I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. Lucy felt like one of the most real characters I've read in a very long time. She is not a perfect main character and I loved that. I am also obsessed with the side characters in this book. If the author decided to make this into a series and make a book for each of Lucy's sisters I would read it in a heartbeat.

I also loved the Jewish representation in this, I was not expecting that.

This was so cute & fun to read! I enjoyed it so much! The exchange of text messages! The banter was great! The story flowed so swiftly and I could not put it down

Thank you to NetGalley, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), & Jessica Lepe for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one is out now!

This was a cute workplace romance between teachers and mistaken identity romance. We see our MC’s lives inside and outside of school. I’m not going to lie, this one struggled to hold my attention. Reflecting, it was a cute story. I definitely recommend giving it a shot if you’re looking for a light RomCom.

DNF - I’m sorry, the KKK stuff just really put me off. I grew up in Detroit and neighboring areas with a lot of KKK marches and just. Cannot.

I enjoyed this book but it was a bit unrealistic. The premise doesn't really make sense, but it was wonderful to get lost in the characters. I especially appreciated the mental health focus of the characters.

Although the concept was interesting, the story felt very juvenile to me. I stopped at 69%.

Thank you to Forever and Netgalley for an advanced copy for review consideration.

There was a lot that was frustrating about this book for me. I typed out an entire review and then lost it, so to sum-up: the author should have consulted with an actual School Counselor to write this book because she got a lot wrong. The “KKK” club was a ridiculous example of outdated curriculum. “Tribe” is not a problematic term to use when expressing a bonded group, and books/authors/general public should stop projecting offense where there is none. College is not the only option after high school and forcing students/readers to think that it is the best option is misleading; especially given the current state of student loan debt and unemployed college graduates.

The romance was okay, the family banter and characters were entertaining. I felt for Lucy’s struggles. But that was all overshadowed by the aforementioned issues.

Going in to Flirty Little Secret as one of my most anticipated new releases of the year, I had high hopes and I was NOT disappointed.

I don’t know if I’ve ever related so strongly to a character the way I did to Lucy. Her struggles with anxiety, depression, and ADHD were some of the most realistic I have ever read, and it felt so beyond wonderful to see myself so represented in a book. That feeling of wanting love but not being sure you deserve it? Knowing that isn’t apparently just a thought in my brain and is something people struggle with, but can still be loved for all their brain’s quirks (and frequent crying) was very emotional. I am so excited to recommend this book to friends going forward as a great depiction of the realities of having mental health conditions and being neurodivergent, and for the precious love story.

POV: dual first person

You can expect: teacher MMC, guidance counselor MMC, pen pals, secret identity, he falls first.

Rep: Mexican/Moroccan/Jewish FMC, anxiety, depression, IBD, ADHD.

Spice: 2/5

CW: off-page grooming of a child (NOT done by a MC, brief and non-descriptive. Nothing physically happens to the child), microaggressions, cheating (not done by MCs, off page)

3.5 stars rounded up! A teacher and a counselor with a messy meet cute find themselves drawn to each other, but they're both not being completely honest. Lucy can barely keep herself together in real life, but she doles out advice as the picture perfect Instagram persona @TheMissGuidedCounselor.

Fletcher is the new history teacher at her school and she can tell he's probably interested in her, but her anxiety and depression are keeping her from being willing to take the chance with him.

To make things worse, Fletcher happens to be one of @TheMissGuidedCounselor's closest confidantes online. He figures it out first, but waits and waits for the right time to tell her...until it's too late.

This romance did a great job showing how mental health struggles can impact all aspects of your life and it was refreshing to see Lucy being helped through that by her friends and family.

Ultimately, the story dragged a bit in some places but the romantic relationship between Lucy and Fletcher felt rushed and lacking depth. This would probably be a more impactful read for anyone working in the education system or struggling with those issues themselves!

Thank you Forever for the ARC in exchange for a review. I liked the premise; it was definitely unique. I was enjoying this but the multiple KKK jokes made me uncomfy. Risky joke. 5 stars for a DNF because I cannot comment on the overall quality of the book.

I always enjoy the chance to read debut authors, and I look forward to reading future books by Jessica Lepe. I'm a sucker for the "You've Got Mail" vibes when a couple knows each other online - under an alias - and also in the real world, but don't know that they are one-in-the-same. I thought the Instagram friendship and the IRL friendship were both done well and the reason for the online alias was very believable. Lucy's family was a joy to spend time with, I appreciated the diversity and mental health rep, and there were some genuine LOL moments. I was happy to see growth in the kids from the confidence group, Georgia's relationship with both Lucy and Fletcher, and even in the cheating father relationship.
I'm never a huge fan of miscommunication and third-act breakups --- so I didn't really enjoy those aspects of the story. And I understood the initials of the confident kids club being there to emphasize the embarrassment, but I think it could have been done without invoking those particular initials and the negative associations that go along with it.
Overall, I enjoyed this read. I am thankful for the chance to read a review copy and I will definitely be interested to read future works by this author.

DNF at 20%. I was so looking forward to this book because I heard there was great Jewish and mental health rep. But I could not get past the running joke about a children’s school group called the Konfident Kids Klub, or the KKK as they said and joked about multiple times. DO BETTER. How did this go through multiple rounds of reviews and editing and no one thought, “Eh. Maybe we should go a different route?” Racism isn’t a joke.

Immediate DNF once I realized the author chose to name a club in the book the “KKK” and allude to the teacher of said club as the “grand wizard”. As a young black reader it was just unacceptable to me, and I couldn’t look past it.

I’ll keep you my flirty little secret *sings* . I love punny titles. This one was a sweet, cute romcom and exactly what I was looking for after some heavy fantasy reads. I found the main character relatable as I’m myself a Latina that suffers with anxiety and panic disorder. Lucy suffers with insecurities and learning to love herself. I think this book also highlights how important online relationships are in this day and age. Some are just as strong as the ones we forge with people in person; it’s wonderful when those worlds merge (if you want them to). Also how online we can have a whole separate life that we do want to keep separate and how it can be stressful if it’s exposed. She has a very prominent online presence, but Lucy is anonymous and when her best friend online, happens to be the new hot history teacher, her co-worker, these worlds collide. She doesn’t put two and two together at first, but he does.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever Grand Central Publishing for the read!

I really enjoyed seeing a different perspective of the Jewish faith and culture, especially through a mixed family like the Galindo’s. So often (or at least in my experience) it’s portrayed as a bit conservative or sometimes prudish, which can make a romance feel a bit too closed-door and like we’re not along for the full passion behind the love story. Seeing how the family combined both cultures so beautifully and without the women feeling stifled or judged for seggsy feelings was so great, even beyond it just being out of the norm for Jewish portrayal. Is it just me or did Lucy’s father remind you of Moses’ FIL in Prince of Egypt? 🤔 (lol sorry, 90’s kid flashback but I loved that movie) Anyways, I really liked Fletcher and how he made his mom a priority, even if it was also bc he needed a change in his life. I could’ve used a bit more character building for him outside of his parental conflicts and Lucy, as there wasn’t really a lot about him besides being scared to talk to Georgia. We heard about his actual class like once and his friendships were pretty much nonexistent. (Poor Brody) In the end, the big gestures were pretty dang cute and I liked how it brought everyone together, not just Fletcher and Lucy. They truly did fit and I liked how they grew on their own and with each other.

2.5 stars

I am normally the first person to endorse a book that includes mental health representation, realistic characters, and a workplace romance, but this book just didn't do it for me. I feel like there were all the pieces of a really great novel, and with some workshopping I'm sure it would have been, but the execution fell short for me.

As much as I loved that Lucy, the FMC, advocated so much for mental health (she herself deals with depression and ADHD) there was something about how her struggles were written that missed the mark for me. It was hard for me to connect with her when she was unable to really exist without being surrounded by other people, but then all of a sudden at the end of the book she was confident and ready to barge in and stand up for herself. It just wasn't realistic character development. And as for the romance, it did nothing for me. They had this great connection online, but their in person connection was lacking and felt unnatural and really rushed.

While the story had some cute and funny moments, it dragged on for me and I didn't feel like anything notable happened.

Flirty Little Secret by Jessica Lepe is a cute workplace rom-com that reminded me a bit of Abbott Elementary.
There was good mental representation but it did border on overwhelming. While anxiety and depression was treated with care, it did slow down the pace of the story with a lot of internal monologues. The romance fell a bit short because the chemistry between the two main characters, Lucy and Fletcher, wasn't well developed and felt, at times, forced.
Overall, this one just wasn't for me but I will look forward to reading more from Jessica Lepe because I did enjoy her storytelling around Lucy's family and cultural heritage.
Flirty Little Secret was 2.5/3 stars from me.
Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Flirty Little Secret is a fun, quick romcom following colleagues who don't know they're also besties (with feelings) on Instagram. Lucy and Fletcher are very sweet together, and there's some great character growth, especially for Lucy. The "when should one person tell the other they know the big secret" trope is hard to do without being annoying, but Lepe balanced this well. I wanted to love this book more, there's lots of great stuff going for it! But ultimately the delivery fell a little flat for me throughout. I was never super swoony over their love story, but it was a sweet story I'll still sometimes recommend, especially based on the mental health rep.

There is of mental illness and family trauma throughout this book, but there's just as much humor that makes it a delightful read. Thanks, netgalley!

One of the most relatable FMCs that I've read so far. The humor, the thought process, and even her struggles are so real to me that I feel an instant connection to her. I love overall feel of this book - the school vibe, the tight-knit family, the blended culture, the close sisterhood, and even the rich people drama - it's a perfect story. Pretty basic honestly, but still a fun light read that I highly recommend. I love every character - there's truly no villains here and I adore Fletcher and Lucy! Their connection - both online and in person is so cute and hilarious. Fletcher is someone who doesn't shy away from Lucy's breakdown and insecurity and Lucy lets herself be vulnerable around him and their whole interaction towards one another just makes my heart melt. Solid read for a debut IMO!

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC!