After loving It Happened One Summer and was super excited to read this book and it did not disappoint, it was such a good reading!

I adore a good friends to lovers and Tessa Bailey nailed on this one and although I am not the biggest fan of dual pov it fit this book so well, Fox and Hannah are amazing characters, I loved how they grew as individuals while falling in love with each other.

I felt a lot of sympathy for Hannah no longer being comfortable with feeling like a supporting actress in her own life and for Fox feeling trapped by his playboy reputation that people can't seem to forget leaving him with no room to change and throughout the book all I wanted to do was give them both a hug.

The way they were able to understand each other without having to say a word and the subtle things Fox did for Hannah before he even accept he liked her was just *chef's kiss* and made me love this even more.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for an honest review.

BIG THANK YOU to Avon and Harper Voyager, NetGalley and Tessa Bailey for writing this book/series!!!! I was so excited to get this E-Arc and started it immediately.

I thoroughly enjoyed the second book in the Bellinger Sisters. Hook, Line, and Sinker follows Hannah Bellinger and Fox. This is a friends to lover with some fake dating aspects, Hannah is back in Westport to shoot a movie and stays with Fox, they are "just friends" but have been texting one another and connecting through music since she left Westport 6 months prior.

I sometimes have a hard time with Friends to Lovers but Tessa Bailey does a great job AND the characters are just SOO loveable. I would recommend reading It Happened One Summer before Hook, Line, and Sinker because you get a better idea of the town of Westport and an introduction into Hannah and Fox. Hannah and Fox have fabulous banter and a great friendship. I really liked all the characters that Tessa Bailey has created in this series and wish there would be more because the characters are so great and Westport just is described in such a wonderful way, that I wish I could visit.

The Bellinger sisters are at it again in Hook, Line, and Sinker - this time focusing in on Hannah. While Hannah has always seen herself as the supporting actress and never the lead, this storyline follows as she takes the lead in her own life and career. Her platonic friendship with Fox blossoms as they spend time together and he tries to make her longtime crush, also her boss, jealous with his attention. She doesn't want to fall for a guy like him, and he doesn't want his reputation to sully her good name. All of the characters are well written, including the supporting characters, and the chemistry between Fox and Hannah is perfect!

After loving It Happened One Summer, I was beyond excited to read this book. I had a comforting feeling being back in Westport, a small fishing town. This friends to lovers romance was just so wonderful. I felt the chemistry between Hannah and Fox from beginning to end. Their relationship progressed at a natural pace and had me falling in love with them as they fell for each other.

Hannah is a production assistant who is very passionate about music. She is loyal and protective over the people she cares about. Fox is a king crab fisherman. A total ladies man, Hannah is the only one to see the kind of man he truly is.

Both characters really found themselves with the help of each other. Hannah was able to fight for what she believed in, with regards to her career and personal life. I was not expecting the depth to Fox's story. Broke my heart a little bit how he was perceived by himself and others. Hannah was his biggest supporter and never backed down. She pushed Fox to see himself as more than what everybody else expected.

I loved that it was a slow burn romance with banter, angst, and tension. Of course it wouldn't be a Tessa Bailey book without the steam. The epilogue was perfect.

I received an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fox is a certified fuck boy with a masters degree in “professional bachelor”. He graduated from USTD, summa cum frequently. His problem is that he’s a fuckboy with a conscience. He won’t commit to any woman bc his dad was a slut #daddyissues and his college girlfriend broke his heart #getoverit.

Fox wants to change now that he has met Hannah- a cute girl who loves music and acts like she has a phD in psychotherapy. Fox hasn’t had sex for 6 whole months which = reformed. Hannah really mind fucks Fox by putting him in the friend zone. Eventually her brain fuckery is no match for Fox’s professional pleasure penis. PPP wins every time.

Fox is cute and built like a sturgeon (the stallion of the sea), but his “I’m sad bc I’m a reformed man-whore, but nobody takes me seriously” shtick was exhausting. Listen dude, you are a white, attractive, virile, American man. You’re fine. Nobody cares one way or the other if you fuck all the girls or just one. People actually have real problems. If the only cross that you bear in your life is that people make fun of you for getting laid, then you have it good. Stop the internal whiny monologue, tell everyone to eat a bag of dicks, and go live your life. #whiteguyproblems

Hannah is a saint with a heart of gold for sticking with Fox and his “skanky sads”- he clearly makes up for it in the bedroom. For me, all the PPP in the world couldn’t make up for Fox’s pity-party wallowing. Unsubscribe. This book was ok. I liked book 1 of the series much better, personally. If you liked that one, it’s still worth reading this too, but Fox may make you ragey.

Thanks @netgalley and @avonbooks for the ARC.

Smut- 3.2 stars (surprisingly tame dirty talk for a Tessa Bailey book)
Romance- 3.6 stars
Story- 3.8 stars
Reformed man whores wallowing in self pity- negative 82 stars

This book was perfection, and I wish I could read it again for the first time! The few qualms I had with It Happened One Summer were no where to be seen in Hook, Line, and Sinker. It was a perfect balance of hot and moving at the same time. Fox was an incredible romantic interest, and I'd like to formally petition for more Fox content. I'll update with my full review & link when I post on IG, but highly recommend this book to EVERYONE!

I loved this book by Tessa Bailey! I really enjoyed the emphasis on the psychological hold ups in the relationship and the need for emotional stability from each of the characters. Plus it was very sexy.

Hook Line & Sinker is the follow up novel to Tessa Bailey’s amazing Schitt’s creek inspired novel; It Happened One Summer.

Hook Line & sinker follows Pipers younger sister Hannah. After the events of It Happened one Summer, Hannah is back in LA working on
A movie and lusting after her boss, Sergio. But she has kept in contact with Fox the two texting constantly and easily becoming best friends. When the film Hannah is working on needs a change in location, she suggests Westport. With pipers in laws in town, Hannah ends up staying with Fox. Will living together cause the lines of their friendship to blur?

I adored this story! I was a bit hesitant about Fox at first because he is a self described man whore who refuses to ever settle down but I loved his friendship with Hannah so much. I ended up really rooting for him, especially after realizing why he was the way he was, and all the pressure put on him throughout the years. Some of the opinions his friends and coworkers had of him had me fuming! I loved that Hannah was always the first to stand up for him too!
Even during IHOS, I loved Hannah’s character, so I was thrilled to see that she would get her own story too! I loved that she set out to be the leading lady in her own story!

This was a slow burn, but the pay off and steamy scenes were in true Tessa Bailey fashion; well worth the wait!

While I didn’t love this one quite as much as It Happened one Summer, I still thoroughly enjoyed it and was so happy to see Hannah find herself in Westport, just like Piper did.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! I loved Hannah's story so much more than Piper's. It all felt more genuine and I'm a sucker for relationships where the couple starts as friends. I appreciated that it didn't focus solely on the relationship, that Hannah and Fox grew as individuals along with falling in love. Hannah taking control of her career and making "leading-lady moves" was a lot of fun to read. Too often romances forget that individual humans make up a couple but I didn't find that to be the case with this one! This book was a lot of fun!

Hook, Line, and Sinker was one of my most-anticipated reads for 2022 and it did not disappoint!
🌊 a few Sea-puns ahead, you’ve been warned 🌊

It Happened One Summer (book one of this series) was only on my radar because my book BFF urged me to read it, knowing I’m a Schitts Creek fan and always happy for a cute and steamy contemporary romance. I thought It Happened One Summer was really fun and captured the vibe of a flighty IT Girl socialite with self-esteem issues - someone bubbly on the surface but with hidden depths to be explored. Hook, Line, and Sinker blows the first book out of the water!
Fox and Hannah were in supporting roles for the first book, but HLS really does them justice in fleshing out their characters. Hannah and Fox work through their fears of failure and intimacy together with a series of well-worn tropes (fake-dating, just friends, miscommunications, fear of intimacy, I’m not good enough for you). The attention paid to delving the depths of Fox’s trauma is really interesting and heartrending to read. Hannah and Fox are on parallel journeys to steer into the storm and come out the other side whole. When they accomplish it together, it’s just pure treasure.

🌶 Level:
The chemistry between Hannah and Fox is 👌💦🥵🔥

I don’t want to give too much away but it’s easily surpassed all my hopes and expectations and deserves a reread!


Thank you to Netgalley & Avon Books for this ARC!

This sequel to "It Happened One Summer" follows Hannah and Fox as they learn how to believe in themselves and each other. While Fox seems to be way out of Hannah's league, she discovers that there is so much more to him than a pretty face and body. I liked how the author flips the stereotype of the girl seen only superficially for her looks and the hero digging deeper to find the real person. Instead, Hannah is the grounded one and Fox is the one that most people see only for his looks and sex appeal. Both characters are well drawn and the chemistry between them is really hot. He is a commercial fisherman and she is a production assistant for an LA producer that she initially has a crush on. When her production company shoots on location in the Pacific Northwest town where Fox lives, as well as Hannah's sister and her fiance, Hannah ends up staying in Fox's guest bedroom. That's when the fireworks start. Both Hannah and Fox love music and this is what initially draws them together and in some ways gives them insight into each other. While this is the first book by Tessa Bailey that I have read, it won't be the last.

I loved everything about this book! From start to finish it was everything I was looking for and more!

Hannah always considers herself as supporting actress, not a leading lady. She thinks she’s hype girl as her sister Piper always demanded the spotlight. And Hannah patiently waited in the wings, waiting for her right time to be announced as best supporting actress. Fed up with playing the supporting character Hannah take the risk and comes clean with her long-time crush director Sergio. She is share all of it, her feelings, and her passion to work at the musical department.
A last, Hannah misses her sister and her time she spent in Westport. She might also be missing a certain charming king crab fisherman she’s been texting for seven months. Luckily, she convinces Sergio to move the last movie’s production location to Westport from L. A.

Of course things must go wrong… Piper’s parent in laws’ visiting at the same time forces Hannah to move to this charming fisherman’s spare bedroom! Having spent some time at the convention center together, Hannah couldn’t get him out of her mind. Fox felt the same. The element of attraction is there on both sides but both of them were too stubborn to talk about their feelings.

Fox doesn’t think he is good enough. Even his best friend Brendan doesn’t trust him with Hannah. Fox has a reputation in town as a player. His upbringing and an unfortunate incident at college changed his perspective to relationships. He doesn’t trust or believe in himself. He feels like everything he touches is destroyed.
Seeing Hannah in his own apartment, getting envious of her with her jerk of a director change something in him!

Hannah and Fox’s story is more intense, sentimental, and sweet. There were a lot more emotions and big feels in play in this story than I was expecting. I dol like Hannah a lot! I think when she is on the page, she steals the show. She outshines her sister in so many way.

The ten years later epilogue really rounds the story out and will have you sighing in love at the end. The big feels of it will leave you feeling all the things.
I really enjoyed this book so much more than the first one. I loved Hannah and Fox. Hannah has a kindness about her that makes her perfect for Fox. Fox is a sweet and endearing character and is so afraid of his past he keeps Hannah in the friend zone a little longer than I wanted him too. It’s surprisingly slow burn for a Tessa Bailey romance and I did want more steam in this story.

Hook, Line, and Sinker was just as an enjoyable read as the first in the series, It Happened One Summer. The book had humor, good chemistry and the romance was a slow-burn but done so well.

I will definitely be recommending this book to people looking for good romances.

I love that both characters thought they weren't quite good enough for the other person--it was so nice to see each character admire the other. It was a great sequel to the first in the series! Both characters have to learn to see themselves more clearly before being able to commit to to one another.

Thank you Avon for the ARC to read and review.

Hook line and sinker delivered Tessa Bailey’s signature style of humor and intensity. Fox has issues with self esteem from past incidents and others peoples perceptions and Hannah also has self esteem issues. Together they work on their stuff and grow up. He learns to talk honestly. She starts making grown up decisions, HEA.

I was really excited to read this book considering all the wonderful reviews and the fact that I really liked and was charmed by It Happened One Summer. I, however, could not get into this one and was really struggling to finish it.

Before I get into why I didn’t like it, let me say that I really like the way all of Tessa Bailey’s books make sure to deliver on the steamier parts of the romance genre while also digging deeper into the emotional aspect as well. This book is no different. She also manages to never lose focus or sacrifice the other, non-romantic plot points for the actual romance. Additionally, I loved how the story does such a great job of capturing just how essential and magnificent music can be and all the ways it can signify and reflect our experiences.

Now, here’s why I believe I struggled to get into this book:

1. I know this is supposed to be a friends-to-lovers sort of thing, but from the beginning it just kind of felt like insta-love, so I was just being tortured from the beginning on waiting for these two to acknowledge their feelings with one another.
2. There seemed to be almost no character development beyond what we were introduced to in IHOS so we were stuck with very stale, repetitive characters.
3. When they do finally admit their feeling for another, the story itself got really repetitive with multiple points of miscommunication over the exact same thing with Fox’s insecurity and it was just run into the ground.

I, overall, felt like I was watching two immature characters try to be mature and come up short. I think this story just lacked the organic-ness that I, personally, need in a story, such as I would want to see how these two built a solid friendship with one another before feelings ever came into the mix or just even any other relationship issue that they both work through together. The book just felt too long and trying to extract too much from this one thing.

I’m sorry I didn’t like it, I really tried, but like any reader, some books just aren’t for me.

Tessa Bailey comes back with the follow-up to It Happened One Summer with another hilarious sexy book! This time we follow Hannah and Fox- best friends! See where this is going?? Hannah asks Fox for help to catch her crush's attention but we all know how that goes! This book is so freaking funny and a great follow up to It Happened One Summer!

Thank you @avonbooks @netgalley for Hook Line & Sinker! I am so happy to be back and Westport and more of the Bellinger sisters. You don’t have to read It Happened One Summer but I highly recommend you do so you get Piper and Brendan’s story and the sisterly interaction between Hannah and Piper.

This book picks up 6 months later from the previous book and I loved how Hannah and Fox text messages. This was such a beautiful friends to lovers story. I love how they both made each other a better person.

This book was hands down one of my favorite books to 2021. I fell in love with both Hannah and Fox when they were introduced in It Happened One Summer but this book truly pulled out the best of both of them! Tessa Bailey is an artist. I normally don't care for the friends to lovers trope because so often it feels forced but in this case, it felt so genuine I could actually see it happen. If that isn't great writing, I don't know what is.

I have already preordered my physical copy and cannot wait to read it again when it arrives! Maybe eventually I will stop shouting it from the rooftops but it'll be while, for sure.