“The Matchmaker” by Catherine Walsh

Description: “Katie Collins has barely ever left her tiny Irish village of Ennisbawn. Why would she? With its tightknit community, friendly local pub, surrounded by rolling hills and perfectly mysterious forests, it’s a place of peaceful beauty.

Or it was peaceful. Until Callum Dempsey turned up. A hot-shot (and, Katie has to admit, hot is annoyingly apt for him…) developer with zero eye for beauty or charm, in spite of his chiselled jaw. He’s not only building some hideous hotel just outside the village, but now he’s also planning to knock down Ennisbawn’s only remaining pub, to make way for a good view from the golf course.

It’s the final blow to the village and the last straw for Katie, who refuses to see her home disappear. Not to mention that the pub is the last connection to her parents, who had met at Ennisbawn’s once-famous matchmaking festival, both throwing coins into the wishing well that sits in the pub garden.

In an instant, Katie knows what to do. She’s going to uncover the now disused wishing well, she’s going to revive the matchmaking festival, and she’s going to single-handedly bring the town back to life again.

She might even help her two best friends find love as well. Since, heck, what’s another project when you’re taking on the world’s hottest, evilest man?

But what Ireland’s newest matchmaker doesn’t know is that even when someone’s really not your type on paper, love might be a little bit more than just a formula…”

Review: This is my first Catherine Walsh book but it won’t be my last. The Matchmaker is a sweet rom-com full of banter and wit. I loved all of the relationships in the story. Each relationship has its own unique element (the grumpy pub owner, the snarky best friend, the witty old granny) that make it special. At times I found that I was reading the story more for the characters than the plot. I’d love to read future stories set in this village. This is a great book to get you out of a reading slump. It’s an easy read that flows nicely. The story is so much fun that I often didn’t realize how long I was reading for. It’s a light-hearted, feel good book.

I enjoyed the romantic cliches. The story gave me hallmark movie vibes; the small town being taken over by the big business and it’s up to one girl to save the town (while meeting a new love interest of course). Not only is this a romance novel but it’s also an uplifting story about a small community coming together.

Now for what I didn’t love: while I wouldn’t call this book instalove, things did move at an awkward pace. Their romance was progressing nicely at a slow pace but after one kiss it quickly escalates. I would think it would take a little more for Callum to quit his job (especially since his brother is his boss) than a kiss from a woman he barely knows. Them automatically becoming exclusive and being in love was kind of weird. I enjoyed the initial slow burn and was taken aback when it came full on so quickly. I would have liked a little more will they won’t they before the big climactic love declaration.

I enjoyed the save the small town village storyline better than the romantic one. The romance didn’t really stand out to me. It was pretty generic and boring at times. I was more intrigued by Katie’s tenacity and drive to make the matchmaking festival bigger than ever and to take down Glenmill. Somehow the actual romance made me take a star off of my review. The true star of the show was the friendships and camaraderie, not the love story. I’d recommend for people looking for an easy read that’s light on romance and drama.

*please note that I received an advanced copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.