This one was a lovely read. I really enjoyed reading this one. I just love this kind of books.
3.5 stars read for me

A quick and easy read that I found myself picking up after a long day to unwind. The characters are beautifully written and I came to love them within the first few pages and was rooting for them all the way to the end. At times I wanted to stop reading because I just wanted the experience to go on for longer.

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

a solid 4! i really quite enjoyed this one!

most books i read based in england usually bore me a bit. the pace is often slow and characters aren’t as likable, which i understand. there are just some books by english authors that are written for an english audience and that just speaks to the audience they are writing for. but this one, i really liked!

the pace was great, the characters were sweet (especially one of the sons, Ethan, who was my favorite and most funny character btw), and you get a dual pov too which you don’t get often. i was interested in the book right away and the pacing was consistent which kept me captivated.

it was such a lovely romcom that included dating and falling in love as single parents, navigating tough situations and how to build a strong blended family. it was such a sweet book with a beautiful spotlight on the kids, who had great personality. they weren’t written off screen and you got to know all 4 of them so well and see them all come out of their shell and see them grow together as a family. it was just well written. jenny and dan, the parents, were also was written wonderfully to include their past marital problems and how they got there without it all being backhanded and solved too quickly. it was written with care and i loved that!

i may be bias because i love single parent tropes that include fun moments with the kids and not just characters that don’t speak but this book had everything i adore in a family book and reminded me a little of cheaper by the dozen which i love too. just so good.

also, ethan was truly my favorite little character. i laughed at absolutely everything he said. good good book! definitely on my faves list and will be ordering my own copy!

thank you netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in return of an honest review!

This was such a fun story to follow! If you love family drama and romantic comedies then this is the book for you! This is my favorite rom-com of the year!

I am a bit of a sucker for a cute family-based rom-com and obviously, that’s exactly what the cover of this book screams. It gave me such lovely warm fuzzies and it was the perfect palate cleanser after a streak of bleak reads.

Jenny and Dan are in their forties and they aren’t sure that they want their new relationship to get serious. They’re both divorced with two children each and are quite enjoying just getting to know each other and having fun. But then Jenny has some news that will change everything.

I love the positive, carefree attitude that both Jenny and Dan have towards their relationship and their lives at the start of the book. It was so refreshing to read about characters who are in their forties and parents, finding the time to have fun and let their hair down. I really love that this was a place that they were already at rather than something that they needed to find within themselves too.

As someone who doesn’t have children, I’m aware that the feelings and emotions that parents experience aren’t things that I can understand. However, I really enjoyed getting that unique insight from both Jenny and Dan. They are both fierce protectors of their children and every decision involves putting the kids’ feelings first, which was so heartwarming to read.

I really enjoyed the parallels between the humans’ lives and that of the guinea pigs. It wasn’t an obvious comparison and I don’t know if you’d have picked up on it, if you hadn’t read the book pretty much in one sitting as I did but it was so much fun to notice. It’s made most clear when Dan explains to the youngest kids, Ethan and Bryony, why the guinea pigs might not be getting along. So wonderfully smile-inducing!

Just The Six Of Us is truly heartwarming, very romantic and so dang cute! The characters were all so well-developed that they felt like friends by the time I finished. The romance is completely free of toxicity and threat too, which made it a complete dream to read. The perfect, feel-good, summer read for fans of family-based rom-coms.

Easy read, one of the do-good,, feel-good , reap the goodness kind of book. When two divrcees are given a second chance at love and marriage, they must also learn to handle their respective kids feelings. Emotions run high and at the end of the day, family is everything.

Enjoyable read.
Overall rating 3.5

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was really cringy, I could not get through it. Also everything seemed super rushed and it wasn't fun for me to read. DNF at 25%.

Thank you NetGalley and Orion Dash for allowing to read the e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It's a fun quick-read! I haven't read much of single parents trope before, but this book has both 2 children-single mother and 2 children-single father as main characters with a premise of uniting them to be a blended-family as they fell in love. I love how adorable their kids are. All the unexpected events in attempt to form the kids' bond with each other as well as Jenny and Dan were both hilarious and heartwarming. I love they acknowledged the children's feelings over the sudden changes through communication and actions, also applied on how both Jenny and Fan overcome their own issues. It gives insight of how hard parenting is, especially as single parent. Overall, it's a sweet, heartwarming, delighting, and a good book that perfect for your summer read!

Just The Six of Us is such a heartwarming book that not only focuses on the relationship between our two love interests Dan and Jenny but their blended family and the realities of their relationship with kids. The kids were hilarious and sweet, and I became increasingly invested in their stories as I got to know them better. I couldn't put down this book and wanted to know more about their happily ever after.

Thank you to Laurie Ellingham and Netgallery for this ARC!

This is a great book about having a family and all the drama that comes along with that. I really enjoyed this romance and it reminded me a little of Cheaper By the Dozen.

This was okay. It dragged a bit and was a bit repetitive but a nice slice of of life read. Moved slow not the worst thing I’ve read but nothing groundbreaking either

There are a lot of things that bothered me within the first few chapters of the book that unfortunately had me DNF the book. The "romance" was unbelievable to me. I did enjoy the single mom troop as that is hard to find and trying to date as a single mom can be hard. It almost felt like this book was going to be Brady Bunch meets Cheaper by the Dozen and while I love both of those; I did not enjoy these. It was very cringe and awkward. The characters didn't seem to be the age the author wrote them at. Overall, I just couldn't get over the first few chapters and ended up DNFing.

Just The Six of Us wasn’t for me. I’m still rating it 4 stars because I think if this is your typical genre, you’ll be into it. I don’t normally read cozy-hallmark style-PG-rated romances. I like a little more spice, drama, action, or comedy and this just didn’t do it for me. It was cute and had major dad from The Holiday and Cheaper By The Dozen vibes. I would also probably recommend this for a mom and teen buddy read. As I said, it’s pretty PG and a good intro to adult books/content for teens.

welll, i really wanted to enjoy this book. but alas, i did not. it just didn't do it for me and i wish i would have loved it. thank you so much to netgalley for letting me read this one early!! i am always grateful!!!

Delightful read! I have a new respect for couples trying to blend their families – it does not seem to be an easy process! Dan and Jenny have no intention of starting a long-term relationship – just having a bit of fun. But as feelings change and become more serious, they wonder how they will ever bring their two worlds together.

Jenny is a single parent to two boys. When she meets Dan, a single father to two girls at school, sparks fly. They've only been seeing each other for a short period of time when they get a big surprise. Their relationship was only meant to be a bit of light-hearted fun. Jenny has struggled to trust anyone since her husband cheated on her. Dan is still grieving the loss of his parents and trying to keep the status quo at home and with his seemingly flighty ex-wife.

Laurie Ellingham perfectly captures the pressures and worries of single parents, the awkward first meetings with the new partner's children, and the inevitable arguments and upsets as six people navigate living together as a blended family. There are a ton of laugh-out-loud moments and many more sweet ones. Occasionally I did get frustrated with Jenny's indecisiveness, but as a single parent who has relied on myself and myself alone, I also really identified with her as well. Dan was pretty adorable for most of the book, although I liked that he was able to ultimately understand his part in his ex-wife's departure. On that note, I liked that the conflict elements in the book weren't dragged out, even if they were perhaps a bit easily resolved at times. If there's one thing I struggled with, it was the tense used. I'm really not a fan of the present perfect, as I find it quite passive, reading almost like stage directions at times. Still, that's my issue.

The details and humour of everyday life with children are where the book really shines. If you're a parent, you will identify with every argument, every embarrassing situation, and every sweet, heart-melting moment. Bryony was probably my favourite character, closely followed by Ethan, but I liked all of the children and empathised with each of their individual struggles. I really loved the tender moments between Dan and Jenny, and their banter was hilarious at times. I also think the opening chapter was genius! Unexpected but hilarious, and I loved that the romantic leads were in, or approaching their 40s. I debated between 4 and 5 stars but ultimately I finished this book with a huge, satisfied grin, so that tipped it to the 5 stars. I want to talk about so many scenes but I don't want to spoil anything. All I will say is the two 'Hulk' scenes towards the end (you'll know which ones when you've read them) are probably my favourites in the entire book.

*Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to leave an honest review*

Overall Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Heat Rating: 🔥
Emotional Rating: 😂😊🥰💓💔😢🥰

(I will leave the same review on Amazon UK on publication day)

I am going to start this by saying that I am stingy with my stars and I adored this story and was so sad when it was over. I cannot wait to read more by this author if this book is an indication of what she writes.
Dan and Jenny meet at a school parent function and hit it off instantly. They’re both divorced parents and going through the motions of life until they start dating and realize how much they like each other. A few months into their relationship, a big change comes their way and they struggle to adapt and help their kids adjust to the changes. The struggles they go through are totally believable and will definitely resonate with anyone who has gone through single parenting and starting over in the dating world and blending families.
This book was so funny and charming and so heartfelt! I adored the characters and could so relate to trying to find a second chance at happiness. It starts out with a laugh and just keeps getting better.
Such an easy read and I found myself flying through the pages and next thing I knew, it was done and I was bummed! I wanted to stay with them and see how they went along with life.

Six main characters is certainly different but it made a very good story. I really enjoyed reading this and so will you. Giving this 4 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

What a lovely read. Quite realistic and funny at times. Every parent can relate to something that happened in this book. I loved the honesty that the characters had to endure, both of themselves and what others tell them. Dan is such a lovely character, I really enjoyed how we got to watch him falling in love with Jenny and navigating his own family and his new step family. His kindness and patience with Jenny and the boys was beautiful to watch. Like wise Jenny was great navigating the mine field that Amelia kept throwing at her, yet still managing to keep her walls up, until Dans patience won and she let herself truly love him.
A beautiful, very relatable read.

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