I'd seen some really good reviews for this book and the blurb really piqued my interest, so I was pretty excited to get my hands on this book.
The book got off to a pretty slow start for me. I wasn't sure I liked any if the characters, there didn't seem to be much happening, and I was just kind of bored. I was especially annoyed about how clueless Theo seemed to be.
The last quarter of this book really saved it for me. I grew to actually like the characters, Theo pulled his head out of the sand, and I was actually flipping pages faster and faster.
I only wish we'd seen more of Leone and Sean's relationship.

5 Stars!!!

I had read one other story by Anyta Sunday, Rock, before Leo Loves Aries and I loved it to bits, but it was angsty as all hell—which I love, don’t get me wrong, it’s just that sometimes I’m in the mood for light and sweet. Leo Loves Aries is just that, a low angst, adorable book, with great characters and a fantastic storyline.

Theo was such a fascinating character, quirky and sweet, but oh so very oblivious. Really, there were times I would roll my eyes at how blind he could be to what was happening between him and Jamie and then smile, because, well, frankly Theo was too charming for his own good. The story is told entirely in his POV and it was so much fun to read, from the chapter and daily quotes, to the growing friendship between Theo and Jamie, to Theo thinking Jamie could be good date material for his sister and so forth. I guess you could say this is a GFY kind of book, but really, Theo is more like a go-with-the-flow kind of guy and since all his family is like him, his sexuality wasn’t even a blimp on the angst-radar. I loved the progression, it was a slow-burn and it does take a long time for Theo to finally realize what he’s been feeling for Jamie is more than friendship, but they were so good together and their banter and the UST were amazing enough to make up for the time it took them to get things going romantically speaking. And when it did? Damn, but it was just the icing in the cake and hot, hot, HOT!

I adored Jamie as well. I loved all the little clues that he was more interested than Theo realized, and boy, if he wasn’t patient and understanding.

The secondary romance between Leone and Sean and the inclusion of Theo’s very quirky/horoscope loving mom added a lot of depth to the story and I just adored them all.

All in all, a sweet, fun slow-burn friends to lovers romance that I’ll most definitely read again while I wait (im)patiently for book 2 in this series!

Highly recommendable!!!

A beautiful friends to lovers story. The discovery, the banter, the relationship...all of it was superb. This was my first book by this author, but it certainly won't be my last.

I love slow-burn romance done right and Leo Loves Aries was definitely slow-burn done the right way. It was fun, the couple was friends first, there was plenty of banter and it made me *want* that the romance would finally happen. Really, it was glorious!!!

Our hero Theo had never thought that he could possibly fall in love with someone of his own sex, but he did fall in love with Jamie because there was this emotional connection between the two that was simply adorable and made me want for even more. Theo and Jamie together? So swoon-worthy!

It may have been pretty obvious to everyone else but Theo that he would make an adorable couple with Jamie, but it was also something I enjoyed so much about this book because I could definitely see how his feelings grew for Jamie. Also, I loved the fact that he didn't go on a "oh my god, but he is a guy" streak despite the fact that he had been attracted to only women before.

I guess the only thing that I didn't appreciate so much was the constant star sign thing, but in all honesty it didn't bother me all that much because the writing was really good, the characters were perfect and the story made me sigh in happiness by the time I turned the final page.

Leo Loves Aries was a highly enjoyable read. Theo was a charismatic and entertaining main character, although one of, if not the, most oblivious characters I’ve ever read. I loved his relationship with his sister, Leone, who was a wonderful character as well. I wish there’d been more of her! I also liked the siblings’ mom and Theo’s friends but my favorite character would have to be Jamie.

One of the things I liked most about this book is that each character seemed developed. In similar books the main two characters usually have differing professions or interests and it’s these external factors that are about the only way to tell the other too apart. Thankfully, the characters in this were all fully fleshed and each their own.

Another thing about this book that pleasantly surprised me was the diversity. A lot of books in this genre tend to be about able bodied, cisgender, white men who have only previously been attracted to women but Leo features a blind character (Leone), a gay character (Jamie), and a demisexual character (Theo’s friend Ben). An additional thing that tends to occur not only in this particular genre, but in just about every piece of media, is ex-girlfriends being portrayed as heartless villains which isn’t the case here. Theo’s ex, Sam, appears a few times in the novel and any melodramatic scenes where she’s torn into, which is a refreshing change from the misogynistic treatment of women in the majority of other novels.

While all of the aforementioned aspects of the book were enjoyable, it was the romance that I enjoyed the most. I’m a sucker for show burn romances rooted in friendship with lots of pining and angst that cultivates in a happy ending. If you’re a fan of any of these tropes, I’d highly recommend you pick this up.

There were really only a few a nit picky things that bothered me about this novel. The first being the horoscope aspect. I wouldn’t have minded if the zodiac elements were interspersed at reasonable rate but the amount of times the word Leo or Aries was ridiculous. It became a bit annoying at times. The second thing was how characters would speak entire sentences without using contractions which came off as awkwardly, clunky, and unrealistic. Lastly, there were a few words used during the sex scenes that made me cringe, but I expect that during sex scenes. Other than those few things, I really enjoyed the writing and the book as well!

Rock by Anyta Sunday is one of those books that stayed in my mind for weeks after I read it. Even now -- well over a year later -- I can recall specific scenes, the vibe within those scenes. Hell, I cried and cheered and got angry when I read it.

And that's the kind of book I like.

So, when the opportunity to review another one of her books came up, I jumped at the chance. And I read the book in an evening. It was an easy read and, if I could put all else aside, I could say that it was an enjoyable one.

But.

Here's the thing.

It also had so many bad -- and some would say hurtful -- tropes that didn't need to be there. I doubt it was malicious. Given her thoughtful writing on the same topics before, it wasn't even on-purpose. Just...well, I don't know what happened here.

Sunday did everything from making the lead MC emotional stunted (and, no, men ARE emotional creatures who aren't so dense as to not realize when they are attracted, nevermind in love with someone) to the inclusion of a humiliating ex so malicious that the primary love interest who was damaged by this person needs this same emotionally stunted MC to make it all better.

The men were either so unaware or so unemotional that the people surrounding them knew better than themselves what they were feeling. This was true with present love interests, past love interests, and even a set of friends genuinely lost (and regained).

Which brings up another point about the MC who, despite having close gay friends, never realized that he might be attracted to another man. Not he would need friends to help him understand the attraction (there is this thing, after all, when the character has a working appendage) but I would hope that he would be socially aware enough to know that romantic love between men could be a "thing".

The more I think about the book, the more I dislike. And because I still like her as an author, and think she has much to promise for future efforts, I'm going to stop here. I will also add that readers should check out her other books. Rock, in particular, is wonderful.

Leo loves Aries is an ebook by Anyta Sunday. This book is so good. I was drawn in by the cover, and the astrological title, but I had no idea, that I would love it as much as I did.

Theo and Leone are twins and college students living on their own. They are both miserable after their significant others fell in love with… each other. Really. Leone's boyfriend and Theo's girlfriend fell in love and thus, broke their hearts. When they learn of their ex's engagement, they're determined to stop wallowing, and to have dates by the time the wedding rolls around.

Their astrology loving mother, Crystal keeps them updated on their horoscopes (they're Leos), which she believes in using as a guide to life. She tells them that Leos should be on the look out for an Aries to come into their lives in a big way. Theo laughs it off, not putting too much stock into his moms beliefs, but Leone takes it to heart. They promise to help each find dates worthy of them. Theo is not sure, though if he can find anyone worthy of his nearly blind sister.

I can't really say more without telling you the entire story. I really like the astrological aspect behind this book. Call me a believer, I know how accurate astrology can be. (I'm a Gemini by the way.) I will say that this is a slow-burn romance, which, to be honest, is the best kind. It borders on erotica at times, and can be a touch graphic, so be warned. I'm into that though, so I soaked it up. I couldn't get enough of this book and it ended sooner than I would have liked. There is a second part, called Leo Tops Aries, which I believe is an “erotic short sequel.” I haven't read it yet, but I plan to get to it this weekend. If you're interested Leo Tops Aries is free on Amazon right now, for Kindle readers anyway.

I don't know why but I didn't like Theo, I just couldn't connect to him & so it took away from the story for me.

Leo Loves Aries is a slow burn romance story. I mean, I thought this could have been an innocent YA book for about 60% of the book. It’s funny and cheesy and the characters are so cute. Theo and his sister Leone are twins and both trying to get over their now ex-girlfriend and ex-boyfriend falling in love with one another. They have both invited to the wedding and now are out to find each other dates to the wedding. It’s almost too good to be true when Theo and Leone are looking for a new roommate for their spare bedroom upstairs when Theo asks his ex-economics tutor, Jamie, if he wants to stay with them. Theo and Leone’s astrological sign is Leo and Jaime is an Aries. It’s interesting to know going into the story who’s going to end up with who, because it just makes the romance that much more drawn out.

Theo is a an undergraduate college student who strives to make all A’s in his classes. His current tutor is no help to him, so he contacts his old tutor, Jamie Cooper, to help him out and be his and Leone’s roommate to help pay their rent. There’s a cute sort of innocence about this request and Theo is just honestly a good guy, but maybe not the brightest at relationships. For the longest time, he assumes that Leone and Jamie would be perfect together, however awkward that would be since that would leave him as the third-wheel in his own house.

Theo cares deeply for Leone’s happiness. She is legally blind and he would do anything to help his sister out. It’s mentioned that she had her eyesight until she was about 15 and can now can see the outlines of people, but not enough to fill out the details of what she’s seeing. I love how caring Theo is and how independent Leone is and exhibits, very rarely, that she needs the help of others to get things done. The twins care for one another and they spend a majority of the story trying to help each other move on from their past relationships.

This is a story that can be read in one sitting and I loved every minute of it. Theo and Jamie’s banter and online chats/emails are hilarious and fun to read. I think the story builds up the romance so much, that by the time the story crested that hill, it was almost a race to the finish. I would have loved for the story to be drawn out a bit more, but maybe that’s the reader in me that loves reading angst and this story has very, very low on angst.

I love that this story evolves from a friendship that grows into something more emotional and intimate between the two characters. I will say that the majority of this book reads deceptively as YA. Until it isn’t. The sex scenes are steamy, and is decidedly not YA at that point. There’s a short story after this book called, “Leo Tops Aries,” and, hilariously, it is everything that title implies.

I think in some instances, while this story is set in the United States, it’s very obvious that the author is not from the United States? Key differences that stick out to me is how everyone naturally drinks tea all the time in this book, something about a potato-and-“mince” food dish, and the spelling of ‘yogurt’ as ‘yohgurt’ throughout the story. Maybe also that almost everyone plays badminton in this book? I love playing badminton, but I don’t think I’ve ever met so many people who would just naturally know how to play. None of this distracts from the story too much, but they’re just some things I wanted to point out.

Leo Loves Aries is a light, funny story and I really enjoyed reading this book! I’m not usually a fan of GFY stories, but there was enough build-up in the story between Theo and Jamie that it felt enjoyable to read regardless, even if it was never explicitly stated how Theo viewed his sexuality at the end. The secondary characters, Leone, and Jamie’s best friend, Sean, are hilarious and awesome characters. The story is cute and I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a fun, slow-burn romance and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for book two, Scorpio Hates Virgo!

***Thanks to the author for providing a copy of this book on NetGalley***

Damn you Sunday, you did it again. Leo Loves Aries is cute, funny and well, perfect. It's one of those stories that melts your heart and it just plain wonderful without unnecessary drama that tends to spoil stuff. We so need more cuteness like this. We have two "Leos", Theo and Leona, siblings. Their significant others end up together and even dare to ask them to their wedding and both Theo and Leona need dates to prove they can get over them. Thus enters Jamie, "Aries", who becomes their new roommate and then Theo's best friend until friends become something more and there's something for Leona too. Sunday surely rocks these slow friends-to-lovers settings and the whole thing is light and meaningful at the same time. Slow burning romance is hard to do well and not many succeed in it. The language flow is great and the plot works so nicely that this is pure enjoyment.

Oh how I loved both Theo and Jamie! I loved how their relationship was full of cute bickering and meaningful stares with lots of "horny butterflies eating your stomach" moments. Leona and Sean were a good add too and especially that they had their story too and it was cute. There's content in the book and it's not solely bonking, which I adored, since the best parts were Theo and Jamie's mundane interaction with each other and the quotes, oh, I so loved the quote thing. As a reader you kind of grow with them to see their perfect union at the same time they do. This makes the book very entertaining and the sex scenes were hot and not too over the top. Anyta dear, you're awesome when it comes to stories like this and please, give me an enemies-to-lovers story, since I know you'll rock it too (it's so hard to find good ones)!

Leo Loves Aries, is about Theo who's trying to get over an ex and also just want to get an A in his Economics class. Theo is also a twin, and has a twin sister called Leona. He and Leona obviously has a very strong bond and because Leona is blind, Theo is also very protective of her. This book starts out with Theo and Leona needing a new roommate to take up one of the spare rooms in their apartment. When Leo figures his old economics tutor Jaime is looking for a room to sublet, he jumps at the chance and asks him to move in with them. Theo also decided that he will be the perfect match for Leona, so he wants to try everything to try and figure Jaime out.
As time progresses Theo and Jaime build up a really strong friendship, and as things slowly starts to build into more, Theo keeps second guessing why he's thinking and feeling these emotions towards Jaime.
Overall I really loved this book, Theo was just so super cute to follow, I loved hearing him trying to figure his feelings out. He was supper naive when it came to his own sexuality. Usually I could have hated Theo's character, but the way Anyta wrote him made me completely adore him.
I loved how Theo and Leona's mother played a quite big role in it, and I liked the added diversity that was added with Leona's character. She was such a strong and lovable character.
This is definitely not the last time I will be checking out something from this author. She handled the MM romance really well.

Absolutely loved it!!!

Reasons I loved it:
- Theo's cockiness
- Jamie's sexiness
- the flirting
- sizzling chemistry
- the side characters
- Theo's sight impaired but independent sister
- all the fumbling about caused by the misunderstandings
- Ben- the demisexual

Overall, Anyta Sunday just got a new fan.

Leo Loves Aries, if anything, is a slow burn romance. One of the most slow burns in contemporary romance that I've read, and it surprises me how much I loved the slow burn aspect without becoming frustrated at the pace or the characters. That's simply because it wasn't boring at any time, no, the story was full of banter, incredible chemistry, stubborn and adorable characters, and just about real life.

I love stubborn characters because I can relate with them so much - I am quite a stubborn person myself. Theo, the main character, must be one of the most stubborn characters I've read about, especially when it comes to competitions. His and Jamie's small, everyday life competitions were so adorable, especially the infamous peanut butter one; smooth or chunky. I had so many laughs of Theo and Jamie's stubbornness, as well as their incredible banter. There was banter everywhere, and it was so much fun! I loved how the story was funny and lighthearted at times but also tackled some more serious matters such as past relationships and different kind of fears and how to overcome them.

One of the important aspects of the story was how it focused also on Theo's relationship with his sister Leone, some friendships, and featured Theo and Leone's families, as well as Jamie's family and closest friend. Overall, the story was well rounded because it included normal aspects of life as well as the brilliant slow burn romance.

In conclusion, I loved about everything in Leo Loves Aries. Especially Theo and Jamie, and their banter because it was genius and funny and made me laugh out loud so often. I'll surely check out Anyta Sunday's other books, and I highly recommend this one if you happen to enjoy slow burn romance with lots of banter.

This novel is like a warm jumper on crisp cold nights. Well written, realistic and how you wish life was. If you sliced Leo Loves Aries in half all that would pour out is pure heart.

Solid 4.5 stars.
Theo and Jamie’s growing friendship was SUCH a delight to read. The banter and teasing between them was heart-warming, and I loved that their fondness for each other shone through from the beginning. But of course, Theo was a little slow, not quite realising that it’s a little more than fondness making him pay such close attention to Jamie…
"We are tutor and student. Roommates. Sparring partners. Friends. Anything you want us to be."

The slow burn! Theo wanting to see Jamie smile again when he’s sad! And going out of his way to get it to happen! These wonderful clueless boys.

Leone, Theo’s sister, was a confident, clever and very likeable character. She didn’t let her blindness hold her back from anything, but at the same time there were constant reminders of the support Theo and Jamie gave her with careful and patient respect.

This was such a lovely, easy read. Perfect way to spend a Sunday evening.

That was... the most irritating book, I've ever read. Or at least - lately. Seriously! But then, I've enjoyed reading it. Cute story with nicely written characters: both main and secondary. Plot wise it wasn't much, but it was well planned and logically written. I mean - it was quite typical love story with adequate level of drama(although, by end of the book drama accumulated a bit - and it'd be better if it didn't). Basically - story delivered everything I've expected from it.
Theo and Jamie were well built characters, they had their ups and downs (with Theo being a bit too nice and kind).
I really liked Leone, that she wasn't a helpless kitten but women who knew what she wanted and how to achieve it. The scene with taxi driver? Absolutely awesome. We need more characters like Leo.
I also liked the fact that exes weren't made into monsters - yes, they might've been insensitive, but mostly - it just didn't work and that was it. And it was nicely written.

Overall - recommended, if you need something nice (and fluffy) to lighten your evening.

I will admit... I love sweet romance novels, where two people meet and often one is completely oblivious to the fact that the other one likes them and 90% of the conflict is due to misunderstandings and mixed signals. Because of this, I loved Leo Loves Aries, by Anyta Sunday.

Theo and his twin sister, Leone, check the mail one day to find two things: an invitation to the wedding of their ex's and their yearly horoscope from their eccentric mother. Normally Theo just laughs at these horoscopes that his mom sends, but this year... this year his life is in enough shambles that it starts to make a bit of sense. It talks of Leo having a new person entering their life, one that could be the start of a thriving friendship.

The horoscope, combined with the unsettling but not unexpected wedding invitation, push Theo and Leone to make a pact to help find each other dates to the wedding. Theo thinks he finds Leone's perfect date in his old econ tutor (and their new roommate), Jamie Cooper. Jamie is smart, sweet, caring, and even an Aries (who the stars say is a passionate match for Leo). It's match written in the stars. But is he as perfect for Leone as he seems?

Leo Loves Aries is such a sweet and well-written story. Main character Theo is so completely oblivious to his feelings for his "best friend," Jamie. He genuinely thinks this is how everyone feels when they find a best friend. And he fails to see how completely Jamie adores him, even though Theo tends to be a bit of a brat.

There were a few things I didn't love about this book. We experience the story through the viewpoint of Theo, which ultimately makes it a much more interesting read. However, he frequently has "aha!" moments, and we the reader think "Oh! He finally GETS it!" But they it's revealed that he didn't get it and we are left thinking "Wait! What was his realization then?"

Additionally, and this is ultimately a minor complaint but one that bugs me, it is obvious from the writing that the author is not American. While I don't have any problem with non-American writers (some of my favorite authors aren't American), I find it very off-putting to have American characters speaking in a non-American tone.

All-in-all, my complaints about this book were minor while my praises for it are high! I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone who loves romance novels!

Wow, I really liked this book and I'm somewhat stymied to figure out exactly HOW that happened. It took me a while to really get into this story, and I think that Anyta Sunday's writing style takes a while to totally suck you into the story, but once I was ..... um, "sucked" .... I LOVED the story and hated for it to end.

The dynamic between Theo and Jaime takes a long time to set-up and their romance is definitely very slow-burn, but the payoff when we finally get there is SO very worth it. There's a texture to their love story that is so beautifully woven together and the emotional impact is really very touching.

The secondary characters were all well fleshed-out but didn't distract from Theo and Jaime's story. This was my first Anyta Sunday book, but definitely won't be my last!

Such as good book! Different from other things I've read.

The author describes Leo Loves Aries as a "sweet, slow burn, M/M romance with HEA" and I couldn't agree more – I loved it. This was the first book I've read by Anyta Sunday but I hope to read more soon.

Before I read the book, the title puzzled me just a bit but then I started reading and realized it referred to astrological signs and I found the little references to that throughout the story to be quite clever.

When Theo Wallace and his sister, Leone, take Jamie Cooper on as a roommate Theo thinks he might be the perfect match for his sister. It takes Theo a really long time to catch on that Jamie is interested in him, not Leone.

This book made me smile and also shed a few tears which is just the type of story that I really like. This one also has several of my favorite M/M tropes: GFY, college students and friends-to-lovers.

This was a feel-good story for me. It was also a bit unusual for an M/M romance in that the first kiss didn't happen until 59% of the way through and the first sex didn't happen until 69%. Once they finally get together things are pretty spicy. Jamie is an absolute dream of a boyfriend; he takes such good care of Theo both as a friend before they become involved and later as a lover. He also helps Theo overcome one of his biggest fears.

Don't miss the fantastic follow-up short story, Leo Tops Aries, currently available for free on Amazon.com.

A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book.