Review: Excess Baggage

Excess Baggage by Laura Barnard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excess Baggage was my first Laura Barnard read, and I can guarantee it will not be my last. I went into this book expecting to read a couple of chapters on the way to work, only to find myself sneaking a read at every possible moment. It was all kind of addictive, taking me on a wild ride, and it has left me with the most intense desire to pick up Laura Barnard’s other books.

Excess Baggage is a beautiful second chance romance with the perfect mix of humour and emotion. Telling the story of reconnecting with a first love, this story offers up so much. From the very first page you’re pulled into the story, the grip it has on you growing tighter and tighter with each page you read. One moment you’ll be cooing at how adorable the story is, only to be snorting with laughter in the next moment. It truly is a wonderful blend of all the necessary aspects to make an addictive romance read.

Whilst I loved so many things about this story, I think my favourite aspect was the humour. I was chuckling aloud at so many of the scenes. One chapter in particular had me clutching my stomach for fear I would do myself serious damage with all the laughter bubbling from me. What I especially loved is that it wasn’t too over the top. Although there was more than enough to leave you giggling throughout, there were plenty of moments where the story had a more serious note to it. Ensuring fans are chuckling whilst maintaining a serious story is vital, and this one certainly delivers on that front.

It also delivers in giving you characters you’ll fall in love with. I fell madly in love with our main characters from the very start of the story – in fact, I loved the entire cast – and I couldn’t help but hope they would get their happily ever after. The way in which the details of the past slowly come to light and mix with the events of the present allowed my emotions to slowly alter in regards to characters, and for me to feel so many different things towards each of the characters in such a short space of time was brilliant. They really do come alive, jumping off the page.

Mix in the humour and the amazing cast with the gripping storyline, and you have the recipe for a mind-blowing read. The biggest disappointment for me is that the book wasn’t longer – there was plenty of drama, we had plenty of hot scenes, and we experience so much – yet I would have liked to spend even more time following the wonderful cast of characters we were introduced to, as I wanted to spend even longer holidaying with them. This simply demonstrates how deeply I came to love the story – only those that truly grip you leave you wanting to spend more time with the characters.

I would also like to point out that there’s the possibility of getting the story of two of the other characters we are introduced to in this book. I say yes, a thousand times yes. In fact, I say yes to hearing the story of all of the characters. The cast was wonderful and I came to enjoy them all, and getting to read the love stories for all of the characters is certainly something I would love to do.

Honestly, this story was absolutely adorable. I was pulled under the spell from start to end, and I cannot wait to read more of Laura Barnard’s work.

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