Review: A Girl’s Guide to Moving On by Debbie Macomber

Date of Publication: 23rd February 2016

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Purchase: Amazon

Book description: In this powerful and uplifting novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber, a mother and her daughter-in-law bravely leave their troubled marriages and face the challenge of starting over. Leaning on each other, Nichole and Leanne discover that their inner strength and capacity for love are greater than they ever imagined.
When Nichole discovers that her husband, Jake, has been unfaithful, the illusion of her perfect life is indelibly shattered. While juggling her young son, a new job, and volunteer work, Nichole meets Rocco, who is the opposite of Jake in nearly every way. Though blunt-spoken and rough around the edges, Rocco proves to be a dedicated father and thoughtful friend. But just as their relationship begins to blossom, Jake wagers everything on winning Nichole back—including their son Owen’s happiness. Somehow, Nichole must find the courage to defy her fears and follow her heart, with far-reaching consequences for them all.

Leanne has quietly ignored her husband’s cheating for decades, but is jolted into action by the echo of Nichole’s all-too-familiar crisis. While volunteering as a teacher of English as a second language, Leanne meets Nikolai, a charming, talented baker from Ukraine. Resolved to avoid the heartache and complications of romantic entanglements, Leanne nonetheless finds it difficult to resist Nikolai’s effusive overtures—until an unexpected tragedy tests the very fabric of her commitments.

An inspiring novel of friendship, reinvention, and hope, A Girl’s Guide to Moving On affirms the ability of every woman to forge a new path, believe in love, and fearlessly find happiness.

My review:

Debbie Macomber is one of my go-to author when it comes to romance. I just love her writing style and I can always connect with the stories she tells in her books. So when I saw that she has a new book coming out, I jumped at chance of reading it cos I was sure that I would love it like I love all her other books.

Basically, A Girl’s Guide to Moving on centers around a daughter and mother-in-law duo called Nichole and Leanne who left their husbands who were caught cheating. They then moved into the same apartment complex and live just across from each other, and together they navigated through the next phase of their lives aka the moving on part, hence the title of the book. Together they came up with a set of ‘rules’ that they have to follow such as make new friends, try something new, etc etc. The stories were told in alternate POV of Nichole and Leanne.

I love the concept of the daughter and mother-in-law going through the same thing because we can see how different they are when dealing with the divorce and the aftermath of it. I also love their relationship because they were there for each other when things get hard and when they are in need of a pep talk or cheer up. I also love how they genuinely care for each other and knows what’s best for the other person and how they (especially Leanne, being the older one and supposedly the ‘mother’ to Nichole) did not try to dictate how their life should be. I also love Rocco, and imagined him like a toughie but an old teddy bear.

However, there are a few things that I did not like about this book. I felt that the alternate POV could have been written a little more smoothly cos there are times when it felt flat, like I couldn’t feel the emotion when I read them. I also do not like Nikolai. Maybe some people would feel his action of being protective over Leanne is sweet but whenever I read about Nikolai, I just felt the need to skip the part, which sucks because I love Leanne! And I also do not like how things were ‘resolved’ between Leanne and her ex-husband because I felt that Sean do not deserve the kind of treatment Leanne gave to him.

Overall, this is still a good read, pretty enjoyable at some parts especially when it comes to Nichole and Rocco, which I loved! Recommended to those who love a good romance that would uplift your spirit a little bit.

My rating: 4/5 stars

Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange of honest reviews. All opinions are mine.