The Spare Room

REVIEWcw: body-shaming, gaslighting, mentions of dieting, cheating, bullying, and childhood traumaWhen Rosie Butler is dumped by her long-term boyfriend, she has to find someone to help pay rent. In steps her elusive and extremely handsome neighbour, Aled Thomas, while his flat is renovated.I loved this cute romance. Rosie and Aled were both interesting characters, each with their own insecurities and self-doubts because of the way they'd been treated, but I loved how supportive they became of each other, and how they flourished together. Aled was so swoon-worthy, and I really loved Rosie's kindness and empathy. They were SO adorable together, and even though the miscommunication was predictable, it was thankfully not too drawn out. The ending was so cute that it more than made up for it.I empathised with Rosie at the insurance company. What I loved most, other than the romance, was how Rosie came to understand just how unbalanced her closest relationships had been. In comparison, Aled treated her as an equal right from the start. James was obnoxious at best, and her family was a whole other level of unhealthy. I loved it when she finally confronted her mother and James. I loved Niamh. She was such a supportive friend, and I empathised with her struggles as a new parent. I also immediately loved Rhianne, as well as the rough pub karaoke crew.This was another gentle story of self-acceptance and finding agency from Laura Starkey.Overall Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️.5Heat Rating: 🔥

I thought characters were well written and felt an affinity to the main character and enjoyed the evolution of her story.I thought this was a lovely rom-com with a satisfying ending and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a lighthearted romance.

I didn’t like how it spent so long belittling the female character. It kind of became repetitive. The final few chapters were good though

My favourite book so far by this author. This story gives all the feels! It's like a warm hug, but in written form. The characters are all likeable - especially Rosie - but this author excels at writing shoddy book boyfriends, and The Spare Room is no exception (looking at you James). It's a blissful slow burn of a romance (thankfully with a very lovely Welsh hero, Aled), with a few twists and turns that keep the reader guessing along the way. The perfect read to sink into for an afternoon or two, and the ending will have you grinning.

A very sweet and cheerful story. Loved how Rosie had grown through the story. It was a slow burner, but still a very cute read.

I loved this book. I’ve been a tad bored of rom coms lately but I couldn’t resist picking this book up on Kindle as I’m rather partial to the forced proximity trope.Rosie is one of the most relatable and normal female characters I have had the pleasure of getting to know in a really long time.If you want a swoon worthy love interest, you will not find a better one than Aled.I think I fell for him myself.Laura Starkey is one of my go to authors and I can’t wait to see what she does next.

I found this story really slow to start. But once you get into the actual story. It's a page turner.Brilliant 👏

Was looking for a story I could escape into . Although each character had potential, the overall story was boring, and I found myself skim reading the majority of the book.

I loved so much about this book. The yearning, the found family, the bio family dynamics, the James subplot...But I can't help but feel it just fell a little short. Everything could have been better with some different pacing and a real climax. There was never a point where I wondered how'd they make it to romance at the end of the book, I could map exactly what happened several chapters in advance.But as romances go, the best I've read in a while for it's ability to captivate me. Blew through this in less than a week while having a lot of other responsibilities that I grievously ignored. I loved Aled most of all, but they all were missing a certain depth that could've taken this story to the next level.Overall, would definitely read again and recommend to anyone that wanted something cozy and sweet instead of having your heart ripped from your chest for the hundredth time.

The love story of two young people who grow into new versions of themselves, supporting each other in becoming better people, facing their fears and overcoming them together.

This was such a heartwarming, lovely story. It was funny and relatable and romantic.I know I can definitely relate to Rosie in many ways, and reading this made me feel all the feels.

I’m so glad I found this, it was the perfect rom com read I was seeking for. Some parts I chuckled to, and as a millennial all the throwback references was so relatable.Rosie was a bit of a Bridget Jones type to me with her insecurities and the way those around her treat that the novel is also a story of her discovering her inner worth as she falls in true love.I was smitten with Aled as soon as he referenced the 2009 Emma miniseries with Jonny Lee Miller being the superior Mr Knightley.If only this would be made into a Nora Ephron movie with the Welsh accent dark handsome Poldark type come to life!

A much-needed romance injection. This book was just lovely and I couldn’t put it down until it was all finished.