Book Review: Speechless by Lindsey Lanza

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 328 pages
Author: Lindsey Lanza
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: January 17th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When life’s off-key, go to Malibu

Bestselling author Lucy Gold may write fairy tales for a living, but her own happily ever after is looking bleak. Seeking a fresh start after a sudden divorce on the eve of her thirtieth birthday, she decides to make a new life for herself and her service dog in Los Angeles. But when her living arrangements fall through just before takeoff, a handsome stranger offers to let her stay with him and his motley crew of musicians in Malibu. Her gallant hero? None other than Henry Turner, the award-winning composer whose music has held Lucy together while her life’s been crumbling apart.

Henry might be at the peak of his creative career, but his crippling anxiety throws his personal life completely out of tune. Yet all of that changes the longer Lucy stays with him and his housemates, swiftly becoming one of their own and offering Henry a glimpse of happiness he never thought possible. As their relationship deepens, Lucy’s attraction to Henry cannot be denied, but as she works through the aftermath of her divorce, she’s resigned to give up on love. Henry plays all the right notes and says all the right words. Will Lucy be able to hear them over her fear of the past repeating itself?

Speechless is a swoony saga about finding your people, overcoming your deepest insecurities, and choosing happiness no matter what life throws at you.

WONDERFUL DEBUT.

Ohhh my goodness I inhaled this book on the day it released. I could not put it down and now all I want is Lanza’s second book because this was a fantastic debut.

I LOVED all of the rep here and how both characters worked through and handled things. It wasn’t always linear and I love feeling the real and rawness of both of the main characters.

Henry was the sweetest cinnamon roll who was kind, genuine and there. Always there. My absolute favorite nuance. Lucy showed some beautiful character growth and I really appreciated the author’s note at the end that further made Lucy’s decisions clear.

There was a tender found family here too. I loved that Lucy got the chance to make true and lasting connections that she desperately needed (and deserved).

The whole book just kept me wrapped up in all the emotions. And the ending??? THE FEEEEEEELS. It was beautiful and everything and you definitely need to read this too.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: a little
Romance: a few vague, fade to black; low explicit
Violence: low
Trigger/Content Warnings: bullying, social anxiety and selective mutism, chronic illness (endometriosis), divorce, loss of a parent, grief depiction