My Year of Saying No: A laugh-out-loud, feel-good romantic comedy

Lottie has had a rough year, as many changes hit with a breakup from which her best friend convinced her that she needed to ‘put herself out there more’ and ‘say yes”. Now the year has changed and she is more than ready to start to say NO to everything that doesn’t interest her. While not quite retreating into the trope of the “people pleaser’ with her past year- she really is craving the ability to start directing her own life and not be at the whim of people who push her further outside of her normal self. She’s ready and willing to grab onto the ‘new her’ and she can’t wait to share the news with her friend Seb. Seb is former military, has more than a bit of a crush on Lottie, and isn’t quite sure how to tell her. When he’s told of her new plan to ‘say no’ more often, he’s discouraged and more than a bit disconcerted, thinking that their relationship will change. Although his crush isn’t one-sided – Lottie feels the same for him, but his issues and a bit of back and forth with his dealing with them have her wondering if it is even possible. With her rescue dog Humphrey, she’s started to feel her own independence, knowing she doesn’t NEED a man, but Seb still intrigues her. Morrey took a clever concept, and put a character into an opposite world: from never saying no to anything and running herself ragged, she’s been given the opportunity to truly decide what she does or does not agree to – without the guilt and second-guessing of her choice that so many of us encounter when trying to redirect and re-consider choices and options. There’s plenty of information and a rather fraught backstory for Seb, the solidity of the friendship between them and the reliance he has on Lottie, even when he’s pretty good at hiding just how much he needs her, is clever and easy to see as well as empathize with. I’m not saying that everyone SHOULD make such an effort as Lottie has – but taking time for yourself and not just ‘saying yes’ at the expense of yourself is a novel, if not quite revolutionary act for many. And so very much needed in this life of too many commitments, not enough time, and limited energy to do everything with full effort. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to more from this author. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

I literally couldn't put this book down. what a fantastic read. 😊

Lovely enjoyable read.