Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0

Characters: 3
Connection to the book/Enjoyment: 3
Setting: 4
Plot/Overall Story: 3
Writing: 3

Every point= 0.25 stars, max per category 4 points

Overall a really sweet story! I enjoyed it more than some of her other more recent books. It was a wholesome, clean romance with a perfect setting for summer- just what I was looking for.

But once again, don’t go into this looking for Christian fiction even though it is published by Thomas Nelson. There are no faith elements in the story outside of a minor character mentioning she last saw the main character’s mom at a church event. Waiting for Christian fiction to truly become Christian fiction again …

I didn’t love this narrator but not enough to where it kept me from listening. I think her accent was too strong for a third person pov. If it had been first person pov from the fmc perspective, I might feel better about the choice.

Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment, Alcoholism, and Infidelity

Thank you Net Galley and Thomas Nelson for the opportunity to read and review this book!

This was a fun beachy read set in my home state of North Carolina. I enjoyed the chemistry between Liam and Chloe. Kathleen McInerney does a great job narrating as always. A very sweet romance.

After a bad breakup, Chloe Anderson penned a romance novel featuring her idea of the perfect man, and that book went on to be a bestseller, and now it is even being turned into a movie! When Chloe learns that the director has chosen Hollywood bad boy Liam Hamilton to portray the hero in the movie, she is horrified and tells the director how opposed she is to this casting – not realizing that she is on speakerphone, and Liam just heard every word. Liam’s agent comes up with a scheme for Chloe and Liam to fake date while filming the movie in Chloe’s hometown: Liam’s reputation will improve by being in a steady relationship, and Liam will listen to Chloe’s suggestions on how to portray his character. What to do when real feelings develop, though?

I found it hard to root for these two to be together. I never got a clear feel on what made Chloe attracted to Liam beyond his looks and ability to <i>act</i> like her fictional character. She also repeatedly believes the worst in him, without giving him a chance to defend himself, and I worry that if they were real people, that trend would continue after the end of this book. I love the fake dating trope, but this story just wasn’t for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book.

A small town author Chloe and the handsome actor Liam. First meet under not the best circumstances. The story line takes you into the life of an autohor who's book is made into a movie and Liam is the handsome actor that takes on the lead role. Can Liam live up to the expectations Chloe has for his character.
apparently not..... But can he prove her wrong......
It's easy listening excellent narration and excellent story line.

A sweet book! I did enjoy this and think it thrived as an audiobook. I didn't love the narrator for it and that they did both parts but it was just fine.

Plot wise, it was cute if not very predictable. I saw that the author has had 3 books be turned into Hallmark movies and this definitely read like one. It was warm and sweet and also not very lifechanging. It didn't make the biggest impression on me and I think that's okay too.

"Love, Unscripted" takes a heartwarming look at the enemies-to-lovers trope, pairing a small-town, hard-working author, Chloe, with the playboy male lead, Liam, who is set to star in the film adaptation of her book. Of course, they get off to a rocky start, but then plan a fake-dating scheme that will help them each achieve what they need to career-wise.

Over the course of several weeks, what starts out as a purely business arrangement starts to take on more meaning for them both as the sparks continue to fly.

I really enjoyed the story and appreciated that the romance wasn't too spicy. This has been one of my favorite reads so far this year.

Thank you to Denise Hunter, HarperCollins, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

This was a heartwarming story that I really enjoyed listening to. The characters were quickly relatable.

Love, Unscripted by Denise Hunter is a feel good audiobook about finding love when you least expect it. Chloe is an author whose book is being made into a movie. The star actor, Liam, is the last person she’d have chosen for her hero. However, the studio believes he is perfect. And he needs to do some damage control to his playboy image. The studio decides that a fake relationship between Chloe and Liam is just what they need. However, what starts out as a ploy quickly becomes more. But how can they make it work? And can they really trust each other? Listen now and find out! You’ll be glad you did!

I love small town romances. Chloe Anderson is the MMF who is a author who just wrote about that is turning into a movie because everyone went crazy over it. Liam Hamilton is the MMC who has been cast to star in her movie. Chloe is horrified. The are find themselves in a fake relationship for their own personal reasons. They form a friendship and their chemistry and banter evolve into something more. The narrator does a good job bringing the book to life.

Tropes
fake dating,
forced proximity
celebrity status
small town romance

Thank you #NetGalley#ThomasNelsonFiction HarperCollins Pubishing for the audio ALC of the audiobook
#LoveUnscripted by #DeniseHunter. also narrated by #KathleenMcInerny in exchange for my honest review.

“I guess Love is complicated. No matter who you are.”

I listened to the audio of this book. It took me a little while to adapt to the narrator, but it went smoothly after that. I know it matters for some people, so know it’s a dual POV (told 3rd person), but with a unique narrator. (It was perfectly fine for me)
I found that fake-dating story very cute. Despite the fact the story happens during a movie’s filming, the main vibe remains “small town”, and I truly enjoyed that. Both Chloe and Liam were easy to love, even with (thanks to?) their flaws. I enjoyed that –despite some pretty loaded family history– most of the book turned around mundane things, the building of domesticity and intimacy. It made it a cute and relaxing read, where I often forgot “who” (a writer and a Hollywood famous actor) was involved, to see the humans first.
That said, the stakes are recalled more than once. I loved that under the cute love story we can reflect on the impact of celebrity, about how being a public person makes for someone losing their right to privacy, and how a person’s life can turn to belong more to their fans than to themselves. On the same line, the conflict resolution was interesting as it was about finding a way to live together, accepting ourselves, remaining who we are, more than absolutely working on every flaw (and asking for help). That made Chloe and Liam even more endearing.

Thank you NetGalley, Denise Hunter & Thomas Nelson Fiction for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A sweet, clean love story with likable and memorable characters. The narrator is enjoyable. The story deals with family relations, past trauma, therapy, and moving on.

Chloe Anderson’s best-selling novel is being made into a movie, and she has a lot to say about the Hollywood playboy chosen for the role. She shares those opinions freely…on speaker phone, with the actor, Liam Hamilton, unknowingly on the call. With their working relationship off to a rocky start, Chloe’s worried Liam won’t take his role seriously and she’s willing to go along with a PR ploy to make sure he puts in the effort – she agrees to date him publicly to rehab his playboy image and in turn he’ll do the research to make his portrayal of her fictional leading man perfect. But when they genuinely strike up a friendship, it’s just a matter of time until those friendship feelings turn into something more…

Love, Unscripted is the perfect, clean beach read <3 I’ve read a lot of Denise Hunter’s novels over the years and always enjoy her writing and characters. When I pick up her books, I know I won’t be disappointed. Love, Unscripted has the same sweet, clean romance I’ve found in her other books. Swoony characters and chemistry without explicit content. Definitely recommend Love, Unscripted!

My favorite parts include their first in-person meeting (lol), the sick scenes, and of course, the ending <3 I also thought the side characters were hilarious and enriched the story (and I’ll be steering clear of digital thermostats from here on out ;)

Intimacy: Kisses Only
Sensitive Topics: alcoholism, divorce

Thank you to HarperCollins Christian Publishing/Thomas Nelson Fiction for giving me the opportunity to listen to the audiobook of Love, Unscripted through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Chloe Anderson has written her debut novel and within it, created her "perfect man" as Ledger, the heartthrob and romantic lead. Ledger has all of the qualities she has found lacking in her own love life and has dreamed of finding in a real partner, wrapped up in literary perfection. The book is a smash hit with the female beach-read crowd, and the movie rights are soon picked up. Chloe is on cloud nine until the actor cast to play dreamy Ledger ends up being the complete opposite of what she had envisioned.

From what Chloe has heard from the tabloids, Liam Hamilton is nothing more than a Hollywood player. She is devastated that this is who will bring her beloved character to life on screen and worries what this means for the movie. In an effort to get ahead of any issues, the PR team comes up with a plan. Chloe and Liam should fake a serious relationship to help soften Liam's bad boy image while bringing attention to the movie as it's being filmed and produced. Initially on the fence about this, Chloe and Liam eventually agree, and come to an arrangement. As they spend time together canoeing and picnicking and posting lovey dovey selfies on their respective social media accounts, Chloe realizes that maybe not everything you hear online about celebrities is true.

I listened to the audiobook of this story over a weekend, and it kept my interest the entire time. The story itself was light and pleasant, with some expected conflict and misunderstandings thrown in. The setting of Stillwater, North Carolina sounded beautiful and interesting, and I wish the small town had been fleshed out even more. I realized after I started the book that it was listed as Christian Fiction which is not a genre I typically enjoy. If I wouldn't have seen it shelved that way though I never would have known. The book was not preachy or overly religious in any way. The romance was a bit tamer than many of the other books I've read, but not prudish. Overall I would rate this 3 1/2 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the opportunity to listen to this advance reader audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

My initial thoughts of this book was it’s going to be a typical love story nothing special. Boy was I wrong. I truly enjoyed this book. I like how the author made the characters have so much in common despite his celebrity status and her being a small town girl.

The characters dealt with some real issues from abandonment to alcoholism within the family. I’m glad I continued to the end and didn’t judge this book prematurely. I recommend this book for anyone looking for a clean romantic story

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook.

Who doesn’t love a book about a writer? Author, Chloe Anderson finds herself entangled with the lead actor for her book big screen. A lovely fake dating, opposites attract, miscommunication novel. This was such a well written love story with some good side drama. It was very Macomber reminiscent.
#NetGalley
#DeniseHunter
#LoveUnscripted
#HarperCollinsChristianPublishing
#KathleenMcInerney
#ThomasNelsonFiction

A sweet story of when a jaded Hollywood star and a romance author collide. Tabloids can skew everything in the life of someone famous. It takes the love and faith of a good woman for Liam to trust again. Chloe eventually saw Liam for more than what his reputation made him out to be. With them spending time together she realized he was the leading man of her love story. It just took over coming misunderstandings and doubt to find their way. I’m so happy that this small town girl found her balance of being thrust into the spotlight with her small town values .thank you to NetGalley for this free advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

The reader was good and helped draw me into the story. Chloe and Liam's story was just a sweet romance, the side issues with his mother and her father were awesome for people who struggle with forgiveness and acceptance of how people are in your life.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I enjoyed listening to this new title by Denise Hunter. I enjoyed the many different characters and their stories and the slow development of the main character and Spencer.

I loved that the “normal girl” gets the guy. In our society we all want to be the most popular, the skinniest, the one with the nicest clothes. We want to look like the actors and women on social media that are constantly in our face. The hard-working, family oriented girl with a not so pretty past, gets the guy everyone wants. Loved it!! Can’t wait to read more by this author.

This had a plot idea that I thought I would enjoy more than I did, sadly, this fell flat for me. The characters just didn't jump off the page and into my heart. It was just okay. I finished it but really only because I was given access to an ARC in exchange for an honest review. It was cliche' in a way that rubbed me wrong, rather than in a comfortably predictable way.