ARC Review: Rachel, Out of Office by Christina Hovland

Single mom Rachel Gibson seriously needs a break. Between an absent ex-husband, rowdy twin boys, and running her own work-from-home business, her candle isn’t just burning at both ends, it’s a full-blown puddle of wax. She’s the go-to girl for other entrepreneurs, handling all the tasks they dread. Social media posts? She’s got it. Website updates? She’s on it. Light bookkeeping? She loves it.

Thank goodness Rachel’s about to get a reprieve, as her former in-laws plan to whisk her boys away for a summer of fun at the family lake house. But when her ex backs out at the last minute, she finds herself in a pickle. Even though she’s drowning in to-dos, she’s horrible at saying no—especially when it comes to providing some stability for her kids.

Once Rachel arrives at the lake house, she struggles to keep up with work and balance the demands of family, all the while fending off pesky new feelings for her ex-brother-in-law. Which makes her wonder…is falling for her ex-husband’s brother just one more messy complication added to the dumpster fire of her life? Or is anything possible when she’s out of office…?

My Thoughts

“I’m comfortable. I’m a place you can relax. And you’re a place I can be serious. Don’t take that away.”

Rachel, Out of Office, Christina Hovland

 

I would like to thank the publisher for this e-ARC copy of the book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rachel, Out of Office is my first Christina Hovland novel, and it did not disappoint. It has all the elements I love in any romantic comedy book – witty, funny characters, closely knit family ties, steamy romance, and great story-telling from start to finish. With the amusing blurb and adorable cover, it definitely screams an amazing rom-com already.

One of my favorite underrated romance trope is the single parent trope. This novel totally nailed that trope to the T with workaholic single mom Rachel juggling to taking care of her twin boys, their dogs, and maintain a social life. Rachel was just a joy of a character because she embodied a lot of dilemmas and sacrifices mothers make in order to maintain a home and take care of her family. She also just screams a perfectionist Pinterest mom which made her even more endearing. The twins were also such a pleasure to read as they wrecked havoc and chaos together, and with their dogs. On the other hand, Travis is the perfect uncle and gentleman to them, and you can’t help but swoon and fall in love with him, especially with how he took care of everyone despite their prejudices against him. Rachel and Travis’ relationship was just full of fluff and steam, and I enjoyed it slowly develop within the pages.

Family is a big theme in this novel, and while it was dysfunctional, they all made adjustments to take care and respect one another. The book definitely nailed its goal on exploring the different sides of every family’s relationship, and how to overcome each other’s differences. The amount of love and care in this story just made it even more fluffy and sweet – even though I wanted to hurt Evelyn so badly at some point lol.

Over-all, this book is a great and highly amusing read. I definitely recommend this to anyone (not just to single moms) if you are looking for something light and funny to pass the time.

My Rating

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Rachel, Out of Office will be released on January 25th, so make sure to pre-order your copies now!

About The Author

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Christina Hovland lives her own version of a fairy tale: an artisan chocolatier by day and romance writer by night. Born in Colorado, Christina received a degree in journalism from Colorado State University. Before opening her chocolate company, Christina’s career spanned from the television newsroom to managing an award-winning public relations firm. She’s a recovering overachiever and perfectionist with a love of cupcakes and dinner she doesn’t have to cook herself. A 2017 Golden Heart® finalist, she lives in Colorado with her first-boyfriend-turned-husband, four children, the sweetest dog around, and now Chloe, the wonder pup.

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