Hello Bookish Friends :)
Thank you for joining me for another review here on The Preppy Book Princess.
As spring temps emerge, I've really been in the mood to read more lighthearted chick lit type of reads, especially if those reads are about a vacation.
That's the primary reason I chose to pick up the book I'm going to be talking about with you all today, and of course the fact that I'd heard some pretty amazing things about it from other book bloggers.
The Theory of Happily Ever After by Kristin Billerbeck:
Source: Library
Publisher: Revell
Publication Date: May 1st, 2018
Genre: Christian Fiction/Chick Lit
Synopsis:
According to Dr. Maggie Maguire, happiness is serious science, as serious as Maggie takes herself. But science can't always account for life's anomalies--for instance, why her fiancé dumped her for a silk-scarf acrobat and how the breakup sent Maggie spiraling into an extended ice cream-fueled chick flick binge.
Concerned that she might never pull herself out of this nosedive, Maggie's friends book her as a speaker on a "New Year, New You" cruise in the Gulf of Mexico. Maggie wonders if she's qualified to teach others about happiness when she can't muster up any for herself. But when a handsome stranger on board insists that smart women can't ever be happy, Maggie sets out to prove him wrong. Along the way she may discover that happiness has far less to do with the head than with the heart.
Filled with memorable characters, snappy dialogue, and touching romance, Kristin Billerbeck's The Theory of Happily Ever After shows that the search for happiness may be futile--because sometimes happiness is already out there searching for you.
(synopsis from goodreads).
My Review:
I went into this one fully expecting to love it. After all, a Christian fiction novel about a woman who's had her heart broken who's best friends decide to take her on a cruise vacation to jump start her life and career, sounded like something I'd really enjoy. Unfortunately, this one really came up short of my expectations, and I walked away quite disappointed when I did finally finish it.
Most of my problems with this one lay within the characters themselves. Maggie was not a protagonist I found myself rooting for, as some of her actions were really hard to stomach, and she shows very little character growth over the course of the story. Most of the situations she gets herself into seemed implausible and extremely unrealistic; like the time she decides to go zip lining in an expensive princess costume simply because the good looking, fun loving bartender she's spent a few moments with tells her it's a good idea. I feel her character had such potential, and while as more of her backstory was explained, I definitely could sympathize with her more, she still wasn't a protagonist I found myself identifying with, and I thought the author could have done much more to develop her character.
However, Maggie is basically a saint compared to her two friends. Over and over again throughout the course of the story the reader watches Haley and Kathleen treat Maggie like a doormat, and basically consistently try and ride the coattails of the fame she's established as a famous author. In fact, the the cruise vacation is a work trip for Maggie; one her two "friends" force her to take in order to get herself back on her feet, but in reality it comes across that they really just wanted a free vacation. They shoot her down every time she tries to do something that doesn't fit with the image they have of her, and never show her the support she truly needs from her friends. Neither act even slightly the way a true Christian friend should be acting, and I honestly could barely stand reading about them.
While I did enjoy Sam's character, and the heavy presence of faith throughout a lot of portions of the story, they weren't enough to redeem this one in my eyes, and I walked away after reading it feeling quite disappointed. While I appreciated the fact that the author chose to include some heavier topics within the otherwise humorous story, it just didn't work for me, and I also felt the romance comes across as insta-love, of which I'm never a fan.
I'd personally recommend other of this author's book over this one.
Final Rating: ⭐⭐
This will not be a reread for me, as I just didn't enjoy it that much the first time around unfortunately.
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
Thank you for joining me for another review here on The Preppy Book Princess.
As spring temps emerge, I've really been in the mood to read more lighthearted chick lit type of reads, especially if those reads are about a vacation.
That's the primary reason I chose to pick up the book I'm going to be talking about with you all today, and of course the fact that I'd heard some pretty amazing things about it from other book bloggers.
The Theory of Happily Ever After by Kristin Billerbeck:
Source: Library
Publisher: Revell
Publication Date: May 1st, 2018
Genre: Christian Fiction/Chick Lit
Synopsis:
According to Dr. Maggie Maguire, happiness is serious science, as serious as Maggie takes herself. But science can't always account for life's anomalies--for instance, why her fiancé dumped her for a silk-scarf acrobat and how the breakup sent Maggie spiraling into an extended ice cream-fueled chick flick binge.
Concerned that she might never pull herself out of this nosedive, Maggie's friends book her as a speaker on a "New Year, New You" cruise in the Gulf of Mexico. Maggie wonders if she's qualified to teach others about happiness when she can't muster up any for herself. But when a handsome stranger on board insists that smart women can't ever be happy, Maggie sets out to prove him wrong. Along the way she may discover that happiness has far less to do with the head than with the heart.
Filled with memorable characters, snappy dialogue, and touching romance, Kristin Billerbeck's The Theory of Happily Ever After shows that the search for happiness may be futile--because sometimes happiness is already out there searching for you.
(synopsis from goodreads).
My Review:
I went into this one fully expecting to love it. After all, a Christian fiction novel about a woman who's had her heart broken who's best friends decide to take her on a cruise vacation to jump start her life and career, sounded like something I'd really enjoy. Unfortunately, this one really came up short of my expectations, and I walked away quite disappointed when I did finally finish it.
Most of my problems with this one lay within the characters themselves. Maggie was not a protagonist I found myself rooting for, as some of her actions were really hard to stomach, and she shows very little character growth over the course of the story. Most of the situations she gets herself into seemed implausible and extremely unrealistic; like the time she decides to go zip lining in an expensive princess costume simply because the good looking, fun loving bartender she's spent a few moments with tells her it's a good idea. I feel her character had such potential, and while as more of her backstory was explained, I definitely could sympathize with her more, she still wasn't a protagonist I found myself identifying with, and I thought the author could have done much more to develop her character.
However, Maggie is basically a saint compared to her two friends. Over and over again throughout the course of the story the reader watches Haley and Kathleen treat Maggie like a doormat, and basically consistently try and ride the coattails of the fame she's established as a famous author. In fact, the the cruise vacation is a work trip for Maggie; one her two "friends" force her to take in order to get herself back on her feet, but in reality it comes across that they really just wanted a free vacation. They shoot her down every time she tries to do something that doesn't fit with the image they have of her, and never show her the support she truly needs from her friends. Neither act even slightly the way a true Christian friend should be acting, and I honestly could barely stand reading about them.
While I did enjoy Sam's character, and the heavy presence of faith throughout a lot of portions of the story, they weren't enough to redeem this one in my eyes, and I walked away after reading it feeling quite disappointed. While I appreciated the fact that the author chose to include some heavier topics within the otherwise humorous story, it just didn't work for me, and I also felt the romance comes across as insta-love, of which I'm never a fan.
I'd personally recommend other of this author's book over this one.
Final Rating: ⭐⭐
This will not be a reread for me, as I just didn't enjoy it that much the first time around unfortunately.
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
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