Book Review: Maybe This Time

Author: Kasie West

Publisher: Point

Genre: YA contemporary

Release date: 7/9/19

My rating: 4.5/5 stars

Synopsis:

“One year. Nine events. Nine chances to . . . fall in love?

Weddings. Funerals. Barbecues. New Year’s Eve parties. Name the occasion, and Sophie Evans will be there. Well, she has to be there. Sophie works for the local florist, so she can be found at every big event in her small hometown, arranging bouquets and managing family dramas.

Enter Andrew Hart. The son of the fancy new chef in town, Andrew is suddenly required to attend all the same events as Sophie. Entitled, arrogant, preppy Andrew. Sophie just wants to get her job done and finish up her sketches so she can apply to design school. But every time she turns around, there is Andrew, getting in her way and making her life more complicated. Until one day she wonders if maybe complicated isn’t so bad after all . . .

Told over the course of one year and following Sophie from event to event, this delightful novel from master of romantic comedy Kasie West shows how love can blossom in unexpected places.”

I gotta say . . . Kasie West has been a long time favorite author of mine. However, after reading two her books last year that I didn’t enjoy I was scared to go into this book. The premise sounded amazing so I was terrified that I’d end up not liking it (which would have honestly broken my heart). However, I’m so happy to say that I did in fact love this book! It isn’t my favorite one she has ever written, but it was adorable, funny, and very enjoyable. It’s a lovely summer read that is perfect for escaping a reading slump.

I really liked the nine event pacing of this story! Watching the characters (and their various dynamics) change over the course of a year felt organic. It was well written and the way Kasie West adapted her writing to fit the plot made it a very quick read! I could hardly put this one down as I rushed through all the events while laughing and swooning over the dialogue and events! It was a lot of fun and Kasie West’s signature banter really shined in this story.

Speaking of that pacing, the character development in this book was unreal (in the best way). The transformation between everyone was easy to fall into. I couldn’t help but cheer for Sophie, Andrew, and Micah as they all discovered themselves over the course of the story. I especially had a hard time relating to and understanding Sophie in the first part of the story, but I really appreciated her the further I got into the book.

Oh, and of course there’s the romance. I am a SUCKER for a Kasie West romance. One of the reasons I was so excited for this one in particular is that I am also a sucker for a good hate-to-love romance… and Kasie West made my heart whole by putting them together perfectly! It was swoony, adorable, fun, and full of all the flirting and banter I needed in my life.

Overall this was a really fun read! It was classic Kasie West charm and is perfect for reading during anytime of the year.