This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite
After her long marriage ends, Jean Booth begins rebuilding her daily life in her memoir, Hello Beautiful. Booth is matched with Daniel/Donnie, a younger man she meets on a dating app, who says he is an active duty service member deployed overseas, raising a young daughter. Their relationship develops entirely through messages at a distance, with Donnie blaming his erratic messaging on his military schedule. As Jean balances work instability, health issues, family, and friendships, her attachment to Donnie grows and becomes central to her feeling of connection beyond her bubble. Unfortunately, Donnie's constant financial pressures and requests for Booth's help, and conflicting information, prompt Jean to seek the truth about whether the man she has fallen in love with is really who he claims to be.
Hello Beautiful by Jean Booth is almost the image of life imitating art, with a modern romance conducted wholly through screens. It is gut-wrenching to see the total reshaping of Jean’s life choices and expectations as she waits for Donnie's promises of a future to align with actual reality. In a brave, bold move, Booth uses a no-holds-barred approach by including the messages exchanged between herself and Donnie. I think a lot of readers will start off believing that the signs of financial abuse were easy to spot. While we have the benefit of hindsight, as an objective observer, it is easy to see how a woman as intelligent as Booth—and her book proves she is—could fall victim to a romance scam. This is not her fault, and I suspect there are many, many more people with similar stories who are too ashamed to share them. We should all be grateful for Booth's courage and this brilliant memoir. I hope it enables others to see they are not alone. Recommended.
