Kissing the wrong twin paid off for her sister. Too bad it blew up in Lorelai’s face.Lorelai Mays has always been driven. Her career proves that. After graduating high school and college early, she snagged a dream job as a veterinary intern at a local office. Unfortunately, the long hours and intense caseload are not what she expected. She’s stressed and overworked, and now she’s in love with a man who won’t give her the time of day after one intense kiss. Ezra Thomas is happy for his best friend and brother—really, he is. But it’s the other Mays woman he can’t get out of his mind. Dating Lorelai had never crossed his mind before that fateful kiss, but now she is all he can think about. The problem is that he’s not supposed to fall in love with anyone right now. He made a commitment he can’t take back, but how can he tell Lorelai?When Ezra finally shares his secret with his best friend’s sister, the two make a deal. They will communicate with the written word for ten weeks—the exact time he will be in training for his new career—and if their feelings grow during that time, he’ll marry her when he comes home. At first, Lorelai thinks this is too good to be true. But as each handwritten letter from Ezra makes her fall harder in love with him, she can’t help but wonder if God had this planned all along. Falling for Ezra Thomas is a sister’s best friend, long distance, sweet new adult romance with swoony kisses, everyday faith in action, and a side of comedy.
M. J. Padgett is first and foremost a mom. Her free-spirited daughter has quite the vivid imagination, and her antics sometimes find their way into her mommy’s work. She is a lover of all things chocolate, a Grimm and Dickens addict, a self-proclaimed smarty-pants, and an introvert to the core.
Writing is her true passion (after raising her daughter, of course), and she writes as often as possible. One of her favorite things about writing is creating a world where people can escape reality for a little while, maybe even walk away feeling hopeful about the real world around them. When it comes to reading, she loves a book that can make her forget where she is no matter the genre. If she can get lost and feel like the characters are her real friends, she’s a happy reader.
I can’t describe just how much I adore hanging out with the Thomas family and their band of friends! We *finally* get resolution for Ezra & Lorelai after that shocking end of Beck’s book (iykyk). The military angle was lovely, and I thoroughly enjoyed the epistolary chapters of love notes.
Falling for Ezra Thomas is a sweet, unfinished story, romance. As Erza heads off to basic training, he and Lorerai decide to exchange handwritten letters, which I love as there is something so special about the lost art of handwriting letters.
If you haven't read any of the previous books in this series, well, congratulations, you just discovered a fantastic new series! I would highly recommend reading at least the first book, Kissing Beck Thomas, as it sets the scene for Falling For Erza perfectly.
Falling For Erza Thomas is full of family, the chaos they bring, hope, and sweet love story, and I would highly recommend it.
I received an ARC from the author, but this doesn't impact my thoughts or opinions on this story.
This was such an adorable romance book. It reminds me of the TED lecture about letter writing and how it can draw people closer together and this little romance shows us that letter writing and the written word in communication can lead to many good things in life beyond social media and electronic interference. I loved this book.
– this is part of a series, but can be read as a stand-alone
– this is told from Lorelai & Ezra’s points of view
– both characters are Christians & speak to each other about elements of their faith (prayer, giving things to God, etc)
– a character surprises everyone by having waited to tell them that they enlisted for the army (there are a few scenes at the training camp & the story ends with the character moving in at their assigned location; there are no scenes of war/battle)
Review:
Throughout most of this book I was highly fighting tears! 😭 There were so many emotions between Lorelai’s change in job, Ezra’s new plan, & their budding relationship. I loved the close-knit way the Thomas family gathered the town into their business and welcomed anyone. I loved seeing the Thomas brothers mess around with each other & still have some serious conversations & emotions with the different things that came up in this book. I loved that the characters showed a lot of emotions over the course of the story’s events. It made it more real to me to see it. I also loved the realistic conversations about God & learning to lean on Him in the midst of anything we might go through.
I loved that we got a second hand account from the main characters about some of the already growing/started relationships some of the Thomas brothers had. I’ve been eyeing this series and only just started it with this book, but I’m excited to get to the other books of the series to see what happened with the other couples!
Summary:
Lorelai thought that being a veterinarian was all she wanted in her life, until circumstances made it painfully obvious that it wasn’t everything she’d hoped. Upending her occupation choice, though not the end of the world, sends Lorelai reeling. Especially since she’s dealing with the surprise kiss her sister’s best friend gave her. Lorelai’s known the Thomas boys for as long as her sister, but never had as strong a connection with Ezra Thomas until that moment. But with Ezra avoiding her since then, Lorelai is left in the dark about what the kiss meant to him…
Ezra never considered falling for Lorelai, but in that moment before kissing her he couldn’t believe that he’d missed it. If only it hadn’t occurred at the absolute worst time. Ezra has been holding back on his next endeavor because he’s worried how his family and friends will take it. Especially now that the hope for a life long relationship is in play. But Ezra feels God’s call on his life for this endeavor & knows that if a relationship with Lorelai is meant to grow it will despite anything that seems to be against it…
Such a cute book. Old fashioned romance with the letter writing but not too much of it. It always nice to read a book that shows the hardships military families face as well. My favorite of this series so far. Looking forward to the next one when it comes out.
Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The deeper I get into the Thomas Brothers series, the more invested I become. I have been waiting for Ezra and Lorelai’s story since reading book one. I adored seeing them as the secondary characters and now the main characters.
Lorelai is determined and sweet and also slightly unsure of the future. Her uncertainty was very relatable. Though it hurts himself and his family, Ezra believes he is following God’s plan when he goes into the military. He is admirable in his faith. Ezra keeps distance from Lorelai in the beginning for fear of more pain when he leaves. This couple is a beautiful example of a healthy, Godly long-distance relationship. I loved the faith in this novel. It is a large reminder that prayer is important.
Falling for Ezra Thomas is slightly shorter than the previous stories but Ezra and Lorelai’s relationship has spanned all four novels. We have had plenty of time to observe them from a different POV. Because of this, the story length feels adequate. I’m so excited to read Rafe’s story next. Let’s keep this Thomas storyline moving! Thank you to M.J. Padgett for an ARC of Falling for Ezra Thomas.
No-spice level: nondescript kissing Language: clean Faith elements: Christian
Tropes: Best friends to lovers Long-distance relationship Military spouse Love letters
Happy Veterans Day to all those who've served or who are families of those who serve! I'm so grateful for your service for me and my family. What a great day to publish my ARC review of the new book by @m.j.padgett_romance called Falling for Ezra Thomas.
The Thomas Brothers are so charming and I'm loving that we're getting a story for each of them! This is the 4th book in the series and can be read in any order (although I do recommend going in order as there's a lot of overlap in timeline).
The charming town of Coldstone Creek and the close knit town and families is so sweet. I love the Christian themes throughout the book as each character was navigation different career changes as well as the new relationship. The handwritten letters between Ezra and Lorerai were a great addition to the story.
All 4 books in the series are now available on Kindle unlimited!
Thank you to the author for the advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Before I begin, I would like to thank M. J. Padgett for allowing me to read her upcoming book, Falling for Ezra Thomas, which is part of Padgett’s Life With the Thomas Brothers series and will be available on Amazon on October 31st, 2024.
Lorelai Mays is determined to work hard to get what she wants and has been for a long time. She graduated both high school and college early and became a veterinary intern at a local office. But too many hours per week and a grueling caseload takes its toll, and on top of that, she’s fallen in love with someone that is avoiding her after they shared a fantastic kiss. Ezra Thomas is absolutely smitten with Lorelai after they kissed, but he knows that it’s not fair of him to date anyone right now because of a commitment he made. When he tells Lorelai what he signed up for, they agree to date via writing letters, and will get married after he returns home if everything goes well. Are they moving too fast in their new relationship, or is this the love story that God planned for them all along?
This book was very cute. You have Lorelai, a hardworking, smart, beautiful young woman that cares a lot about her family, friends, and the man she fell in love with. You have Ezra, a young man devoted to his family, friends, and doing right by his faith. I enjoyed how open Ezra and Lorelai’s communication with each other became as the story progressed. The interactions between the main characters and the Thomas family was fantastic and heartwarming. I liked how they talked about things that bothered them in terms of how it would affect them, their faith, and their futures. Overall, if you like discussions of faith, careers, great family dynamics, healthy communication, and sweet small-town best-friend’s sibling romance with low amounts of spice, then I would highly recommend this book. Here’s the link for more information: Falling for Ezra Thomas (Life With the Thomas Brothers Book 4) - Kindle edition by Padgett, M. J.. Romance Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.
I absolutely love this Life with the Thomas Brothers series and can’t wait for the rest of the brothers and their stories!!! I’ve loved all of them but I think this one was towards the top of the list.
I loved Ezra finally talking things out with his entire family and Lorelei and even though it was rushed and last minute they still supported him and what he knew God wanted him to do. I loved the faith elements that encouraged me and spoke to me so much! And Lorelei’s willingness to try things with him and not holding his avoidance and such over his head. Maybe his choice to join the Army moved things a long quicker but it still really showed how much they felt for one another and how God wants us to be towards those who have hurt us in some way.
As someone who loves the idea of letter writing back before phones I absolutely gushed over this part of the book. Sometimes it’s easier to write things down instead of saying them and we can be braver that way. And I don’t feel like anything was rushed because while it was a number of weeks he was away M.J didn’t make it feel like that and the story moved along at a good pace. And also the fact that they have a history it didn’t feel rushed either because those feelings were growing all that time.
It was just super sweet and still challenging to my own prayer life and tough decisions. Lorelei finally found what she really wanted to do after stressing at her job for too long and realized she needed to put it in Gods hands rather than her own. Boy do I feel that on a cellular level. Seriously was a wonderful read and I can’t wait for Rafe and Luna’s story that hopefully involves more of Beck and Ezra and the other Thomas brood now including Vivien and Lorelei!!
I received and ARC copy via BookFunnel from the author in exchange for an honest review
Falling for Ezra Thomas is the fourth book in the Life with the Thomas Brothers series. While you may be able to enjoy this one as a standalone, I really think you're going to have a better understanding of the family/relationship dynamics if you have read at LEAST the first book in the series... and even better if you've read them all!
If you've read the previous books in the series, we have already gotten to see a little bit of the start of Ezra and Lorelai's story, but I was definitely excited to see the kiss (and the fall out) from their perspectives. Their story certainly did not disappoint. If you're a reader who doesn't like to wait for that first kiss, good news--- this story jumps right into it with the first chapter... but it takes them a little bit longer to figure things out from there after Ezra announces that he's joined the Army! As a military wife, I love a good military romance, but I don't know that I've read one (at least in recent memory) where he's just getting started, so I thought that was really great. In some ways, their romance seemed like it moved really quickly once they worked things out, but the pace worked for them. Not only can that be pretty common in military relationships, but these two also had a lot of history behind them too. As much as I love the romance, I also love the family dynamics and the faith elements. M.J. Padgett always does such an incredible job of creating characters who strive to put God first, but who are also humans who aren't always perfect (and who acknowledge physical attraction too!).
Falling for Ezra Thomas is a closed-door romance with kisses only, no language and some faith elements.
** ARC received for consideration. All opinions are my own.
Falling for Ezra Thomas is the fourth book in the “Life with the Thomas Brothers” but the first I have read from this series.
I do love M.J.’s easy writing style and it takes no time at all to get sucked into her stories.
While I’m usually not the biggest fan of romances that start with a kiss, it’s done really well and I enjoyed this book a lot. It’s a really sweet romance with faith and difficult life choices about a couple who has fallen in love a long time ago without realizing it. The letter exchange was one of my favorite things next to getting to know a lot of other characters which I am excited to see in the next and previous installments, because I plan to catch up on the rest of the series.
My only complaint is that we didn’t actually see the couple fall in love, because it had already happened. There are mentions of previous interactions and maybe there would be more situations witnessed between them in the first books, but since I haven’t read them yet, I can’t really say. I think alternating between chapters from the present and the past, like when they were kids to teens, to young adults, would have been nice to witness them fall in love, but like I said it’s a very sweet love story anyways and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series!
* Thank you to the author for letting me read an advanced copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily and the expressed opinions are my own.
I've been waiting for Ezra and Lorelais story and it did not disappoint! I love seeing the other characters and how family is such a big theme. This clean tale has a unique story telling with letters for a good portion of the book. I also loved Lorelais struggle with what she wants to do facing a potential career change after years of schooling and it feels very relatable. Loved this tale and excited to read the next brothers tale and see Ezra and Lorelai again!
Lorelei and Ezra didn't see the change in their relationship coming! The Thomas Brothers are always so entertaining. Viv and Beck are beautiful together. Ezra has a secret that impacts everyone and is the center of this story. Lorelei has so many life decisions to figure out, both alone and with Ezra. Great story of family and friend dynamics, priorities, and the importance of love.
This is the fourth book in the Life With The Thomas Brothers series. I have read books 1-3 and I definitely recommend reading the books in order. The series is about a family of 10 brothers and each book is interconnected so in order to know the backstories and who all the people are, reading in order is crucial.
The only thing I didn’t like about this book was not knowing if the application was accepted or not! I’m sure I’ll find out in the next book but it surprised me it wasn’t announced!
For starters, this book felt so intimate when reading their letters to each other while he was away at basic training. This long-lost way of communication seems so wholesome and genuine, especially since they have been in each other’s lives for years and have a wonderful history with their families. A wonderful stand-alone book within the series of the Thomas Brothers.
This was a sweet story about Ezra and Lorelai. After a surprise at the ending of book 1, we finally get their unfinished story and what happened afterward. The characters were well-written, and I enjoyed their handwritten letters between them when Ezra heads to basic training for the Army. Great story.
If you want a book to relax and swoon, this is your book! If you like: - faith - 10 brothers - childhood friend to lovers - letters - loving family moments - military rep - and to see Characters trusting GOD!!! READ THIS ONE !!!
I still think about this book almost on a daily. 🥹🥹 I loved how these two grew apart, yet grew together. It's true, once you open up and realize the feelings you have for one another. Nothing will stop it.
After the surprise kiss from book 1, Lorelai Mays and Ezra Thomas both wonder how they got here. The kiss was spontaneous and Ezra is surprised at the way it happened. They've both harbored feelings for the other, but until now they had kept them underwraps. Ezra pulls away because of the secret he's keeping from his family. He believes that God is leading him to serve in the army, so when he tells Lorelai of his plan, she comes up with one of her own. Why don't they tell each other what's happening in their lives and how they feel long distance and it works! I have always enjoyed an epistolary novel because the personal nature of writing letters draws the reader into the story and makes them feel a connection with the characters' lives. I highly recommend this addition to the Life With The Thomas Brothers series.
This was such a sweet story of opening your eyes to what's right in front of you. It's a Christian, closed-door, sweet kisses-only, friends-to-lovers, he's leaving for the military, and her sister's best friend, she's a burnt-out veterinarian, one fateful kiss, large families, following God's design for your life, and a lot of handwritten letters running back and forth. I loved how genuine this story felt. Vet med is not an easy field, and so much of what Lorelai experienced is very real in my world. Their letters are so sweet. I had not read the previous books in this series and can't wait to go back and catch up on them.