Early Review: The Unplanned Life of Josie Hale by Stephanie Eding

April 11, 2022

The Unplanned Life of Josie Hale

by Stephanie Eding

Pub: May 3, 2022

Sourcebooks Casablanca

// 5 stars out of 5 //

Josie Hale's life has been going downhill for a while now. Between her cheating husband, a messy divorce, and moving back home with her parents, she almost feels like she's starting all over again. Then she finds out she's pregnant, which is the icing on the cake of things in her life she hadn't planned for.

Feeling all kinds of emotions (happy, overwhelmed, and especially hungry), Josie visits the local county fair to satisfy her cravings and greet the nostalgia of her childhood. Her two best friends from high school were the last people she expected to see, but Ben Romero and Kevin Lawrence are certainly a joyful sight for sore, crying eyes. When they realize each of their lives is a tangled mess, who better to help sort it out than each other? They make a pact to move in together and turn their lives around. And with a baby on the way, Josie will take as much help as she can get...

☙ ☙ ☙

I loved this SO much. It's a lovely story about found family and second chances. Josie is in a tough spot - pregnant and divorcing her cheating husband. She moves in with her two old friends until she can get back on her feet.

Josie is so funny. I love how much of a normal person she is. She's self-deprecating and down to earth. Her inner monologues are hilarious. Josie is a delight and I found her to be super relatable.

I adored Kevin and Ben. Kevin is a riot and Ben is a sweetheart. They are the friends we all deserve but rarely find. They are kind people who give Josie so much support - but they are also struggling with the way their lives have gone. Kevin and Ben's relationship with one another is really funny and their dynamic is extremely entertaining. And watching Ben try to develop more of a relationship with his pre-teen daughter was so lovely, it was genuinely one of my favorite parts of the book. Altogether, Josie, Ben, and Kevin make a great trio.

This was a fun, sweet story. I think it is listed primarily as Women's Fiction; on Amazon, it's in the categories of Friendship Fiction, Women's Friendship, and Humorous Fiction. It definitely has a romance element but this book is about many other things than just Ben & Josie's relationship. Their story is a hard-core slow burn - though it's more like 95% mutual pining and 5% romance. They get together at the very, very end, so just a heads up on that in case you're expecting a full-on Romance with a capital R where the love story is the main focus. (It's not but it's really no less romantic for it being so. Trust me.)

I really enjoyed Eding's writing style. Her dialogue is very natural, she writes extremely relatable characters and topics, and is able to incorporate a great sense of humor into the whole shebang. I'd be very happy to try anything else this author writes. This book was SO enjoyable. I highly recommend it!

Look for it on May 3, 2022.