly enough for what I usually like in a romance.
That being said, I actually really enjoyed reading about Katherine’s self-development throughout the book. She quits her job and follows her dream to start her own art gallery and business. She left her sometimes-on sometimes-off boyfriend because she decided she deserved more than that. Yes girl! She hustled to get her business up and running with renovating the building, registering her business and social media advertising. Katherine knew what she wanted and I loved reading about her tackling her dreams.
Once the romance got going, it was definitely sweet. Kit was pretty awful to Katherine for the first half of the book and had a sudden change of heart that I guess was explained when we learn more about his past but it was still abrupt. However, watching their relationship build through working on the art gallery together was sweet and I was rooting for them the entire way.
Another aspect of this book I really appreciated were all the side characters. Katherine’s relationship with her best friend Lainey was so realistic. As they are getting older their relationship has changed – Lainey has been getting married, Katherine moved farther away and this slowly puts a strain on their friendship. Watching them work through this was raw, emotional and authentic. Katherine’s father, stepmother and brother were all fully-fleshed out characters with their own backstory and I enjoyed all of their interactions.
While the pace of this book was a bit slow, I found that I didn’t mind. The writing was engaging, funny and authentic. I was fully invested in Katherine’s journey and wanted to see her art gallery be successful. I recommend this book if you are looking for a story about self-development, change and romance!
This was a well-written, sweet and inspiring story about finding yourself, change, grief, and falling in love. Katherine is our 30-something protagonist living in London and working at a prestigious museum. When she is passed up for the promotion she worked for and knows she deserves, she quits her job. She takes a leap of faith and moves back near her family to open an art gallery of her own and yes, maybe fall in love.
I enjoyed this book a lot but not for the reasons I was expecting. If you follow any of the books I read, you know I love romances. I requested this on NetGalley because I thought I was getting a sweet, lighthearted romance. Everything from the cover to the synopsis made me think that’s what I was getting. I was honestly taken aback by the more serious tone of the book and the fact that there was no romance at all for the first half of the book. I need witty banter, flirting and sexual tension! Yes, there was some towards the end but not nearly enough for what I usually like in a romance.
That being said, I actually really enjoyed reading about Katherine’s self-development throughout the book. She quits her job and follows her dream to start her own art gallery and business. She left her sometimes-on sometimes-off boyfriend because she decided she deserved more than that. Yes girl! She hustled to get her business up and running with renovating the building, registering her business and social media advertising. Katherine knew what she wanted and I loved reading about her tackling her dreams.
Once the romance got going, it was definitely sweet. Kit was pretty awful to Katherine for the first half of the book and had a sudden change of heart that I guess was explained when we learn more about his past but it was still abrupt. However, watching their relationship build through working on the art gallery together was sweet and I was rooting for them the entire way.
Another aspect of this book I really appreciated were all the side characters. Katherine’s relationship with her best friend Lainey was so realistic. As they are getting older their relationship has changed – Lainey has been getting married, Katherine moved farther away and this slowly puts a strain on their friendship. Watching them work through this was raw, emotional and authentic. Katherine’s father, stepmother and brother were all fully-fleshed out characters with their own backstory and I enjoyed all of their interactions.
While the pace of this book was a bit slow, I found that I didn’t mind. The writing was engaging, funny and authentic. I was fully invested in Katherine’s journey and wanted to see her art gallery be successful. I recommend this book if you are looking for a story about self-development, change and romance!