Kate Sweet is The Queen of Happily Ever After, an event planner known for creating perfect weddings for her clients. Somehow, her best friend has convinced her to plan a launch extravaganza for bestselling horror writer Drake Matthews, aka The Knight of Nightmares. After a chaotic first encounter, Kate and Drake spend most of their days together, Drake (secretly) using Kate for inspiration in his next novel, while she plans the perfect event. All the while they’re trying to ignore their growing attraction to each other.

Dylan Newton’s debut romantic comedy does not disappoint, I swear I had a permanent smile on my face the entire time I was reading How Sweet It Is. I was lucky enough to come across this as a read now option on NetGalley. I loved how relatable Kate is, and Drake definitely was unexpectedly different than his horror writer profession would lead you to believe. Almost all of their encounters had me giggling out loud, and swooning.
How Sweet It Is played on a few different emotions, obviously I laughed a lot, and there was a specific incident that brought some tears to my eyes and a little wanting to strangle Drake out of frustration (but only for a second). All in all, I LOVED this book and it’s perfect to bring to a beach or poolside this summer!

A romance between a horror writer and an event planner, there were a lot of delightful details in the book (the event details alone), but the actual chemistry between the characters never felt completely there. I wanted more banter between the two, so that I could see how they changed each other.

I was provided with an ARC in exchange for an honest review of the book.

Why are so many rom-com heroines redheads? From what I understand, redheaded people are somewhat rare, but you’d never know if from reading recent rom-coms. Also, so often writers feel the need to make their heroines petite. Other than those minor annoyances, I enjoyed this book. I liked the chemistry between the main characters. I also appreciated that the inevitable misunderstanding that always occurs 70-80% through rom-coms was fairly easily resolved in this book. I can imagine the author writing a sequel featuring the main character’s best friend.

This book is a cute contemporary romance between a horror author and an event planner, set in third person person past tense dual POV (my favorites) and with one open door sex scene.

This book is really fun! I loved the concept and the autumnal vibes--both the horror writer aspect and the setting (western New York state during fall) will make it a great seasonal recommendation for Halloween, especially for people who don't want something really spooky/scary. This plot is also fairly low stakes, so it will be a great rec for readers who don't like a lot of angst, and it hits all the typical romance beats, so it should satisfy most readers of the genre. Some side characters (Drake's brothers) were really fun and added some humor to the story.

Now for critique. The dialogue felt artificial in some places and immature in others (for example, too many exclamation points). The characters are likable but neither one really pulled me in or made me feel attached to them and their happiness. I think their backgrounds needed to be delved into a little more to get readers more invested (for example, explaining how Kate decided to go against family tradition to become a party planner, and more info on Drake being a hopeless romantic rather than just hinting to it). The plot lulled a little in the middle. Basically, this is a cute romance that just lacked a bit of oomph, making it a little forgettable.

Thanks to Forever and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this fun book.

This book y’all👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 I can tell you this will be a favorite book of mine this month.

How Sweet It Is is such a sweet romance novel. It’s definitely a more tender and sweet story as opposed to super steamy in my opinion, but I loved the plot of this book. It’s an opposite attracts romance and I love how Kate and Drake meet.

Kate Sweet is an event planner - she mostly plans weddings. But when her best friend asks her to plan a book launch for one of her clients? How can she say no? Drake Matthews writes horror novels and his new novel is being adapted to a movie, hence the big book launch. But Drake has other ideas forming in his head that are only more inspired after he meets Kate. How will the Knight of Nightmares fare the plot twist of the Queen of Happily Ever Afters?

This is Dylan’s debut novel and I’m already ready to read more of her books. This one will be published July 13 and were told another book of hers will be out summer🙌🏻 (Please tell me it’ll be about one of his brothers?🙏🏻🤞🏻)

Thank you @netgalley and @readforeverpub for an advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review. Go preorder yours now👏🏻

This book was absolutely adorable! It was a total impulse read, I just saw it while scrolling, and decided it looked decent. I needed something light and fluffy, and that fulfilled my craving perfectly!

My favorite thing about this was definitely the romance. It was cute, and had me hooked. It was insta-love, but it didn't bother me too much. I was too busy laughing at all of the ridiculous interactions our main characters had. Seriously, their meet-cute was more of a meet-disaster. It was all in good fun though!

I also really loved both of our characters. The way that both of their careers tied in was perfect, and it added an element I absolutely adored. I also loved that they talked about things. The miscommunication trope in books irritates me, so I was happy that this book stayed away from that.

I was in the mood for a sweet read, and this was the perfect book for that! It had me laughing super often, and I absolutely loved the romance!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book and the pace the romance progressed at. The couple starts out with a really bad meeting but have to work together and learn things about each other that change how they feel about each other. There is physical attraction but that isn't the only thing driving the romance. The effect that his interactions with Kate had on Drake's writing of his secret romance novel were fun. Kate & Drake are likeable characters.

There were a few things in the plot that didn't feel organic to the characters -- I won't mention them because they are spoiler-ish -- but they didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the book.

For people who care about things like this, there is a steamy part but this romance is more personality driven than sex scene driven.

How Sweet this book was! Welcome to the world of Kate Sweet, an event planner extraordinaire who is roped into hosting a book launch for the mysterious horror writer, Drake Matthews. The characters were fun, their meet cute flirty, and the premise of the book was exciting enough to keep me reading. However, at the end of the book, I felt that there could have been so much...more. More exploration into Kate's relationship with her family, more tension between the main characters, and of course, more steam! This was a fun read, and I'm sure that readers will enjoy witnessing the layers of horror writer Drake Matthews as Halloween approaches!

“Love is probably the only thing on this planet worth fighting for. Worth losing everything for. You’re a fool if you let pride stand in your way.”

What do you get when The Queen of Happily Ever After meets the knight of Nightmares? Sparks.

Kate Sweet is an event planner who, as a favour to her best friend, agrees to plan a book launch for one of the most prolific horror writers in the world. But he's certainly not what the rumours make him out to be. Can Kate and Drake keep their relationship professional, even as their feelings grow?

This book oozes with cheese. I know, I know, it's chick-lit ~romance~, what do you expect? And How Sweet It Is definitely delivers!

The book really found its groove about halfway through. The romance build-up was believable (thanks to a few time jumps, rather than having our leads fall head over heels in, like, a week), and the drama made sense to the story. Sure, there were a few moments of doubt from Kate and Drake where they presumably couldn't tell for sure how the other felt about them - when it was pretty dang obvious - but other than that, I really believed the final conflict. Kate, who never wants to let anyone down, who has something to prove after not following in her parents footsteps, and Drake, who was screwed over by his ex and terrified of rejection.

The first half of the book, however, dragged. I found it too expositional for my taste. There's a fine line between having characters that ramble and having long speeches of needless description, and both Kate and Drake crossed it a few too many times for it to be a passed off as a character trait. Honestly, this was nearly a DNF for me until things started to pick up, and I don't DNF things lightly.

All that said, and despite the obvious issues, I enjoyed both Drake's and Kate's character. Kate didn't step down when faced with challenges (or a slimy ex), and Drake was just so dang sweet. Maybe it's the reader in me, or maybe it's one of those quirks people don't like to admit, but I write/act out scenes in my head, too.

I wish there had been a bit more character development. I think that's the trade-off when writing a dual-POV, 3rd person novel; everything was very plot-based, and readers don't really get the chance to see characters deal with their own faults, their own insecurities, their own feelings. It makes them seem a bit one-dimensional.

Overall, a purely middle-of-the-pack romance, a quick fluff read that tickles your fancy.

This book was filled with surprises; I loved the plot twists and turns! I also enjoyed getting a glimpse into the career of a horror author, that is not something I have ever considered before. The chemistry between the main characters was perfect and the ending tied the book up nicely.

"How Sweet It Is" lives up to its name: it's a sweet, charming story that was a lot of fun to read. The pacing was good, with some parts where the plot slowed down a bit in all the detail of Kate's event planning and Drake's writing. The premise of the horror writer who is more than his stereotypical image meeting his match with a wedding planner roped into planning his next book launch is original and fun, but the best part is that it lets the character's inherent goodness shine through as Kate helps Drake and Drake helps Kate. I would definitely read other books by this author.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

To preface, I LOVE love. This book encompasses everything I love in a romance novel: great characters that compliment each other, a love story, a nemesis, laughs, and just me wanting more while reading.
This was such a wonderful book to read as my first official Net Galley read.
Dylan Newton did an amazing job writing this story and I cannot wait until Summer ‘22 for her next novel. Bravo!
5 stars & definitely recommending this one to my romance book club.
Thank you Net galley, Dylan Newton, and her publisher for offering this as a “read now” option this past weekend.

This story was incredibly sweet and charming. Told from the POV of the lead female and male character, you watch a romance unfold that is so endearing, fun and flawed. The characters in the story are great and there were quite a few laugh out loud moments.

Oh, this was good. This was so good. As soon as I read the description for How Sweet It Is, I added it to my ‘2021 releases’ goodreads shelf so I could keep an eye on it for when it comes out in July. But then it was added to NetGalley, and I could not wait to dive into this story.

Both Drake and Kate are wonderful characters. Honestly, everyone in this book is. Dylan Newton did such a great job explaining everyone in a way that allowed me to form a visual of them in my mind (which I love to do as I read), and gave each character such a fun, unique personality that they all stood out so well. Specifically, I loved every moment with Drake’s brothers, Ryker and Zander, and would love if there were companion novels to go with this book just to see more about them.

I feel like I don’t say this often with romance, but this book surprised me. It’s expected for a romance novel to involve a ‘complication’ before a happy ending, and I had a couple guesses on what could happen - I was wrong. And I love that I was wrong, because I loved the character development that happens because of the complication. Sometimes, it feels like a book just has a complication just to mix things up a little bit. That wasn’t the case here. I feel like it really helped define Drake as a character, in an extra way.

I don’t mean to just gush this entire review, but I have to add one more thing - the romance. Oh, my word. I loved that it wasn’t rushed, but was clear from the beginning that Drake and Kate were intrigued by each other. I also really liked that despite that there obviously was a physical attraction, it was so much more than that. They truly brought out the best in each other, and parts of themselves that had been hiding away (knowingly or not) for so long.

This was a fun, romantic, incredible read. I highly recommend picking it up when it comes out, and I know that I will be purchasing a physical copy for myself to keep on my shelf for rereads. I can’t wait to read more by Dylan Newton.

Thank you to Forever & NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

I was immediately drawn to How Sweet It Is by Dylan Newton based on the cover, and I am so glad I picked it up! This was such a sweet and addictive opposites attract romance with instant attraction and a great slow burn. I absolutely loved it and didn't want to put it down. It was a fun, light escape and a definite page turner for me.

I really appreciated the main characters in this story. Drake Matthews is a horror author known as the "Knight of Nightmares," and Kate Sweet is an event planner known as the "queen of happily ever afters." I loved that they were both career-driven, realistic, and believable. I thought the choices of profession for the leads was more on the unique side, as well, and I enjoyed the plot points that came from both characters' careers. Of course, I can't go without mentioning that the tension and chemistry between them was wonderful and I couldn't get enough!

I felt that the overall plot and story was engaging and fun, combining "aww" moments with humor and chemistry. The pacing was perfect for me, and it was a nice slow burn with enough development to keep it interesting. This was the first book that I've read from Dylan Newton and it certainly won't be the last!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for providing an ARC of this title which did not affect the contents of my review. All opinions are voluntary, honest, and my own.

The cover and title caught my eye for this rom-com romance. Kate Sweet is a talented event planner. Her best friend lands her the job of planning the book launch for Drake Matthew's (the Knight of Nightmares) tenth book. The event is set for Halloween and Drake is very much a Steven King type author but with hot abs. There is of course a cute meet, misunderstandings and a few embarrassing incidents that move the story quickly along.

There are several things to like. Kate is wonderful, positive and very organized. She is willing to try new things and will do anything to get the job done including lying in a crypt to give a good description for Drake. The titles of Drake's book are very fun and Drake's family give extra depth too. Drake was just okay to me as the male lead, I love that he secretly wants to write a romance novel but his continual downplaying of his own work and referring to it as freak shows and other negative terms got repetitive. Also he seems to overreact especially to the final dark moment. The relationship was an insta-attraction which felt rushed to me.

This book seems to be setting up a romance series probably to include the other two brothers. I would gladly read those as well. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to @netgalley and @readforeverpub for a copy of How Sweet It Is in exchange for my honest review.

The recipe:
A dash of "Castle"
An ounce of "The Wedding Planner"
3 cups of a whole lot of fun!

Kate Sweet needs to plan the big book launch of Drake Matthews to snag a coveted EVPLEX award and Drake is in desperate need of a muse to help bust through his writer's block. When the two of them spend a much time together as humanely possible hanging out in mausoleums and cooking breakfast, what do they expect to happen?

I really really enjoyed this book. The banter between the two characters is funny and adorable, the flirtation is steamy, and the will they, won't they plot line is like a roller coaster ride. The supporting characters of best friend, Imani and brothers, Zander and Ryker, bring their own refreshing humor to the book, making it even more of a delight than it already is.

If you like Well Met or Only When It's Us, then this book is perfect for you!

What happens when the "Queen of Happily-Ever-After" meets the "Knight of Nightmares”?

Kate Sweet is an accomplished event planner well-known for creating the perfect “Aww!” moment in the dream weddings she meticulously plans for her clients. As the Queen of Happily-Ever-After, little did she imagine that she would be roped in to plan a book launch event for a horror writer as a favour for her best friend, who happens to be the author’s publicist. With an unfortunate reputation as the Knight of Nightmares, popular novelist Drake Matthews is in actual fact, a really nice guy who is far from the ghouls and monsters he writes in his horror novels. When their first meeting descends into disorderly chaos, Kate’s well-ordered life is thrown off course, while Drake gets inspiration to explore a genre he’s never even dreamed of writing before.

I cannot do horror stories, but a rom-com with a horror writer as one of the protagonists? That’s do-able! This book is the perfect blend of romance and comedy. I absolutely loved it! It’s been a while since I’ve read such a delightful rom-com that was equal parts romantic and table-thumping hilarious.

This is my first book from Dylan Newton and I really enjoyed her writing. The story flowed smoothly and I really liked the characters of Kate and Drake - they’re so cute! I also loved the solid friendship between Kate and Imani, as well as the supportive kinship between Drake, his brothers and their mother.

This is a charming, light-hearted read with little angst (until towards the end of the story) that will likely bring a smile to your face as it did to mine.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

How Sweet It Is indeed!! This is such a fun, enjoyable romantic comedy with just enough spice for this reader. Horror-writer Drake Mathews and event planner, Kate Sweet are the perfect combo of salty and “sweet.”

It was so apparent what a good fit these two are despite their obvious differences. Nothing that could happen with Drake’s fans could frazzle Kate and Drake’s portable job make the obvious hurdles to love melt away.

I’m not a huge rom-com fan normally, but I really appreciated that this story was not over the top with silliness. Although their meet-cute totally had me laughing.

This author did a great job of painting a vivid picture for her audience. I loved all the details of the town and the event plans. And, there was such terrific character development that I now want to read stories about all Drake’s brothers!!

I loved that this is told in dual POV because having access to Drake’s thoughts just takes the romance to a new level! And you don’t take his once-bitten-twice-shy hesitation as disinterest. And what reader is not interested in the inner thoughts of a hot author?

This book has a little bit for everyone - you will appreciate the writing as you laugh, cry (that $100?! *sob*), blush and even want to strangle Drake for a hot minute. Really enjoyed it!!

I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and these are my honest opinions.

This was a cute story! I loved the trade off on how one part was fun and frivolous to the horror writer hahaha!
The characters complemented each other perfectly! And the "Aw" moment was so stinking cute! I will definitely read others by this author!