Lost in a Good Book

Published: 17th June 2019
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 352
Format: ebook
Genre: Romance
★   ★   ★   ★ – 4 Stars

Fall in love like nobody’s watching…

On the wrong side of thirty, Bonnie Yates wants a happily ever after. Problem is, she keeps choosing the wrong guys. When an ex returns to town with a fiancée in tow, history and temptation collide. Unable to shake her inappropriate feelings Bonnie flees, becoming an unlikely contestant on popular dating show The One. Will she find what she’s looking for?

Working behind the scenes, Darcy Reed is a driven young producer, dealing with a tyrant of a boss. Despite being surrounded by love at work, her own love-life with long-term boyfriend Drew is floundering. Producing a flawless season is her best chance at a promotion. But with the unrelenting demands of the show, how will she save their relationship while making that shot?

Penelope Baker has relocated to a small seaside town to hide away with her secrets and nurse a broken heart. But with The One beaming across the nation’s televisions, she can’t seem to quite escape the life she left behind…

Before cameras roll on the final ceremony, all three women will discover just what they’re willing to do in pursuit of the one…

Note: I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley

This a wonderful story about the different types of love and the unexpected ways you find someone. I loved the different characters and their journeys. Their voices were honest and while they certainly were foolish at times, there is a great human flaw to them. There’s a strange mix of predictability, but also the uncertainty that the story would go in that direction.

There are multiple character perspectives and May seamlessly transitions between them within the same chapter. I was never confused about who the focus was on and it shifted like a camera focus remarkably well. Bonnie is a great character because while she is hopeful and idealistic in her search for love, she is flawed as a result. I wouldn’t call her naïve, but she is idealistic maybe which then affects her actions.

Darcy was an interesting contrast because while I could see where her story was going, I enjoyed the journey we took to get there. May teases it out so that you have all the information and the history without any of the drama involved. I liked this method because it didn’t rely on the dramatics or the conflict, it made it real based on her story and experiences.

Penelope’s role is slightly smaller but I enjoyed her narrative. She brings a great mystery into this love story and following her secretive life allows for a lot of theories to swirl through your mind. The secondary characters were just as well developed as the key players and May knows when to bring a shift to character personalities which make you see them differently. It was amazing to see my own perspectives of them shift within a few key sentences and how the same actions could be reinterpreted.

There are a lot of different romantic relationships happening through this story and while some are inevitable, others are a nice mixture of complexity and realistic development. I really enjoyed all the different relationships and friendships May explores. I wasn’t expecting this story to have as much depth as it does. It isn’t as light-hearted as one would expected but that also doesn’t mean there isn’t wonderful romantic and heartfelt moments. For a book centred around a reality show about finding the love of your life, there is a great exploration of the different types of love and discovering which one works best for you. Even if you aren’t a fan of The Bachelor or those types of shows you will still love this behind the scenes look about what happens to those looking for love. A great read.

The expected publication for The One is 17th June 2019. You can pre-order via the following

Booktopia | Book Depository

Angus and Robinson |  Fishpond

Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible