September 24, 2021

The House Swap by Jo Lovett

Genre/Categories/Settings: Light Women’s Contemporary Fiction, Romance/Rom-Com, Luxury Flat in London/Beach House in Maine

My Summary:

Cassie needs to work with her agent in London for a few months and James needs a break from London and has work he can do in Boston. They meet on a house swapping website when each other’s home seems like the answer to their search. They are quite opposite in every way: personality, lifestyle, and attitudes. This deal leads to humorous communication and house swapping experiences. Do opposites attract?

My Thoughts:

Genre: If you are looking for an easy reading, light women’s fiction story with tropes of opposites attract, grumpy meets sunshine, and slow-burn romance, this rom-com might be exactly the book for you! Because of the genre, you can expect predictability and HEA. But at times, that’s just right for a certain reading mood! This is a closed door romance.

Writing: The House Swap has a cute premise and is light and engaging with some charming banter and cleverly written meet-cutes. Although it is inferred that James had a less than happy childhood and Cassie is worried about her biological clock, there are no heavy themes presented here. There is also almost zero profanity, which I appreciate.

Characters: Cassie and James are thirty-comething professionals each missing something in her or his life. While Cassie is free-spirited, artistic, animal loving, environment protecting, and friendly, James is an organized, detached, and grumpy clean-freak. Although Cassie is a writer and James is a venture capitalist (I think?!), no part of the story is spent on their respective careers (except as a catalyst for the swap). James is unlikable at first (thus the trope)….and I’m not quite sure how he made the transformation but suddenly at book’s end, he’s a terrific guy! The grump/sunshine trope is tried and true and reminds me a bit of the trope in Wait For It.

Recommended: I’m recommending this heartwarming and uplit story for readers who love the rom-com genre and the tropes. I picked it up because I was in the mood for a brain break white reading Cloud Cuckoo Land and it didn’t disappoint. Readers who are looking for closed door romance with no profanity will appreciate The House Swap. Thanks for the recommendation Carla @ Carla Loves to Read.

My Rating:  3.5 Stars

The House Swap Information Here

Meet the Author, Jo Lovett

Jo Lovett lives in London with her family.

She worked in Corporate Tax before taking a longer-than-expected career break to have more-than-expected children (five). She started writing romantic comedy when she realised that she was regularly begging her oldest son to let her do his English homework but she wasn’t actually that interested in haunted houses or Macbeth.

Jo was runner-up in the Good Housekeeping/ Orion First Novel Competition 2018 and shortlisted for the Comedy Women in Print Award 2019.

Her first novel, ‘The First Time We Met’, was published by Bookouture in November 2020 and her second, ‘The House Swap’, in April 2021. Jo’s third book will be published in October 2021.

When she can escape from her laundry mountain, she enjoys reading, tennis and wine.

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QOTD:

Is The House Swap on your TBR or have you read it?

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