Just what I needed right now!

As we all deal with the crazy world we're currently living in, I have to say that this book helped me forget about all that for awhile. And that is saying something.

When Marcus plays Aeneas on the most popular TV show "Gods of the Gates," one that rivals (and mimics) the popularity of Game of Thrones, he is frustrated by the lack of care the shows writers have taken with the original source material - a beloved series of books. So, he writes out his frustrations in fan fiction (under the name, Book!AeneasWouldNever), creating new worlds that fixes all the problems he sees in the show. He's even (anonymously) integrated himself in the fan community, writing alongside his best friend, Unapologetic Lavinia Stan.

April, used to hiding her obsession with everything "Gods of the Gates," decides to out herself (as it were) and finally, after long years, post a picture of herself in full Lavinia cosplay. She's smart and witty, but has spent many years dealing with fat shaming from pretty much everyone in her life, so when the haters start hating, she tries to tune out. Until Marcus steps in and asks her out on a date. A pity date, sure, but it stops all the haters in their tracks.

But, on their first date, Marcus sees through her insecurities to a passionate woman that he enjoys spending time with and April sees through his false dim-witted persona that he's publicly crafted for years. When she tells him about her fanfiction obsession, it is revealed that she is Unapologetic Lavinia Stan. Initally, Marcus is thrilled because - wow - his best online friend is also the hot chick that he could totally date, but his excitement fades when he realizes if HIS fanfic were to be exposed, he could lose it all. Hijinks ensue, sexy times happen (a lot), misunderstandings occur, lies are exposed, and forgiveness is granted leading up to the happily ever after.

While it wasn't unpredictable - it IS a romance after all - it was, in fact, hilarious. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard while reading a book. I got some strange looks from the people sitting in the room with me. One of these reasons was the fact that the author intersperses chapters with some of the fanfiction or other acting projects of which Marcus has been involved (and some of them, are seriously funny!) Another was my favorite character Alex (or CupidUnleashed as he becomes known.) I'm serious that I would read a whole book about him. He's Marcus' best friend and costar who after reading some of April and Marcus' fanfic, branches out to read fanfic based on the character he plays and then becomes inspired to write his own, very raunchy, very explicit stories (which I greatly enjoyed and are particularly hilarious).

It's not all sunshine, rainbows and humor. There are some serious moments, especially surrounding dyslexia and fat shaming, but the hardest of which was the parental relationships for each of them. I found these to be sometimes heart-felt and meaningful and other times, I was like, "Ok, Ok, I get it. You have issues. Move along." Which is not particularly fair of me since everyone has some insecurity of which they can't let go. And now I'm talking like these characters are real people. Oy.

But if this book could make me forget the world around me, even for a few hours, it is totally worth it.

As a reader, I am embarrassed to say this is my first Olivia Dade book. I picked it up based on the cover alone but was blown away by the story. Well rounded and with fully drawn out characters, I really enjoyed this utterly unique story. Steamy, heartbreaking, and soul soothing, SPOILER ALERT by Olivia Dade is a unique take on a romance between two utterly different people. I am not ashamed to admit that when I finished this book, I immediately looked for another from this fabulous author. Bravo!

I have needed this book for so, so long. Beautiful, sexy, fun, and heartfelt, SPOILER ALERT made me feel seen in a way I haven't felt in a long time. I fell in love with these characters and I ached for them. The pacing is exquisite, balancing emotional moments with comedy and sexiness brilliantly, with sharp dialogue and full narration. The side characters are interesting, well-rounded, and delightful—from April's friends to Marcus's coworkers. Marcus himself is an absolute darling, and while he's not perfect, he is believable and sweet and lovable, and never makes an unforgivable mistake—and he always apologizes and actively works to make things right. He's truly a gem of a hero.

But April—April is what makes this book. April is smart and confident and funny and sexy and fat. She doesn't hate herself or how she looks. She doesn't seek to change herself for a man or her parents or strangers on the internet. But she also has worries and fears based on her knowledge of society, of what people are like, about how people (friends and family included) have treated her in the past. These worries don't take up her day to day life, but they do come up, and she has moments when they really get to her. This common reality for fat women is handled so well. Seeing a character like April (who has so many wonderful defining characteristics other than her fatness, by the way! She's a geologist! And a fanfic writer! And a cosplayer! ) able to love herself and set boundaries and cut off toxic people who aren't good to her and yet still be vulnerable and self-conscious at times was an amazing experience for me. I'm used to reading about fat girls who essentially hate themselves, and even when those characters learn a little bit of self-love by the end, by that point I've been reminded about how much I should hate myself. In SPOILER ALERT, I was constantly reminded how much I should love myself. And that was extremely refreshing.

Gotta go read everything by Olivia Dade now, bye!

Wow. This book was amazing. I requested the book just based on the cover because it is so gorgeous. Because of that I thought it was going to have more of a royal family type of vibe. Obviously, I was very wrong.
April is a geologist who writes Gods of the Gates fan fiction in her spare time. Marcus plays Aeneus on the show Gods of the Gates and also write fanfiction privately. When a fat shamer tags him in a post about one of April's cosplays, he rushes to defend her and asks her out.
This was an amazing book. The romance between Marcus and April was steamy. The other issues that the book explore such as fatphobia, learning disabilities, etc are really well done. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves romance and fandoms.

Spoiler Alert is the fanfic filled book of every nerd's dreams. It has book to show adaptations, cosplay, fanfic, shipping, and conventions plus a movie star falling for a fan of his show which is definitely a dream. I loved Alice and Marcus' relationship. It was honest and sweet and full of the best kind of angst. Their friendship (even before they meet) is the driving force of this book, and Alice's confidence about what she loves, her job, and her body is what makes her a fun and interesting, captivating character.
I honestly can't say enough good things about Olivia Dade's storytelling and character building. This is a five star read for me.

Spoiler alert

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley.

I loved this!! The characters were fun and well rounded, the story honest and real, and the bits about fandom were totally realistic as well. I will admit I have read fanfic, but have never written any. I have cosplayed, but never had the guts to share online photos of it. Like the main character in this, I didn’t know if it would go over well with all of my social groups if they knew, but I did it anyway.
But this, this was a fun, heartwarming story about someone who could easily be a real girl living this: a chubby fangirl and her internet best friend/crush and her accidental IRL relationship with the male star of her favorite show/ fandom. Each of these two primaries have their own emotional baggage, and their own growing to do. But, they just do it so well together! He’s got an image problem he wants to deal with, and she’s got self image and self esteem issues, and not are just afraid of not being enough. But, they are enough for each other.

If you’re looking for a sweet, funny HEA, with geekiness and a bit of naughtiness, you will love this one!!!

I have been waiting for this book since I saw the cover and read the blurb. And i was so excited to get to read it early and boy. I was in love with it few things I didn't enjoy.

Now I have been in April shoes I've been in fandoms, all that fandom stuff and fanfic and thats what I love about April she was a fangirl who was smart, sassy and loved her OTP. Being scared what others might think of her fandom life she said fudge it and posted herself in a cosplay outfit and getting a reaction to trolls, and haters all over the internet. But she also got someone on her side.. Lead actor from her fave show and half of her OTP Marcus. And boy he had some deep secret but I liked how he stood up for April even if he didnt know her (oh boy ;)) also one of his secrets was he faked being shallow and vain and he writes fanfic under a user name. And guess who he beta for.. YES APRIL!!! small world guys ;) their first date was kinda boring for April lol because sbe knew deep down he was faking..but they gave eachother the chance to make up and see where this relationship goes.. and boy I knew keeping a certain secert was going to bite Marcus in the butt when April found out. And my heart broke when it did.

What I didnt enjoy.. was these mini fanfics between chapters and the ending.. i do wish they had their moment private and not around fans and media.. thats just me.

This book was so refreshingly body positive! Not in a thump you over the head preachy way, but in a very natural "you are desirable and worthy, and people who disagree do not deserve to be in your life" way that was a joy to read. April was hilarious and smart and a wonderful protagonist, and Marcus was such a feminist sweet man whose adoration of April is mushy goodness. And, My God - The main characters are adults who make reasonable decisions!! Reading a book where both main characters have critical thinking skills as well as good intentions is surprisingly difficult to find and it made the book so much more relaxing to read because I never felt the need to knock some sense into either of them. I loved that the chapters went between their points of view, as it showed how two well-intentioned people who love each other can cause relationship problems simply because of their own personal baggage which they haven't shared with their partner or conversely because they don't understand how it is to be the other person and need to make that effort. The way they supported each other unconditionally in how they grew to address their relationships with their toxic parents was a side plot that was so heart warming. I loved the hilarious additions between chapters of quick fanfic excerpts, terrible movie script excerpts, and Marcus' cast group chat - they added an additional element of hilarity and insight. The book was definitely more openly explicit than I was expecting but it was funny and sexy and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I am definitely hoping this becomes a series and we get Alex and Lauren's story next.

April writes fanfiction for a show that's gone a bit off the rails since it overtook the books they originally pulled their story from. She's particularly interested in one pairing of a handsome golden boy and the not traditionally beautiful woman he is thrown together with.

Marcus also writes fanfiction, letting out his frustrations with the character derailment in recent seasons, writing his own fix it fics that shows he knows the book characters better than the show writers and show runners. Of course, he also plays one of them.

I'm a big fan of the two-person-love-triangle, and this set up was ripe for that without really being used much. Instead, the story goes into tropes about fame and body image and "is keeping a secret the same as lying". I think these are the more popular tropes, so there's a lot of good stuff here, just not my particular little thing I was hoping for more of.

As a big woman myself, I did appreciate the level of self love and self acceptance April is already at, she is still working on her feelings about how other people (strangers, the internet, her parents) view her. No numbers are mentioned, if that is triggering to you (and I do get so annoyed when a supposedly heavy heroine is then listed as like, a whole lot lighter than me), but some of the discussions about it all were a bit heavy (no pun intended) to where I'm not sure if this will be much of a re-reader for me. It takes too much mental energy, ya feel? I really liked reading about a heroine my own age, especially one who still participates in fandom. I actually expected a little more discussion of her age, from my experience writers are many ages but cosplayers tend to skew younger, if only because popular media tends toward younger characters.

There were two big times I was getting really frustrated with April, where her behavior was understandable and realistic, but frustrating to me ([ Both big fights I was pretty much on Marcus' side, even though I fully understood her. So he has very little time where you could get together so he suggested while he worked out. I absolutely get why she would take it the way she did, especially later when we meet her parents, but at the time I wanted to point out so hard that he just went to a geology museum with her, it wouldn't be the worst thing to meet him on his turf next, so to speak. And later she is upset and feels "abandoned" at her parent's house because Marcus was trying to keep her estranged father away from her. I feel like romance and other genres aimed at women tend to assume we are always on the woman's side in every conflict and have the man be apologetic or have to grovel when he really probably shouldn't, like that's going to fill an emotional need I have when reading. The reason why I'm whining about this in the spoiler tag and not making a strong point in the actual review is as follows (hide spoiler)] Both times, just as I was getting too frustrated, April took a moment and pushed past her feelings to work through it. There's the old battle between "winning" and having a stronger relationship, and it can be difficult to not feed the anger and recognize that maybe it was bad communication, or both of you hurting etc.

Some of the interstitials were a little tiring, a bit heavy handed about which sexist tropes common in media they were spoofing etc, but they're easily skipped if that bothers you. Chat convos between ULS and BAWN weren't as enlightening as I would have liked, I didn't get a sense of their connection the way I did between April and Marcus in person, we see that they are emotionally close and that he supports her no questions asked but not enough of how they got there. This probably won't bother other people as much as me, just because this plays into me grumpy we don't get much of April interested in both BAWN and Marcus and torn between them.

Overall, there's lots of little jokes and puns and plenty of Game of Thrones references (the expy stuff here is pretty obvious) and two clear hooks for future books, if not more, and a hero who doesn't have even a single hesitation dating or loving a big woman. He is perhaps more in touch with his emotions and feminism than the average forty year old man, which is to say I know plenty of wonderful enlightened men and they feel the same way, but talk about it differently. Still, whatever, we deserve a romantic fantasy and it would be fine even if it wasn't realistic.

Recommended to anyone who likes romance with explicit sex, especially those interested in the famous person- fan trope, or interested in fandom as a trope. All of the other fandom focused romances I have seen are teen.

Marcus Caster-Rupp is an actor on the hit tv series, Gods of the Gates, playing Aeneas, a character known for his handsome face and hot body. He's not been happy with the direction the show has been going for a couple years, so he anonymously vents his frustration in a fan server as Book!AeneasWouldNever. It's a habit that could get him fired from his job if he's discovered. In the online server, he meets a woman who calls herself Unapologetic Lavinia Stan who supports one of the female characters on the series and they form a friendship, exchanging feedback on each other's fan fics and chatting about life in general.

April Whittier is Unapologetic Lavinia Stan and she has no idea that she's been chatting for years with one of the show's stars. She is also hiding her online persona from people at work and in her real life. Being plus-sized, she doesn't think they would encourage her to write fanfic or do cosplay. In a bold move, she posts a photo of her latest Lavinia costume on Twitter and it goes viral. She gets both supportive tweets and nasty ones from trolls who take issue with her plus-sized body. Marcus, one half of her favorite couple on the series, asks her out on a real date after seeing her pic and the clapback she gets from trolls.

THIS BOOK IS SO, SO GOOD!!!! It covers a range of topics from insecurity, parental emotional abuse, and finding your own voice. Marcus and April have such chemistry that I want more books on them! I loved how the revelation of who they were to each other online gets revealed in their real lives.

I greatly enjoyed this book! There's so much to like here from both the heroine and hero to the Interstitials with fanfic writing, screenplays, and DMs. April is so body positive and it's great to read. She has her shit together which is refreshing. The story is so engrossing and I totally didn't want to put it down. One of the best parts is that April and Marcus are adults and communicate (for the most part) really well. Like, they know what they want (in the bedroom and out) and are able to talk like human adults.

The reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because I felt like at times April's wokeness was kind of shoe-horned in. It almost became a bit much. And as much as I appreciate Marcus being a man really in touch with his feelings, it brushed against being unrealistic. But you can chalk that up to him having a high emotional intelligence which lends itself to him being a great actor.

Readers of modern romance should definitely check this one out.

This is my second Olivia Dade title and she just gets better and better! The setup is unique, the romance is swoony, and the chemistry between hero and heroine leaps off the page. It’s funny yet emotional and I loved every page!

I think I just found my new favorite author and my favorite book all in one. Where has Olivia Dade been all my life and why am I just now finding her writing? This book is everything I ever wanted in a romance. The characters fully think things through and make appropriate decisions (even if they are human and do dumb things also), there's emotional depth and complexity. The tension was palpable from the beginning of the characters' meeting, and Dade writes hands down the best intimate scenes I've ever read. The character diversity is so refreshing for this genre, especially with the way describes the beauty and allure in those differences. While there was one thing that was super frustrating throughout the book, it was unavoidable in order for the plot to exist. Because of that, I can honestly say that I have no complaints. I will be buying this book, reading it again, and delving into Dade's other books!

April is a curvy girl who has just landed the date of a lifetime, with Marcus, the handsome, fit star of her favorite TV show. He also happens to be the focus of a lot of the fan fiction she writes. Authentic, complex characters will pull you in and keep you reading in this steamy romance. I could not put it down!

Easily one of my favorite books of the year! The fat representation was so validating, as well. I hope that the buzz (amd hopeful success!) of Spoiler Alert will lead to many more own-voices fat representation in traditionally published romance. Dade expertly discussed fatphobia and emotional abuse while ensuring a sexy and soft romance at the same time.

I took a few days after finishing this book to try and compile my thoughts into something coherent to write a good review. Honestly? I may still just come up short. Spoiler Alert is a great book that combines romance/comedy/angst and fandom in a way that feels personal and makes you feel heard and validated. The main character April is a larger girl who is heavily involved in a GOT like fandom. When she gets the chance to go on a date with the main character from her favorite show, things seem to change for her overnight.

I loved how every other chapter was interspersed with either AO3 snippets or clips from a fake script for a movie or TV show that Marcus was in. It really helped to make you feel fully immersed in the world that the author created. I didn't want the book to end but I'm very happy to hear she's working on a sequel 😊

I like this book it was not exactly what I thought I thought it would be kind of like Comic-Con romance book but it was more of a romance novel with a large woman and a famous actor that just so happened to do fanfiction.I did like the book however it did get confusing at times when they were talking about the different roles that the actor had performed and then you go to what happened eight months ago and then you go to today it was a little complicated.

10,000 swoons! I love a redheaded heroine and this book did not disappoint. Supremely invested in these characters and can't wait to read more from Olivia Dade.

From the summary and the cover I was super excited for. this book and really hoped I would like it. I am so happy to report that I LOVED this book! This book did such a great job of combining humor, romance and issues that need to be talked about more often.

I thought April was such a relatable character and it was so easy to understand her motivations throughout the. book and so deeply empathize with her. I thought the conversations that are had about weight and body positivity are so needed and handled really well. Marcus was a character that was so much more than he appears on the surface and that idea is one that I really liked exploring with him as well as the importance of understanding learning disabilities.

I'm personally not super familiar with fan fiction but I can fangirl with the best of them so I really enjoyed those parts of the story and how the stories being written were mirroring what the characters were going through in their real lives.

The romance was super steamy and I loved how open and honest both characters (but particularly April ) were about what they needed out of the relationship for it to work. The two worked so well together and I really didn't want to see the end of their story.

This book was an absolute delight! Marcus and April were a real joy to read and their meet-cute and subsequent relationship — the ups and downs of dating a celebrity, the trust issues between them and the way they were resolved — really rang true in a very refreshing way. Dade doesn't avoid uncomfortable situations, which is something I really appreciate in romance novels. Love is heard-earned and fiction about love should reflect that, I think. Or at least I prefer it that way.

In that vein, three things really struck me in this book: April's body image issues, Marcus' dyslexia, and both of their relationships with their parents.

I loved that April isn't portrayed and hopelessly ashamed of what her body looks like. She knows she's fat, she struggles with other people's comments about it but she's mostly accepted her appearance and learned to work with it. As a fat woman who has made her peace with fatness, I identified with everything about it, and it was refreshing. Give me more fat heroines who don't really care that they're fat!!

Marcus' dyslexia was also portrayed honestly. I don't have a learning disability, but I do have chronic anxiety, and the struggles of how others perceive people with anxiety and dyslexia seemed kind of similar. The perception of being lazy, disappointing your parents for not being able to finish some tasks. Again, I loved how Dade didn't pull her punches here. It's an uncomfortable situation to portray, but so important!

Finally, their relationship with their parents. I don't identify specifically with either, but I loved how they were portrayed. Sometimes parents are awful and forgiveness is hard. I appreciate how faithfully Dade showed that.

As for the hidden references to the Popular Fantasy Show that Shall Not Be Named, I found them absolutely hilarious and a real treat to find. Someone should make a list of all the references, but I think that would spoil the fun––but trust me when I say, you probably didn't catch all of them; some are REALLY obscure. Props for the research, Olivia!