I had mixed feelings about Falling For You Again. I enjoyed that Meli was a skilled artisan working in a family business. I was quite disappointed that her uncle gave her such negative feelings on marriage and relationships. Meli was basically ignored by her parents, so it was good that she had a strong relationship with her uncle. Until he wanted to sell the family business to a competitor. Then the story went downhill for me. I usually enjoy Kerry Lonsdale writing, and will continue to read her books.
Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this e-ARC. The opinion expressed is all my own.

I have enjoyed Kerry Lonsdale work since her debut, so I was thrilled with a chance to review “Falling For You Again.”

Meli Hynes trusts wood-working more than she does true love. Yet, when she finds a creative way to trick her uncle out of selling the family wood-working business, she reconnects with Aaron—the man she was married to—albeit very briefly.

“Falling For You Again” is much more than a second chance romance. Lonsdale dives deep into how Mell’s past—and her upbringing—shaped who she’s become. While this novel uses plenty of tropes but does so in a fresh and engaging way. Further, the characters—especially Mell—are so delightful that you just can’t stop reading.

Thanks to Kerry Lonsdale, the publisher and Net Galley for a chance to read and review this captivating story.

Meli Hynes has long dreamed of taking over her family’s custom furniture building business. After watching her parents fail at both marriage and parenting, she is convinced that the only lasting connection is between and artist and their art. So it’s not a big surprise when Meli pulls a runaway bride move and leaves her fiancé at the altar. She escapes to the airport and books the first flight to anywhere (which happens to be Las Vegas). Clad in her wedding gown, she literally runs into her seat mate while boarding. They strike up a conversation about love and relationships and, the next thing you know, they are agreeing to marry for one day only with no strings attached.

Yeah, that never works out as intended.

Fast forward a few years and Meli is shocked to discover that her family is selling their business to a competitor. That competitor? Her ex-husband’s family’s business. Meli seeks out Aaron for the first time since their Vegas fling and neither is happy about the business arrangement. Together they hatch a plan to get married - AGAIN - to keep the acquisition from happening.

Will the second time be the charm?

This sounds like a lighthearted second chance romance and has all the flirty banter and tension I adore, but it covers some heavy subjects. Lonsdale weaves family drama, addiction, abandonment, and grief into this second chance, marriage of convenience romance.

I switched between the digital and audio versions of this book and binged it in a single day. Amanda Leigh Cobb brought both vulnerability and strength to her narration.

Thank you to NetGalley, Booked With The Emilys , Lake Union Publishing, and Brilliance Audio for the advance copies. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to @bookedwiththeemilys and @kerrylonsdale for the #gifted copies.

5 out of 5 stars

I haven't felt that 5 star feeling so quickly into a book in a long while. I thought this book was so fun! I thought the premise was so interesting and the fact that we get the characters thoughts from both the previous timeline and the current timeline made it all the better because I felt like we were able to see Meli and Aaron fall in love before they even know it themselves. This book sucked me in and didn't let go. I loved the support the MC's gave each other in this book. Both of their parents are on thin ice though. I feel like they should have thought the premise was so fun.

TW: Child neglect and abandonment (past, mentioned)

⭐Worthy of all the stars!⭐

The tug-of-war between heart and head, mixed with family drama and beautiful prose, made this a spectacular read.

“Listen to the rhythm of falling leaves. Every moment in life is a chance to create something beautiful, with someone or for someone. Even for yourself. Embrace the impermanence of life, like falling leaves. What you’re going through right now is but one of many seasons for you. Use these moments to prepare your masterpiece.”

Meli Hynes lives in a world where her logical mind and her emotional core are engaged in a constant tug-of-war. Every time she gives in to what her heart wants, panic undoes what following her heart has accomplished. I was compelled to keep reading to find out who Meli listened to; her voice of reason or her heart.

I loved the references to her family being like a piece of knotty pine and know that this novel would make a fantastic TV series or movie!

Every moment I spent with Meli and Aaron was worth it. I know this book will be in my top 5 reads of 2025.

I was gifted this copy by Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

Thank you Kerry Lonsdale, Lake Union, and Brilliance Audio for my gifted copies. All opinions are my own.

Amanda Leigh Cobb is a newer to me narrator but I thoroughly enjoyed her portrayal of Meli. I’ve never read a book with a focus on woodworking or furniture as a family business before and enjoyed seeing Meli’s passion for it.

We find Meli as her uncle is selling their family business out from under her. He happens to be selling it to her secret ex-husband’s family business. They reunite and develop a plan to help save her business. I her liked her together with Aaron. I loved their flashbacks to their first marriage and how they met. At first, I thought it was a little bit of a wild storyline but I really liked how it worked for the story. Aaron was obviously so gone for Meli and would’ve done anything to support her. I loved how he showed her that you can have a passion for your work and a committed relationship as well.

This book is one of best/my favorite romances in a long time. Everything from the plot twists, character building, and wood working was perfect. I never would have expected to love a book focused around woodworking to be so enjoyable that I read it in one sitting. I will definitely be looking for more from this author.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this book!!!! Meli lives by her uncle's words of not getting into a relationship for fear it will affect her work as an artist making specialty wood pieces in her uncle's shop, which she hopes will one day be hers. However it seems that fate has a different plan for Meli. When Aaron is introduced It seems like it is something in her past that wouldn't effect her future , however when we find out he's a prominent figure in the company her uncle is selling the company too , things start to get complicated. I felt SO many emotions reading this book. I was so happy for meli when she once again got married to aaron. You can tell they are a match made in heaven. When Fallon appears on the picture my heart fell for meli. The ending is amazing and this is a book id definitely read over again. I spent a whole night finishing this book because I kept saying I'd just read one more chapter but I couldn't stop reading . Kerry Lonsdale always captivates me with her books . This is actually my new favorite book by her and now I eagerly await the next masterpiece she writes.

Meli Hynes was told by her uncle that she would receive the family woodcrafting shop that she loves and has worked for her whole life when he decided to retire. So when she is told her uncle is selling the company to their competitor, Meli is furious. She tries everything to change his her uncle’s mind but nothing is working. Her last chance happens to be her ex-husband. The same ex-husband that no one in her life knows about..

Aaron met Meli when he was on a trip for work. She was in a wedding dress running from what was supposed to be the best day of her life. They made a decision that day, and once they got divorced decided they would part ways for good. Now Meli needs his help, but will he be willing to help her save her business?

This was a fun, quick read! Meli was such a fun character who showed a lot of growth throughout the book. I loved how each of them had nicknames for each other and how they made me smile each time they used them. Aaron was so thoughtful towards Meli and you could just tell how much he cared for her when reading their story. This story had a great balance of heavier themes along with humor and butterflies.

I did it feel challenging understanding the present and past. It switched back sometimes and I had to re-read to understand what was happening.

3.5

An adorable and unconventional love story. Reminded me in parts of The Statistical Probability of Love At First Sight, but also had so many moments that were different and unique. Meli and Aaron were perfect for one another, and I loved the tumultuous storms they weathered together and came out stronger for it. An incredibly important tale about love, family, estrangement, grief, and loss, and that love wins in the end.

I absolutely loved this story! Second chance marriage for Meli & Aaron, first time around part of the story is not what you expect! Meli is an artisan working for her uncle who does not believe in love except for love of your craft. Meli buys into this way of life planning to take over the business when her uncle retires but unexpectedly her uncle plans to sell the business. What is Meli to do but marry the son, Aaron, of who plans to buy her uncle’s business to stop the sale! The platonic marriage rule is so hard to keep as they publicly display affection & start to catch feelings!! The back & forth of previous marriage & current are brilliantly woven together by Kerry!! This book releases July 8, 2025!! Preorder now!! Thank you to NetGalley & Kerry Lonsdale for the ARC!!

When Meli's family decides to sell the family furniture making business without telling her or giving her a chance to take over the business herself, she decides to enlist the help of Aaron, who works at the company set to buy her family's business. Oh and Aaron is her ex-husband, the man she married on a whirlwind trip to Vegas and divorced when they returned home.

Aaron has a proposal that will help Meli stop the sale of her family business, they should get married again, the marriage will be a conflict of interest and could derail the sale.

This was such a fun premise to a second chance love story. I loved Meli's character and really felt for her through most of the book. I loved that her job was to design and build furniture, and that she was so passionate about it. She was strong, and new what she wanted and wasn't afraid to go after it. Aaron was so kind and sweet, he was the calm to Meli's slight chaos. He was understanding and patient with her, I only wish we had some chapters from his POV.

I loved the relationship between Meli and Aaron, they had such great chemistry together and their playful, flirty banter was so fun. I liked how they supported each other and their dreams. I loved how we also got some flashback to their first whirlwind marriage.

This book does deal with several serious topics for both Meli and Aaron, but Kerry handled all of those with great care. Both characters had traumatic experiences in their childhoods and parents that were less than helpful as adults. Meli's family in particular had huge difficulty with communication and I felt Meli's frustration with them through the whole book.

This was my first book by Kerry Lonsdale and I can't wait to read more from her. If you like second chance romances and marriage of convenience romances you should definitely read this one!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advanced copy of this book!

I unfortunately did not love this one. I typically love marriage of convenience but this was marriage of convenience x 2 (3?) and fairly chaotic. It started off strong but towards the end there were a lot of side plots that got resolved fairly quickly and didn’t make a lot of sense. I did love Aaron but found Meli fairly immature (understandable after being neglected and abandoned as a child) with really no well explained reason for her parents’ abuse.

Falling For You Again is a fun rom-com with a lot of family drama. Runaway bride, Meli, runs to Las Vegas to get married to a handsome stranger she met on the plane on the way there! Swearing she’d never get married (even though she just had two weddings within a short time), the two quickly and amicably divorced. Fast forward to the present (5 years later) when Meli and Aaron’s paths cross again due to their family businesses overlapping.

In a complicated scheme, they team up again to help their own family and work issues, while figuring out their relationship. It’s a fun romance with some spice and a lot of heart. Meli is desperately wanting to be a bigger part of her family’s life professionally and personally. Aaron is adorable and fun MMC while fighting his personal demons.

I loved Amanda Leigh Cobb’s narration, which made this an easy and enjoyable read/listen.

In this book:
*Second chance romance
*marriage of convenience
*forced proximity
*family drama

if miscommunication was a book, it would be this one right here!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hated every single situation that could have been easily taken care of if these two adults just COMMUNICATED. your frontal lobe was developed enough to get married to each other TWICE (the first time being a completely impulsive decision in vegas??? i guesssssss???? mind you, they have zero chemistry lol) but can't communicate either time??? p l e a s e. they also resolved things quickly which then to me it's like, how did we even get here in the first place? the time skips that happened in the middle of the chapter were jarring and completely took me out. they could have been separate chapters honestly.

the fmc was one of the most unlikeable characters i've ever read, and that's coming from someone who loves and is always rooting for the unlikeable character. she was just too selfish for me.

also, there was A LOT going on. the side plots kept adding up and i at one point i was like okay...what are we doing here lol. i really wanted to enjoy this one. i will say i liked the writing! and honestly i feel like i probably would have enjoyed this if the author had written about any other couple but these two lol.

a flop for me!

(4.25 stars)
This was my first book by Kerry Lonsdale and I loved it. Falling For You Again tells the story of Meli (short for Melissa) and Aaron, who have a meet-cute on an airplane after Meli ran away from her wedding. The description of her getting on the plane in her wedding dress had me laughing.

The story is told by Meli and goes back and forth between memories of when she met Aaron and some years later when they meet again, under very different circumstances. I love a second chance romance and this one really delivered.

I enjoyed Meli as a main character. She’s an artist/artisan who works in wood furniture. She grew up in her family business and learned everything from her uncle “Bear” who became her guardian because her parents couldn’t care for her. (You eventually get their backstory.) Uncle Bear, in addition to teaching Meli about working with wood, also teaches her that love isn’t worth it, that your art comes first. She expects to inherit the family business when Bear is ready to retire, but her plans are thrown into chaos when Bear tells her he’s selling the business, to a large corporate competitor.

Aaron was also a great character. He has his own family issues and emotional baggage. I would have loved some chapters from Aaron’s POV, instead of it all being Meli’s.

You get:
- Second chance romance
- Fake dating
- Found family
- Marriage of convenience
- Dysfunctional families
- Addiction problems/neglectful parents
- Family legacy vs personal ambition

I bounced between the ebook and the audiobook for this title, and Amanda Leigh Cobb did a great job with all the voices.

Thank you to Booked With The Emilys, Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy of this book and to Brilliance Audio for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

Thank you, Partner, @bookedwiththeemilys @kerrylonsdale @amazonpublishing for the copy of Falling for You Again and the audiobook.

Looking for a sweet summer read perfect for the lake or beach? Grab a copy of Falling for You Again and drop it in your tote.

This emotional romance pairs a happily ever after with some heavier themes. Kerry Lonsdale writes beautifully and with great care for her characters who have each endured trauma.

I loved the added layers of family drama and complex relationships. The audiobook is narrated by Amanda Lee Cobb who always is a hit for me.

Read if you enjoy:
💗 second chance romance
💗 fake dating / marriage of convenience
💗 family legacy vs personal ambition
💗 emotional romance
💗 cats

My rating: 4.25⭐️

It’s another great book by this author! It’s full of romance and some family drama. There’s funny and sad parts too. I couldn’t put it down and you won’t either. Definitely add to your list.

Falling for You is a moving story about second chances, emotional growth, and the complexities of love.

Meli is a strong, independent woman who has built a name for herself as a custom furniture maker in Boston. While she’s thriving professionally, she longs for the emotional warmth and acceptance that only family can give.

Aaron, heir to a powerful Boston family, feels trapped in a life planned for him—Ivy League grad, future CEO, dutiful son. He carries the weight of expectations he no longer wants to fulfill.

Meli and Aaron first met five years ago, sharing a connection that felt like fate—but family obligations and lifelong beliefs cut their meet-cute short. When they unexpectedly cross paths again, old feelings resurface, and they’re forced to confront the lingering question of what could have been… and what might still be.

Kerry Lonsdale weaves a rich narrative about love, trust, guilt, and the ever-elusive balance between work and happiness. It’s an emotionally layered story of two people learning how to honor themselves while still loving deeply.

A second chance marriage of convenience romance with wood. Meli and Aaron had a whirlwind marriage in Las Vegas, a divorce. and a vow never to see one another again but now he's back in her life. His family company is buying her uncle's company, the company she's poured her heart into. These two bump up against one another but eventually get past the dysfunctional things to find happiness. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. An easy read with good characters and a positive outlook.