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.

CONTAINS SPOILERS!

I had high hopes for this book since I loved It Happened One Summer but something about Hannah and Fox’s story was the cringy cheesy friends to lovers storyline I just don’t care for. Hannah is just a little too perfect. I think she could have used a flaw other than internal debate on which man to love. Maybe I'm just a harsher critic on a rom-com plot? Overall 3.5/5 stars!

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book! Eager to see what my pals who also loved IHOS think about this second book!

Looooooved this story so much. Hannah and Fox were so much fun in the first book so I was so excited that we got an entire book devoted to the two of them. I loved this book from start to finish (as I always do with Tessa Bailey books) and I can’t wait to read more from her. Thank you netgalley for my free copy!

Having loved the banter between these two characters in *It happened one summer* I was looking forward to this sequel. It definitely was a slow-burn. These two had issues and walls that stopped them from moving towards each other. Tackling tough topics like imposter syndrome and toxic masculinity helped the characters to feel more 3-D. They both had to come to terms with their baggage and because of that, watching them connect felt more believable.
But can we talk about chapter 10?!
The orange bottle??!
GOODNIGHT.

The perfect follow up to It Happened One Summer. Listen, "enemies to lovers" is the superior trope, but this might convert me to a "friends to lovers" reader. Fox and Hanna are so perfectly each others perfect person. I'm obsessed with their relationship, I'm obsessed with them, OBSESSED. I never thought I'd be simping for fishermen but here we are. At this point I'll read anything Tessa Bailey writes.

While it was great to see Hannah and Fox's relationship develop more, I found this mostly enjoyable but partially tedious. Sure, there were some very sweet and honest moments, but the amount of mental gymnastics that these two did to convince themselves they were "just friends" was mind-numbing at times. Definitely not as good as the first book in the duology but still a welcome addition.

I read this in ONE sitting, at 2 am. I couldn't put it down for the life of me. It was just too good to stop. I was already obsessed with Hannah and Fox went I met them in "It Happened One Summer". Hannah is a strong, brave, outspoken, and loyal bad ass. Fox is a notorious player with a heart of gold and a vulnerable side that I couldn't get enough of. The two of them together made me want to laugh, cry, and my stomach was all butterflies. Hannah's resolve was everything to me while reading this. I loved this book and will recommend it everywhere.

✔️ Friends to Lovers
✔️Roommates
✔️He fell first
✔️Slow burn

This is my favorite Tessa Bailey book yet! Fox and Hannah set the bar now for the trope “friends to lovers.” They have honest relationship conversations and memorable moments. I think I was smiling the entire book. Hook Line and Sinker’s dialogue and storyline felt different than Tessa’s other books. The friends to lovers storyline stood out because they aren’t childhood friends. They fall while becoming closer friends which is very realistic.

5 stars because I would definitely read this story again!

It Happened One Summer was one of my favorite books last year. When I tell you that I wanted Fox and Hannah’s book desperately I’m not exaggerating. I would have done pretty much anything for an early copy. Which is why when it landed on my Kindle in October I dropped everything to read.

And I was not disappointed.

This is very much a determined bachelor bad boy turned to mush over a quirky, musical girl friends-to-lovers romance. Also, I fell for Hannah and her connection to music in a way I haven’t fallen for a heroine in a good long while. I loved this woman so much. If you’ve read the first book in this series, It Happened One Summer, then you’ve already met Hannah and Fox. If not here is a quick rundown: Hannah is Piper’s sister and also her exact opposite. Where Piper is an Instagram fashionista/party girl, Hannah’s life revolves around music and working her way up in the movie industry where she can turn that love of music into a career. But these sisters are close and supportive, they really are each other’s best friend. So when Piper gets banished to the small fishing village of Westport, Hannah sticks by her side and goes with her. And this is where Piper meets her love and eventual husband, Brendan, and Hannah befriends Brendan’s shipmate Fox.

Hook, Line, and Sinker opens with Hannah back home and working on a movie. She and Fox are texting regularly and have settled into the friend zone. She has an acknowledged crush on a co-worker and Fox is an admitted bachelor who likes his casual hookups. But as the reader, you can sense that there is interest on both sides and that their friendship could me more. But Hannah regularly feels like she hasn’t yet achieved true leading lady status in her life and career and Fox lets others’ opinions of him rule his actions and thoughts about what kind of person he truly is.

Their romance is special and right from the beginning you can tell they are both truly lovely people. Hannah is just such a caring, supportive, loyal person. Her goodness radiates with every interaction and thought. She often relays her moods and feelings through music and I completely understood that. Fox, despite his insistence that he was bad at relationships, time and again handles Hannah with protectiveness and care. I loved watching them go from friends to falling deeply in love. Fox’s character growth is so well done and I felt for him as he pined for Hannah, not knowing what to do, convinced that he was no good for her, but unable to let her really go.

It must be said that the steam factor is pretty high. Once this couple finally gives in and has each other I’m surprised my kindle didn’t catch on fire with the hotness. This is good stuff, y’all. But it’s the emotional connection that really got to me and kept me rooting for them till the end and their HEA.

This slow-burn, friends to lovers romance should absolutely be on your to-read list. Tessa Bailey hit it out of the ballpark with the Bellinger sisters and their love stories. I’ve firmly placed both books on my favorite, comfort read shelf.

Final grade- A

Hannah and Fox’s story was a great utilization of the friends-to-lovers trope and I really loved how Tessa differentiated their journey to love from Brendan and pipers. They were both so lovable and different in their own way! One of my favorite things about Hannah and Fox is their respect for each other and the fact that they believed in each other is much, even more than they believed in their own selves. Both Hannah and Fox suffered from serious cases of imposter syndrome (something I totally understand and sucks so bad) but the beautiful thing about their relationship is they saw each other's potential. They gave each other the confidence and reassurance to strive to be better, take on more responsibility, and rise to every occasion.

I think the most important thing is to go into the story knowing it is very much a Hannah/Fox story and definitely not a Piper/Brendan sequel. Tessa let Hannah and Fox shine and I loved it, finished it in two days! This story will speak to anyone who has experienced any sliver of imposter syndrome or questioned their potential. And how beautiful it is when the exact right person sees through it and chooses to believe in you even when you fail to do it yourself. On top of ALL that, it's a Tessa Bailey book. C’mon- the spice is top tier and she does not let us down! Make sure this book is on your TBR list for 2022 and be on the lookout for its release: 3/1/22

Sequels are notoriously controversial. Will they live up to its predecessor while also stand on its own without belittling it? Well, Tessa Bailey does not disappoint with this installment. She does not leave out Piper and Brendan by seeing the progression of their relationship meanwhile also developing Hannah and Fox to be more well-rounded characters. I absolutely loved ‘It Happened One Summer” but when I tell you that Hannah and Fox tugged at my heart I am not exaggerating. I think what I loved most about this book is how flawed and genuine the characters were.

Hannah struggles with viewing herself as a leading lady and diminishes her spot light to become a supporting actress. Which, as a reader, I felt more of a connection to Hannah than to Piper. I loved reading how both Hannah and Fox encouraged each other to grow, to take risks, and allow each other to be the best version of themselves rather than create a new persona.

I cannot recommend this book enough!

4.5/5⭐️

Maybe it was the jet lag or the emotional damage of the past few weeks… but this book had no business making me cry as much as it did.

I loved Fox and Hannah’s story. I knew I would from the glimpses of it in It Happened One Summer. Tessa Bailey really took the time to craft them—their motivations, their goals, their deepest insecurities. I felt so drawn to the relationship as it progressed, as they learned to unlearn their previous way of living so they could love each other properly. Hannah is a sweetheart and Fox is a softy, end of story. Would 10/10 recommend this one!! Thank you Netgalley for the arc!!

I 100% loved this book! Don’t go into it expecting a fast paced romance like It Happened One Summer. This is more of a slow simmer romance that eventually erupts.

My love for Hannah and Fox is unreal. The way their friendship started and evolved was so beautiful. Hannah nurtured Fox and helped him see he was deserving of love and it broke my heart several times over to see him think he was undeserving.

I think I highlighted three pages worth of steam. It was superb and up to the standard we have all come to expect from Tessa Bailey and her steam novels.

I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait to reread it!

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc. Hook, Line, and Sinker is our March 1, 2022.

What a great read! I read Bailey's previous novel last year and instantly fell in love with the Bellinger sisters and their life and misadventures in LA and Westport. I was so excited to discover that she was bringing Hannah's story to life, and she did not disappoint. This was delightful; a fun and quick read that still had substance and heart. I can't wait to read more from this author!

Book two didn’t disappoint. Their story is slightly more intense, sentimental and heartwarming than I expected. We love the friends to lovers trope.

Absolutely adored It Happened One Summer so I was so excited to get to read this book early- thank you for the ARC!

This book follows the relationship of Hannah and Fox, Piper's sister and Brendan's skipper. It wasn't as fun and light as It Happened One Summer, but I really appreciated the character development and the explanation of both character's qualms about being in a relationship.

Tessa Bailey did not disappoint- once again she delivered a sweet, heartfelt, sexy story set in the beautiful town of Westport.

I just reviewed Hook, Line, and Sinker by Tessa Bailey. #HookLineandSinker #NetGalley

I really enjoyed this book! This is the second (?) book in this series, but you can follow it even if you haven't read the first.