I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This was an enjoyable book.

Lessons in Love by Belinda Missen is a heartwarming romance, that I really enjoyed. Eleanor Manning has decided to leave the city and her soon-to-be-ex-husband, and moving back to Apollo Bay where she lived as a child. Eleanor is sharing a flat with her best friend Penny, and working at an elementary school library. Eleanor has sworn off men, until she meets handsome teacher Marcus. If you enjoy funny and sweet romances, I recommend this book.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and the publisher. Thank you.

I am so sorry indeed that it took me this much time to read this book. Even though it has gone to archive I downloaded it and want to give my feedback to thank NetGalley and the Publisher of the book.

I greatly and instantly fell in love with this book! An amusing reading read with numerous accounts of hilarious occasions and essentially a very much needed ending which I devoured with such pleasure.

The narration follows Eleanor as she comes back to her childhood surrounding - home and school in the aftermath of her divorce.
You read about her life working as a librarian and meeting a big array of teachers that just puts you in the mood to go down the memory lane and remember your quirky teachers with their dress code - often appalling to yourself in those teenage years.

The best part of this book is the attempt to humanize the teachers that children sometimes regard as aliens - you can read how all those things happening to a regular person can happen to them also.

Eleanor is a character you see yourself constantly rooting on and for at the same time. You want her to succed in her work, in her flat sharing adventure, at everything that comes her way and love of course.
I would describe this as a book for a picture perfect summer read that should only be accompanied with a glittery cocktail.

Eleanor has walked out on her cheating husband and has returned to her hometown. She has moved in to her best friends spare room and has found a job at the local school, where she meets colleague Marcus, who reminds her too much of her ex, yet there seems to be a spark of something…

This is a humorous story about life after divorce and moving on from the life you expected. If you like a slow burn, this is for you.

Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

This book was a cute and fluffy romance that had a lot of ups and down. First I would characterize this story as an enemy to lovers romance. Marcus rubs Eleanor all the wrong ways. He reminds her of her ex husband that cheated on her with her best friend, uh. What she doesnt know is he has been hurt as well by an ex wife and is looking for the same values and values in a mate that she is. It was easy to see how Eleanor's past caused destruction in her future. She didnt want to trust anyone and felt like there was always a motive to someone wanting her help or assistance. I was heartbroken when her mother did not show up at the airport but was happy that the author ended the book with the relationship not perfect but on the mend. Overall this was a great story about a woman getting what she always wanted and truly deserved.


Thank you to netgalley and Belinda Missen for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion and review.

Eleanor Manning is finally leaving behind her glittering but empty life in the city (and her soon-to-be-ex-husband) to return to the comfort of her childhood home in Apollo Bay.

She’s landed a lovely new job in her old primary school library and a flatshare with her bubbly best friend, Penny. So yes, she’s well and truly learnt her lesson when it comes to love…

But then she meets gorgeous teacher Marcus Blair and Eleanor’s self-imposed rules fly out of the window! Surely she can resist him long enough to keep this fling no strings attached?

This was a quick, easy read full of warmth and happiness!

*Book received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This book resonates for all of us who are in love, have fallen in love and think we know what love is all about. Funny, quick read and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Great read! Funny, well written and enjoyable.

Good characters, and a story that flowed nicely.

I really liked this and will look for more work by this author.

Thank you NetGalley for my advanced copy.

Such a sweet book about getting back out into the world after everything around you starts to crumble. The humor was great and the characters had me laughing so hard, they were super relateable and the forced proximity is such a great romance trope!

I enjoyed reading this and found the characters incredible likeable.
It is a gently, quick, easy and warm read .
I enjoyed the connection and chemistry between Marcus and Eleanor, and enjoyed the humour.
All in all a pleasant book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

From the very first page I fell in love with Belinda's writing. I feel like Belinda's words just pop off the page with so much energy. Every sentence was detailed and entertaining and I found myself easily getting captivated and pulled into the story. I just wanted to keep turning the page like I was entranced.

As for this gorgeous story itself there was so much in this book that I could relate to. Eleanor Manning is currently going through a difficult time. She found out her husband was cheating and has decided to move home and move in with her best friend. Things aren't all sad as she has scored a job in her old primary school working in the library and she feels better to be getting away from the world of money and emptiness she was in when with her ex. But life isn't all smooth sailing. Divorce's aren't fun and she has to try and let go of her past and insecurities if she wants to really leave her past behind and experience her present to it's fullest.

I felt like I was with Eleanor, side by side while she was going through her divorce. I could feel her emotions and understood those moments of realization. She pulled at my heartstrings when she finally realized what happened and how her husband chose to go about it wasn't her fault. I highlighted that bit as a gentle reminder and felt grateful to have someone that I could connect with. Isn't that such a beautiful thing about books? I love that often books come to us at the right time in our lives and we meet friends that can make us not feel so alone. Eleanor was such a lovely character with a sweetness about her that I really enjoyed. I loved that she was a school teacher and the premise of her going to work in her old primary school, as that is something I could also relate to having just done the same. It was fun getting to go back with her as she got reacquainted with old teachers who used to teach her. I thought it was really cool that she worked in the school library and got to encourage the children to read, but also that she could play piano. There were lots of interesting quirks about her that made her a wonderful leading lady.

Eleanor's best friend Penny was such a fun and charismatic ball of energy. I liked their easy going banter and how they were both very different but there for each other and honest with each other. They were able to teach each other through their different perspectives and made for a lovely dynamic.

Now, Marcus. I really liked Marcus and have to say that with his teacher status, his way with kids and his cheeky personality, he was certainly swoon worthy. Ellie and Marcus's banter was cute and playful and will have you wanting more. I loved how their relationship built; how they pushed and challenged each other, but even though I understood that they had both been through divorce so navigating their feelings for each other was difficult at times, I didn't always like it when they argued. I sometimes thought Eleanor was too hard on him and it made me sad when she compared him to her ex. However, they find their groove and work beautifully together once they let go of the past and focus on what they have in front of them. It's wonderful to see them open up and relax with each other. They had me giggling and grinning from ear to ear most of the time.

Eleanor's journey is one of re-discovering yourself and finding what it is that brings joy to your life. Sometimes you have to get back to your roots to do that, stand up for yourself and also take chances.

This was such an awesome read; fun, sexy, emotional and entertaining. I highly recommend you pick up a copy of 'Lessons in Love' today!

I'm so sorry. I gave Lessons in Love a try but just could not finish it. I didn't like the writing. I found it to be disjointed in parts and all of the pop culture references were distracting.

I wasn't sure what to expect if this book - for some reason I am not keen on books set in Australia/New Zealand - a bit random I know. But I was surprised. It was a lovely story and you were willing the 2 main characters to see the light and form a relationship. This is the second book I have read by this author and I like her style of writing.

Initially i began this book and found it quite slow paced and boring, so i skipped the first few chapters and began to properly read it.

I fell in love with all the characters and i then read this book within a few hours!

I would highly recommend this book as it was definitely one of the best rom-com books i have read recently!

#LessonsInLove # NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for a free e-arc for review.

The synopsis for Lessons in Love sounded right up my alley, so I was surprised when it was a bit of a slow start.

This, unfortunately, was a reading experience in which I enjoyed the first half of the book more so than the second. Eleanor is working past a rough divorce, catching up with her cousin Penny, and starting a new job at the school she once attended. There's a handsome, kind, hard-working teacher introduced as a potential love interest, and several other characters to fill out the scenes. Think romcom with all the fixings.

It was easier for me to like Eleanor in the beginning, when she was trying to get back to herself, than in the end. She was cruel in speaking about another woman to her love interest - you can feel territorial about the guy you have a crush on without cutting down someone else. She was mean to her cousin who was just trying to help, interpreting the cousin's remarks as something they weren't. And she took a simple mistake to be a serious infraction - this one in particular blew me away, and seemed entirely unrealistic (i.e. that other people would humor her and treat it like something that needed to be fixed, not just a little oversight!).

I get it. Some people are like this, and I think as readers, we're supposed to come around to Eleanor regardless. But it just didn't really work for me. It's hard for me to really enjoy a romance when I don't feel, at minimum, a certain kinship with the lead.

I'll refrain from quoting, as I read an e-arc, but the suggestion that life isn't worth living if you're a partner-free, childfree woman? With remarks like that, it wasn't surprising that this main character just wasn't for me.

I liked the other themes presented here, and it's always nice to read a book with a happy ending. This one wasn't for me, but it might be for you!

Cute summertime, chick-lit read. Overall I found the characters likable and was able to breeze through this book pretty quickly. Highly recommend for a light, fun read!

Belinda is great! Never lets me down.
A fab read, lots of fun. Lovely book from a lovely lady. Can’t wait for her next.

When I started this book I was really intrigued by the first paragraph. Meeting Eleanor Manning at a time in her life where her husband has been having an affair with her best friend, I was expecting a story of new beginnings and finding yourself.
I struggled to like Ellie the main character. Getting a divorce must be hard for anyone but for me playing the victim became annoying. Although I finished the novel I don’t think the outcome is particularly realistic. I wish there had been more chapters on Penny’s story as she seemed fun and full of life.
It wasn’t a bad read but I feel Marcus should have been treated much better. 2.5/5