This book pleasantly surprised me and I really enjoyed it.

Was it cheesy? Yup.
Was it full of clichés? Of course it was.
Was it the perfect romantic comedy to curl up with on a rainy afternoon? Most definitely.

The story flowed smoothly and gave a good amount of backstory to the two main characters (without descending into the world of info-dumping) and, despite having some past hurt, neither of them were the self-pitying and "oh woe is me" types like some romance characters are written as!

Drake was such a charming and likeable love interest with hidden depths and I warmed to him pretty quickly. He was also a total gentleman which was refreshing to read. Kate was your typical rom-com heroine; she was strong, independent, sassy, knew what she wanted and worked hard to get it...and ridiculously clumsy.

The romance was a tad insta-love because it came about so suddenly but the interactions between Drake and Kate weren't sickly sweet or cringey. And although some of the humour was a tad try-hard and made me roll my eyes (such as the fiasco of their first meeting) it was mixed in with so many sweet moments and flirty banter that it was easy to forgive.

Overall this was a light-hearted, funny romance that ticked all the boxes!

Plot: This was so good! I love that Kate is an event planner, planning the launch for Drake's new book. The romance was adorable. The book had me laughing at multiple parts! (Their first meeting was hilarious!) And I LOVED that the book takes place in Autumn, around Halloween!

Characters: Kate was a fantastic main character, and I loved her relationship with Drake. I also really liked Imani, and I hope we get a book focused on her! And Drake's family was wonderful, I really liked his brothers!

The Cover: It's really cute! Though, it would be nice if it had a little more Autumn/Halloween colors on it, to show that the book takes place then, because in my experience, it's hard to find Romances that take place during that time.

Overall: I really loved this book! And I LOVED the epilogue. I will definitely be checking out what else this author writes in the future, and I would highly recommend reading this book!

I received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher.

As the title suggests, this was a very sweet novel that I really enjoyed. I liked all of the characters and I wished some of them, particularly Imani, played a bigger role. I loved the overall plot (the wedding planner planning a horror author's event sold me in), but I felt like it was very trope-y, and even a bit cliché sometimes. The meet cute was definitely on the cliché side and the whole thing felt very insta-love, which I'm not really a fan of. I also felt like the conflict at around the 80% mark was a little unneeded since it was just mostly there to create more drama and angst. I thought Drake went a little overboard with his words to Kate but I felt his reaction was still sort of valid since they only knew each other for like, three weeks then? I also wished Kate's family had a bigger role and her conflict with them was more explored, instead of it being resolved backstage and was kind of a footnote in the epilogue. Other thinhs I liked was how there was a focus on Kate and Drake's respective careers as well instead of just the romance. I especially enjoyed all the descriptions for Drake's writing process. The ending was cute and I think it tied the whole story nicely.

The title sums this book up quite perfectly

I really enjoyed it. Light and fun and the characters were a joy to read. The meet-cute was more of a meet-awkward/disaster which was very entertaining.

The characters Kate and Drake were incredibly likeable (even loveable). I enjoyed the career centred theme where both characters were trying to shift and grow in their own ways.
Drake’s career as a horror writer, dubbed the knight of nightmares, paired with his sweet side was so lovely to read.
I loved that Kate’s career goals and aspirations weren’t seen as a downside or even a problem in any way. Drake’s response to her concerns was *chef’s kiss* perfection.
You made me swoon Drake! You made me swoon.

If you need a feel good pick me up, an ice cream after a heavy meal, read this.

She is the Queen of Happily Ever Afters - He is the Knight of Nightmares and they're soooooo sweet !

Kate and Drake seem so different : she's an extravert event planner really focused on winning an award and he's an introvert writer torned between what he would like to write and what he thinks his readers expect from him. Their one a kind meeting leads to a really, really cute romance I didn't want to end.

This is a 5 stars story (lovely and just a little steamy to hook you if hadn't been hooked yet) and I hope so much Dylan Newton is preparing a series to give Imani, Zander and Ryker their own books !!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an eArc in exchange of an honest review.

Loved every minute of this book. I loved this story. It's friends to lovers with one of the best meet cute I've read in a while. The dialogue between both characters was awesome and the chemistry palpable. It deals with some issues while still being a light and fun read. I'm excited to read more books hopefully about Drake's brothers.ok. I'm excited for more Matthew's!!

How Sweet It Is is a chaotic little romcom! I really liked the premise of the book -- the idea of an event planner who traditionally does weddings taking on a splashy book launch to diversify her portfolio was really unique and interesting. I really liked Kate's professional ambitions and the tensions with her family about her career added some depth to the novel.

Kate and Drake's meet cute is pure chaos -- climbing your prospective client like a tree is certainly one way to make an impression. I liked their dynamic and the Kate-as-Drake's-muse scenes are silly but fun. I wish the "conflict" at the end had been a bit more believable -- Drake pops off and makes a series of assumptions based on a miscommunication that seemed pretty out of character. But overall this is a fun romance novel if you're looking for something fluffy and sweet! 3.5 stars rounded up!

Kate Sweet is a mile a minute event planner. She's all about the details with her spreadsheets to prove it, ever planning to give people their "Awww moment". Her specialties are weddings, and she basks in the Happily Ever After. When one couple don't make it to the alter, she has an unexpected gap in her schedule and her publisher friend convinces her to plan an event of a different kind - the upcoming release of Drake Matthews' next novel.

Drake Matthews is known as the Knight of Nightmares - a horror writer, who supposedly lives in a house that's haunted. When Kate is stood up by her friend to meet him, she's chased by his overexuberant dog, and injures him with her impossibly high heel. Things look to be off to a shaky start and it's apparent it's going to take all Kate's experience to make the event a success.

How Sweet It Is takes it's sweet time to get going. It's particularly character-driven in the beginning as readers begin to get to know Kate and Drake. On the surface, the pair couldn't be more different "If I wrote this scene, I'd have the shows all cancelled, so you'd have to stay", Kate announced "And we'd go down and ride that boat into the mist". "And if I wrote that scene, a kraken would emerge, wrap the boat in its tentacles, and drag it down to the craggy depths", Drake said.

There's also details aplenty about Drake's home and it's importance in the story. I'm thinking a la Stephen King and Maine here .... Things start to get more interesting due to the close proximity and the pair's preoccupation for one another under their close working conditions. Some meddling from Patty, Drake's mother helps as well. Once the pair declare their intentions after a brush with Drake's ex partner on a "business trip" there's some real warmth in the characters and they seem much more robust.

This one is a feel good read, with some substance. The reader gets a real sense of them looking for someone for a partnership as opposed to them not feeling complete with their own lot as individuals.

Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing this copy for me to read and review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC.

🌟🌟🌟🌟 4/5 stars

Such a cute, breezy romance with an excellent storyline. How Sweet It Is is about Kate Sweet, a rising event planner who is asked to help with the book launch event for the hugely successful horror writer, Drake Matthews (think Stephen King-level horror fame). Drake is tired of being known as the “Knight of Nightmares” and, after meeting Kate, finds himself inspired to write something completely different.

I just loved this storyline. Also, the autumnal vibes combined with Halloween and old Victorian houses just spoke to me. This was a fun romance that was full of meet cutes, hijinks, grand gestures, and banter. Fans of Lauren Layne and Tessa Bailey will love this read!

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Full review to be posted closer to release date.

This was a really fun debut from Dylan Newton.
Kate Sweet is an event planner and known as the "Queen of Happily Ever After"
Drake Matthews is a best selling horror writer with the unfortunate nickname of the Knight of Nightmares.
In order to help a longtime, childhood friend, Kate agrees to help plan the launch event for Drake's new book.
Drake has been stuck in writer's block for his horror novels and has decided on a secret project that he thinks Kate can help him with, unbeknownst to her.

This is a very sweet and funny rom-com. I loved the two MCs as well as the supporting characters. There were things about them that happily surprised me. The banter was fun and I loved how Kate took charge and rolled with all of the punches. It was a very fast read for me as I didn't want to put it down. It seems as if there will be more coming from these characters and there's definitely a set up for it. I will definitely be reading anything else that comes from Dylan Newton. 4 1/2 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publication for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dylan Newton’s debut novel How Sweet It Is is fun, sweet and witty. I enjoyed following along as the main characters got to know each other and fell in love. I loved this book and did not want to put it down. I am definitely a big fan of Newton’s writing and can’t wait to read her future novels.

Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc in return of my honest review.

"HOW SWEET IT IS" is a book you would like to read if you want not so cliché romcoms.
The story starts of with Kate Sweet (heroine) how she runs her business successfully as an event planner. Then she gets a offer to set up a book launch of horror writer. Where she meets Drake Mathews also known as King of Nightmares. Though their first meet was not so meet cute I would rather say it was a complete disaster it was overall a fun romcom.

Do you expect to click right away with the person where your first meet was a complete disaster? I would rather not show my face to him forever. But here the Queen of Happily Ever After's meets her King of Nightmares there's supposed to be some out of the norm scenes that may be extraordinary or disastrous so that's fine.

The story now revolves where they both need each other for their work. They spend days together where Kate helps him to write his book and Drake helps her to set his book launch successfully for her profession. This is a close proximity trope. If you like it then you can have fun reading this. However, for me this book was little off the track and not so intriguing so it didn't work for me that well.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

It's a quick, light-hearted read. The romance development following their disastrous 'meet cute' was so quick I sometimes couldn't follow. But there are fun banters and scenes that I enjoyed.

Thank you to @readforeverpub and @netgalley for a copy of this book. The title, How Sweet It Is, sums up how feel about this book. This was a fun rom com with so many funny moments. I love that Drake was a romantic at heart despite being known as Knight Of Nightmares. Kate and Drake was so perfect for each other.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really loved this book. The chemistry between Kate and Drake is apparent from the moment they (literally) run into each other and gets stronger as the plot moves on. I loved that it was written from both POVs so we got to experience both characters falling in love. The scene where they met was so chaotic that it had me in tears from laughing so hard.

The only thing I didn’t love about this book was that it was a bit slow moving, and then it ended abruptly. I wish we got a little more spice/romance earlier in the book, instead of in the last quarter.

Overall I definitely recommend this one if you’re looking for a sweet romance with a ton of charm.

Kate Sweet, known for her beautiful and classy Happily Ever After weddings, takes on a new challenge: planning a book launch for Drake Matthews, the Knight of Nightmares. Little does Kate know, but planning this event will change her life.

Drake, a best-selling writer of horror books who doesn’t like to be in the limelight, is not prepared for the whirlwind named Kate who shows up to his house that fateful morning. Kate inspires Drake to move out of his comfort zone in many ways - most of which I didn’t see coming!!

This book was fantastic and I can’t wait for you all to read it when it comes out in July 2021!! Keep your eyes peeled!!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNiOSjQnoHQ/?igshid=gnpedkdtey16

I could not get into this book. I DNF'd at 18% after Kate and Drake's meet-disaster. I felt it was incredibly long-winded and not funny for me. I didn't like the characters. It didn't grab me off the bat. The action was dense but the pacing was slow. I just grew impatient with the characters. I wanted something to happen that was not them harming each other in some way.

This book is very cute. Loved the premise of a wedding event planner who deals in happily ever afters planning an event for a horror book author (an author who is cute and not as scary as his books)!

What happens when a wedding planner takes on throwing a highly anticipated horror novel book launch? Chaos. Charmingly sweet chaos with pumpkins and cupcakes and the odd lock-in at a mausoleum. In Stars Hollowesque New York.

Gilmore Girl vibes aside, the characters and the situations they got themselves into really made this book for me. The author wasn't afraid to make her characters vulnerable, so Drake, instead of being the typical brody, grim writer stereotype is somewhat shy, loves writing but is a bit burnt out after ten years working as a professional author. Kate is driven, organised, and willing to go out on a limb to make her events successful, but some of that drive comes from stepping away from the family business. The likeable characters combined with a fun writing style and a simple but effective plot made for an entertaining, light-hearted read.

If I had to nitpick something I would personally change, I wish that the author had turned up heat throughout the book. At times it felt like they sacrificed building the physical attraction for a funny scene to happen. The result was that there was only one sex scene that happened right before the big complication hit. It made the ending seem a little rushed.

Overall though, I thoroughly recommend this if you're looking for a fun, light-hearted romance, even if it isn't Halloween.

I was drawn to How Sweet It Is because of it's cute cover, -which told me this was going to be a cute rom-com, and its premise: a wedding planner (Kate) plans a book release event for a horror book author (Drake). I expected a light, cute & sexy sunshine-grumpy read. And I did get that more or less. But there were a few things that didn't fully do it for me.

There was a good amount that I liked about this book. This is a classic feel good contemporary romance that will put a smile on your face. And I liked the romance, they were pretty cute together, and it got quite sexy at times. My favorite was their first time at the falls, from beginning to end a very romantic, fun and sexy adventure. It made me wish we had a bit more time of them together before the big conflict.

I really liked the plot of the book as well. A horror author, going around doing research and a wedding planner tagging along creates such a good juxtaposition that is immediately endearing. What makes it even better is Drake's side project which makes him a great multi-faceted character.

I also really liked the characters in the book, I especially liked Drake and his family. Drake's brothers were really fun and I'd love to get to know them better. This book was setup in a way that the door is open for one of the brothers and Kate's best friend might have their own book in the future. My least favorite was probably Kate, who seemed to be a woman of contradictions. She kept claiming to not be easily scared, while getting scared of everything, and kept making promises of a classy book release event, while planning a giant mechanical spider coming down the side of a building (though my fiance disagrees and says he'd find it classy), just to name a few.

Now onto what I didn't enjoy as much in this book.
First off, the writing was not really my style. I found it too flowery and overly adjective heavy. Since this is more of a preference thing, I'll give you an example. If the following quote don't bother you, then you should up my rating by at least half a point.

"Kate grinned with delight as the gorgeous red stove ticked several times and whooshed to life, a blue-white flame dancing merrily above the burner." (tl;dr he turned on the stove)

The other issue I had with the writing was the unnatural/forced exposition. Some examples are, the daughter telling her mother about her work history, which you'd assume the mother would already know about her own daughter. The mother telling her daughter about how the daughter's best friend stayed with them for a year, which you'd expect the daughter to know. Speaking of which the best friend staying with the family comes up at least 3 times in the story, but never seems to have any bearing on it.

Finally, for me, in a romance book, the flirting, the will they won't they, the sexual tension, are the best parts. But in this book, the time where most of that would happen is just basically skipped through. So you see their meet cute, them kind of liking each other, but then all of a sudden it's 2 weeks later and they're much more comfortable around each other and talking about dating, which really comes out of nowhere.

Overall this was a book that was strong on the romance, but not as strong on style. If the author does write more books in this world involving Drake's brothers, I might still read them.

Thank you to Forever publishing and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.