This is certainly a different story but one that really needs reading. There are twists and turns most very unexpected. Parents can be funny people along with friends. Loved this, I wish it could have gone on longer than it did. 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this e ARC

Full of fun, laughs and crazy moments – a brilliant rom-com read from an author that always delivers exciting stories and great characters.
Poppy is really feel like the odd one out in her friendship group, the only single friends, well, technically the only one to have been married and divorced by the age of 30. Finding her inner wild child at the latest wedding, she finds a kindred spirit and new friend in Kat, and she reminds her how to have fun and live a little.
Discovering she might not be quite as divorced as she thought and that her (ex) husband is about to remarry, she hightails it up to Scotland with Kat in the hope she can quickly get him to sign the papers. In classic rom-com style, this doesn’t quite go as smoothly as it could as Poppy and Kat end up staying with the wedding party in a secluded castle, where she is pretending to be a spy and trying to figure out who is causing trouble.
The more time she spends in this castle, the more time she is spending with Zac and she starts to think that maybe her past decisions/actions were done in haste and that her feelings have never quite disappeared.
It’s a fun tale of reconnection, rediscovery and following your heart; learning that time can change people but can also mean you see things from a different perspective. A story of second chances that will lift your spirits.

Poppy is a terrific protagonist, and I immediately took to her. I could feel her discomfort and fully understood why she was drawn into a friendship with Kat, her fellow female on the singles table at her friend Rachael’s wedding.
As the synopsis explains, feeling of being left behind, Poppy is shocked to learn that her late mother hadn’t fully lodged her final divorce papers and she is still married to Zac. To add to her pain, Poppy learns that Zac is about to get married again, something that she hadn’t counted on. As her best friends have all moved on, Poppy teams up with Kat to try and get Zac to sign the divorce papers and end their marriage once and for all. This brings about a whole host of awkward and hilarious situations as Poppy must deal with meeting up with Zac again.
Poppy and Kat make a great double act, and their adventures or misadventures had me chuckling away. From their time at the cooking class to arriving at the wedding location, there is plenty to laugh at. A special mention must be given to Poppy’s lovely Dad and his new fledgling relationship. He wants nothing but happiness for his daughter but is saddened that the happy ship may have sailed without her.
With a whole host of larger-than-life characters, this book is an absolute hoot! I can imagine it being turned into madcap film that will have people rolling in the aisles.

No Ex Before Marriage 

By Portia MacIntosh 

5 stars 

Seriously such a great book, I loved this from the start poppy is divorced and thirty. This was so beautifully written, such a fun read I didn’t want to put it down at all. It goes a little back and forth after a few chapters just to show you what had happened in the past to lead to poppy’s marriage and then to her divorce. I love Poppy she is just super fun and loving character. Zac is also a good character, and you can tell how him, and poppy are just a perfect match for each other. This is such a quick fast fun read; I need to read more like this. Had me laughing till the end. 

Thank you to Boldwood books and Netgalley for the advanced copy for an honest review.

Portia MacIntosh writes some adorable romances set in Britain and No Ex Before Marriage is no different. It's a second chance love story involving a divorced couple and them reconnecting when Poppy realizes their divorce never was filed - and Zac is getting married the following weekend in a high profile wedding with a minor celebrity. Poppy has to stop the wedding and try to not lose her heart to Zac again in the process.

I really enjoyed this quirky read and the unique romance Poppy and Zac had/have. After reading the reason why they got divorced in the first place, my heart hurt for them and it added in the needed emotional context to the fairly comical plot line and characters. I always appreciate that the women in MacIntosh's romances are older than the average and show romance from a different perspective. There is an alternating timeline in this book as you read Poppy and Zac from current times with flashbacks back to high school and their marriage throughout the book.

Featuring light spice and the second chance love trope, No Ex Before Marriage continue a long line of successful romances from Portia MacIntosh (in my opinion).

**Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review**

5* Review
No Ex Before Marriage by Portia Macintosh
Pub date 11 January 2022
It's not over until someone says 'I do'...
While her friends join the "Wife Club" one by one, Poppy feels like that part of her life is done and dusted. Already married and divorced, she's not desperate to go through all that again.
But what if her divorce never actually went through...?
After a shocking revelation, Poppy not only discovers she is still married, but that Zac is about to have his second wedding!
As the memories flood back, can Poppy really leave the past where it is? And can she watch the first love of her life walk down the aisle to say 'I do' once again?
This well-written, hilarious, heartwarming
rom-com by the talented Portia Macintosh will definitely put a smile on your face (there are some touching, sensitive moments that are written with thought and care).
The characters are all realistically portrayed, so much so I found myself shouting at some of them. Poppy and Kat are an absolute hoot; I wish I had been on that singles table with them.
No Ex Before Marriage is an easy read that I thoroughly enjoyed.
I am happy to recommend it to all Rom-com lovers, and fans of Portia's books will love it.
I want to thank NetGalley, Boldwood Books and author Portia Macintosh for a pre-publication copy to review.

Such a brilliant book! This book managed to make me laugh and cry in the space of ten pages, thanks to it’s brilliant range of characters. I was hooked from start to end and found this to be a simply excellent read!

A great book, loved the storyline. I read the book over 3 days, just couldn’t put it down. The main character, Poppy, discovers she is still married to her ex and he is about to get remarried. Can she manage to get everything sorted before his wedding? A brilliant chick flick book that kept me intrigued right to the end. Never read any books by the author until now but will be seeking more out, recommended read

Portia MacIntosh has done it again (for the nth time) and has delivered another enchanting and heartwarming story I could not put down, loving every single thing about it (as usual!).

Poppy is 30, divorced and feeling a bit left out by her group of best friends after all of them tied the knot. She’s ready to start dating again when she discovers her divorce from Zac (the love of her life) was never finalized. With him getting married again in a matter of days, Poppy must travel with new friend Kat to a Scottish castle so he can sign the divorce papers before his wedding. Sounds like a simple mission but it will be anything but!

First of all I gotta say I adored Poppy’s character. Not only her friends are excluding her from their plans and behaving like idiots, she’s still dealing with losing her mum, her unresolved feelings for Zac and the whole thing that led to their divorce, that I found really heartbreaking. I loved, loved, loved, the duo she made with Kat (that’s a good friend!) and all the shenanigans they were involved in. They made such a great team and had several hilarious moments.

Although a romance, it’s also a story about friendships and how you still have to take care of them cause at the end of the day, a good friend will always be there for you.

Emotion wise the story was like a rollercoaster going seamlessly from laughs to tears in a matter of seconds. I loved that it dealt with some heavier issues like loss and grief.

The setting was awesome and I could feel myself wandering around the castle. Although there were some not so likeable characters, at the end of the day most of them redeemed themselves one way or another (not you, Crystal!).

Another perfect mix of rom and com from Ms. MacIntosh that will surely put a smile on your face. Another well deserved 5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Portia does it again with another hilarious, heartwarming read.

I couldn't put the book down. I just needed to know what happened.

The characters were hilarious and there were some real laugh out loud moments. I really warmed to Poppy and I loved the flashbacks to how Poppy and Zac met and got together.

Another amazing 5⭐ read from Portia.

This was too much of a slow burn for me. Thank you to the author, Boldwood Books, and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for my review.

Firstly, I need to admit that I am an absolute sucker for a British read. The verbiage, the settings - I WANT IT ALL! And this book delivered!

Poppy is 30 years old and divorced. She’s feeling less and less part of her friends group and feeling closer to becoming an old cat lady. While getting pushed outside her comfort zone she meets a new man, one that seems to check all the boxes- only problem is she isn’t really divorced. A “clerical error” later, Poppy finds herself on a road trip to Scotland to have her still-husband sign the divorce papers before he gets married to someone new.

A snowstorm, a loch, and some hilarity ensue all in the name of love.

This book! Ugh. I loved it.

But I should mention a trigger warning for miscarriage. As someone who has miscarried - I thought it was handled beauty; and gave a honest and raw look at how hard it is to go through…even with a supportive partner.

Pub Date: January 11, 2022

I was given an ARC of this story to read; but thoughts an opinions are all my own. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the chance to read this book!

I was a little disappointed in this one. Other reviewers found it funny. I didn’t I found it boring and tedious. I did finish it but, guessed the ending over halfway through the book. It just didn’t live up to my expectations which is a shame as I dislike giving poor reviews. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Oooh, this was a brilliant book! Filled with humour, sassy characters, laugh - out - loud one - liners and full of unexpected! Maybe too much unexpected - or too sudden - let's take Zac, for example, I was aware that he was Poppy's ex - husband but he was pretty absent - until he wasn't. Everything was about Zac suddenly, and yes, he was lovely, I adored him completely and I couldn't have enough of him, but the way he was suddenly there took me by surprise. But whatever.

This book actually brought smile to my face and reminded me how much I loved such light - hearted, uplifting rom - coms - it was always a pleasure to pick up this book again and actually, I kept reading it deep into the night, when I should be sleeping already. The characters were brilliant, Poppy and Kat were indestructible together. Everybody deserves a friend like Kat, really.

Next to the light - heartedness the author also deals with some more heavier issues, but in a great way - sensible but not too sensible, being able not to make the story too meh. Poppy is dealing with the death of her mother and there is also the issue of miscarriages, and I loved how the author has done it all, in such a no - nonsense way, with enough gentleness and enough common sense.

It was funny and romantic and extremely hilarious, a real page - turner about friendship, families, second - chances and being true to yourself.

This funny romantic story with surprising twists makes me keep thinking about Portia MchIntosh is the queen of chick lit. Congratulations!

it took me a little while to get into this book, but now that i’m done i LOVED IT!!! a true story of crossing paths when you are meant to filled with witty side characters and an amazing backdrop.

poppy has found herself cast aside yet again when the last of her friends get married. literally and figuratively, as she finds herself back at the singles table after getting divorced years prior. what she doesn’t expect is meeting a great new friend who brings out poppy’s love for life. when poppy finds out her divorce was never finalized, she and kat rush to see zac, before he gets married again!

full of funny twists and heart warming moments this was a great winter read!

I got an ARC through Netgalley and I’m so happy for it .

I stayed up past 2 am to finish this, so obviously it was addicting and good. British romances are always a bit different than what I’m used to so it always takes me a minute to readjust. There’s a lot of slow movement for the first like 20% of the book, but once Zac was introduced, my oh my, I couldn’t put this down. I loved the comedy and the character dynamics and just how over the top a lot of this was in the best way.
I enjoyed reading this and going to Scotland on this adventure with these characters.

HOWEVER- I wanted so much more out of the plot. There was so many characters and problems introduced at the beginning and the author didn’t really spend time at the end teasing out the resolutions. I also felt 100 percent cheated out of the scene where they finally get together. It was so anticlimactic. The ending was so rushed and everything was briefed down to a sentence or two resolution.

There is so much that could’ve been expanded on, slow burned, dragged on to truly feel MORE.

Also - as a 1 in 4 woman who has experienced a miscarriage, I’m not happy with the way this was utilized in the book.

But - despite all this. This was still funny and a great short read

Recommended: sure
For characters who might make you cackle in delight every now and then, for a plot that flirts with absurdity just enough to make you smile, for a slow wind into more serious territory where you're there without realizing when it went from silly to somber

Thoughts:
I think the simplest way to sum this up is by saying that if you read the blurb and it makes you smile and think it sounds like something you might enjoy, you probably will. It definitely delivered, even though going into it I was like "how on earth will they explain that this guy introduced her as his cousin when that would be SO stupid of him??" And yet, in the moment, I was totally on board and thinking that the only way out of the situation was to pretend they were cousins. Yep.

This is a romance of course, and I'd say that the romance in it was a definite slow-burn and honestly a little bit secondary to the main issues of the relationships. Since Poppy and Zac have already had a relationship built and even been married, that initial falling in love stuff happened more or less off screen. We get some nostalgia and reminiscing, but no real flashbacks. So if you're coming into this hoping for steamy or swoon-worthy moments, you're probably not going to be satisfied. It's more of an element to the character's story rather than the singular focus.

The characters overall are... fine. They each play a role, and they fill it in as well as they need to. Some are definitely flatter than others, like Poppy's pretty crappy friends and Poppy's wild-child new friend Kat. Still, Kat was probably my favorite character despite it all. In the end, the friendship aspect of the story is resolved in a few pages, so it does come full circle, but it's not something we see a lot of throughout.

While it's mostly really silly and lighthearted, there are definitely some more serious issues that come up in the story of Poppy and Zac. As we learn more about what happened with them, the book does have some more serious moments to match the pain of what they went through. It typically bounces back fairly quickly, but just be aware that it's not ALL Scotland and movie stars.

And finally: the resolution. WOW y'all, if you're looking for an ending that's Jerry-Springer-ish kinds of drama with over-the-top characters, then this will be everything you dream of! It's all a bit silly, but in a way that still made me smile the whole way through.

Here's the moment that made me cackle early on:

She cheers wildly as she catches [the bouquet], then almost violently throws it down on the floor in that way you often see American footballers do so.

This image tickled me just right, especially in context of that whole scene! I absolutely cackled the whole way through it. So if that seems like the kind of humour you enjoy, this will work for you. :)

A few spoilers trigger warnings below, click to view:
(view spoiler)

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for a free advanced copy! This is my honest review.

I absolutely loved this story. It’s definitely a romance, a very cute one at that, but more importantly it’s a story about friendship and the people who are really there for you. I really enjoyed all the characters, but my absolute favourite was Kat. She was exactly who Poppy needed to meet at exactly the right time.

I genuinely LOLd a whole lot in this story and I also got very emotional at times. It was a really joyful read.

Poppy is the greatest person. She is 30 and divorced. She go on a wedding alone and ao she is left out of the circle of her friends. But she is also lucky, she met a new best friend and they are so great together. She find the support she was missing. Suddenly she is 31 and she gets to know she is not divorced for real. So she and Kat go on a mission to get sign the papers. And they go to Scotland. Her ex ia getting married. Panic? Not at all. There is a lot of fun in this book. Lovely.

Thank to Netgalley and the Boldwood publishers for this opportunity.