Book Review: Booked on a Feeling (A Sweet Mess #3) (ARC)

Author: Jayci Lee

Lizzy “Overachiever” Chung, Esq. has her life mapped out neatly:
* Become a lawyer. Check.
* Join a prestigious law firm. Check.
* Make partner. In progress.

If all goes to plan, she will check off that last box in a couple years, make her parents proud, and live a successful, fulfilled life in L.A. What was not in her plans was passing out from a panic attack during a pivotal moment in her career. A few deep breaths and a four hour drive later, Lizzy is in Weldon for three weeks to shed the burnout and figure out what went wrong. And what better place to recharge than the small California town where she spent her childhood summers with her best friend, Jack Park.

Jack Park didn’t expect to see Lizzy back in Weldon, but now he’s got three weeks to spend with the girl of his dreams. Except she doesn’t know of his decades-long crush on her–and he intends to keep it that way. She’s a high-powered attorney who lives in L.A. and he’s a bookkeeper at his family’s brewery who never left his hometown. He can’t risk their friendship on a long shot. Can he? When Lizzy decides that the local bookstore needs a little revamp, of course, Jack is going to help her bring it back to life. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to ignore there might be more than just friendship among the dusty shelves and books…

Sometimes the path to the rest of your life has been in front of you all along.

Booked on a Feeling is the third novel in the A Sweet Mess series where each novel can be read as a standalone. This story follows Lizzy Chung, an aspiring lawyer in Los Angeles, who has a panic attack during an important work moment. She decides to take a break and head back to small-town Weldon, California to regroup as she questions if she is cut out to be a lawyer. When she returns home, she has the chance to visit her best friend, Jack Park, who works as a bookkeeper at his family’s microbrewery. The two connect further when Lizzy decides to revamp the local bookstore and Jack decides to help her.

As Jack has loved Lizzy since they were ten years old, there is some secret pining between them. Lizzy’s life is initially based on Los Angeles and Jack’s is in Weldon, there is tension about how this will work between them. The two have a natural chemistry, which I enjoyed as their connection did not feel forced, even on a friendship level. Throughout Lizzy’s time in Weldon, she has the chance to reevaluate if being a lawyer is for her. It was her parents dream for her and while she wants to please her parents, she must think if this is the career for her.

This story was very sweet as the two characters shared a lot of history. It was interesting to see how their relationship progressed as feelings developed, but there is always the possibility that this could affect the friendship. Some characters from the previous novels do make an appearance along with multiple other characters. Sometimes this was difficult to track as I did not know who I should pay attention to the most for the secondary and tertiary characters. Overall, this was a sweet story and a great addition to the series!

**I want to give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Griffin, for a review copy of this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**