Breaking Routine

By: Melissa Tereze

Narrated by: Emma Griffiths

Length: 8 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

Maybe it’s time for Cait to put her heart at the top of her to-do list.

There goes Harper Grey’s love life, the latest victim of a classic cliché: the office affair. Now she’s driving through drenching rain, a sad song on the radio, the seat beside her as empty as her new dream house. Without the loving and faithful partner, who turned out to be neither.

Still, she’s looking forward to making a fresh start in The Lakes. When she finds the house as cold, drenched, and power-outage dark inside as outside, she makes a tactical retreat to a B&B down the road. And wonders if she’s made a tactical error.

Cait Taylor has poured every ounce of her energy into the guest house she owns with her brother. But lately, everyone seems set on pushing the “town sweetheart” to find a sweetheart of her own. The attraction she feels for Harper goes far beyond mere sympathy for her plight, but it’s clear Harper isn’t ready.

Yet as the two dance around each other, Harper realizes Cait makes her feel the way her ex never did. And she wonders if it’s time to let Cait into her empty heart...and make it home.

Best-selling author Melissa Tereze brings you a brand new fluffy winter age-gap romance to settle in with. Filled with hot chocolate, frosty mornings, and a whole lot of love, what more could you want to kick off 2021?

©2021 Melissa Tereze (P)2023 Melissa Tereze

Sorry Melissa, this one's a miss for me

I'm going to speak plainly about this book because whenever I see it in my library, I always think: "what's this book about again?"

The story is... bland. It's about the developing relationship between a woman recovering from a breakup and another woman attempting to come out of her work dominated shell. But oh my gosh! MOST OF THE BOOK IS LITERALLY INNER MONOLOGUE! By the time chapter 7 came around, I got so tired of hearing Harper pine/hate her ex-fiancé! I get it, I really truly get it. It's devastating what Harper went through, but lord the woman cannot make up her mind!

For example: Harper's ex-fiancé Cali, or Kali (however you spell it), visits Harper in her home. Note that this is after Harper finds out about Cali, 1) having sex in her bed, in her house, and 2) bursting a pipe in her home and causing thousands of dollars in water damage. The two proceed to talk about their relationship and it ends with a "kiss." Harper then analyzes said kiss and determines that she felt absolutely nothing.

However, later in the book, after finding out that Cali not only screwed Harper, practically ruined her house, and then got engaged in Harper's bedroom; Autumn (Harper's best friend) asks: "You still love her don't you?" And we get to listen to Harper contradict herself ALL OVER AGAIN. YES. I GET IT. THE HISTORY BETWEEN HARPER AND HER EX IS A BIG DEAL. But holy moly, by the time this was said, I was already more than half way through all the chapters! It became so repetitive.

Now, onwards to Kate. There's nothing really wrong with her character. She's just not memorable. I imagine her as the nice sweet girl trying to become more assertive in her life. I don't know if its her dialogue, the scenes or whatever, but I truly did not remember her character at all before re listening to this book.

The best way to describe their relationship is a rollercoaster. It starts very fast, has lots of ups and downs, and by the end of it, I had a headache. It's really a weird dance of not being good enough for one another and using their flaws to justify the reason not to be together. Yes, I understand that this is a very human thing to do, but once again, it's very repetitive in the story and I heard it one too many times before they actually moved on from this plot device.

Finally, the whole cheating thing. Am I the only one who hates the fact that romance novels tend to plaster over cheating by "accepting" it, just to prove a point of the protagonist being a better person? Sometimes I can get over it, but how deplorable and evil Cali is portrayed in this novel, drove home the point that I really didn't enjoy the direction this story took.

Overall: Unmemorable characters, repetitive narrative, weird love hate thing, and... being a bigger person.

Frustrating insecurity

The narrator was great. The story was frustrating. All the tangible problems the author got rid of in the first couple of chapters. Then the rest of the book is spent with two women who just won't get out of their own way, wallowing in their insecurity. Not pleasant and made the women rather one-dimensional. This could have been a lot better if it didn't play into tired tropes.

A good book for the weekend

You need to be lucky and there is no doubt the MC are lucky, both of them…
Love the story, theMC and the narration was the right one.

tired tropes

too much hand wringing, unrealistic drama and the unimaginative "I saw them kiss" to keep listening. I sent it back.

Sweet Sweet Sweet

This is another hit for Melissa. Harper and Cate are wonderful people. Made for each other. And Emma's voice. Melissa's books and Emma's voice are just made for each other. Enjoy.

Not worth a credit

A jilted MC who meets the love of her life but she constantly referred to her cheating ex until it really got tiring. She also was so insecure in her self worth entering into her new romance that also got tiring.
Then there is the totally mushy new romance that was also too much. I could barely finish but I managed to endure the last 2 hrs.

Narrator was good.

The Ex that keeps

A loving variety of how everyone belongs with someone. When you at your lowest a sun beams finds you.

Loved it!

Great story line and characters, related to some events and made me laugh at the irony. Enjoy this listen or read

okay listen

it's very repetitive in the story that sheesh and the does she love me on both ends was so annoying. okay story, the repetition was to add angst which just drove me mental.

A wonderful love story and 2nd chances!

The two MCs are so great together and really make you fantasize what love should look like. The narrator did a good job and the author never fails with her intimate moments ;)

This wlw romance would be improved if shorter

Melissa Tereze's novel is a sweet story but dull. It would be much improved by a more developed story line, less repetition in the writing and some snappy editing.

Took me home

Very easy to listen to but left me quite homesick because in my mind I knew exactly where the guest house was and have tasted those waffles. This was also where I met my partner but in totally different circumstances. well written and read beautifully.

Great book

This book is cute and sexy and such a good feel good read/listen. Melissa always writes a good book and this one is no different. Relatable characters and likely events make this book even more enjoyable. The setting is gorgeous I love the lakes and I could picture while I was listening. The narrator was great and did a fabulous job of bringing the book alive. I totally recommend getting this audio and being prepared to lose yourself in the lives of Cate and Harper