Book Review: The Do Over by Sharon M. Peterson

3.75⭐
Genre ~ contemporary fiction
Setting ~ Texas
Publication date ~ August 1, 2022
Est Page Count ~ 330 (48 chapters)
Audio length ~ 9 hours 18 minutes
Narrator ~ Elise Roth
POV ~ single 1st
Featuring ~ debut, awful mother, curvy girl, fake dating, single parent, friends to lovers, slow burn, no steamage

My review:

Perci (28) is a people pleaser, but she’s ready to make a change when she’s publicly humiliated by being dumped on the radio.

Each chapter begins with a funny Mimi~ism. My favorites are:
“A good friend’ll help ya bury the body. A great friend knows how much rat poison you’ll need.”
“Silence may be golden, but duct tape is silver and it’s real cheap.”
Besides these nuggets of wisdom, Mimi was a great grandma to have on your side.

I winced every time Perci’s mom opened her mouth because I just knew a rude comment would come out. She’s someone who is always worried about what someone thinks of her. Always has something to say about Perci’s weight, love life and life decisions. She even still picks out her clothes! A real annoying meddler. Perci has had enough and has no choice but to pretend she is dating her unhandsome neighbor, Nate. Good thing he goes along with the plan.

Nate is raising 8 year old, Lilah. She’s a great kid that knows fun facts like “kangaroos can’t fart”. I didn’t know I needed to know this, but now I’m thrilled I do and you do, too. Nate is a pretty sweet guy and I can’t even be mad at him for the 3rd act breakup because I can relate with him on this aspect personally.

Perci has a wonderful best friend, Mathias. He’s so supportive and gives good advice. I’m glad he found his own happiness, too.

Overall, I really liked this debut. Light on the romance, which I didn’t hate because it’s more about personal growth and learning to love yourself for who you are.

Yay for checking off one from the backlog!

Narration notes:
I did not listen to this one, but am just giving the info above for reference.

Get your copy on ~ Amazon

Add to your never ending TBR  ~ goodreads

I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read it.

Book blurb:

“Look, you’re a nice girl but I don’t think we should see each other anymore.” The voicemail ends and I freeze in the dentist’s chair as I realize… I’ve just been dumped on live radio.

It took the most humiliating break-up for me to see that my life is in serious need of a do-over. Cue my anti New Year’s resolutions that even I can’t fail at:
1. Stop dating. (Men are the worst.)
2. Stop trying to lose weight. (I’m never giving up chocolate.)
3. Stop working so hard. (Selling mortgages is not my dream career.)
4. Stop trying to live up to unrealistic expectations. (Start living my best life.)
5. Stop trying to please my mother. (It’s not possible.)

But it turns out number five is harder than I thought, as she begins her campaign to get me back with my ex. So, what’s the perfect solution to keep her out of my love life? An imaginary boyfriend—at least he was supposed to be imaginary until I blurted out my neighbor’s name…

Nate, the bad boy next door with gorgeous hazel eyes, a razor-sharp jawline and a mysterious scar, might be hot, but he’s definitely not my boyfriend. Now all I need to do is stick to my resolutions while also keeping my interfering family away from my non-existent lover who has no idea that we’re fake dating. What could possibly go wrong?

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