Sweet Girl: The Girls, Book 2

I absolutely adored this book. I savored every word the way you would savor a delicious dessert. Fitting, right? Max Jennings is a grouchy, mean girl. But she wasn’t always this way. Her friends and family know that she’s holding onto something, but she refuses to let anyone in. This book goes through Max’s journey to find herself and let go of her demons. She finds herself in a unique position to follow her dreams, but she’s scared to share it with anyone. On a particularly rough day at her new job, she finds solace in the person she least expected. Try as she might, there’s no denying the connection building between her and her enemy turned friend but she’s determined not to let herself find happiness because of guilt she’s harboring from a painful past. This was a fantastic read. I expected a lighter read. Party Girl was light with a huge dose of girl power, determination, and a nice HEA. Sweet Girl gets more to the nitty gritty. We get to the bottom of Max’s painful past and we see her gain strength in herself with the help of her family and friends. Also, a bonus of Max’s “Sweet” profession, the details of her new job as a pastry chef, the desserts and dishes she was concocting sounded AMAZING! I feel like I should have made a fancy dessert to eat along as I was reading. ;) You can find some of the desserts in the book on Rachel’s blog, www.thechicsite.com. From what I hear, she’ll be posting most of the recipes. Yippee! This was a 5+ star book for me. Rachel Hollis has really done a great job of creating an insanely relatable female lead and a super sweet, sexy male lead.

In this eagerly anticipated sequel to "Party Girl," Rachel Hollis doesn't disappoint. "Sweet Girl" focuses on Max, a flawed, angry young woman who discontent in just about every aspect of her life, though she doesn't seem to realize it. She played a significant role in "Party Girl" as Landon's roommate. We learned a great deal about her then through Landon's romance with Max's brother, Brody, but not like we do in this thoroughly delightful novel. Through a series of events, we learn more and more about this character and what brings her to her breaking point, making her a sympathetic heroine that the reader can't help but cheer for her to conquer her problems and move on with her life. And moving on with her life includes Bennet Taylor, another character from "Party Girl." Sparks don't necessarily fly at once between these two, but when Taylor helps Max through a tough day on her new, dream job the reader sees embers kindled. From that point on in the book, Taylor is always there when Max needs her, even if Max may not always see it. The climax of the book is typical Max and was perfect for her story. Because I had been anticipating this book's publication day since I heard about it, I wanted to savor it and read it s-l-o-w-l-y. Impossible. The story was so charming and well done that the pages on my Kindle seemed to flip themselves. I finished it in just about two hours and with a huge smile on my face. THIS is THE book to read this summer.

To start, I have to say that I had a hard time connecting to Max for the first several chapters. She was such a tough, negative and closed off person that I didn't like her as a character at first. She was frustrating with how rude and negative she could be. But I really liked the other characters from Party Girl, so I knew I needed to keep reading.I also really enjoyed the baking and foodie part of the story, so it was easy to continue reading. I also want to know, the love story part of Sweet Girl was a lot more prominent then in Party Girl, even though it wasn't the main focus. It was obvious that Max was hiding something from her past, but we don't find out what, until close to the end. By that point, I decided I did like Max and that I couldn't stop reading. This book turned into one of those up until 2 am books because I couldn't stop reading until I finished the book.To read more reviews like this one, check out my site, www.ObsessiveBookNerd.com

I am giving this book 4 stars because I already loved these characters from her first book, Party Girl, which I gave five stars. This one gets one less star simply because it focuses on Max instead of Landon, and quite honestly, Max isn't that likeable. She has a deep, dark secret that I won't spoil, but she is so tortured by it that it kind of became hard to read. While Landon was funny, upbeat and full of gumption, Max is angry, sullen and rude. This book also takes place much more inside her head than Party Girl. I am glad that she was able to finally start to heal from prior experiences, but I wish it had happened a little earlier in the story. It probably sounds like I didn't like this book, but I am so invested in the characters, and I like Rachel Hollis' writing style so much that I will continue to read this series. If you are looking for a repeat of Party Girl though, this isn't it.

I just finished Sweet Girl and it was just as good as Party Girl! Rachel Hollis has written yet another wonderful novel about a young girl trying to find her place in the world. Sweet Girl is Max's (Mackenzie's) story and we learn more about why Max is the way she is and how she got to be that way. It's funny, emotional and a love story all rolled in one nice, sweet little package! Plus the desserts Max makes sound really good. I like how the author develops characters who are easy to relate to. Most of us probably know someone bubbly like Landon as well as someone more mysterious like Max. Even though Sweet Girl is part of the Girls series, it isn't necessary to read Party Girl first but it helps to have some background knowledge of who everyone is and where they fit in the story. I loved Sweet Girl and look forward to reading anything else Ms Hollis writes! Keep them coming!

It is very predictable and cliche (the romance side of it) but was still an enjoyable read. The characters are fleshed out well. I also love the writing style. You can relate to the character. She really annoys me in parts but that's just her personality. She is a very angry person because of past experiences.

I am a huge fan of Rachel's and I was a bit worried about this book, but I actually really liked it. I hadn't read a girly book in years but it was the perfect holiday read. Rachel really knows how to write loveable characters and the storyline is very simple but still nice.

This book was absolutely amazing, it was so romantic it gave me shivers down my spine! I've never read Rachel's books before but have already ordered a few more. You will not be disappointed!

I have only one word FABULOUS times 100!!!!Loved it and want no 3 today please please!!!!!This has shown so much love between real friends. Thanks for sharing x

The second in the series, another excellent book, just couldn't put it down, would suit all age groups. Looking forward to reading the third book.