#TBRChallenge2023 Review: Resolutions by Lucy Eden

Posted March 15, 2023 by Jen in Contemporary Romance, Rating B, Reviews Tags: , , , , ,

Book cover of Resolutions by Lucy EdenResolutions
Author:
 Lucy Eden
Reviewer:
Jen
Rating: B

#TBRChallenge

  • March’s Theme is “Baggage”
  • This book has been on my TBR since December 26, 2022, when I received it as a freebie.
  • Why I selected it: I’ve always wanted to read this author and the story sounded appealing.

What I’m Talking About:

Lucy Eden is one of those authors that I want to read, but just don’t seem to make the time. I picked up this freebie novella back in December 2022, and although it’s pretty new, I decided to read it. One could loosely apply baggage to the book, as the couple has been in love for three years, but held back out of fear of rejection and some past issues (baggage).

I’m a fan of the friends-to-lovers trope, and Resolutions doesn’t disappoint. Mike and Jane met three years ago at a concert and became fast friends. A year ago, Jane worked up the courage to tell Mike she wants to be more than friends, only to see him kiss another. After that painful rejection, she created a list of resolutions for the year, in hopes it would put her in a better place emotionally and mentally. Nearing the Christmas holiday, she still has a few items to check off. When Mike finds out about the list, he makes it his mission to see the items completed before the ball drops in Time Square.

Mike and Jane finding love is wonderful. In high school, I crushed on my best friend for over a year before we finally went on a date, so I completely related to Jane’s emotional state. Ms. Eden captures the warring feelings of excitement and fear as Mike seems to be getting closer and closer to Jane. 

The problem is, we don’t get to see Mike and Jane become best friends, so I just have to take Jane’s word on the matter. It’s a novella, so space is limited, but I would have preferred to know them as friends first. Mike goes from having a girlfriend to all-in with Jane in a matter of pages. And since we only have Jane’s POV, his apparent change-of-heart is confusing and potentially problematic since he supposedly has a girlfriend.

In the end, I enjoy Resolutions for what it is: a fun, easy, flirty novella about two best friends finally admitting to each other they are in love. I would like to try a full-length story by the author to see how she develops her characters and romance in a larger space.

My Rating: B
Jen

About the Book:

Mike is my best friend.

My tall, gorgeous, and bearded best friend.

We both share a love for music, Monty Python, dirty jokes and my grandmother’s homemade cookies. I also have a giant crush on Mike.

And he has no idea.

I tried to tell him at a New Year’s Eve party last year, but I lost my nerve, and he ended up with someone else. Armed with a broken heart and a massive hangover, I wrote a list of New Year’s resolutions intent on turning myself into New and Improved Jane who doesn’t let life pass her by.

With resolutions to check off the list and limited time to finish, I accepted Mike’s offer to help.

But spending all this time with Mike is bringing up feelings that I’d spent a better part of a year keeping under control. Mike has a girlfriend and I can’t risk losing my best friend, but sometimes the way he looks at me makes me think, maybe, he feels them too?

I’m probably just daydreaming, as usual…

Release Date: December 17, 2019
Publisher:
Self-Published
Series:
Standalone
Genre: Contemporary Romance, novella
Format(s):
e-book
Book Source: freebie download

Purchase Info:
Amazon (affiliate link)