An Unexpected Love is a sweet debut novel. I can't say no to a bookshop setting and I loved how the author integrated mentions of current books that I also love into the story. I had a hard time at the beginning with Aubrey's self-deprecating surliness.

"Thankfully, they're no customers present to witness my daily mortifications by a uni student barely younger than me who loves to mop up the floor with my pride."

You get the sense that he's a bit damaged but it's not clear if it feels proportionate to the low level of self-esteem. I enjoyed the meet cute and subsequent meetings and Blake's charm and ease.

"The way he says my name is like honey rolling off his tongue. Like it's something to be savored. Like my name is something special."

But eventually the book starts to feel repetitive. Like we're hearing the same feelings with only slightly different words, rather than getting a deeper look at the main characters and the relationship and a more realistic understanding of how they fall in love so quickly. A stronger round of editing could have helped with this as well as some small plot blips.

I appreciated all the supporting female characters but I felt like both Gemma and Lily start off strong but eventually become plot devices to support the main relationship. And I would have liked to have met Aubrey's mom rather than experiencing her as someone offstage but helpless for some vague reason.

Overall I thought this a was a good debut effort with a great setting and a sweet love story. With a bit more polish and depth, there is the potential for a stronger book.

Unexpectedly sweet! Really loved how this was not dual pov, as it gave an air of mystery and intrigue. Loved the overall romantic gayness

This was my first book by Hayden Stone and I absolutely loved it! Blake is an American actor, Aubrey is a British bookseller and together they are nothing short of a romance playing out before our eyes. Aubrey is very reserved and rigid and focused on keeping his bookstore afloat when Blake comes barreling into his life and upends everything in the best way. I loved the banter between the two, the way they couldn't help gravitating towards one another and of course all the jokes about beans! It was a slow burn with heat, affection and so much genuine like for each other. I highly enjoyed watching Aubrey come into himself as things progressed and the way that Blake continually showed how much he cared. I'm also super curious to see if we get some spinoffs, especially for Ryan(!!!) and maybe even some "redemption" for Eli. This was a lovely read and I recommend it served with a nice cup of tea!

An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone was about struggling bookshop owner, Aubrey and C-list celebrity, Blake. Aubrey lets a movie set use his bookshop when he meets Blake and they fall for one another. To me, the timeline was a little fast and it threw me sometimes. I do think the chemistry was great between Aubrey and Blake and I found myself rooting for them through the whole book. I liked the supporting characters and overall I thought this was a really good read!

An Unexpected Kind of Love is an unexpected kind of read. I enjoyed the beginning of the story, the build up of the world, the characters, their relationship and the plot. I enjoyed the way the story came together, the building of the world, of two opposite people finding each other and determining what they are willing to deal with, what they are willing to give up and who they are in the new world of a romance. I liked the idea of this story very much.

I was a bit disappointed that I didn't connect to either main character, they were decently written but I felt nothing for them, however, I still enjoyed their journey. Also the story felt unbalanced to me in that I was really into the story at the beginning but around the 45% mark I just didn't feel anything any longer.

That said, I think this was a fun story, one that I am glad to have read and I think others will enjoy it as well. I look at this story as a YA Hollywood Rom-com and could see this being on the big screen. I received an ARC vis NetGalley and Entangled Publishing and I am leaving an honest review.

3.5 Stars. This was definitely a very fun and heartwarming story. Nothing sounds more charming to me than an English bookshop owner falling in love with an American actor and their story did not disappoint. The romance between Aubrey and Blake was very sweet and definitely sexy. Thank you to Netgalley and Entangled Publishing for the ARC.

An Unexpected Kind of Love is a queer contemporary romance between a charismatic American actor and a grumpy bookseller who likes things just so. Everything isn’t going well for Aubrey Barnes. His boyfriend broke up with him for his best friend and he’s been struggling to keep his bookstore going but an opportunity opens for him when a team asked to rent Barnes Books for a movie production where he became close with Blake Sinclair, a C-list actor from America.

An Unexpected Kind of Love has a lot of potential and one of my favourite debut books this year. Queer, steamy and heartwarming. At first, I didn’t like Aubrey, he seemed hateful and very lifeless to me but as I read the book I started to understand and appreciate him more mainly because of his struggles and his story. He’s reserved, quirky, skeptical, and a book lover. I do love the storyline but it definitely needs polishing. Blake is so precious but I couldn’t help but think how Blake had that much time to spend with Aubrey given his schedule and I would have liked it more if the side characters were more involved… I loved it thought it’s a sweet, angsty story and it made me feel a lot of things. MY HEART IS FULL and still get butterflies thinking about it!

I'm still deciding what made An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone such an unexpected delight. Is it the quaint indie book store in London with the awkward, adorable and all kinds of awesomely nerdy owner? Is it the exotic feel of an American film shooting in London with the charming and gorgeous Hollywood actor? Or is the effortless, sizzling hot and unexpectedly expected connection between them? I will let you know when I decide. But you need to grab this story as soon as possible.

I am a sucker for British heroes and books set in London. So that made this an instant winner. And as a very introvert and totally socially inefficient book lover, Aubrey Barnes may very well be my spirit animal. He is set in his ways specially about books and ways to have fun. And he is loyal and stubborn and quirky and I love him. Blake Sinclair is almost opposite. He is easy going, mischievous, fun lover and everything that makes me swoon. It was a crazy set up. The best kind of meet cute. The hottest kind of insta love. Honestly I didn't expect this story to be so alarmingly sexy but oh wow, they were burning the pages.


Now what is a love story if not a collection of emotional complications. The first hurdle is their supposedly expiry date. Second is Aubrey's complex life with his dying shop and his heartbreaking past. Third is Blake's closet status. It was all dreamy and swoony like a fairytale away from reality but the truths were poking through their bubble of happiness. So be ready for a mix of heartache and fun and sweetness and sins.

An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone is definitely one of my top MM read of 2021.

I reviewed an early copy voluntarily. Thank you Netgalley and Entangled : Embrace for my copy.

This is a quirky romance between a grumpy bookstore owner and an American actor filming a movie on his street. I loved all their interactions, from meet cute to the happy ending. I loved the bookstore scenes and flirty silly texts.

The book sticks with Aubrey’s perspective, which works well to add suspense to the love story, as we can’t be sure what Blake is feeling. Aubrey has definitely been going through things and has angst in the book, but it doesn’t get too heavy. The author also includes a trigger warning at the beginning, which I really appreciate. That should become normalized.

There are some cute Notting Hill references, as well as a shout out to some fo my favorite mm romantic comedy books. But the book does not feel derivative at all. It was a great lazy Sunday read. I recommend curling up with a cup of tea and enjoying it.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

**Received an ARC from Entangled/NetGalley for an honest review**

This story started out as a really strong meet cute story. I really liked liked the premise of Aubrey's character of an uptight workaholic bookseller conflicted from his past meeting this up and coming movie star Blake. I really liked the supporting characters Lily and Gemma and was conflicted with Eli and Ryan, which granted was the point, but it took a little bit to get to the point of the why. It was just clear you're supposed to be irritated with them, I just felt like it could have come to a quicker conclusion as to why.

However, the story started to lose me a little bit about half way what the conflicts in the book kind of went a little all over the place. It was craming a lot into a small portion, and it seemed really one sided till the very end.
It was clear that Aubrey had some conflict to over come, and given Blake's background you'd think he'd have some, but it never got played on at all till the very end and suddenly it drops out of nowhere without anyone questioning it ever. It is more of a concept or layout of the story issue.

Outside of that I enjoyed the book. I really liked Aubrey's character and the setting of the book.

A cute mm romance perfect for book lovers. Aubrey Barnes is a bookseller with his own store in London that he has taken over from his family. But now the store is not doing good, so to earn a little more money he agrees to let a rom-com film there for a week. One of the actors is Blake Sinclair. An gorgeous American boy. When these peoples paths cross, we see them fall fast for eachother, but also the struggles of being a bi male in the acting career. Blake Sinclair owns my heart and i want him for myself
3,5⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an advance copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but I did end up enjoying it.

Grumbly, sarcastic Aubrey runs his family’s struggling book shop and meets up and coming actor/ golden retriever Blake, who is shooting a movie in the neighborhood- and in Aubrey’s shop.

I enjoyed the character development that Aubrey undergoes as he works through his trauma from a previous relationship and tries to save the bookshop (though he does bury his head in the sand when it comes to saving the shop for most of the book). My main issue with this story is that throughout the all the time they spend together, it didn’t feel like Aubrey and Blake ever have a conversation about anything important- past relationships, STI status, if they are out, gay or bi, etc. The relationship felt like two teens working out their first relationship, even though we know Aubrey’s ex. I also think Aubrey needs better friends.

Would I recommend this book? Absolutely. It’s a fun, fast read, and gives a little snippet of life outside the US and still made me feel things.

I loved everything about this book!! It was very ‘opposites attract’ and the attraction was so tender and STEAMY. I really liked that both Aubrey and Blake struggled with skeletons in their closet, but they both wanted to conquer what haunted them to give what was developing between them a fighting chance. Blake saw in Aubrey things that Aubrey couldn’t see in himself. Aubrey supported Blake when Blake felt the odds were against him. It was all so swoon inducing!! And the intimate moments, 🔥🔥🔥
I was rooting for Aubrey and Blake every step of the way, even when there were hurdles blocking their path.

I also really enjoyed the queer representation in the book. There were different aspects there with supporting characters that I felt were very tactfully written in. I applaud this book and HIGHLY recommend it!!

For someone who doesn't read a lot of romance novels, I really leaned into it this summer and I adored this book by Hayden Stone. Aubrey is a cranky and quiet London bookstore owner who falls hard for a hot American actor insistent on interrupting Aubrey's quiet life.

This book was pretty spicy, and I loved the interaction between Aubrey and Blake. Both characters were developed really well and I found myself really rooting for their romance.

Muchas gracias to #netgalley and #EntangledPublishing for this advanced copy. This book comes out next week and would be a great addition to a summer of love reading list!

This book had so much potential and whilst it started of on a perfect, opposites attract note, it dipped a little in the middle before pulling a super adorable ending. Blake and and Aubrey have such sweet chemistry but the down side is very little happens to progress their relationship. There's little to no mention of Blake returning back to his life, which I found odd as this is often a topic of tension between couple's. With plenty of humour and cute chemistry, I would definitely recommend this book to someone looking for an easy, breezy LGBTQIA title.

2.5 Stars. This book started strong but fell apart as the book progressed. I really wanted to like it, especially where Hayden Stone is a debut author and I absolutely adored the blurb, but alas. The book’s downfall is being single person POV. In some books this is necessary and really works but in this book it made the story so one sided that I wasn’t even sure that Blake had a personality or back story until 2/3s of the way through the book.

I also really really needed a break from Aubrey’s head because his constant pessimism and anxiety was just exhausting. I honestly saw no development of a relationship between the two beyond the instant lust. They have absolutely nothing in common and I genuinely don’t know what they ever talked about besides beans (literally there was a lot of discussion of beans).

There were a few humorous moments and I did enjoy the small nods to my favorite movie, Notting Hill, but they did not make up for the slog of the rest of the book. I really wish I had enjoyed this one more. Thank you to Entangled and NetGalley for the ARC.

Just the book I was needing to read. The pace and the fluid rhythm of the scenes to the reflections of the protagonist were perfect to get the reader deeper into this story.
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When I started reading it and about halfway through I thought it was a perfect rewriting of NottingHill, a NottingHill Queer in London's Soho and with much richer characters and more beautiful backgrounds.
Only Aubrey, Lily and Gemma, Eli and Ryan are incredible and that without even talking about Blake who is the perfect hero of this story.
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Aubrey owns an indie bookstore that he inherited from his parents and is struggling to get ahead financially while doing his best to flow with the new reality that his ex boyfriend, his first love is in a relationship with his best friend. Trying to hide among his books like a good bookworm until a handsome man comes to his store wanting to return a poetry book because he no longer likes the author, and then a film crew who gets in the way. This story has such good ingredients and so well played in the scenes that it is impossible not to fall in love with its characters. It's just so great.
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I will definitely be waiting for more Hayden Stone books and definitely is a book I want to have in my bookshelf to re read several times
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Thanks to Hayden Stone and Entagled Publishing LLC for give me such a great and beautifulI story to read in exchange for my honest opinion

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the e-arc in exchange for a review!

I loved this book so much!! Aubrey and Blake were such great main characters and I really enjoyed their chemistry and development with each other throughout the book. We stan a queer rom-com people. This story was full of the grumpy-sunshine trope and I'm a sucker for that. It was also spicy and I am never opposed to spice. This was such a great romance and there were really great moments that were funny as well as some more emotional conversations and tropes. Having the story set in a bookshop was also everything to me. I really loved Aubrey as a character and his relationship with Blake and friendships with Lily and Ryan. I'm so glad I got to read this, I loved it and would definitely read more by this author!

Aubrey is a grumpy London bookstore owner trying to make ends meet. Blake is a darling American B-list actor looking for his big break. While filming in London, Blake pursues Aubrey. It seems too good to be true - Aubrey doesn’t have that kind of luck. Are the hurdles of Blake’s Hollywood life too much for them to overcome?

This is a cute, fluffy gay romance that reads like a male version of chick lit (aka lad lit). Aubrey’s struggles running the bookstore are almost as important to the story as the romance.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This my honest and voluntary review.

I was quite excited to read this because of the the potential fun of a grumpy English book shop owner falling for a charming American actor. There were parts I liked and parts I did not.

The writing style did not flow for me. Aubrey being so world weary and grumpy when he was only 23 did not really work for me and I felt this aspect of him could have been developed more to make it feel more realistic . I also felt things were a little rushed between Aubrey and Blake. I prefer slow burn and things escalated quickly which took away some of the romance for me.

There were some nice moments between the two leads. Their chemistry was quite good and very hot. I think this story had potential but just needed a little more development for the characters and their back stories. Worth having a read.