4.25/5

Are you looking for a steamy rom-com where the steam doesn't come into play until the end of the book? Are you looking for a slow-burn friends-to-lovers romance? Are you a fan of Jane Austen retellings? If you are any of these things, I highly recommend giving Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding a read or listen. Unbeknownst to me, this is a retelling of the Jane Austen classic Emma, and I didn't really realize something was going on until I saw the last name Darcy pop up at the very end of the book. Then of course I saw the reviews and found out it was a retelling of a book I have yet to read, but that doesn't make me love it any less.

The pacing was perfect, and even though the steam was STEAMY (for me), I loved that it came near the end, and we didn't hop into instalove. I also really enjoyed almost every single one of the characters, especially our MCs Emma and Knightley. Emma may come from a rich family, but she felt pretty down to earth and the tension/chemistry between these two was palpable throughout the entire book. I actually forgot Emma of 83rd Street was written by 2 authors as well, that's how seamless the story and writing were. Chefs kiss all the way. You can't go wrong with the audiobook, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone since Brittany Pressley & Teddy Hamilton, 2 of my absolute favorites, completely knocked it out of the park. The end left me hoping these authors will team up again, and they have an instant fan in me!

I have to be honest - I was nervous about this one! I love a good retelling and Jane Austen so I had high expectations; I am delighted to say that Emma of 83rd Street exceeded my expectations. I was immediately drawn into this story set in New York City and fell in love with the characters. This modern-day Emma is clever, chic, and absolutely adorable. I could not stop smiling as I read and the tension between Emma and Knightley is palpable. I literally inhaled this one as I sat on the beach. I can't stop gushing about this book.

This book was described as a retelling of Jane Austen's "Emma." I love Austen and have read all her works, but this retelling did not work for me. Emma in this story was unlikable, spoiled, rich, and self-centered. I disliked all the product name-dropping, most of which I was not familiar with. Knightley also seemed arrogant and egotistical. I felt sorry for Nadine, since she seemed like a perfectly nice person but became a pet project for Emma, who interacted with her in a condescending manner. (After all, there is nothing wrong with those of us who do not wear designer clothes and shoes, live in mansions, and pay other people to do all kinds of things for us.) The females in the book seemed obsessed with seeing guys as "hot."

Readers should be warned that this novel contains explicit sexual scenes, strong language, and drinking/drunkenness portrayed as acceptable behaviors. (I wish I had known this before I read the book.)

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

I loved this book! It was adorable. The setting, the characters, the plot… perfection! If you love the movie Clueless, read this book!

Thank you NetGalley and author for this ARC!


I loved everything about this book, it was cute and fun. The characters made the love story so enticing. I would read this book multiple time! Thanks again! Such a great book! I need a physical copy now!

I really enjoyed this book! It is a modern day retelling of Emma that has the perfect combo of Clueless meets Gossip Girl vibes. It was such a fun quick read that had me rooting for the main characters.

I quite enjoyed this retelling of Emma! I thought both Emma and Knightley were good characters, and I liked the other people we meet in the novel as well. Overall, I would recommend!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

Is there anything better than a good Jane Austen retelling? This genre is always one of my absolute favorites. I love seeing how modern authors take the Victorian writing and customs and make them work in the current century. And this novel was no exception! Emma and Knightly were just as fated here as they were in the original.

EMMA OF 83RD STREET
4 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 romance, woman's fiction
🔥 open door, explicit scenes

Emma is the mother of the friends-to-lovers trope with a little age gap mixed in. The banter, the heart, and the slow realization of their feelings for each other are some of the parts I love from the original story, and Bellezza and Harding captured that in this retelling. Each character was brought to life in a modern but similar way to the original story. Some of the dialogue from the original made its way here as well and it really just flowed.

I loved it. I did this as a combination of the audiobook and the digital ARC and I have to say, I wish I'd done Emma's chapters via audio and Knightly's via physical (because yes, this is dual POV). Something about the male narrator's female voices really rubbed me the wrong way.

The epilogue of this books makes me think that maybe we have a Pride & Prejudice retelling coming our way from this duo, and I am HERE for that crossover.

This contemporary retelling of "Emma" is an absolute delight! The seamless transition from Regency-era England to the present day is executed flawlessly, breathing new life into the beloved classic. The characters feel refreshingly authentic, and the modern setting enhances their relatability. The witty dialogue and charming plot twists keep you hooked from start to finish.

This book was completely and totally fine. I didn't love it, but I'll never say no to a retelling of Emma. I get why it's done, but I absolutely skim over all the product placement bologna. It's just not my favorite.

This is a really cute retelling of one of my favorite Jane Austens! I also appreciated that there was an opening for a Pride and Prejudice retelling later. Here's hoping!

“You’re only, what is it? Twenty-four? Good Lord, you’re going to make so many mistakes. And you should! That’s what makes life worth living. The mistakes lead you where you’re supposed to be.”

This is a modern day retelling of Jane Austen’s classic Emma, set in New York City. Have I read this classic? Nope. But that did not hinder my enjoyment of the story at all. It was adorable. Absolutely adorable. I have never wanted to scream JUST TELL HER more at a fictional character in my life. I actually quite enjoyed Emma as she was very self aware and a very honorable character. The banter between her and Knightley was believable and entertaining to say the least.

Emma and her family are wealthy, but at no point did she trade on her name or slack off just because she could. While playing matchmaker for her friend Nadine she seemed to truly just want to see her friend happy. I even laughed out loud a few times. If you enjoy friends to lovers, rom coms, or contemporary romance I think you will really enjoy this book!

Thank you to Netgalley, Gallery Books, Simon & Schuster, and the authors for the ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love reading romances with wealthy MC’s!

Their problems are usually so out of range of anything I would ever deal with that the drama just whisks me away. Plus it’s fun to imagine how the other half (although it’s not really half, is it?) lives.

So of course, in this lovely RomCom, Emma has rich people problems. She’s naive to the way the world really works as she’s led a sheltered life.

The love of her life, is literally in her backyard, and she just has zero clue.

There wasn’t a ton of action in this one, not that there needed to be. Emma is sort of likable in that spoiled princess kind of way that still has you rooting for her to succeed at finding love.

The side characters were fun and kept the story moving along. I didn’t even mind the name dropping of all the clothes designers so much.

It took way too long for the characters to get together and so the ending felt a little rushed for me. And also, the spicy scenes, not that I’m a fan of them anyway, but the few that were here were almost exact replicas of each other. Honestly, if you aren’t good at writing spicy scenes, let’s just leave them out, ok?! The part with curtains was funny though.

Overall, the wealthy setting and the funny side characters were the star of the show for me in this one. An enjoyable RomCom!

What is better than a retelling of one of your favorite stories? A really well done retelling!!!
This books is friends to lovers with delightful, likable characters and a fun story. I loved the setting and witty banter.

What a wonderful retelling! I am a big fan of Jane Austen and this book was done so well. Emma and Knightley are two upper east siders who have known each other since Emma was born. They had such witty banter and amazing chemistry that I smiled and laughed the whole book. This childhood friends to lovers romance was gripping from start to finish.

This is going to be my top summer read romance recommendations to the patron's of my library system. I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book and fully enjoyed it. I had such high hopes going in and feel in love with the whole story.

This was such a cute fun story. Predictable from page 1, but it didn't stop me from getting lost in the book and the characters. It had a Clueless vibe, which honestly only made it better! I loved the slow burn romance... from neighbors who are like siblings, to an awakening. They are not kids anymore and they find one another attractive. The growth between the main characters was great, the supporting characters were also really well done. I thoroughly enjoyed getting lost in their lives and definitely recommend this for all romance lovers! 
Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

When I saw this was an Emma retelling, and Knightley had his own POV, I was so excited for this one. Unfortunately, it missed the mark for me. I like retellings to add something new to the original, and this one didn't, while also losing the charm that made the original special. I think it was marketed as a romcom, but I cant remember any moments of humor. The dynamic between Knightly and Emma felt more like an antagonistic Darcy/Elizabeth relationship, and Knightly's character honestly irritated me at times with the way he would antagonize Emma for no reason. While the og Knightley did belittle Emma, it was always from a place of kindness and good intentions. Even his POV didn't add enough of the secret admiration that would have made this tolerable. The romance came very late and went from 0-100 very quickly.

I did like how Emma and Nadine's characters were handled. I love how Emma is a little spoiled, but not insufferable, and how she wanted to succeed in life on her own. I think anyone looking for a strict retelling would like this, but I was hoping for a bit more!

I’m a huge lover of Jane Austen, so any book that has anything to do with her or her work is a book I need to read!

I don’t always get on with modern adaptions of her novels, but this one worked for me! Emma makes a great contemporary character and her story works so well in modern day.

Much like the original Emma by Jane Austen that inspired this book, I could not break through the initial chapters. I put this book down after several attempts to read it and walked away.