This was such a cute read! I am excited for when it is published in November! Can't wait to get myself a copy :)

This book made me laugh, made me swoon, and even made me cry. I really enjoyed reading about an older FMC rather than the typical 20-something (although I'm dying to learn more about Davis and Kev)! Madigan is my new book boyfriend. This is everything. I can't wait for the whole series.

Ashely Cooke's ski hill is in jeopardy of shutting its doors. With less people visiting her mountain in favor of her fancier competitor and her cheating ex-husband constantly pressuring her to sell Bluebird Basin to him, it will be a longshot if she can keep her operation running through the end of the season. When Ashley's mother Maude Alice suggests they hire the men from the local sober living home to save on costs, Ashley hesitantly agrees.

Matthew Madigan knows all about second chances. As the owner of Little Timber sober living home and a former addict himself, Madigan helps men struggling with previous addictions by providing them a safe and supportive environment. He knows how difficult first impressions can be to overcome, but he is determined to show the owners of Bluebird Basin and the local community that people's past actions do not determine character. Working at the ski hill may be physically demanding, but it's nothing he and his crew can't handle. When he meets Ashley, a gorgeous woman struggling to overcome her own difficulties, he recognizes a kindred soul and keeping himself closed off may be harder than he realizes. As the snow falls and the ski season continues, sparks begin to fly between Ashley and Madigan, but will their new relationship be able to survive the approaching snow clouds?

I ADORE this book! Ashley and Madigan are both characters over forty, which was refreshing to read. They had complex emotions and communicated like mature adults and their steamy scenes were STEAMY! The secondary characters were just as well written and amazing as our adorable couple and each had significant growth throughout the novel. This romance made me smile, scream in frustration, and cry in the best way. I cannot recommend it enough!

Thank you to Netgalley and Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op, Pinkity Publishing for providing an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

**Review is currently pending on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved that instead of the classic couple in their twenties, we are dealing with a couple in their forties and fifties that have been through great struggles but are finding love with each other. I really enjoyed that Madigan was multi-dimensional and we saw and felt his emotions. Although I wasn't a big fan of the "breakup" period, and I seriously don't think it moved the plot too much, I understand the pattern being used. I really hope there is a sequel in the works for Davis and Kevin.

This book is book number one in a new series called ‘Bluebird Basin’.

Come As You Are is a wonderful, Wintery rom-com and concentrates on two middle-aged characters, Ashley(46 years old) and Mathew(53 years old) and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know more about their lives and how they begin to entwine together.

I absolutely felt all of the emotions whilst reading this book, it made me laugh, cry and smile a lot and don’t get me started on how much of a swoony rom-com this was and I loved everything about it…..

I received this book from NetGalley.

I liked the sound of this book so I was excited to get to read it. I lived that this book was about people who were a little bit older because it felt like they had a bit more control over their emotions. Madigan and Ashley were both really great characters and I loved the way they interacted with eachother.

I think the job that Madigan does is amazing and the way he works with the guys is so great. They really respect eachother and he really does want the best for them.

Ashley wants the best for the mountain and I love that she gave the guys a chance. She also works hard but also gives herself time to enjoy herself too.

Maude Alice seemed like a bit of an unnecessary character in some ways because she added a bit of frustration but not much else. However, she came around in the end so she was okay.

I wish there was more about Kev and Davis - I would love to read some more about their story!

Overall, a really enjoyable story that I would recommend!

Copy provided by NetGalley

Well this was delightful. It was an easy, cheesy, breezy romance to read though. I loved the Gen X demographic, as well as the mental health representation with recovering addicts. I think it was a unique concept but executed in a familiar outline we see in romance novels. I enjoyed getting to know the characters. It was a little too cheesy and predictable at points. I thought it could’ve gotten more creative in the chain of events, but still fun,
4/5 stars

Thank you Net Galley for giving me an ARC copy of this book!

Rating 4.5/5

This story was so heartfelt and I felt every emotion in the words with every page. I loved the ski setting, as I sat here boiling in 95 degrees weather, I loved Ashley and Madigan, I loved everything about this book. I laughed, cried, all of it. This book had me invested from start to finish and I wish I could read it for the first time all over again. Fantastic job! I can't wait to read even more from this author in the future.

This was so lovely! I was prepared for a heavy, super emotional read but it’s relatively light despite the heavier topics that it leans into (addiction, drug use, family issues, divorce)!
I loved that it strays from the normal rom-com age demographic with an FMC and MMC in their forties and fifties. I think that brings a level of maturity and experience to both Madigan and Ashley; it kind of circumvents the irritation that a younger couple without that experience can bring.
I think the side characters are super lovable and I hope they get their own stories moving forward; especially a second chance romance with Sam and Izzy!
On the other hand, it did read a bit like a Hallmark holiday romance which is not a bad thing at all but just something to keep in mind if you pick it up.
Aside from the age, it wasn’t quite as diverse as I’d hoped! That’s really my only note for improvement; there were primarily white and straight characters!
Overall, I really enjoyed the story and I’d recommend giving it a shot!

A nice read although as much as they tried to say they were older their actions and thinking read like a 20 something couple. Loved diving into a recovering addicts thoughts and was entertained by the love story.

FINALLY a romance with main characters who are not basically children. Joking, but kinda not. I really appreciated the fact that both of these characters were over age 40 without being portrayed as bitter and permanently broken people. Their romance was realistic, but seriously hot. More!

Where to start! Huge thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
This was an easy 4.5 stars.

Madigan and Ashley both have walls up because of their pasts and with each other (and a fun group of side characters) they find that it's never too late for happiness.

Ashley owns Bluebird, a skiing area in Montana and it's threatening to close when her mother comes up with the idea to hire a group of men from the nearby sober living facility. At first, Ashley is hesitant but quickly comes to find a new sense of family amongst these men.

This book shines a light on sober living and addiction in a way where you're rooting for each of these men, proving that not everyone who makes mistakes is a bad person. You learn to love each character right down to the chaotic rescue dog.

You could call this found family for sure as well as second chance romance but not in the traditional way. Each main character gets a second chance at life and romance through each other even though their pasts have left them with doubts. Such a heartwarming story that was impossible to put down.

I can't wait to see what else comes of Bluebird Basin!

I wanted to read this one without even reading the description because I trust Kate Clayborn's opinion. And then I started it and discovered the female main character is a single mom in her mid-40s with some self esteem issues after a less than ideal first marriage, and wow, it's so rare for me to find books in my favorite genre I do strongly identify with! Than you, Jess Hardy, and netgalley for the opportunity to read this excellent book!

SUMMARY :'Come as You Are' by Jess K. Hardy, follows Ashley Cooke, who is determined to save her struggling ski hill. Following her mother's advice she takes an unconventional approach by hiring men from a local sober living home to cut costs. With financial pressures, a cheating ex-husband threatening to buy the mountain, and a forecast of record-breaking snow, Ashley can't afford distractions. However, when she encounters Matthew Madigan, the bearded and tattooed owner of the sober living home, sparks fly. Matthew, a recovering addict and ex-grunge rocker, finds himself drawn to Ashley's charm and offers to help train her St. Bernard rescue dog in exchange for skiing lessons. As their connection deepens, they both confront their pasts and find solace in each other's presence.

REVIEW: This book was like a breath of fresh air! I loved that we got to follow two older protagonists, something we don't usually see in rom-com books. The chemistry between Ashley and Madigan was electric and the 🌶🌶🌶 scenes were well written and fun to read. The rest of the Little Timber men were so much fun and to read about and I can't wait for their books to come out as well!

I only read about 50% of this book before I decided that I wasn't going to be able to commit to reading it. The book itself is written well. I have no problem with that. What lead me to realize that I was going to have to put it down was the age of the characters. I'm very particular about the ages of the characters that I read about. I'm in the new adult age range and found that reading about Gen Xers was just not working for me.

This was definitely a slow burn type of romance book! It wasn’t until about 35% in that I actually started enjoying the book, the beginning felt very slow. Overall, a steamy good read. It’s an older romance so I had a hard time connecting with the characters but I think others will enjoy this.

“Come As You Are” by Jess Hardy

4⭐️/5⭐️
3🌶/5🌶

“How had he found this woman? What parallel universe had he fallen into to be allowed to feel as good as she made him feel? He didn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserve her.”

Bluebird basin is experiencing major financial troubles. Ashley Cooke, the owner, figures this is their last season of operation unless something major changes. Through some strong arming from her mother, Ashley hires Matthew Madigan, a location sobriety coach, and his group of recovering addicts. She’s apprehensive, but Madigan’s enthusiasm reassures her. Over the course of the season, the two grow closer and closer. But what will happen when the season is over? And can the men of Little Timber Sober Living use this new opportunity to turn their lives around?

-This was such a delightful story! I’ve never read a romance between MCs in their late 40’s and early 50’s, but I really enjoyed reading about mature characters that are able to communicate their feelings. Yeah, there are some stumbling blocks, but I’m impressed with how the characters solve their problems and face their differences.

-A big thing I liked about the way the author wrote the story was how she handled the individual side characters. They are addicts, and while they are on the road to recovery and making great progress, that doesn’t mean their stories have perfect endings. There are bumps, challenges, and not all problems are easily fixed. There’s a moment when I thought a side character would be handed a really easy ‘out’ for their storyline, but the author took a different turn, which gave the character even more depth.

-I enjoyed rooting against Chuck, he was a fun villain to hate. I also appreciated the complex obstacles facing Ashley and Bluebird basin, as a reader I wasn’t sure how Ashley would solve her problems, which made it easy to stay interested in the story.

-This book was more smutty than I anticipated, and I loved that! Ashley and Madigan have several spicy scenes together. You can see Ashley’s self confidence grow every time she’s with Madigan.

-One of the strongest aspects of this book is the supporting characters. Sometimes in romcoms the supporting characters can feel singularly focused, like they serve one purpose. But all the side characters have a rich history, everything is mapped out; you really get the found family trope in this story.

-I would recommend this book if you want to read about more established MCs, a cozy winter romance, or a romcom that delicately handles serious topics.

I picked this up because of the Nirvana title and the promise of a Generation X romance, and I really enjoyed it. I loved reading about main characters whose age is a little closer than mine than I usually come across in romance.
The mountain setting was great, and I also really liked the secondary characters. The relationship between Ashley and her mother was difficult and it was good to see that. I also liked that it didn’t seem to be resolved, even though her mother realised she had to change somewhat.
The romance worked well and loved the two of them together. They both brought their fears and their pasts to the relationship, and they managed to navigate difficulties, even if they needed a bit of time to get there.
The one thing that was a little disappointing was the lack of Nirvana. There was music talk, Madigan was a former musician after all, but no Nirvana. Also the GenX thing seemed more like a marketing strategy than something that was part of the book. Nevertheless, it’s a perfectly nice book and I flew through the pages.

This was perfect for my Christmas in July moment. What a fun holiday romance novel, I read it so fast and didn’t want the fun to end.

It's so nice to see a book with older characters! This was such a cute, semi-steamy romance! I also enjoyed that it was slow burn. The chemistry between Madigan and Ashley was delicious! It got a bit rushed at the end but even with that it was wonderful. I can't wait to read more by Jess K. Hardy!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!