No Place Like You

A Novel

By: Jillian Meadows

Narrated by: Victoria Connolly, Tim Paige

Childhood friends turned high school rivals fall into a small-town fake dating scheme in this sweet, spicy, and utterly irresistible romance from the author of Give Me Butterflies.

Fable Oaks never planned to return to Fern River. But after a string of failures, here she is, living in her parents’ backyard, watching her beloved late grandfather’s A-frame crumble around her. She can't seem to find her direction, and to make matters worse, Theo Nikolaou, her ex-best friend, has also resurfaced, distracting dimples and charming grin in tow.

Theo knew it was only a matter of time before he came back. The demons of his past once drove him to leave, but Fern River always seemed meant to be. So, when Theo’s boss, Arthur, announces he is selling his veterinary practice, it feels like the perfect opportunity. He just needs to show Arthur he’s sticking around for good. And when Fable—Fable, with her smart mouth and sexy curls—quite literally falls into Theo's lap, an idea forms.

If they can convince the town that they're madly in love, it could solve all their problems. Theo can prove to Arthur he's settling down, and Fable can get some much-needed help fixing up the A-frame, a task she is determined to see through.

The only problem is, the more time they spend together, the blurrier the line gets between fake dating and falling hard.

She’s lost her way. He’s finding his path. Together, they might discover there's no place like home.

dual narration, very cute

enemies/friends to lovers
childhood best friends
fake dating
friends with benefits failures
pro-therapy, dealing with childhood trauma

this was a cute story. the narrators did amazing great job doing the dual narration. both had good opposite sex voices. I dont generally like dual narration but these narrators did an amazing good job. it was enjoyable. there was a lot of dealing with grief and childhood trauma. it was very pro-therapy. everyone was very supportive. it was low angst and there wasn't really a 3rd act breakup. Fable just needed to get away and have sister time to deal with her feelings. overall this was a cute story.

Meadows is a force

I was lucky enough to read this early on NetGalley but loved it so very much I bought the audio to experience it again. Jillian Meadows writes authentic people who grow and evolve together. She writes flawed but kind people who truly love and support each other and I just can’t get enough.

6 star read

You can always tell how much I love a book by how long my review is. So, in case it isn't obvious, I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!

I wanted to make sure I had read Give Me Butterflies before getting into this one. If I thought I had loved Finn Ashford with all my heart, I was not prepared for Theo Nikolaou. They're both amazing, don't get me wrong but, No Place Like You was just next level to me in every way. The tension, the banter, the slow burn, the self discovery, the yearning!!!! I felt every emotion.

“So, I was thinking.”
“Did it hurt?"
"Jeez, Fabes, stop flirting with me.”
“I’m not flirting with you. I’m insulting you.”
“My heart can’t tell the difference.”
You know that line in New Girl where Nick said "stop being so mean to me or I swear to God I'm gonna fall in love with you". Yeah, that's Fable and Theo's banter to a T. I always say I love when the FMC is just a little bit mean and the MMC takes it and flirts back instead. I loved them so much together.

Now, let's get into the emotional side of things:
“You can’t be behind in your own life. It’s easy to get caught up in where you think you should be, but this is your timeline. You make the rules.” I loved Fable's supportive mom so much. 💕 I felt an almost immediate kinship to Fable whose struggles felt like a mirror to my own. Feeling as though you're stumbling your way through life and behind schedule on where you should be at. Going from one thing to the next, unsure of where to go. Reading this left me feeling hopeful that I'll find my way soon enough as long as I trust myself.

Finally, I'll always be drawn to a book that features mental health representation. Makes me so happy when a character realizes they need help, it shows so much personal strength. Made me love Theo even more. I feel like I could go on and on about the different aspects of this book that I was so drawn to. I'll finish by saying: this was a 6 star read and I already can't wait to do a re-read.