This story follows Aubrey Barnes, a introverted book shop owner, who only wants to make sure his shop is doing better again and Blake Sinclair, an American actor, who wants to explore the city and meet new people. They both keep bumping into each other and unexpected sparks fly.

From the very beginning the story caught my attention. It was pretty fast paced and never boring for even a second. The story had the typical romance track but it still had its own unique and special moments.

I felt like both Aubrey and Blake were very relatable characters in very different way and there was amazing character development for both the characters. Even the side characters had their own personality and added something to the story.

I really loved the writing and overall had no complaints with the story!

A British bookshop owner and an American actor - sound familiar? This is not the story you think it is.

Aubrey has a bookshop in Soho. He's trying to get over his ex, keep his business afloat and avoid the film crew in the area. Well he's trying except one of the actors, Blake, keeps popping up on his horizon all over the place. Somehow he's agreed to let them film part of the movie in his shop. Just as things are getting more and more interesting with Blake. So much for his quiet life.

This is a fun book to read. I could have done with bit more fleshing out on the female characters. I was also a bit confused by Eli, Aubrey's ex, and the status of this current relationship with Aubrey. However since this is told from Aubrey's point of view and he doesn't really seem all that sure himself, the writing definitely helped convey his confusion.

Aubrey and Blake were great - they had great sparks together and I kept wondering right up to the end how this was going to end. I really like not being able to completely guess right at the beginning of the book how things are going to go.

This book will appeal to fans of queer romance who want a light story. I give it a solid 4 stars out of 5 as it was enjoyable and made me happy.

I don’t know, I thought I would like it more but I still enjoyed it. I liked the celebrity aspect and the bookstore a lot. It was so cute. But I think I went in with high expectations.

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. The core plot was promising, but the writing felt repetitive and the story seemed to drag from start to finish. I also just couldn't connect with the characters or their romance. The characters and the story were both underdeveloped for me.

That said, I believe this is a debut novel for this author, and while I couldn't connect with this story, I do think there is real potential there. Hopefully he will keep writing and improving his craft!

I flew through this one and it was definitely an easy read. A lot was enjoyable, Aubrey's cynicism is something I can strongly relate to, and Blake was endearing (almost to a fault). Loved that all of the main characters were LGBT+ and the disability representation! Obviously, any book lover will adore the setting of the majority of the story - Aubrey's family-owned bookshop in London.

With this said, part of why I flew through this was because you could honestly skip all of the narrative and just read the dialogue and know exactly what was happening. There was a lot of repetition, and I swear if Aubrey thought "Blake is so HOT" one more time. I get it, but bruh, pick another word. The whole plot felt like when you daydream about meeting your celebrity crush and you fantasize the whole thing but then have to reconcile that there will be issues, but you still want the daydream so the whole thing takes a completely unrealistic turn to make things work out. The story as a whole was very underwhelming.

There are good bones here, and for a debut it's decent. With some more development this author could have some serious potential in the LGBT romance realm.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for an eARC of this in exchange for a fair and honest review!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book felt like such a warm hug. It was a super fun read that genuinely made me feel all sorts of different emotions. The bookstore filming setting was adorable, and it made me want to go to my local indie bookstore and just hug everyone there? I felt like I understood Aubrey’s struggle and really empathized with his character, I also heavily related to his lifestyle and the aspect of not really knowing how to actually LIVE his own life. Blake was kind of frustrating at the beginning but that added to his personality, and HE IS SUCH A GENTLEMAN WOW. Now I don’t know if Gemma’s character was supposed to be that annoying but I really couldn’t stand her, I guess that’s a me problem, lol. My absolute favorite thing about this book was no-doubt the communication between the main love interests, I find that I read a lot of books with the miscommunication trope, and finding a book couple that is so open and honest with the other, is so refreshing and real!
Overall, I loved this book, it was adorable, the romance was sweet, it was relatable, very fast paced and entertaining.

I enjoyed An Unexpected Kind of Love. It was the light, steamy read I needed. The opposite's attract was well done and it was well written. I would have liked to have both POVs though, I felt like we never really got to know Blake and what was going through his head. Also, the conflict between Aubrey and his best friends was highly unrealistic. If what was done to Aubrey happened to me, I would never speak to them again let alone remain friends.

Overall, I would recommend it to all M/M fans.

I voluntary read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Okay. It was an overall entertaining read, I guess. And I appreciated the rep offered by the characters, in terms of sexuality and disability. But many, MANY things unfortunately bugged me.

First, the MC was not very likeable. I absolutely love and can work with quirky and broody characters, but Aubrey was mostly whiny and unpleasant— with absolutely everyone. He’s also very inconsistent, jumping from super anxious, self-conscious and shy to enterprising, rash and bold out of absolutely nowhere.

I also didn’t expect the oral sex between him and the LI, Blake, 10% through the book, after having barely exchanged 3 sentences. And that’s without mentioning the cringey sentences like "there’s no yesterday, no tomorrow, just today just right now and oh God i want him" or “even though i’m fully clothed, i’m naked before him”… They met half a minute ago, a little more build up might have been in order.

Because of this, the super rushed beginning did not make much sense and left me completely deadpan. If the “steamy” encounter was supposed to make us feel something right from the start, it failed for me, apart maybe from making me wonder what the hell was happening and leaving me super biased for what was to come next. It sounded more like both characters acted on their mutual physical attraction, which is completely okay— but when deeper feelings started being introduced, they mostly felt forced and excessively cheesy (all the projecting and plans, the “i miss you” when they spend 4 hours apart even though they’ve known each other for a week, all the times where “right now, in [insert whatever place they’re in], it’s just us, together,” every little thing from the sunset to having tea being “LIKE A PROMISE,” etc.)

I also have to mention the writing, which was very clumsy at times, with repeated information and sentences within a few pages (or even sometimes paragraphs/lines— it could go from the mention of Aubrey’s age twice in 4 lines to the repetition of a same adjective or an entire expression on the very same page.)

It was really frustrating because the first pages made me cackle so loud, and the synopsis sounded nice. But it just didn’t work out for me. The romance unfortunately felt shallow and didn’t hook me enough.

Side note: I really appreciated the content warnings at the beginning of the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for this ARC— I voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Wow this book was like a Queer version of Notting Hill and I am so here for it! We have a shop owner who seems content and yet in a major rut with love, work, and life who gets totally pulled into the whirlwind of a local film crew and a super hot actor. These two unlikely lovers fall fast and hard into something spectacular. I was in awe of their chemistry, their adorable banter about beans and books, and how magnetic their chemistry was.

Highly recommend for fans of all the romcoms and the quirky cute characters out there who deserve an epic happily ever after!!!

*This book was sent to me by Netgalley, this in no way influenced this review*

This was such a cute book and I loved stumbling upon it! We have a British bookseller who has this meet-cute with an American movie star?? What else is there not to love?

While I think our main characters were fleshed out very good, I would have liked to see a little more dimension added to the secondary characters. I sometimes wished they could have added more to the story than a casual appearance now and then.

I loved all the cute scenes and wasn’t awara this was technically New Adult until I read the first bit of spice! But it’s not very present in the book and I liked it.

An Unexpected Kind of Love by Hayden Stone

5 stars ⭐️

𝑩𝒍𝒖𝒓𝒃:
Aubrey Barnes is a quiet, structured, anxious and unknowingly handsome book shop owner. He is struggling to make ends meet with the shop and reeling from a breakup. His routine is disturbed when an American film set requests his shop to be used as a set for the Rom-Com they’re filming there in London. The film is one thing but the dazzling sexy American actor, Blake Sinclair, is another. This is Aubrey’s shot to get his shop out of the red. So how exactly does Aubrey end up in Blake’s trailer getting hot and heavy?

𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘:

I love everything about this book honestly. The writing was amazing and the characters were terribly witty and adorable. Aubrey presents as an awkward adorable mess and Blake is undeniably charming. Instantly I connected with these characters. Aubrey is really lost with the ghost of his past. His first love broke his heart and he’s been drowning since. Meeting Blake revives and restores the joy that was missing in Aubrey’s life. But what is love without pain? Blake is amazing and charming but living a double life. He hasn’t come out to his parents and the media. Blake struggles with how he would like to be seen and how Aubrey fits into that picture.

I adored this story and would recommend it!

[𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝑫𝒂𝒕𝒆: 08/09/2021]

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you Entangled Publishing, LLC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I could not put this book down!! It was so sweet, so well written, so on point with what life is really like, ahhh! I just loved this story so much. Aubrey is a young, single man who is recovering from a rough break up. In comes Blake, a super sexy rising movie star. And boy oh boy do sparks fly with these two! I really appreciate the LGBTQ aspect of this story as well, all sorts of sexual identities and orientations are mentioned in this book and it’s in an organic way, rather than the token gay character who is only there for comedic relief. I can’t say more without giving away this book but I will say that everyone should make it a point to read this story. Extra special thank you to @netgalley and Entangled Publishing for providing me with this eARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed this advanced copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own. #bookstagram #speedreader #entangledpublishing #netgalleyreader #netgalley #netgalleyreview #bookworm #lqbtq #romance

An incredibly engaging and adorable story! I loved this a lot. The heroes were endearing and I believed in their chemistry 100%. I thought it was a bit odd/a missing part of the story that although Aubrey's main motivation was to care for his mother and carry on/make her proud...we never met or interacted with her.

(Also a pet peeve of mine which is super minor but I really can't let it go is the specific distinction between being bisexual and being pansexual. Not only did it not add ANYTHING to the plot, but it wasn't accurate/is a much larger discussion than a throw away line)

I absolutely adored this, especially since it followed someone who owned a bookstore, which is something I've wanted to do for a while now. I thought this was the perfect blend of realistic love and banter, and was everything I was looking for. Thank you for the e-arc!

Really enjoyed this book, the characters were so fun and different, i instantly grew to them as soon as i got started reading. I love the setting of the bookstore, it really reminded me of my favourite movie notting hill lol. It is both funny and sweet at times. I think this book would be perfect for a summer read outside which is where i spent my time reading it. The romance was written so well and the characters are both quirky and adorable. I would recommend this book to fellow book readers, family and/or friends.

5*, thank you so much Netgalley for my Arc copy.

Thank you to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for providing me a digital ARC of this book in a exchange for an honest review.

I have many words for how I felt reading An Unexpected Kind of Love. Here are three: entertained, perplexed, amused. I'm definitely not going to be able to keep this review spoiler-free.

To summarize, Aubrey Barnes is a London bookseller, grump, and control freak-adjacent whose bookshop is rented out by a film crew for a rom-com shooting. Through the filming, he meets frighteningly attractive Blake Sinclair, a C-list celebrity from America who is in London for the next two weeks playing the main character's best friend in the movie. After the two bump into each other thrice, Aubrey gives Blake a blowjob in his trailer, and a secret romance is born.

I'm dead serious. At this point we're not even thirty pages in. Not complaining though, as I was actually pretty hooked.

Here are some points that I took note of as I continued reading:

— Blake Sinclair is a goddamn multidisciplinary icon. He calls himself a "triple threat" at the beginning of the book for his skills in acting, singing, and dancing, but it becomes clear very quickly that he's approaching septuple or even octuple threat territory. The man can act, sing, dance, plumb, play instruments, write songs, photograph things, and revive dying businesses. This leads me to my next point.

— There is not a single issue in this book that Blake Sinclair does not solve. Every time a problem presents itself, Blake manifests the skill to rectify it, and it never fails to make me laugh. Aubrey's life is completely fixed by Blake's presence. God, I see what you have done for others, and I want that for me.

— Finally, and on an unrelated note, there is an absolutely extraordinary plot hole that I could not ignore: Aubrey has a cat with no name, which vanishes a third of the way into the novel. It is referenced exactly four times before never appearing again. I'm laughing as I write this, because after this point Aubrey and Blake leave town multiple times. Who is caring for this cat? Is there an unnamed cat-sitter which stops by to feed it off-page? And is the cat confined to Aubrey's bedsit above the bookshop, or does it roam the sales floor as well? I am desperate for answers.

Jokes aside, I did enjoy this book to a fair degree, which is why I'm giving it three stars. Fair warning to all prospective readers: it is incredibly steamy. I lost count of how many times the characters had sex, which is not a bad thing—in fact, it rescued the story from most of its downfalls. The scenes were well written and hot, and the sexual tension outside of them was enough to keep me chugging along through this book. I would say two of the three stars here are for the sex, and the third is for how entertained I was by the vanishing cat.

I probably wouldn't recommend this book earnestly, unless you're into MCs who overuse the word gawp, or perhaps want to do some missing animal sleuthing. Still, I'm glad to have read it. It was definitely a fun time.

<i>"Having been through what I've been through, the only thing I've learned is that it's better to take a chance than not. Even if it hurts after. Because not knowing would hurt worst of all, I think. At least this way we might have something to remember."</i>
It's not often you run into a C-list American actor multiple times in one day, but London native Aubrey Barnes manages just that.

In this captivating new title, An Unexpected Kind of Love, we get a glimpse of what it's like being Aubrey Barnes, a struggling man who is attempting to keep a small family-run bookstore afloat, right when big box stores start popping up on every corner.

Enter Blake Sinclair, the small-town boy who pursued his dream of becoming an actor. Multi-talented and devastatingly handsome, there is no way he can be interested in grumpy bookseller Aubrey...right?

Through the course of this book, the reader is taken on an engaging ride with London as the backdrop. This novel has a quirky cast, an ex who can't help but continuously put his nose in Aubrey's business, and a secret that could wreck everything.

While Hayden Stone is a new author to me, I loved the writing style, the character development, the descriptive plot, and the overall romance that forms between two individuals who live an ocean apart.

<b>Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for providing an advance copy of this book for me to enjoy. As always, this book was read and reviewed voluntarily, and the opinions stated above are completely my own.</b>

3.5/5 stars!

When life gives a struggling bookstore owner an opportunity to keep the business running, said owner is reluctant to take that chance. Especially when it brings along a charming American actor who makes him feel feelings he didn't trust after his breakup with his ex. When he finally makes a decision to lease his bookstore as a set for the film, he ends up with a life-changing encounter with the actor. Though reluctant to start dating a celebrity, life has other ideas. How will the British bookstore owner and the American actor deal with the aftermath of being together?

This is an enjoyable read featuring two opposites. This book is primarily told by the bookstore owner and his experiences with the start of his relationship with the American actor. The book also has a wide variety of secondary characters, including the ex and a sassy employee with big opinions. I would have liked the book to feature a dual point-of-views because I needed more from the American actor. Therefore, though I enjoyed the book, I felt it was missing that essential viewpoint from that particular character. It does have some good intimate scenes that shows the closeness that was growing in the main relationship. Overall, an entertaining M/M romance.

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Slight spoilers ahead!

This was a fun and cute queer romance!
I really enjoyed the main character Aubrey and his particular sense of humour. I also found the whole conflict with him and Eli to be pretty interesting, and it was nice to see him finally confront him and move on.

What I didn't like was how bland the love interest and the romance itself was. While it was cute, it seemed very shallow, which made it hard to swallow that they really fell in love in just about two weeks. Like, Aubrey basically only gushed about how hot he was all of the time, which did not convince me that their feelings were real.
The writing style was also, at times, abit clunky and could have been phrased better, but for the most part it was very good.

Still, it was an easy and fun read, and I do recommend it to those who like romance!

Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an eArc of this novel! All of the opinions expressed here are my own.

An incredibly sweet NA love story. Incredibly insightful and strong main characters. A story about freeing yourself and learning to love again.