If It Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia (indie: Sept. 1, 2024/trad: Sept. 2, 2025) Thank you, @berkleyromance and @prhaudio for the gifted digital and audio books. Also, thank you to @biblilater.alligator and @books_w_bex for shouting this one from the rooftops! #berkley #berkleypartner #prhaudioinfluencer
Michelle, a the-ink-isn’t-even-dry divorcee and Seattle-based corner-office marketing pro, never planned on managing her mom’s small-town Vermont Bed and Breakfast but she also didn’t plan on her mom dying. Which is how Michelle finds herself spending the final months of 1997 learning how to run the business while not being distracted by the hot single dad next door. Cliff and his ex were teen parents and now he’s a 33 yo divorced dad who hasn’t dated in almost two years despite the whole town being ready to fix him up. He’s committed to his two daughters and his bakery. Then he sees Michelle and everything changes. Although both harboring an intense attraction, they know they’re on borrowed time with Michelle set to return to Seattle just after Christmas. Over Michelle’s months in Copper Run, Cliff becomes her best friend and the person she can’t imagine her life without. The town and its people become a community she never new she needed. She worked her whole life for her corner office but Cliff, his daughters, and Copper Run are making her retihink everything in her life.
This was my first Julie Olivia book, and every bit of hype was justified. The Gilmore Girls vibes are strong here – quirky small town, lovable locals, cozy business settings – and the 1997 backdrop is pure nostalgia: pay phones, R.E.M. and Pearl Jam references, and the subtle reminder that my “youth” is now considered historical fiction (ouch). The daughters are beautifully written, full of personality and complexity, and the parallels between Michelle’s relationship with her late mother and Cliff’s daughter’s relationship with hers give the story an emotional depth that lingers. The original epilogue was perfect and the new bonus epilogue in this re-release makes it even better.
🎧 Audiobook Thoughts: (14h) Alex Raby and Sean Patrick Hopkins do a fantastic job as Michelle and Cliff with Blair Young and Emily Eiden stepping in as Rocket and Brittany. It was just fantastic. All the stars.
Book: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
🎧 Audio performance: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
🔥 Spice: 🌶️🌶️
Book Smart Kate 