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Pasties and Poor Decisions
Anastasia Villiers has hit rock bottom. And that rock is named Espoir Island.Abandoned by her disgraced investment banker husband who liquidated all of their assets and fled the country, Anastasia is left with nothing—except for Fishscale House, a broken-down Queen Anne in the Michigan hometown she swore she’d left for good.If Ana quickly renovates and flips the dilapidated building, she can get back to Manhattan and salvage her life. The problem? The only person on the island with historical renovation cred is Ned Fitzroy—Ana’s first love—who insists she help him with the labor herself. As Ana gets reacquainted with Ned, and her hometown, she realizes home may be just what she’s always wanted.*previously published in the I LOVED YOU FIRST anthology*
121 pages, ebook
Published January 1, 2021
34 people are currently reading
357 people want to read
About the author
Molly Harper
61 books8,138 followersMolly Harper is the author of more than 40 romance titles including the Half-Moon Hollow series, the Mystic Bayou, the Starfall Point series, and her first murder mystery, A PROPOSAL TO DIE FOR. She lives in Michigan with her family. For more information, go to www.mollyharper.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
January 20, 2022
I think I need to preface this by saying that I pretty much LOVE anything by Molly Harper. I'm actually not sure how this got into my Audible TBR library, but when I looked, it was there. It was the perfect time. I only wanted to listen to something that was "short" and didn't have a lot of emotional investment available. (in other words, I was going to be listening while MANY other things were going on). So...imagine my surprise when the story took my complete attention and kept my interest....even though many other things were going on.
This is not a book that is going to go down in history. In fact, this is a silly and funny story where the story arc is completed before you know it. But....I enjoyed it while I listened. It is a very quick and easy listen. It made me smile.
So, for that....I enjoyed it immensely.
This is not a book that is going to go down in history. In fact, this is a silly and funny story where the story arc is completed before you know it. But....I enjoyed it while I listened. It is a very quick and easy listen. It made me smile.
So, for that....I enjoyed it immensely.
February 7, 2022
quick but funny romantic comedy about a second chance when you've been down on your luck. I really liked these characters and was so glad that Anastasia was able to redeem herself and she lost her way a bit.
January 8, 2023
Okay I put this book on because I like Molly's style.
But I ended up finishing it because it was a second chance romance and those are my favourite. I wanted this to be longer. It was short and sweet but tooooooo short.
Loved the narration.
But I ended up finishing it because it was a second chance romance and those are my favourite. I wanted this to be longer. It was short and sweet but tooooooo short.
Loved the narration.
August 22, 2022
Nothing memorable. Read via audio (narrated by Amanda Ronconi).
April 10, 2025
2.3 stars (Audible). I feel cheated out of $4.28. Had I known this was only 2.5 hours long, I wouldn't have wasted my money. Top it off that the story had no purpose + ended abruptly. As a Michigander, I was hooked by the preview as they named cities + islands in my home state. Honestly, I've read better short stories + I'm feeling gypped + slightly bitter now.
December 1, 2023
Pasties and Poor Decisions
I Picked Up This Book Because: I’ve liked the author's other works.
Media Type: Audiobook
Source: Audible
Dates Read: 11/28/23 - 11/28/23
Stars: 4
Narrator(s): Amanda Ronconi and Teddy Hamilton
The Characters:
Ana
Ned
The Story:
A quick tale of an extremely public fall from grace and the rebuilding of life from not so forgotten roots. I really liked most of the story (the daughters pissed me off). Ned and Ana had great chemistry and the town seemed so ready for the changes Ana is going to bring.
The Random Thoughts:
I Picked Up This Book Because: I’ve liked the author's other works.
Media Type: Audiobook
Source: Audible
Dates Read: 11/28/23 - 11/28/23
Stars: 4
Narrator(s): Amanda Ronconi and Teddy Hamilton
The Characters:
Ana
Ned
The Story:
A quick tale of an extremely public fall from grace and the rebuilding of life from not so forgotten roots. I really liked most of the story (the daughters pissed me off). Ned and Ana had great chemistry and the town seemed so ready for the changes Ana is going to bring.
The Random Thoughts:
August 9, 2022
I liked this enough but it would’ve been better with like another hundred pages
September 14, 2022
Pasties and Poor Decisions is a fun, quick and easy listen but it was over too soon and I just wanted more. ;)
August 10, 2025
3.5 Stars
A quick, light, easy read about second chance love. This is a very short novella (about 120 pgs) however, if you love Molly Harper it’s worth reading. The ending seemed a bit too rushed, I would have liked to see some of Ana’s issues resolved (daughters, run away husband, etc) although it’s eluded to I needed more….
A quick, light, easy read about second chance love. This is a very short novella (about 120 pgs) however, if you love Molly Harper it’s worth reading. The ending seemed a bit too rushed, I would have liked to see some of Ana’s issues resolved (daughters, run away husband, etc) although it’s eluded to I needed more….
July 29, 2022
This is a 3.5 star read for me. First off, I did not like Anna at all. She wasn't likable and because the story is so short her character development was not believable. The romance was way too fast and I felt Ned forgave her so quickly its like he was never mad at her for at least 20 years at all. I thought the concept of the story was really good and overall it would have definitely benefited from being longer so the character and relationship development was more believable and thought out.
March 16, 2022
As always Molly Harper knows how to write but I felt cheated. Too short. But lovely.
April 8, 2022
Very sweet novella about going home again. BTW pasties are a delicious hand pie pronounced pah-sties, and have nothing to do with the nipple covering pasties.
Read
October 3, 2022That’s pasties the food. This is not a book about strippers
September 1, 2022
I'm not much of a contemporary romance reader, but I'm a big fan of Molly Harper's Mystic Bayou series. It's kinda like comparing apples and oranges, but there are things I liked much better in her paranormal world. Spice level for one.
Pasties and Poor Decisions was a quick, fun read and I liked the characters quite a bit. That said, after the reconnection and build up between Ana and Ned, we got a fade to black "sex scene", which REALLY doesn't work for me.
If you're looking for Molly Harper spice, you will not find it here, but Pasties and Poor Decisions makes for a pretty good PG-13 book.
Pasties and Poor Decisions was a quick, fun read and I liked the characters quite a bit. That said, after the reconnection and build up between Ana and Ned, we got a fade to black "sex scene", which REALLY doesn't work for me.
If you're looking for Molly Harper spice, you will not find it here, but Pasties and Poor Decisions makes for a pretty good PG-13 book.
April 11, 2022
A midlife socialite wife who has been dumped by her husband has to return home to a dreary island in Lake Michigan. She reconnects with her roots and her first love while renovating her dream home on the island.
I really like Molly Harper's writing style. I'm not as in love with second-chance romances and the fact that this was a 2 hour quickie. It seemed more like an outline of a novel rather than a complete story. I would have liked to have seen more soul-searching and more depth all around, but it was pretty delightful nonetheless.
I really like Molly Harper's writing style. I'm not as in love with second-chance romances and the fact that this was a 2 hour quickie. It seemed more like an outline of a novel rather than a complete story. I would have liked to have seen more soul-searching and more depth all around, but it was pretty delightful nonetheless.
August 25, 2024
A short novella. I wish this was fleshed out a little more into a longer book versus a novella, but I enjoyed the premise.
March 28, 2022
Molly Harper always delivers a great read!
December 21, 2023
Quick, easy and light second chance romance-ish
I enjoy almost all Molly Harper's stuff (but Half Moon Hollow is my happy place)
This isn't HMH and it's v short and the protagonist isn't my usual choice and it would have been three stars but Amanda Ronconi elevates everything she narrates. And I enjoyed it.
I enjoy almost all Molly Harper's stuff (but Half Moon Hollow is my happy place)
This isn't HMH and it's v short and the protagonist isn't my usual choice and it would have been three stars but Amanda Ronconi elevates everything she narrates. And I enjoyed it.
February 1, 2022
Another great one from Molly!
I love this book! I love the plucky, sarcastic soon-to-be divorcee (Ana) and her unapologetic look at her reality t.v. life. Going back home is her only choice but it's what saves her in the end (and Ned)! Only complaint.....it's too short!! :))
I love this book! I love the plucky, sarcastic soon-to-be divorcee (Ana) and her unapologetic look at her reality t.v. life. Going back home is her only choice but it's what saves her in the end (and Ned)! Only complaint.....it's too short!! :))
February 4, 2022
I just wish it was a longer story!!! I adore the Audible team of Harper and Ronconi….they could produce a reading of the yellow pages and I’d probably enjoy! :-) quick, engaging, well written as always, fun listen!!
November 29, 2021
This was a cute story. You already know how it's going to end, but it's the story and how it happens that's entertaining.
December 11, 2025
This novella had such a great premise—midlife downfall meets small-town return, plus a first-love reunion set against a gloomy little island on Lake Michigan. I love a messy heroine getting knocked off her pedestal and forced to confront the life she ran from, and Ana absolutely delivers on the “humble pie with a side of emotional baggage” front.
But everything moves at warp speed. Ana’s whole life implodes—cheating, runaway husband, tax fraud, daughters she barely mentions—and then poof, she’s back on the island and falling into a full-blown second chance romance before I even adjusted to the scenery. I needed more room for those personal issues to breathe, especially the daughter storyline and the fallout with her ex. The story hints at deeper stuff, but the hints never quite turn into scenes.
The romance is cute, but wow, he forgave her fast. Ned goes from “you broke my heart and disappeared for two decades” to “no worries, babe, here’s a sledgehammer and a second chance” in record time. It’s sweet, but also hilarious in that “okay, we’re pretending 20 years of resentment can be fixed with one apology and a renovating montage” way. But, novella logic—either he forgives her or the story ends at page ten.
What does work is the setting and the small-town texture. The island feels dreary in that cozy, windswept way, and the whole fixer-upper plot fits perfectly with Ana trying to rebuild the parts of her life she torched on her way out.
Honestly, this had all the ingredients of a full-length novel, and I kept wishing it had the space to slow down, deepen the emotional threads, and let the romance simmer instead of sprint. As it is, it’s a quick, light second-chance story with a sweet HEA, an abrupt ending, and enough potential that I kept thinking, “Give me 200 more pages and this could’ve been great.”
about her daughters
They’re frustratingly irrelevant.
Not because they’re bad characters, but because the novella doesn’t use them:
They contribute zero to Ana’s emotional journey.
There’s no check-in, no tension with them, no growth, no bonding.
They don’t even inform Ana’s choices beyond “oh yeah, I’m a mom.”
Their absence makes Ana feel weirdly disconnected from her own life.
It almost reads like the daughters were part of a longer draft, then got cut down when the story was shortened but never fully edited out. That’s why they feel like they should matter but don’t.
Cute, fast, slightly chaotic—and one of those novellas you finish wishing the author had gone bigger.
But everything moves at warp speed. Ana’s whole life implodes—cheating, runaway husband, tax fraud, daughters she barely mentions—and then poof, she’s back on the island and falling into a full-blown second chance romance before I even adjusted to the scenery. I needed more room for those personal issues to breathe, especially the daughter storyline and the fallout with her ex. The story hints at deeper stuff, but the hints never quite turn into scenes.
The romance is cute, but wow, he forgave her fast. Ned goes from “you broke my heart and disappeared for two decades” to “no worries, babe, here’s a sledgehammer and a second chance” in record time. It’s sweet, but also hilarious in that “okay, we’re pretending 20 years of resentment can be fixed with one apology and a renovating montage” way. But, novella logic—either he forgives her or the story ends at page ten.
What does work is the setting and the small-town texture. The island feels dreary in that cozy, windswept way, and the whole fixer-upper plot fits perfectly with Ana trying to rebuild the parts of her life she torched on her way out.
Honestly, this had all the ingredients of a full-length novel, and I kept wishing it had the space to slow down, deepen the emotional threads, and let the romance simmer instead of sprint. As it is, it’s a quick, light second-chance story with a sweet HEA, an abrupt ending, and enough potential that I kept thinking, “Give me 200 more pages and this could’ve been great.”
about her daughters
They’re frustratingly irrelevant.
Not because they’re bad characters, but because the novella doesn’t use them:
They contribute zero to Ana’s emotional journey.
There’s no check-in, no tension with them, no growth, no bonding.
They don’t even inform Ana’s choices beyond “oh yeah, I’m a mom.”
Their absence makes Ana feel weirdly disconnected from her own life.
It almost reads like the daughters were part of a longer draft, then got cut down when the story was shortened but never fully edited out. That’s why they feel like they should matter but don’t.
Cute, fast, slightly chaotic—and one of those novellas you finish wishing the author had gone bigger.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 8, 2023
I love Molly Harper's humor and have read many of her books. I was looking thru my audible library for something on the shorter side to complete or mostly complete on a car ride. This was in my library (no idea when I added it) and it was short and knowing Molly Harper, it would be fun and light, just what I needed.
Fun, short and light it was, and that is what I was looking for. But at the same time it felt a little rushed. Twice I thought I missed something as the story moved so far ahead so quickly, that I thought my mind must have wandered and I missed something so backed up. Nope, I had listened and didn't miss anything. It just jumped ahead quickly several times. This story could have been much longer and more developed and I think I would have enjoyed it more.
Fun, short and light it was, and that is what I was looking for. But at the same time it felt a little rushed. Twice I thought I missed something as the story moved so far ahead so quickly, that I thought my mind must have wandered and I missed something so backed up. Nope, I had listened and didn't miss anything. It just jumped ahead quickly several times. This story could have been much longer and more developed and I think I would have enjoyed it more.
August 21, 2024
Delightful!
Being a Michigander, of course I had to read this book! It’s set in the Upper Peninsula and I loved it!
Anna Gustafson is running to her hometown with her tail between her legs, and running from a philandering crooked husband who left her holding the bag while he fled from the Feds. Anna promptly embarks on her apology tour to her old friends and one particular old lover while restoring her only asset to her name, a falling-down Victorian house. The house that old boyfriend Ned is tasked with fixing up. The sparks! The characters! The town! Loved it all!
Amanda Ronconi performs this novella wonderfully! Well done!
Being a Michigander, of course I had to read this book! It’s set in the Upper Peninsula and I loved it!
Anna Gustafson is running to her hometown with her tail between her legs, and running from a philandering crooked husband who left her holding the bag while he fled from the Feds. Anna promptly embarks on her apology tour to her old friends and one particular old lover while restoring her only asset to her name, a falling-down Victorian house. The house that old boyfriend Ned is tasked with fixing up. The sparks! The characters! The town! Loved it all!
Amanda Ronconi performs this novella wonderfully! Well done!
July 29, 2022
Super cute & short listen on audible. I grab these little audible listens for the hot tub & haven't been disappointed. Having to return to your home town because your rich husband has fled the country with his Mistress & left you with only one house in your name is bad enough. But returning to the town where the one house you own is falling apart, your first love is still there & still bitter about the departure, and his sister (with most the town) didn't really miss you makes it even worse. A cute listen with good a narrator.
September 1, 2024
This was a quick read and one I had read before in a compilation of short stories. It was cute but not near as funny as Harper’s stories usually are. Anna Gustavson thought she left her small island behind her once and for all the day after she graduated high school. But a disaster of a marriage, tax fraud by her husband, and some other poor decisions brought her right back to where she started. She is forced to swallow a lot of humble pie in order to return and ask for help from her high school sweetheart. It’s a cute story.
January 29, 2022
A great afternoon listen
This is a great book to enjoy over an afternoon’s listening. Coming back to her home island after many years, Ana faces old friends and those that are not so friendly. She has changed over the years and a second chance at love is her’s if she cares to take it.
This is a great book to enjoy over an afternoon’s listening. Coming back to her home island after many years, Ana faces old friends and those that are not so friendly. She has changed over the years and a second chance at love is her’s if she cares to take it.
May 14, 2022
As many of you may know I love Molly Harper and anything that she has ever written. This book is the same a fun and funny book about Ana who was left by her RICH husband with nothing. She returns home to rebuild a Queen Anne home she had inherited. Once home she realizes the only help she is going to be able to bet is from Ned her first love. How is that going to work?
July 27, 2022
I don't know where I thought this book was going with the title. 😂
Rich wife's husband takes off with yoga instructor and all their money after the Feds come after him. This is a coming home and second chance romance. Super quick and super cute with a HEA. One midly spicy scene at the end.
***audible short sale
Rich wife's husband takes off with yoga instructor and all their money after the Feds come after him. This is a coming home and second chance romance. Super quick and super cute with a HEA. One midly spicy scene at the end.
***audible short sale
July 31, 2022
Considering the short length, this story did feel quite well developed - except with the romance. There was so much focus on the FMC’s life outside of the second chance romance that when the romance developed, it seemed very sudden.
This was fine. I’m probably not going to remember much about it in the next few months but it was a quick read and that’s what I was wanting tonight. Something easy.
This was fine. I’m probably not going to remember much about it in the next few months but it was a quick read and that’s what I was wanting tonight. Something easy.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews