This was perfection from beginning to end!

I love reading about strong independent women who are all about body positivity, building other women up and loving yourself. Crystal was all of this and more. As a fitness influencer with a different body type than the perceived social norm, along with the fact that she is Chinese American, she seemed to spend her time trying to convince herself as much as other women that loving yourself is the most important thing. Even for those who are totally comfortable in their own skin, this can be a chore sometimes. I think that Amy Lea wrote this beautifully!

When Crystal strikes up a bit of a feud with a new guy at the gym she belongs to, sparks really start to fly. The extension between Crystal and Scott is combustible. He was such a sweet, tender guy and I adored him.

I loved the family aspect of this book. There was a really beautiful blend between these two families that I enjoyed.

If you are looking for a book filled with humor, some steam, tons of body positivity and the cutest enemies-to-friends-to-lovers romance, Set On You is one you NEED to pick up.

This was a great read and I loved the growing friendship to lovers between the main characters. Not a huge fan of the Instagrammer storyline though.

Three pages in and I already knew I would love this book. Amy depicts my daily gym interactions and pet peeves perfectly within the first few pages, so I was hooked from the beginning.

As a gym rat myself, I feel like this book was MADE for me. I go to the gym 5-6 days a week, and as a somewhat curvy lady (definitely not thin), I related so much to almost every part of Crystal’s story. She even mentions how her sister is a bookstagrammer, and I couldn’t help but giggle at that little shoutout to all us booksta baddies. Plus, Crystal's wardrobe consists solely of leggings, sweats, and workout clothes, and she would rather stay home or go to the gym than go to a club. Same.

Now for my boy Scott: picture Chris Evans while you read and you will perfectly capture Scott’s essence. No literally, picture Chris Evans, because that’s what Amy had in mind when writing his character and she did him JUSTICE. Oh, and he is a firefighter. Come on ladies, don’t lie to me or yourself and say you aren’t into firefighters. Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Their banter? Hot. Their first kiss? So hot. Them working out together? Hot (also goals). Scott calls her Crys for short which I think is adorable, and sometimes calls her smart-ass, which always makes me blush because for some reason it’s one of my all-time favorite nicknames.

Overall it was just a really sweet story and I related to so much of it that it has a special place in my heart. AND THIS WAS HER DEBUT NOVEL!! Has Amy Lea become an insta-buy author for me? Yes, yes she has, and I can’t wait for more.

Set on You comes out May 10, 2022. Get your hands on it as soon as you can, you won't regret it!!

Thank you to the lovely Amy Lea and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

A curvy fitness influencer and a grump firefighter meet and fight over the squat rack only to discover they have a family connection. This enemies to lovers book was the stuff dreams are made of!

I LOVED Crystal as a main character - what a phenomenal heroine. She’s strong (physically and emotionally), relatable, and gets herself into some of the craziest situations. She’s also so inspiring and so much of this book was an incredible reminder of the importance of self-love. Add in so many fun pop culture references, fantastic banter, a slow burn but steamy romance - you have the perfect rom com. I adored this and cannot wait to see what Amy Lea comes up with next!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and @lovearctually for the advanced copy!

There were so many things I loved about this book, Scott being the primary one. But there were also some things I really struggled with.

Plot: Crystal Chen is a fitness social media influencer who doesn't fit into the stereo-type of a fitness model being that she is curvy. Crystal's brand has been built around accepting yourself and self love and shattering these stereotypes. One day at the gym a handsome guy steals her squat rack and while, angry about, she also finds herself lusting after him after they continue to run into each other again and again during workouts. The squat rack thief turns out to be firefighter Scott Ritchie, who she never plans to run into at her grandmother's engagement party! As their grandparents plan to tie the knot Scott and Crystal get to know each other and find that there is more than meets the eye to both of them and sparks fly. But when a photos of them goes viral, will internet rolls put their relationship to the test?

Review: There was so much to love about this story. The curvy, self assured fitness blogger who meets the hot firefighter in the gym was such a fun set up for a romance story! I loved their banter and witty exchanges and could there be any better hero and Scott?! He truly shined in this one for me. He was sweet, and caring and he just had so much heart and humor. The families and friend circles were great and there is such a fun, warm vibe for so much of this book.

Where the book fell flat for me was with Crystal's actions in the last 25% of the book. Some of her actions and then reactions just seemed hard to follow. Her reactions to the photo and Scott's and how Scott tried to help seemed not in line with how the characters had acted up to that point. Overall, I felt the first 75% of this book was really stellar. The meet cute was fun, the firefighters and the friends circle were also a fun addition. What kept me from giving this more stars was the last 25% and the way the final conflict played out. It felt like it was written more to preach a point and less to truly bring these characters we have gotten to know and love through something in a way they would have truly handled it.

Overall I think I would give this book a solid 3.5 stars. I would definitely read more from Amy Lea. I think it is a strong debut and I am excited to see more from her.

Set on You is the debut novel from Amy Lea and one of my most anticipated 2022 releases!

Crystal Chen is a millennial personal trainer and body positivity "fitstagrammer", aka she's internet famous for posting great workouts and not being a size zero. Scott Ritchie is the hunky fireman who steals her workout equipment and interrupts her when she's recording her workouts at the gym. When these two gym rats realize their grandparents are getting married, they're suddenly thrown together on the regular and can't deny the chemistry between them.

There was a lot to like about this debut novel from Amy Lea. Scott was such a swoony hero, and I laughed out loud at the antics of some of the extended family. The meet-cute between Crystal and Scott was so funny, and I really appreciated that we get to see them together so much (the IKEA scene was my favorite!) However, I really struggled with the conflict in this book which is ultimately what bumped down my rating. (See my GoodReads review for more information and appropriate spoiler warnings!)

Content warnings: loss of parent/grandparent, health scare, lots of talk of gym/fitness culture which could be triggering to some (read the author's note at the beginning!). I'm pretty sensitive to content that includes diet culture and I thought it was really beautifully handled in this book.

Thank you to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

4.5 out of 5 stars from me!!!

OH MY GOSH THIS BOOK WAS SO CUTE AND ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL!!!

I was having a hard time deciding what to read and this book got me out of a bit of a reading slump. SO THANK YOU AMY LEA FOR THAT!

Definitely one of my favorite rom coms that I’ve read thus far. I loved the fact that the meet-cute was at a GYM!! (Similar to my real life one ahhh!) Crystal and Scott have such a fun dynamic and I love everything about them! A firefighter and a personal trainer/fitness instagrammer… what a fun combo?! Also, they have some SIZZLING chemistry and the banter was GOOD.

Two words: LOCKER ROOM.

More importantly, There were so many life lessons to learn from this book about body respect and self acceptance, which is just amazing!

You need to read this Enemies to lovers rom com that will have you rooting for a happy ending like nobody’s business!

Humorous, full of chemistry, and an interesting look at a fitstagrammer's body positivity journey. I was...slightly bothered by the constant use of euphemisms for fat -- Crystal is curvy, etc, because it felt a lot like hedging away from the character having anything more than a slightly larger than skinny body. But otherwise the story was sweet, and I enjoyed the side characters.

OH MY GOD this book had me thinking I need to go to the gym more so I can meet a hot man. But, in all seriousness, SET ON YOU by Amy Lea is an incredible debut. It deals with issues of body image and that nagging feeling in the depths of all of us: are we good enough? I cannot wait to see what Amy does next! PREORDER!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this romcom about Crystal Chen, a fat-positive fitstagrammer, and firefighter Scott. Going into it, I wasn't sure I would like the social media influencer aspect of the story but I quickly found myself invested and routing for Crystal. The chemistry between her and Scott was clutch and really made story for me. Always in for some Chris Evans vibes! For me, it had a good mix of heart, humor, banter, sizzle, and was paced well.

This was a good read but I didn't love it. I enjoyed a lot of this, especially the final message, but something was missing for me. I hated the break-up part and thought it was a little out of the blue. I got what the author was doing, but it just felt forced IMO. With that said, Scott was a really fun character and probably my favorite out of them all! All in all a quick read.

REVIEW: Set On You by @amyleabooks 🏋🏻‍♀️🔥💕

When one of your first bookstagram followers writes her debut novel, you move it to the very top of your tbr! 😍 You guys…I’ve been so excited to review this book. It quite possibly might become one of my favorite 2022 releases, and 2022 hasn’t even started yet!

Here’s what I loved about it:
🏋🏻‍♀️ Crystal and Scott are so cute together! Their banter, their sense of humor, all of it was just so perfect 😍😍 I loved them so much!
🏋🏻‍♀️ open door steam-in public!! 🔥🔥 Enough said.
🏋🏻‍♀️ there were so many LOL moments! 😂 the scene when they’re seductively-eating oranges while watching LOTR? Priceless 🤌🏻
🏋🏻‍♀️ all the mid-2000s references that are so quintessentially Amy were amazing 😍 I also loved her homage to Bookstagram because Crystal’s sister is a bookstagrammer! ☺️
🏋🏻‍♀️ I was so here for the messages of body positivity and confidence 🥰 so, so important!

Bottom line? This book will make you smile, swoon, and laugh all at the same time. 🥰 Thank you to @berkleyromance, @netgalley, and Amy for my ARC of this adorable book. Set On You releases 5.10.22!

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#setonyou #amyleabooks #debutnovel #bookstagrammerturnedauthor #bookreview #romcombooks #bookrecommendations #bookstagram #bookworm #fivestarreads #netgalley #advancedreaderscopy #readathon #bookish #booklover

Set on You by Amy Lea is the Boston fat-positive fitstagrammer rom com you didn’t know you wanted. Crystal Chen is a curvy fitness influencer who loves nothing more than the perfect set in the weight room and a good pair of leggings. She’s just off a bad breakup and just wants a good day at the gym, that is until firefighter Scott Ritchie walks in and blatantly ignores her clear dibs on her squat rack. So begins their gym rivalry. Neither of them expected their gym nemesis to be at their grandparent’s engagement party. Now, with their respective grandparents impending nuptials fast approaching, Crystal and Scott will have to learn how to get along. Scott might actually be kind of a perfect friend and an excellent something more, but when a couple pic of them goes viral, they will both have to be at their best if they want to get through.
As someone born and bred in the Boston area, the vibes were top-notch. Between the classic Irish family repression and the energy of the city, I felt like these characters were from the area without leaning on any Boston-movie tropes. Their families and friends were fun and complicated and brought wonderful texture to their relationships. Her Chinese-American family is amazing. Their grandparent’s wedding is adorable, and I love them. I was a big fan of the trappings all around.
Now let’s get to Crystal. She is young, messy, and I love her. I enjoyed the way readers went with her personal journey through her shift in perception on her career, body positivity, and self-acceptance. When fitness and health become your profession, it is easy to feel like you are not achieving enough to be looked at as an ideal. It was also nice to see her deal with her grandmother finding a new partner. I was down to go with her. She is a true introvert who makes bad choices sometimes but honestly it is impossible to dislike her for long.
Scott is also an interesting and equally messy character. He’s a swoll firefighter who loves his dog and his family and is honestly adorable most of the time. When he makes mistakes, it's because he wants to protect others and feels a responsibility to say or not say something. He doesn’t get Crystal all the time, to be fair Crystal misreads him too, but at the end of the day they decide to work on it together (this is a romance after all).
So, should you read this book? Yes, if you are looking for the Boston firefighter/ fitness icon vibes. Set on You by Amy Lea is set to release May 10, 2022, so do a set of crunches and pick up this spring read. Thank you, Berkley, via NetGalley for providing the eARC of Set on You by Amy Lea in exchange for my honest review.

Oh yes, yes I DID read this in two days! Thanks @netgalley and @berkleyromance for the digital ARC. I truly loved this sweet, steamy, heartwarming book! My favorite things:
- Crystal’s journey from body positivity to body respect and acceptance
- Scott is a lovable teddy bear of a man with a heart of gold (plus hot!)
- Supportive family members and side characters
- Perfect level of spice (open door, steamy but not overly descriptive IMO)
- Great example of characters working through their emotional wounds in a healthy way and communicating well, even when there are a few missteps and misunderstandings

SET ON YOU was completely enjoyable from beginning to end and I highly recommend it! This releases May 10, 2022 so put it on your radar.

Sending my virtual hugs and kisses to the author of this book who injected so much inspiration and happiness into my dark mood! I’m absolutely feeling lighter, more exhilarated, joyful after reading Crystal and Scott’s enemies to lovers troupe with the widest smile on my face!

Curvy Crystal is definitely pure inspiration, a talented gymstagrammer/ fitness influencer who creates such brilliant videos emphasizing the importance of self-love and acceptance! She promotes fitness! You don’t have to look skinny for feeling hotter! Atta girl! I liked you since the beginning of the story. Such a honest, genuine, relatable character!

When Scott meets Crystal at gym : their hate at first sight relationship eventually starts because Scott decides to steal prized piece of equipment belongs to Crystal! That smug gym patron who is also fireman gets into her nerves.

The sweet-smart-sexy banters and slow burn romance between them were the most adorable parts of the book!

I was afraid of hating Scott at first when he kept stealing dumbbells and workspace of our lovely heroine even though I never say no to sunshine meets the grump troupe. But when we learn more about the characteristics of Scott, we realize he’s also genuine, caring, gold hearted man who can easily empathize with.

The grandparents of the characters were chapter stealers : they were so lovely. I wanted to give them long hugs and beg them to adopt me!

I wish we may also read the perspective of Scott. I’d love to see the events from his POV!

Overall: this is fast, easy to read, enjoyable debut! Absolutely I’d love to read the author’s future works!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I loved this book!!!! So cute, I wasn’t sure at first with the synopsis but omg what a cute rom com. The banter is to die for and Scotty is the perfect man. Spice level 3/5.

I really enjoyed this book! Crystal is a curvy fitstagrammer, who's biracial and is overall just an awesome character. The internet can be a mean place and Crystal has to learn to cope with the all negative stuff that comes with being a social media content creator. Her family was super fun and I really enjoyed their dynamic. Scott, her gym nemesis, ends up being the sweetest person and I loved him. It was a great book and had such a positive message about respecting your body. Loved this romcom and totally recommend it! Can't wait to read any future books from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Lovely cozy romance. Set in a Boston gym instead of a small town, but it has those same vibes -- the conflict isn't super high stakes and the MCs spend a lot of time just being really cute with each other. I didn't resonate with Crystal's "body positive" message but I agreed with where she got to by the end of the book. More Chris Evans look-a-likes in my romance novels, please!

This book was so cute! A little slow at times, but made up for in the character development and handling of issues! I could tell the author was taking care to speak to and about these issues in a good and respectful way. I really enjoyed it, and many times found myself caught up in the story!

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

The cover and description sold me on requesting this debut novel by Amy Lea. The writing and story drew me in right away. There was plenty of rom-com fun and the chemistry was very believable. I ladore a good rivalry, enemies to lovers trope! And, I love hearing from a bipoc main character who gets a HEA. I finished reading this in almost one sitting.

That being said, there were a few weak points in the story for me. At times, both Crystal and Scott could be really immature at how they handled and reacted to conflict, absolutely overreacting and blowing things immediately out of proportion. Additionally, the two have a get-to-know-you-no-sex-pact that they affirm in one chapter only to turn around and ignore it one or two chapters later. I think some rounding of some plot corners on this could have made it a stronger book.

The story introduced a couple of secondary characters with set-ups that could lead to their own stories and HEAs. I would absolutely read more in this series. I look forward to reading more by this author!