My Thoughts: Hang the Moon by Alexandria Bellefleur

Hang the Moon
(Written in the Stars #2)
by Alexandria Bellefleur

Publication Date: May 25th 2021
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9780063000841
Genre: Adult Ficiton / Romance / Contemporary
Source: Netgalley Review Copy / Own

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In a delightful follow-up to Written in the Stars, Alexandria Bellefleur delivers another #ownvoices queer rom-com about a hopeless romantic who vows to show his childhood crush that romance isn’t dead by recreating iconic dates from his favorite films...

Brendon Lowell loves love. It’s why he created a dating app to help people find their one true pairing and why he’s convinced “the one” is out there, even if he hasn’t met her yet. Or... has he? When his sister's best friend turns up in Seattle unexpectedly, Brendon jumps at the chance to hang out with her. He’s crushed on Annie since they were kids, and the stars have finally aligned, putting them in the same city at the same time.

Annie booked a spur-of-the-moment trip to Seattle to spend time with friends before moving across the globe. She’s not looking for love, especially with her best friend’s brother. Annie remembers Brendon as a sweet, dorky kid. Except, the 6-foot-4 man who shows up at her door is a certified Hot Nerd and Annie... wants him? Oh yes.

Getting involved would be a terrible idea—her stay is temporary and he wants forever—but when Brendon learns Annie has given up on dating, he’s determined to prove that romance is real. Taking cues from his favorite rom-coms, Brendon plans to woo her with elaborate dates straight out of Nora Ephron’s playbook. The clock is ticking on Annie’s time in Seattle, and Brendon’s starting to realize romance isn’t just flowers and chocolate. But maybe real love doesn’t need to be as perfect as the movies... as long as you think your partner hung the moon. (Goodreads)

Hang the Moon is the absolutely adorable sequel to Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur, and also one of my most anticipated reads this spring! I loved Written in the Stars when I read it last year, so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this sequel… Especially since it’s Annie and Brendon’s story!

So, if you’ve never read my review for Written in the Stars, let me tell you … It was one of my most favorite reads of 2020. It was a sapphic, fake dating, Pride and Prejudice retelling, and I loved every minute of it. Elle and Darcy were fantastic, and I loved their story.

Hang the Moon is all about Annie and Brendon. Annie is Darcy’s best friend, and Brendon is Darcy’s brother. We meet them in the first book, where we discover that Brendon had a huge crush on Anne when they were younger. They reconnect in Hang the Moon, and let me tell you, the sparks… they FLY!

Annie and Brendon were SO ADORABLE! They are definitely now on my list of favorite couples. The chemistry between the two is fantastic, and I loved their interactions with each other. (Did I mention that they were adorable? Because they are!) They have the absolute best storyline with Brenden trying to prove to Annie that love still exists by wooing her, using some of my most favorite rom-coms ever as inspiration. This book had it all and I was so here for it!

Oh and I also love that Darcy and Elle were in this book as well! It was so fun to catch up with them to see what they’d been up to since the last book ended!

Overall; If you can’t tell from above, I really loved Hang the Moon! This was a fantastic sequel that made me laugh and smile SO much, and it was just an all-around enjoyable read. And I’m SOOOO excited to discover that there is going to be a third book, Count Your Lucky Stars, which will be Margot’s story, and is set to release in February 2022!

Waiting on Wedesnday: Hang the Moon & Just Last Night

Hang the Moon
by Alexandria Bellefleur

Expected publication: May 25th 2021
by Avon

In a delightful follow-up to Written in the Stars, Alexandria Bellefleur delivers another #ownvoices queer rom-com about a hopeless romantic who vows to show his childhood crush that romance isn’t dead by recreating iconic dates from his favorite films...

Brendon Lowell loves love. It’s why he created a dating app to help people find their one true pairing and why he’s convinced “the one” is out there, even if he hasn’t met her yet. Or... has he? When his sister's best friend turns up in Seattle unexpectedly, Brendon jumps at the chance to hang out with her. He’s crushed on Annie since they were kids, and the stars have finally aligned, putting them in the same city at the same time.

Annie booked a spur-of-the-moment trip to Seattle to spend time with friends before moving across the globe. She’s not looking for love, especially with her best friend’s brother. Annie remembers Brendon as a sweet, dorky kid. Except, the 6-foot-4 man who shows up at her door is a certified Hot Nerd and Annie... wants him? Oh yes.

Getting involved would be a terrible idea—her stay is temporary and he wants forever—but when Brendon learns Annie has given up on dating, he’s determined to prove that romance is real. Taking cues from his favorite rom-coms, Brendon plans to woo her with elaborate dates straight out of Nora Ephron’s playbook. The clock is ticking on Annie’s time in Seattle, and Brendon’s starting to realize romance isn’t just flowers and chocolate. But maybe real love doesn’t need to be as perfect as the movies... as long as you think your partner hung the moon.

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Just Last Night
by Mhairi McFarlane

Expected Publication: May 4th 2021
by William Morrow Paperbacks

Eve, Justin, Susie, and Ed have been friends since they were teenagers. Now in their thirties, the four are as close as ever, Thursday night bar trivia is sacred, and Eve is still secretly in love with Ed. Maybe she should have moved on by now, but she can’t stop thinking about what could have been. And she knows Ed still thinks about it, too.

But then, in an instant, their lives are changed forever.

In the aftermath, Eve’s world is upended. As stunning secrets are revealed, she begins to wonder if she really knew her friends as well as she thought. And when someone from the past comes back into her life, Eve’s future veers in a surprising new direction...

They say every love story starts with a single moment. What if it was just last night?

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•     •     •

These are two awesome upcoming romances that I am looking forward to!

Hang the Moon is the sequel to Written in the Stars, which is a book that I read recently and LOVED! I absolutely can't wait to devour the book!

And Just Last Night will be my first experience with Mhairi McFarlane, but I hear good things about her books, and I am excited to check this one out!

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

My Thoughts: Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

Written in the Stars
by Alexandria Bellefleur

Publication Date: November 10th 2020
Publisher: Avon Books
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9780063000803
Genre: Adult / Romance / LGBT / Contemporary
Source: Own/Library Borrow (audio)

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With nods to Bridget Jones and Pride and Prejudice, a charming #ownvoices queer rom-com debut about a free-spirited social media astrologer who agrees to fake a relationship with an uptight actuary until New Year’s Eve—with results not even the stars could predict!

After a disastrous blind date, Darcy Lowell is desperate to stop her well-meaning brother from playing matchmaker ever again. Love—and the inevitable heartbreak—is the last thing she wants. So she fibs and says her latest set up was a success. Darcy doesn’t expect her lie to bite her in the ass.

Elle Jones, one of the astrologers behind the popular Twitter account, Oh My Stars, dreams of finding her soul mate. But she knows it is most assuredly not Darcy... a no-nonsense stick-in-the-mud, who is way too analytical, punctual, and skeptical for someone as free-spirited as Elle. When Darcy’s brother—and Elle's new business partner—expresses how happy he is that they hit it off, Elle is baffled. Was Darcy on the same date? Because... awkward.

When Darcy begs Elle to play along, she agrees to pretend they’re dating to save face. But with a few conditions: Darcy must help Elle navigate her own overbearing family over the holidays and their arrangement expires on New Year’s Eve. The last thing they expect is to develop real feelings during a fake relationship.

But maybe opposites can attract when true love is written in the stars? (Goodreads)

When I heard Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur described as Bridget Jones Diary meets Pride and Prejudice, I knew, just KNEW that I would have to read the book. Pride and Prejudice is one of my most favorite books ever, and I can’t get enough retellings and books inspired by the story. I am thrilled to tell you that this book was fantastic!

I may have mentioned it in a few reviews already this year, (I have), but romance is the genre of the year for me. These books are the ones getting me through this tough year, and I can’t seem to read nearly enough of them. Written in the Stars was such an addicting read, and it definitely helped me escape from reality for just a little while.  

One of the things that I loved most about this book was the characters. Elle and Darcy reminded me so much of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy from the original story. They were such great characters. There were a lot of interesting secondary characters as well, including Elle’s HUGE family, which reminded me so much of Elizabeth’s family. They were all great!

The storyline for the book is super cute as well. I love the idea of the app that Elle and her roommate were working on, along with Darcy’s brother, Brendon. I am fascinated by astrology, and this book made me want to really get to know more about it. Also, the story takes place from right before Thanksgiving to right after Christmas, so you could totally count this as a Christmas read if you wanted to. (I totally did.) I’m so glad I waited until December to read the book, but you could definitely read it at any time and love it as well.

Also, I originally listened to the audiobook for Written in the Stars, and the narrator, Lauren Sweet, was so great! I very much enjoyed her voices for each of the characters as she read the story to me. (I totally picked up a finished copy after finishing the audiobook as well!)

Overall; Written in the Stars was such a good read. I loved the characters and the storyline, and just everything about the book. I now absolutely can’t wait to read Hang the Moon, which is set to release in May of 2021, and is Brendon, Darcy’s brothers, story! (I love Brendon!) If you love a good romance, check out Written in the Stars, and keep your eye out for Hang the Moon as well!