All Thanks to You

Romancing the Holidays #3

by Austen Johnson

When aspiring vet tech Rosalie meets a guy at a Halloween black cat adoption party—perhaps even the guy—she fails to understand that he’s asking her out. They say goodbye with only the promise of a cat adoption in their future, and she thinks that is that. That is, until she walks into her little sister’s parent-teacher conference and realizes Jonah from the cat event is Mr. Keene, high school English teacher extraordinaire. She wants to date this lovable nerd, but after her bad luck with past relationships and her experience seeing her parents get divorced, she’s afraid to let Jonah in.

Will she find love with a fellow cat-lover, or will it all fall to pieces by the first snow?

All Thanks to You is a short, clean romance novella perfect for sweater weather and animal lovers. All stories in the Romancing the Holidays series are standalone, however, Rosalie does make a small appearance in Pawsitively Perfect, too.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary

50 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 22, 2020

About the author

Austen Johnson is the pen name of L. Austen Johnson dedicated to short commercial fiction, including the Romancing the Holidays series and the folkloric short story “True Loaf.”

You can find out more about the author & subscribe to her newsletter at www.laustenjohnson.com

Reviews

[L.]

My new autumn romance coming Sept. 22, 2020!

[Terrie Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

"All Thanks to you" by L. Austen Johnson was everything cute and sweet should always be!

I was in the mood for a short, sweet read and this novella hit the mark for me! With costumes, black cats and meeting a 'Hot Cat Guy', well heck yeah, I'm all in!

Main character, Rosalie, is dedicated to her sister Lena, her work, education and her black cat, Betty. Her life is already full enough so who has time or need for a new relationship, especially after so many disappointing disasters in the past. Then in walks Jonah, dressed up as 'Edgar Allan Poe', right down to the raven perched on his shoulder, to the Cat Cafe shelter's annual 'Adopt a Black Cat' Halloween party. Rosalie, dressed up as 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch' takes notice right away. And, when Jonah adopts Gertrude, the oldest and grumpiest black cat there, Jonah becomes 'Hot Cat Guy" and Rosalie's heart begins to waiver once again!

I loved these characters! I knew this was a novella going in, that the story would be short but I still wanted to keep reading! I wanted more of them! This is the third novella from this author's "Romancing the Holidays" standalone series. I need to double back and read the other two! She has a fourth one on the way and I can't wait to read that one, too!

I highly recommend this little read to one and all! Happy Halloween, Y'all!
____________________________
Thank you to Goodreads and L. Austen Johnson for a free Kindle copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Becca da Romance Queen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Romancing the Holidays: 3/4 Novellas
~3/4>ALL THANKS TO YOU<~
Am I allowed to be squeeing right now? Because I am!! (In my head). This book was just so wonderful :D

All Thanks to You reminds me of This Time Next Year and The Dog Share combined together because pets were involved & brought people together (TDS) AND the main character was suffering from anxiety and made utterly stupid decisions because she was afraid her relationship with Jonah would be like every other relationship she ever had (This Time Next Year, not the anxiety part).

In many ways, All Thanks To You and Pawsitively Perfect are very similar. Vets, pets, insta love, but this one was so much cuter!

This one feels sexier somehow and that's a good thing because it feels more real that way, even with the insta love. I believe that L. Austen Jonhson is learning how to write better stories because this one is definitely better than the others. I recommend to everyone!

~Becca<3

[K.T. Egan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cozy short with a lot of life.

Rating: 4/5

"All Thanks to You" by L. Austen Johnson follows Rosalie as she tries to find a balance between sister and parent figure, and stumbles into her own Happily Ever After.

It all starts when Rosalie, an aspiring vet tech and bonafide cat lover, meets Mr. Right at a Halloween party/cat adoption event She gets him set up with an adorable and feisty cat, Gertrude, who has a wild streak that is too cute to not love.

Caught in between her parents in a broiling divorce, Rosalie takes on the hat of psuedo-parent to her younger sister, Lena. Their significant age gap allows Rosalie the foresight to help guide Lena, struggling in school and with navigating the waters of senior year of high school. When Mr. Right has a surprising connection to Lena, it sets off a chain reaction that was both enjoyable to follow and over too soon.

I loved how spot-on Johnson was with the relationship between Rosalie and Lena. As a significantly older sibling and a cat lover myself, I had an easy time connecting with Rosalie. Her reactions felt genuine, and her fears over Lena's future rang really close to similar thoughts/concerns I've had. It can be tricky, being in that situation, but Johnson's character handled it all with grace.

Jonah was a delight. He definitely has all of the qualities of a fantastic book boyfriend, including his cat appreciation and the fact that he's an English teacher! I couldn't get enough of him.

My biggest problem with "All Thanks to You" was that, as I find with all novellas, I really wanted more. More Rosalie and Lena, more Jonah, more of the cats. Still, the novella ended off on a wonderful note and has me wanting to pick up the other three books in Johnson's "Romancing the Holidays" series.

[Katelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a cute and light-hearted read for the Fall! I won a kindle copy in a Goodreads giveaway and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. The main character, Rosalie, is very relatable in all her awkwardness and obliviousness when it comes to dating. She's likeable for sure. On a more serious note, Rosalie struggles with fear of commitment due to her past failed relationships and growing up witnessing her parent's toxic marriage. I found it very engaging that Rosalie's a bit complicated and not a stereotypical rom-com lead who is desperate to be in a relationship. Jonah is a wonderful romantic interest. His dialogue is written flawlessly so that he comes across as kind and respectful but still cool. He is basically the ideal boyfriend but his dialogue feels fresh. I found myself laughing along with Rosalie and her friends and Jonah within the first few pages. Usually it's hard for me to feel connected to characters quickly, especially if the pacing of a book is this fast. However, I felt connected to all the main characters almost instantly and became invested in Rosalie's tumultuous family drama. The characters were funny and some a little stereotypical/tropey but they were all super likable. This book almost feels like a Hallmark Christmas movie but one that takes place in Fall and is not cheesy (although a few convenient plot devices were used, but I didn't mind!). Although the pacing was fast and there were many time jumps, this book progresses well and didn't feel rushed. The only criticism I can offer is that I wish this book was a tiny bit longer! I was so invested in Rosalie and Jonah's relationship (and of course, Queen Gerty) and every interaction between them left me wanting more. If you enjoy Halloween, Fall, animals, and fun, light romance then you will love this book! Even more so if you enjoy a super quick and easy read.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited to receive an ebook copy of this story through a Goodreads giveaway. The cover is all fall like with a cat. So pretty! It felt a little like winning the lottery, lol.
It’s a book cute book and I enjoyed it. Bonus: it features cats (something I happen to love). I liked the characters both human and feline and how Rosalie cares about her sister. The story starts out on Halloween which I though was fun and apropos to read this time of year.
I ended up reading this book in two sittings because... sleep. When I put it down, Rosalie is on a first date; when I picked it back up the story seemed to proceed at a lightning speed. I didn’t realize how short this story was and based on the beginning I somehow felt unprepared for the conflict and resolution pacing. I think what I’m trying to say is that I’d have liked it to be just a bit longer.

[KL Cassanello · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rosalie meets Jonah at a Halloween pet adoption party, then blows her chance to go out with him. They meet again - he's her kid sister's English teacher. This time, he makes a proper request for a date, and she doesn't flub this one. This is a first read from this author for me, and it's short but very sweet. Rosalie's view of relationships is tainted by her parents' issues, making it hard for her to commit to anything but casual. Jonah is looking for more, and has to work for it. The characters are well developed for a short book, and I especially like the maturity of Rosalie's little sis. Gertrude (the black cat) is a lovable mess.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[L H · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a sweet story and it is neat that Rosalie meets Jonah at a black cat adoption party. Black cats are often seen as bad luck but in this case not so much. It is also neat that they bond over their mutual love of cats and that despite her reservations about men in general she knows that this is a good guy even if she is reluctant.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jeanne Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 2nd book I've read written by L. Austen Johnson; she has done a great job at writing a good short story; I can’t wait to read more of her books.

The story line caught my attention at the very beginning and kept me interested throughout the entire book.

I received a free copy of this book via booksprout and I’m voluntarily leaving a review.

[SEng · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this sweet romance of Rosalie and Jonah. They meet at a black cat adoption event and she doesn’t realize that he is asking her out. They meet again at her little sister’s parent teacher conference. Will they get together and explore their attraction and love of cats? I received an arc of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

This is a quick read which shows the good and ba in life. The characters were likeable, the story moved along ok and I liked the love animals shown. A nice quick holiday read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kathy Mccalmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the books in the romancing the holidays series. It is a clean romance with a great storyline and characters

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Brenda Moser · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well written clean romance with strong characters and a fast paced story. It's an interesting story with a sweet romance. I enjoyed reading about the pets and reading their story.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.

[Barbara Tobey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, sweet romance with black cats. I have a special fondness for black cats so the story had immediate appeal. Nicely written tale. I am grateful to have won a copy via Goodreads.

[Meegy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has to be cutest little Halloween romance novella. I really enjoyed it, it was a nice and quick read!

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Book Sirens and the auth for the bind up of four novellas!

I thought this one moved shower then the others, it was my least favorite but it was cute and fluffy.

[Mandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A super cute romance revolving around a cat. I enjoyed this short story and would recommend.