Member Reviews
Adored this! Thanks to NetGalley and GP Putnam’s Sons, I received an advanced copy of this novel by Falon Ballard. About two writers who engage in an (un)friendly competition of dating articles, I found Lana and Seth’s story to encompass everything I look for in a romance. It was compulsively readable, had electric tension, and was full of expert banter. More importantly, however, I was charmed by how Ballard made this story Lana’s above all. There’s nothing I love more than watching characters go through some hardcore soul-searching, especially when I have so much fun along the way. Lana’s story is very rewarding: it’s a second-chance romance, it’s incredibly witty, and it’s a world that I had no trouble diving into. In particular, I loved Lana’s voice. She’s truly relatable to me; this was a book written by a book lover, for book lovers. The way Lana connects with the pop culture around her made me connect with Lana herself better. On top of that, Lana was funny and charming, and she had me wishing I could be her best friend. This book was an absolute win in the character department.
Sometimes I find that, in the romance genre, you get a wonderfully written characters at the expense of the plot, but I didn’t feel that way at all about Ballard's novel. The plot was engaging and moved quickly enough that I never lost interest. If anything, I would comment that the pacing in the second half of the book felt a little too fast for me, in terms of the development of the relationship, but also in how the series of articles progressed. I would have liked to see a bit more of their articles and how they as people would put into words what they learned about dating.
All in all, though, I gave this 5 stars because it was fun, undoubtedly entertaining, and had me rooting for Lana all the way through. Hers is a journey I won’t soon forget, and I would absolutely love to read more from Ballard in the future.
Ok. I haven’t read many books in my life. I really only started last year and have only read around 100 books, but I want this to be known. This is my new favorite book. Before this book my favorite was dead romantics which is now in 2nd place. This book has everything you could wish for a strong female lead who has problems but solves them and becomes a better person for herself. As well as a sexy love interest who is the epitome of a book boyfriend that everyone needs. Parker has issues but unlike everyone she actually tries to evolve and better herself. She has many obstacles to face but god damn does she do it well. Seth is like no other love interest I have read. He made mistakes but they were always for Lana. He did everything for her and he couldn’t live without her. She was his true north and it was a true art piece to read about their love and their challenges and most importantly their self love. Fallon Ballard or someone who’s works for her if you are reading this, it would be totally crazy to send me your book. Like no pressure but a lot of pressure lol jkjk. But seriously I will never stop talking about this book.
Just My Type was a sweet, swoon work place rival romance!
Lana is journalist writing relationship advice for a company she's been with since college. After her latest long term relationship ends her boss and mentor ask her to stay single and give her readers a new perspective on relationships! Her boss drops a bombs that their company has been bought out and they will have to train a potential new employee for the new company.
Enter Seth, new trainee and former high school sweartheart of Lana. After seeing their chemistry Lana's boss decides to pit them against each and fight for the position by completing a list given by the other competitor. Lana has to stay single and learn to be okay alone while Seth must learn to be in a committed relationship and end his no strings attached lifestyle.
I really enjoyed this book. I'm a sucker for rival to lovers and this one had the added bonus of second chance romance. The book did have a few lulls that had me wanting to skip to the conversations but overall I'd read it again and recommend to friends! It was witty and super sweet!
SWOON! I loved everything about this. The writer world it is set in, competition, exes to lovers which kind of was enemies to lovers, friendship dynamics, a strong female lead... IT WAS EVERYTHING.
If romantic comedy is your thing, this has to be on your TBR. It just does. Read it.
Thank you netgalley for an arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I devoured this book. It was such a quick, rivals to lovers, second chance romance that I couldn't put it down. The characters had history, they had issues, and they had a deadline and I was here for all of it. This book was a great mix of humor, romance, and personal growth. This was a new author to me but I will be picking up her other book and keeping an eye on any new publishings.
The description of this book really caught my eye and I thought a romance about two journalists was gonna be right up my alley, but unfortunately this just didn’t do much for me. I wasn’t a big fan of the main character, Lana, and I felt the whole story was cringe in many ways. I found Lana really immature and the way she handled being around her ex boyfriend felt so over the top and petty. I also didn’t feel any connection between Lana and Seth, we were told that they had this huge relationship all throughout high school, but we weren’t shown it. The thing I like about other second chance romance books I’ve read is when they take us back to when they were first together and we get to see them as a couple. Since this book didn’t do that, I felt nothing for them.
There was definitely potential within the deeper plot of Lana and her mother, but once again I just wasn’t as effected by it as I was hoping to be.
+ Thank you so much Netgalley/Putnam Books for sending me this digital arc!
Main characters: Lana and Seth
Plot: Lana begins with an Elle Woods moment of thinking she is getting engaged and instead is dumped. She then finds her high school sweetheart has joined the staff at her office. They are pitted against each other and prompted to try to flip the script on their ways of dating in a competition. The winner gets the dream job at the newspaper that has recently acquired their site. Obvious shenanigans ensue as we watch the story unfold from Lana’s POV.
What I loved: So fun to see Thor references throughout the book.
I really thought I would love this one. The first half of it was so much fun - I was laughing and everything. The second half though... The second half was excruciating. Not sure why, I was just tired of the characters and romance. So maybe I just wasn't in the right mood for this book, but it wasn't for me.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review
Thank you so much to Putnam books for providing a free digital arc in exchange for an honest review. It was a privilege to read for you!
I started out hopeful but this book became less and less enjoyable with every chapter. I will try to keep this spoiler free because this is an anticipated release and I want readers to make an informed decision.
The plot of the story was interesting. Kind of an HR nightmare, but interesting. The protagonist was a flawed woman who experienced genuine character growth. I was rooting for her.
But so much of the writing was so cringey. There were things in this book that made me genuinely uncomfortable. The tone deaf dialogue about privilege. Many of the descriptions of sexual tension were extremely awkward and uncomfortable.
And most importantly, and I really hate that this has to be said, a straight woman trying to coerce a gay man into kissing her because “it wouldn’t mean anything to him” is sexual harassment. No human being is entitled to another human beings body no matter how little you think it may mean to them.
This could have been a cute story. It had all of the potential in the world to be a fun rom com with a little bit of spice, but the writing was just not good.
4.5 ⭐️
“A part of me will always love Seth.”
“Then wouldn’t it be fair to assume a part of him will always love you?”
Just My Type By Falon Ballard was a fun book filled with a workplace rivalry and unfinished history. Lana Parker is a thirty year old journalist writing pieces that she doesn’t love. Seth Carson is a popular journalist that seems to be living the dream, traveling the world, and writing. The two used to date when they were in high school and had a recent run in at their high school reunion that seemed to leave things even worse because neither of them seem to be happy about seeing each other when Lana’s boss has Seth working for ATF, the company Lana works at, for the next couple months. They’ve been tasked to compete against one another to secure a spot at working for Chronicle. They both want the job. The catch? They have to follow a series of rules that the other assigns to them. For Lana, our serial monogamist, she is tasked with going out and experiencing new things as a newly single girl living in LA. For Seth, our serial dater, he is tasked with having to try to settle down and essentially become “boyfriend material” when he’d rather do anything but that. Lana needs to learn to be alone and Seth needs to be able to keep someone around for more than five minutes.
I loved the entire book from the IKEA date to the sunflowers. This book was warm and happy and felt like I was reading about my own friends and having to watch them try to find their way back to each other. There were moments that were frustrating but they felt so real because I can only imagine their frustration with not being able to get the timing right. Their love for one another was precious and the epilogue made me tear up. Another thing that I absolutely loved about this book was all of Lana’s friends at ATF and May. They were all such amazing friends and were always looking out for Lana. They were also hilarious in the group chats and I found myself laughing out loud. They truly wanted the best for Lana and were always there for her whenever she needed them.
I loved the rom com references such as Legally Blonde, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, and When Harry Met Sally. They added an adorable touch to this already adorable book. I hope one day we get a little novella of Seth and Lana in the future, I would love to read about how they are doing.
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the eARC!
This book is what I would say is a perfect example of a rom-com! We follow the story of Lana, a serial dater, and Seth, who’s got a fear of commitment. Let’s throw in the fact that they’re high school sweethearts with a pretty painful breakup, and you’ve set up the perfect base for a great second-chance romance!
After 12 years of being apart, these two are finally reunited and then forced into a work project that puts them into some “friendly” competition. Yeah, it’s anything but friendly. Both are dealing with their own heartbreak that keeps resurfacing in relation to their breakup from years ago, so they end up take the resentment out on each other in the form of the challenges they each have to complete.
While participating in their own individual tasks, they start to realize that maybe they weren’t as over each other as they once believed. Old feelings boil to the surface and the sizzling chemistry between the pair becomes too much to ignore!
Lana is still trying to discover what it’s like to enjoy being alone, but can’t deny the feelings she has bottled up. Seth is accepting the fact that his issue wasn’t with commitment itself, but maybe not being able to commit to the one person he’s always loved. Are they able to finally put aside their difficult past and step into a happy new future with each other?
Overall: I really enjoyed the buildup of this story. The tension and chemistry between Seth and Lana was great and I felt everything along with them. Their highs and lows, it all tugged on my heartstrings and made for an enjoyable read!
Main tropes included: second chance, forced proximity, & workplace romance
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this review copy!
Wowie wow wow! That was such a cute and fun read!!! There were so many things that I really enjoyed about this book so let's hOP INTO IT.
Katie's Short & Sweet Summary GO: We open with Lana getting her heart pooped on when long time beau dumps her when she thinks she is getting engaged. One, that sucks. Two, that sucks more considering the blog that she writes is focused predominately on romance. ENTER HER HIGH SCHOOL EX. SETH gets a job at the same place that Lana works, and they are soon pitted against each other in a battle of tasks to earn a coveted writing position. She has to stay single and good ol' Sethy boy has to prove he can actually be the type to settle down. Obvious we have some romance in there too, but this book is so much more than that!
There was a bunch that I liked about this book! First off, it was such a hooky start. The way that this book opened immediately sucked me in and made me want to keep reading. It was also such a fun and breezy read. I could have easily sat down and read this in one sitting (I however chose to read it while I was going to sleep and I may or may not have actually fallen asleep with my Kindle still on).
Now I do have to put my critic hat on because while I LOVED this book, there were a few things that I didn't enjoy quite as much. They are a bit spoily though, so don't read past this line if you would like to avoid those.
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SPOILER ZONE!!!
Okay, so I wasn't a super big fan of how early the love confession happened. I mean, it was very obvious that that was going to happen considering the genre of this book, but I still wasn't expecting it to happen THAT EARLY. I also was a bit weirded out when it came to Lana's one-night-stand task and Seth...ahem..."helping" her with said task. One of his is to literally not sleep with anyone for the duration of the competition and it was just IGNORED up until the "big reveal" at the end. Considering Lana cares so much about him, it was SUPER bizarre to me that she didn't even THINK about this (you know, since she was the one who wrote his tasks). And for him to not even bring it up either??? I don't know it was weird. I get it was to help with the big reveal of who got the job at the end, but it fell a little short for me.
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All that being said, I did really enjoy this book! Super fun and easy, and it felt like the perfect book to cozy up with. I definitely recommend this one.
Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Group Putnam for providing me with an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Relationship columnist Lana is a serial monogamist who has just been dumped by the latest in a string of mediocre boyfriends. She receives a challenge from her boss to stay single for awhile, both for writing material and personal growth. This goal is quickly complicated when her high school boyfriend Seth— not just an ex, but THE ex— is transferred to her office and just so happens to be competing against her for the promotion she’s always wanted.
Lana grated on me in the beginning, but I grew to really like her and the chemistry between her and Seth. The pacing was great with this second chance love story. It gave me shades of the film How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days and also Ashley Windstead’s book Fool Me Once.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I was thoroughly impressed by Ballard‘s debut novel, Lease on Love, so I was extremely excited to read this one! And I absolutely loved it! This book is filled with strong friendships, fun coworkers (with a group chat, of course), a second chance romance, and tons of laughs! Ballard‘s writing is top-notch, witty yet emotional!
This was Just My Type of book. It had all the feels with wonderful characters. Great spark between Lana and Seth. The characters grew throughout the book and learned lessons that brought them closer together. Enjoyed the chat room between everyone and the way Lana and Seth had to spend time together. Lovely second chance romance with a beautiful ending. I would recommend this book. I received this book for my honest opinion.
Lease On Love is one of my all time favorite books and the book I recommend to everyone so I was cautiously optimistic about Just My Type. As much as I love Falon's writing, how could anything live up to my obsession with Lease On Love?! But then I read Just My Type and could not put it down and was once against immersed in a world that Falon had created full or amazing characters that I never wanted to let go.
JMT is a story about Lana and Seth high school sweethearts who, years after their beak up find themselves working for the same website in LA. Lana is a serial monogamist bouncing from long term relationship to long term relationship while Seth is the opposite -- bouncing between short term flings. Lana and Seth's boss sees their reunification as a chance to spark a competition between them where they each have to perform certain tasks and write about it each week, Lana having to learn to be alone and Seth having to learn to find a long term relationship. At the end of the competition, whoever has had the most likes or comments on their articles wins a coveted columnist spot which they both have dreamed about it. Only one problem, Seth and Lana being back in the same place has opened up old wounds and old feelings.
I LOVE how Falon writes real, strong, foul-mouthed women! Not all women are sweet and petite and first Sadie and now Lana have been some of my top female characters of all time because they seem like real people, f-bombs and all. Similar to Lease On Love this book had an amazing female lead and a great friends group that made me want to be a part of their circle. But that is where the comparison to Lease On Love ends.
This story was unique and fun and had so many feels. I loved Lana's growth throughout the book. There are so many times I wanted to reach through the book and shake her but I also understood her. Falon has an incredible way of giving you frustrations with her characters but also laying out so beautifully why they do those frustrating things. I felt for Lana and her situation with her family. I also totally understood her strange relationship with her boss and really liked how Falon handled that relationship. (no spoilers)
Seth is also dreamy. I was also often times frustrated with Seth but I understood where he was coming from as well.
One last gush about Falon but can we talk about how her books so far has been SO pro-therapy! I love that so much and wish more books embraced the importance of therapy like Falon does in her books.
I know from the author's note and from Falon's IG posts how difficult she has said it was to write this book, but that does not come through on the page. I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone who loves a great romance full of angst or movies like How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days.
HUGE thank you to Putnam for allowing me early access to this title in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Lana Parker and Seth Carson we’re high school sweethearts, who split ways when Lana left for college. She writes a relationship column and has just been dumped by her boyfriend. When she arrives at work the following morning for an office meeting, none other than Seth is staring back at her. Her boss hears of their history and sets them up against each other in a competition for a new column.
I enjoyed it. They obviously had chemistry and it was obvious from almost that beginning that feelings were still present on both sides. Quick, easy, feel-good read.
This was cute but it didn’t contain the depth of her first novel. The plot was very cheesy and overdone in my opinion. (I don’t mind workplace romances or second chance romances, in fact I usually love them — but the competition with an ex didn’t work for me here.)
While the competition ultimately ended up being good for Lana, it surprises me that she waited so long to work on herself. She seemed very immature. The second chance romance was pretty obvious to literally everyone but Lana and I don’t think their reunion was as strong as it could’ve been. I think we were lacking Seth’s point of view. His quiet pining throughout was such a slow burn, and because Lana was so dense about it, it was almost torturous.
That said, they had great chemistry and I loved their one night stand scene.
Also all of Lana’s “thank Thor” and “thank Loki” references got annoying very quickly. It didn’t seem like she actually wanted to write about pop culture but instead just wanted to complain that she wasn’t.
Overall pretty cute, but I’m not sure I’d recommend it to others.
This was such a fun, sweet book! Seth and Lana are forlorn lovers who, of course, are not quite over each other. Add that with a work competition for a job they both want, and you have an adorable, fast-paced love story with two mains you root for. If you love Falon Ballard’s Lease On Love, you will love Just My Type.
I recently finished reading Ballard’s first book “Lease on Love” and was excited to have the opportunity to read this book as well. I liked the idea of self exploration that both Seth and
Lana went through as the story progressed. I also appreciated the realizations that Lana came to with respect to her mother and her boss, not just with her relationships. These helped her seem like a multifaceted person which made the story more cohesive. I was happy at the end that both Seth and Lana found
“Home” in so many different ways. It’s always the hallmark of a good book for me when I’m not done with the characters yet - I want to know more!