Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read and review this title. I will review this title at a different date.

Great book full of heart and soul.

I heard a lot about this book before I went in so I was a little anxious that it might have been too hyped up but I ended up thoroughly enjoying!

The only thing I struggled with to begin with was knowing when she was day dreaming and what was real

As a mom to four littles, three of which are in school, I found this book hilarious. So many aspects are completely on point. The stresses of being that perfect "class mom" are real and it's at times quite obnoxious. I really enjoyed some of Holly's witty banter and inner thoughts. At times though I must admit she did annoy me. I'm glad I pushed through and finished this one. 

Thank you Netgalley and Lake Union for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I couldn't really get into this book at all.  While I am a mom, I am not a mom in one of those "perfect" cities and am not the type to join the PTA or care what anybody thinks of me.  The story felt forced and I did not enjoy reading it.  I guess I'm just not the target audience, but I feel sorry for those who are.  Moms of young kids who feel inadequate may relate to the character and enjoy it.

This was such a fun feel good uplifting story! I love these books about neighborhoods and how people interact with one another. I especially like when social and school politics are thrown in. A fun story filled with my little pony, topiaries, and pies.

I think this book is definitely for a niche group of people. I think I would ideally reccomend it to either mom's that begrudge school duties/volunteering, or for mom's that have a sense of humour. Holly spends a lot of time complaining about being a mom, the duties that her daughter's school try to impose on her, and other mothers. So, if this isn't something you would find funny (and it's definitely written funny), then this may not be the book for you.

I however, am not a mom, and found this to fall a little flat for me. I read the description, and thought that it would be an interesting read. I normally expect books like this to be quite surface level with the mom stuff - but it definitely went quite in depth (I remember a rant about the benefits/consequences of sippy cups and it made me TIRED). Additionally, I think it was quite complex for the book that I thought I was getting. Within the first 10% of the book, there was Holly's move to a new city, the PTA drama, a strange man looking for her husband (and potential issues with him), complaints about her job/lacktherof, her mothers alcohol/gambling addiction.. I'm sure there is more, but that's what I actually took notes on. 

Now, as for the positives, I really enjoyed the actual format of the book. I liked the hints at scripts/screenwriting, and found those parts to be well utilized. I also think that Julie Valerie has a knack for comedy writing. I think if this book was maybe edited down a little, I would have liked it a lot more (and read it a lot faster). I definitely would not avoid any of her other work, because I think there is still potential there for me to enjoy it.

I found this book to be amusing and a great commentary on motherhood. It reminded me a bit of Class Mom, which is a compliment. I look forward to reading more from this world.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

It has great potential but it was too unrealistic for me and I couldn't connect to the characters.The story centers on Holly Banks who recently moved to the upscale Village of Primm right before her daughter starts kindergarten. Holly is basically a hot mess.The vibe of the book reminded me a bit of Gilmore Girls  which should be good but this one took it to another level.

So funny! Holly was an enjoyable character, and I dearly missed her when I swiped the last page. Holly Banks Full of Angst was a fun way to address all the anxiety that we can relate to in a fun, often exaggerated, way. 


I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union publishing for letting me have a ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

In the beginning I had a hard time connecting with this book. Once I did get past several DNF stopping points, I found it light hearted, upbeat and funny. There are so many moments I couldn’t stop laughing. Holly relocating to an over the top community called the Village of Primm and like any overwhelmed Mom finds herself fighting to keep herself above water with everything going wrong in every aspect and also trying to fit in with all the other Joneses. She later finds out nothing is as perfect as they seem. I really loved the character Greta and her outlook on life. All the movie talk in the book I found somewhat confusing and some parts I had to reread. All in all, it was a fun cheerful read to remind us all that no one lives a perfect calm life.

I struggled to get into this book. I found it a little cliche. It was alright, It was ok. It just wasn't spectacular.

I had to DNF this around 36% and I really hate doing that but I just could not get into this book. It was a little over the top and I just felt like it was a chore to keep trying to read this. I do hope to go back and try it again at a later point because I hate leaving a book unfinished but for now this book just wasn’t for me.

Honestly, the book sure has a great title, but the angst masquerades as craziness. Holly Banks and her family have moved to the village of Primm, where all sorts of insanity ensues. A lot happens in a very short period of time and I don't think I will really retain much of this story long term. The head of the PTA seems to be out to get Holly, the cable guy makes her question life choices, her mom (a newly anointed cat doula) shows up and the Psychic Betty schtick doesn't quite work like Bernadette's overseas personal assistant.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley for me ebook! 

Holly Banks is swimming upstream in a ridiculous, over the top, small community called Primm. It is a fairly realistic tale of how it feels putting your child in what feels like the best school in the right place, but feeling overwhelming pressure to do the right thing, be the best mom. She can’t live up to the “Facebook quality” community, moving a week before her daughter’s first week of kindergarten across the country. I could completely relate, as can any mom who would read this.

I did feel like the archenemy and PTO president, Mary-Margaret, was displayed over the top. I seriously wanted to reach in the book and punch her a few times. Her character could have been downplayed a bit more.

My favorite character had to be Holly’s mom, Greta, who secretly showed up at her house with her belongings and a pregnant car, claiming to be a cat doula. 

I enjoyed the book, and rate it a solid 3 stars!

This book was just ok for me. I thought some things were forced, but I could also relate to Holly in some ways, it doesn’t stand out as a book I’ll remember forever, but I enjoyed my time reading it.

We all want to have the perfect life. We all look at others and see their lives as flawless, often wondering how they can do it when our own is so catastrophic. It's the premise of a lot of books and when done well, it's a riot of laughs, mishaps and (hopefully) a happy ending, or some sort of contentment at the realisation that everyone's lives suck a little so it's fine. Here, it sadly just felt like it was trying too hard to sit within this circle of great books by being over the top and hammering everything too much, and instead fell flat. I feel like I've read a similar plot done much better elsewhere. Not one for me, I'm afraid.

Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. After about twelve chapters, I have decided to end the book. The start was a bit interesting, however, the story became a bit tedious to read. I could not engage with any of the characters and the storyline seemed to be getting nowhere. Simply put. it is not my kind of reading material at this moment. Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was actually pretty disappointing for me.  I really didn't feel a connection with Holly Banks enough to care about all the stuff she was going through.  I often felt like everything was overexaggerated and just ridiculous, which was probably the intent, but I am not a fan.  The characterization felt similar to that of the Shopaholic series, which I only read the first one because it wasn't my thing. However, if you enjoy that series and are looking to see a motherhood spin on it, this book could be for you.

Getting straight to the point, this was just over the top, cringey, forced humour with a very simplistic plot. I have seen a couple other reviews likening this to the movie Bad Moms and I could definitely see why within the first couple of chapters. I might have actually enjoyed this if it was a movie but at the same time I think it's been done so many times that I could guess what was happening next and it just made me roll my eyes constantly at how cliché it all was.

I couldn't like any of the characters because there was either barely any involvement with them in the story to be able to actually form an opinion or the other characters were going on long monologues where I just glazed over every time they were talking.

I really wish I could have liked this one because I thought it would be the type of sarcastic, witty humour I adore but instead it was just awkward for me to read... I mean I kept getting second hand embarrassment from everything Holly or Mary Margaret did.

I had a hard time with this book.  I think it was supposed to be funny but I didn't find it to be at all.  I was confused by the movie directions that showed up.  I am not a mother so I guess I can't relate on that basis.  Although I do live in an area that does sometimes have the "Keeping up with the Jones'" attitude, I have never subscribed to that, so I also felt it unrelatable and at times I lost my patience with the characters.  The approach in this book was different but it just didn't work for me.