Really easy read that had my hooked from the beginning and I finished in just a few sessions. Likeable characters. I’m not sure the title suited the content of the book- it was more about her return to her hometown that about a rebound.

I did not want to put this book down! The Rebound by Catherine Walsh is a book that not only has romantic drama but also family drama plus all the feels. Abby is headed back Ireland after losing everything-her job, her fiancee, and her apartment. She runs into a "hot guy" on her first night back who ends up being the literal guy next door that she grew up with. There are several misunderstandings through the book with Abby and Luke, the "hot guy," as Abby not only juggles him and her job search, but also her attempt to find a way to redefine her relationship with her sister. While I would have liked for the book to have focused more on the romance part (although it definitely contained its fair share), I very much enjoyed watching Abby attempt to bounce back from everything that happened to her and make new relationships and repair old ones. I liked that her "rebound" wasn't just about love.

The Rebound by Catherine Walsh was everything I wanted from a Romance book right now.. It was chic, it was fun, it was soo steamy and made my heart go awww in all the right places..

Abby Reynolds has always dreamed the world and was never afraid to go and get it.. But when her world came crashing down, she chose to come back home to the cold marshy Ireland.. But Clonard, which had felt so lonely, and harsh once before now feels more like home. Maybe it is the handsome Luke or the friendships she forged here or the feeling of being alive. But things are not going to be the same anymore..

Thank you Netgalley and Publishers for the e-arc.. Anyone looking for a quick read with chic characters and predictably fun story should definitely pick it up

“What I'm saying is, if you feel you have to make a choice, then sometimes you already know. Sometimes you're not making a choice at all. You're just delaying the inevitable."

Thank you so much to Catherine Walsh and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book.

From the first page, the book had me hooked, maybe it was the character's inner monologues or maybe the writing style. The story had no filler chapters, it started right off the bat, and as the story progressed we get to understand more and more about each character and their relationship. Something I loved the most was the no chapter was boring, there was something happening in every chapter and that was what kept my attention.

Abby is a wreck and that's probably why it was so fun to read about it. She's one of those city folks who think nothing in the countryside can hold a candle to the looming skyscrapers, busy roads, and pollution. But that's far from the truth. She also believes her life in New York was everything a person could dream of and watching her come to the slow realization that there's more to it was amusing. There's a saying for this in Sanskrit called Kupa Manduka that translates to "frogs in the well imagines the well, their home, to be the whole world and, therefore, becomes pompous" and that's exactly what Abby reminded me of. However, I loved reading her mind change slowly but surely after 30 years. That's the beauty of this book even though the ending may be predictable it's the journey that counts. I loved watching her relationship with everyone grow and her starting to understand herself and the others around her. She was so focused on herself that she never paid attention to people around her and just reading her character development was amazing.

I also enjoyed reading how Abby's relationship with Louise grew so much over the course of her stay and they began to understand each other better. And getting to read about Louise's own journey was just simply amazing. I found myself rooting for Jess and Beth from the beginning. And Jess's friendship with Abby was one filled with such humorous moments. I especially liked the ending and how it all wrapped up together. Even when I was done with the book I was left wanting more of their lives. Especially between Louise and Abby.

I think one of my favorite moments of the book was when Abby screams "By you fighting for me! You just told me you loved me and now you're like, oh, okay bye, have a nice life, Abby. If you don't want me to be with anyone else, why is it so easy to just let me go?" This hit me right in my heart and I found myself relating to this sentence so much. And it's always fun to see characters as real and relatable. Overall, this was a fast read since I couldn't put it down. And I give it 5 stars for the humorous, romantic adventure of finding yourself and finding love even in the places you would never think to look.

dnf @ 20%

I was actually enjoying it!! And then came along my most hated trope, the miscommunication trope. It was soooo irritating and stupid, I was internally screaming "JUST TELL THEM" but it just got too much, so I dnf'd it.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read this wonderful story in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a cute story about a women who is down on her luck after loosing her job in New York and having to move back with her sister in Ireland in an attempt to get back on her feet. While there she experiences life challenges and finds love in a Irish man who coaches kids.

Definitely a great romance story that is sure to make you smile.

I love an Irish themed book! I loved this story. It was so cute and romantic. The men in Irish romcoms are always so swoon worthy and this lived up to that! Highly recommend.

Catherine Walsh does fantastic writing that shows Abby move back home after loosing everything. She meets hot Luke, who is the man she grew up with.

I could not put this book down. A cute story of moving back to a small town and falling in love, growing back in love with your family, and meeting new friends.


**I was snowed in and missed my flight back home when I read it in one sitting!**

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC of The Rebound.

A romcom set in Ireland compared to the likes of Emily Henry sounded like it was right up my alley. Unfortunately, The Rebound fell flat for me for several reasons:
-there were a lot of characters to follow and I didn’t feel they were all crucial to the storyline
-I didn’t feel a connection to the main characters (specifically Abby and Louise.)
-Louise was very unlikeable and I had hoped for some character growth for her that I didn’t feel happened
-lack of chemistry between Abby and Luke didn’t have me invested in their relationship

While this wasn’t the romcom for me, I know many others will love it and should give it a read!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC with exchange an honest review!

This book tell us about Abby who suddenly hit the bottom rock. She lose her job, her fiancée, her apartment and have to back to her homeland in Clonard, back to her sister she hates. Now she has to try everything she has to survive while meeting all people from her past live there.

I thought this book will full of romance (because that the impression I get, but not at all) this book tell us much more about Abby, show us about her feeling, about her way to get out of her situation, about her relationship with her family and friends.

At first, I didn't really like Abby personalities here. I don't really like how she thinking. But seeing her life just fallen and how hard hard for her to get into there it become more make sense. I'm glad Abby has a great character development here. How open her now and how she tell people about her feelings. I really like this development.

For the romance, well I have a mixed feeling about this. I love about the childhood friend concept here but what bothers me more is about the misunderstanding that keep going on and on here. When I thought that it already settle and we will get lovey dovey moments the misunderstanding keep appearing. It's just not really my taste because at some point they are really sweet to each other and the other time I can really see the romance at all. But, nearing the end of the book I think the romance turn much better and I really love how the writer make it like that.

4.5 stars. Super cute and adorable. I was fighting the whole time for Abby to be done with Tyler and be fully with Luke. I really connected with the characters in this story. I loved how it ended too. Super cute and light hearted read. Will definitely be recommending this to everyone in this rom com category for books. Thanks NetGalley for this advanced copy.

This was a cute rom com to start off the year. This was a perfect weekend read, and it was fairly a quick read.

After Abby loses everything she returns home to stay with her sister until she can get back on her feet. After spending some time home, she realizes this isnt the worst thing that could happen to her. She is making new friends, and reacquainting herself with her ones.
Abbys friends were my absolute favorite characters, and luke was cute but felt a little underdeveloped.

Honestly, this book was so cute it had me giggling like an idiot within the first chapter.

Read this for a book with strong characters, uncompromising principles and great humour. Oh yes and a very lovely romance between childhood friends who found each other again after years apart.

For a book with "there's only one way to get over an ex..." on the cover, there wasn't much of that so don't think it's one of those books. To be honest the title is a bit misleading but I did enjoy it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was the perfect feel-good rom-com I needed to start off 2022!!!

Abby Reynolds lost her fiancé, her apartment, and her top-notch job all in a matter of weeks and goes home to Clonard, Ireland to stay with her sister while she tries to figure life out. Abby has no plan and due to all the recent layoffs, finding a new job is tough. When her childhood next door neighbor – turned super-hot, caring, now perfect – Luke Bailey picks her up at the bus depot, Abby starts to question who she really is and what she really wants in life. But for Abby, feeling like she has hit rock bottom, the only place she can go is up.

The comedy is believable, and I absolutely loved the characters. Louise and Tomasz were the perfect pair, and Beth added another layer of small-town charm. With the setting in Ireland, it was the fresh escape that I needed. Catherine Walsh delivers laughs while showing that the bonds between family members may be the most important thing of all.

I could say, as a romantic comedy I could have used a little more steam. There was a ton of buildup, and then it was just “sweet.” And as much as I did love this book – I do not think The Rebound was the proper title. When I think of a rebound, I think of the print on the cover of this book: “The only way to get over one guy is to get under another.” This book is more of a slow-burn love story, not a “let’s rush and get under any other hot guy I see.” Multiple weeks pass during this novel and people can fall in love quickly, especially when the person they were with prior maybe wasn’t the right fit for them.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review: all thoughts and opinions are mine! This was an easy read that did not disappoint; I will definitely be adding Walsh’s first book to my tbr pile!

I didn't end up finishing this one. I really liked the idea of it at the start, but it fell flat for me and I didn't make it through more than 60% of the book. I typically avoid DNF'ing books but for some reason this one just didn't click with me.

I really love the idea of starting over and moving back home to a small town and the romance there, but the characters didn't really click for me.

This book is one of my favorites! This is my first novel by this author, and I was blown away. I had no idea how this would turn out when I started reading it, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I liked how, despite the obvious rebound drama, you get to witness her develop her relationship with her sister and find out what she wants to accomplish with her life.

Abby Reynolds has finally returned to her hometown in Ireland, despite her reluctance. Abby has always wanted to leave her hometown since she was a child, but the idea of returning makes her anxious. She had recently been fired from her work in New York and had lost everything, to the point that she had to come home since she is broke with nowhere to go. She was not only fired but her engagement had also been canceled the week before she was sacked. As we can tell, Abby isn’t doing too good right now, and going back home to stay at her sister's place who she’s never gotten along with doesn’t sound like fun.

When she arrives in Ireland, a handsome man in the dark offers to bring her home after realizing she won't be able to ride the bus because it isn't running. Her sister invites the neighbors over for lunch the next day, and the man from last night turns up. That's when she realized she knew this man, her former best friend, Luke Bailey. Abby had been interested in him since the beginning. The only question is if she has feelings for him or if this is just a simple rebound.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Now don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed The Rebound. I found myself honest-to-god laughing out loud more than once, so the "hilarious" part of the summary is accurate. Beyond that though, I don't think the marketing of this novel made sense. Based on the summary, I was expecting our Main Girl, Abby, to be actively trying to have a rebound with her childhood neighbor, Luke. That's not really the case though, and she even gets annoyed when others imply it. So I'm not sure that the focus on the "rebound" aspect makes a ton of sense. #weirdmarketingdecisions

The best part of this book was Abby's relationships with the side characters, such as her sister, her brother-in-law, old friends and new ones also. Those relationships are where the comedy mostly lived, and I never liked Abby more than when she was interacting with these characters. That's saying something too, because I really liked Abby and her general salt levels.

The biggest con for me was actually the main romantic storyline. I feel like Luke's character was a bit glossed over. Like we didn't get the chance to know him as well as Abby or even Louise. It's sad to say that the weakest part of a romance novel is the romance, but that is the case here.

Also, this book is pretty light on the steam, so do with that what you will.

This book follows Abby who recently got broken up with and lost her job in New York City. She has no place to stay and decides to visit her sister in Ireland and stay with her until she finds a new job and knows what exactly she wants to do. When Abby arrives in Ireland, she bumps into a tall dark handsome man who turns out to be her childhood friend and neighbour Luke.

I personally really liked how Abby and her sister's relationship developed and how the two got closer.
The love story between Abby and Luke was cute but quite predictable and unfortunately a little boring.
I did not like was how immature Abby seemed in certain moments and how indecisive she was
And I couldn't really connect to Abby and her character.

All in all, I think the book was a cute, fun and entertaining read. Unfortunately, it just was not for me.

Compulsively readable? Check.
Small-town charm? Check.
Interesting side characters? Check.
Character-building B-plots? Check.
Romantic tension and "Absolutely hilarious" (as the cover endorsement promises us)...........wellllllllllllllllllllll.

There is a lot to like in Walsh's novel and I did like Abby as a protagonist a lot. She's fun but honest. Trying and failing. I could see myself in her shoes in a lot of the situations and that made her very likeable. I also really enjoyed her sister's character, Louise. I'm honestly disappointed we didn't get a romance novel about Louise and her husband Tomasz, honestly because....well. I never felt the spark between Luke and Abby but Louise and Tomasz made my heart happy. Back to Luke, though, since he was the hero to Abby's herione of the story. And he was fine as a love interest. As a character on his own, okay. I'm down. But...he and Abby spent SO much of the novel arguing or fighting or being on the outs that...the relationship never clicked for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for my copy of the ebook ARC. All opinions are mine alone.

3.5 / 5 - The Rebound

3 / 5 STARS - Story Authenticity

4 / 5 STARS - Relatable and Lovable Characters

2 / 5 STARS - Steaminess

#TheRebound is an adorable romance with ambitious main characters, an adorable hometown, and chemistry that cannot be ignored. When Abby finds herself apartment-less, fiance-less, and, after a big scandal, jobless, she is forced to retreat to the one place she does not want to get trapped in - Clonard, Ireland. Butting heads with her sister, and attempting to save face around her piers, nothing seems to be going right. Well, except for the puberty-jackpot winner, Luke… who thinks she is still still engaged. There’s so much going wrong in her life, but to her surprise, the longer Abby is home, the more she realizes that Clonard, and everyone in it, is so much more than small town.

Catherine Walsh creates a lovely community without it feeling like an extremely small cast of characters. Abby has moments with her ex, connecting with places she used to love - moments that are very real.

Having been through “the world crashing around you all at once” experience, I know how debilitating it feels, especially as a type-A personality. Abby exhibits the exact same complicated depression that I found myself with - wanting to save face around your family after “making it” because you were ashamed of “losing it”, wanting and knowing things you should do to progress forward while still wondering “what’s the point?”

As the story progresses, Abby seems to make headway on opening her mind to her sister, Luke, and other people in the town, but it never felt like she got “down to business” when it came back to her career; Although there were lines about her applying or reaching out to some of her contacts, it didn’t ever feel like her heart was in it. It’s very subtle, but this hesitation opened her up to more acceptance and happiness in Clonard, as if she didn’t want to leave. Later, once the romance element picks up a bit, Abby even thinks as much.

Luke, however, is a different story. I love his ambition and humility throughout the book. He never feels like he has to explain his choices, though it has broken a part of his soul, like George Bailey never leaving Bedford Falls. Although life has made him a little jaded, he never complains - a trait I think we could all work to have.

All in all, The Rebound was a hometown romance that avoided the trope of feeling small. All of the main characters had solid character arcs and backgrounds, but never felt like supporting characters. Catherine Walsh did a great job of making Clonard feel like the home we’ve all loved and hated, and overall, the book brought me joy to read (especially the ending!) If you enjoyed Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez or This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens, I think you’ll enjoy this read.

Thank you so much to #Bookouture, #Netgalley, and @catwalshwriter for the ARC! Thank you so much!!