Book Review: It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie Scott

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie Scott

Pages: 316
Publish date: August 7, 2018
Publisher: –
ASIN: B07D8FNYY9
Purchase: Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – iBooks

Returning home for her father’s wedding was never going to be easy for Adele. If being sent away at eighteen hadn’t been bad enough, the mess she left behind when she made a pass at her dad’s business partner sure was.

Fifteen years older than her, Pete had been her crush for as long as she could remember. But she’d misread the situation—confusing friendliness for undying love. Awkward. Add her father to the misunderstanding, and Pete had been left with a broken nose and a business on the edge of ruin. The man had to be just as glad as everyone else when she left town.

Seven years on, things are different. Adele is no longer a kid, but a fully grown adult more than capable of getting through the wedding and being polite. But all it takes is seeing him again to bring back all those old feelings.

Sometimes first loves are the truest.

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time:

I received an e-arc of It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie Scott in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

I’ve been a fan of Kylie Scott over the last couple of years. She writes romances that I fall in love with and plots that keep me engaged. So when I heard she was bringing out a new book, I couldn’t wait. And while I didn’t love It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time, I did still really enjoy it.

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time follows, Adele as she arrives back home to her father after seven years. She didn’t just leave her father behind, but a mess that isn’t easily fixed. When Adele was eighteen she fell in love with one of her father’s co-workers. But he didn’t feel the same. Heartbroken and embarrassed Adele left town, but now she is back.

I really enjoyed the premise of this one, it sounded intriguing something I don’t really read much of. I am not a massive fan of age gap stories. Maybe it’s because I haven’t read one that I have really loved yet. In saying that I didn’t hate the romance in It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time, I just didn’t like the situations that occurred.

I quite enjoyed Adele as a protagonist. She was engaging and kept me hooked to the novel the whole time. The reader is able to see that Adele still hasn’t truly gotten over getting her heart broken. At first, I found it annoying. But as the novel went on and we got to see how close with Pete she actually was, it all made sense. I enjoyed Adele’s character development throughout the novel. And because there are also flashbacks, it’s like double development.

I wasn’t a massive fan of Pete in It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time. There were so many things that he said and did that just didn’t sit right with me at all. I wasn’t a massive fan of how he treated Adele throughout the novel and that was something I couldn’t really go with. It wasn’t until the last couple of chapters that I liked him. Throughout the novel, he had a few shining moments but then he said something and bang right back to the bottom again.

Because of my dislike of Pete, I didn’t love the romance. It just broke me every time that Adele put her heart on the line and then Pete just stomped on it. However, I did like the use of the age gap in It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time. The reader is able to see that Adele does really care for Pete and it wasn’t just some teenage crush that she had. And when Pete was at his best, the reader is able to see that he too cares for Adele.

I really enjoyed the theme of family in It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time. It really added to the depth of the novel and just made me like the novel even more. Adele’s father and his new wife were totally adorable and I liked that there wasn’t really any hard feelings between Adele and her step mum. It’s rare that you see good relationships between stepfamilies. I liked that Adele’s father was protective, but also let Adele be when she needed it.

Like always I really enjoyed Kylie Scott’s writing and setting. She really knows how to capture a place and that adds depth to the story. I loved that the setting was also Australia. Kylie work’s really great with building characters and letting them take over the pages, which I loved. However, I did think that at times things that happened we really unnecessary and just took away from the story as a whole.

Overall, It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie Scott was a pretty good read. And while I didn’t love it, I still really enjoyed it and was able to read it in a couple of hours. It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time explores the notion of first love, family and falling in love again. It explores expanding families, age gaps and starting away. If you are looking for a different romance read then this one is for you.

About the Author

Kylie Scott is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013 & 2014, by the Australian Romance Writer’s Association and her books have been translated into eleven different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet.

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