Bet on It is a steamy, open door romance with a lot of depth. I normally do not gravitate toward romance that is quite this open door, but still enjoyed this one. More than anything what I appreciated was seeing both the leads continue to work through their individual trauma through therapy, medicine, and help from each other. I am for any book that works to de-stigmatize anxiety and trauma and recovery. That said there are definite trigger warnings, including anxiety and panic attacks, child neglect, substance abuse, and PTSD. I was pleased to see that the author included content warnings at the beginning of the book. I would recommend this book to fans of Talia Hibbert's Brown sisters series and Helen Hoang's Kiss Quotient.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Thank you for the advanced copy of Bet on It. I enjoyed most of it. A lot more steamier than I thought it would be. If this became a series I would interested in continuing on.

A small town romance with a great representation of mental health is what you get out of Jodie Slaughter’s Bet On it. I enjoyed this book. The mental health aspect of both characters was probably my favorite thing about this. I love the small town setting and the two main characters growing and trying to deal with mental health with the changes they made to their lives. The Bingo setting was something else I loved. I actually wanted more of that if I am being honest. I really liked Aja in this and loved her journey not only with Wally but with her new friends she mad. I did find it hard to root for Wally a little. Not just because of the character but his story hit a little to close to home on something I am currently experiencing. It was hard to take my personally feeling out of the Wally storyline so I hope the review doesn’t show that to much. I did feel like Aja and Wally’s personal stories minimize the romance some. But the romance of two character bounding over Bingo and opening up to one another was still present. Still this was a good story with a good and diverse set of characters, a romance that is enjoyable and talks about mental health in a way that it needs to be talked about.

This book involves Aja who moved to Greenbelt get away from DC to get a better handle on her anxiety and panic attacks. She doesn’t have much of a social life. The only thing she does is go to Bingo on Wednesday’s. She made one friend there though her seat mate Ms. May. When Ms. May breaks both arms Aja is introduce to her grandson Wally who is there to help her out. Wally hates Greenbelt. If it wasn’t for his grandmother he would never come back. The town gossiped about him when he grew up, so much so it made a tough childhood worse. Wally struggles with PTSD. When he meets Aja though he found something in this town he is intrigue by. Bingo brings these two.together and brings them even closer when a pact is made when they can’t resist their attraction, In this you’ll see Aja and Wally not only grow closer and open up themselves in ways they haven’t. But you’ll read some great mental health rep.

I gave Bet On It 3.75 stars rounding up to a 4 on this scale.

Thank you Net Galley and St. Martins’ Press for the book in exchange of an honest review.

Ugh. I’m struggling with a review for this because I think lots of people will like this but I am not really one who did. The idea of the bet that they’ll be together if either of the main characters gets a Bingo, which is what the title is based on was such a minor part of the story that it was almost thrown in at the end just to make the title make sense.
The characters both struggled with mental health issues and anxiety, which was great to see as they worked through some of their issues both separate and together but their behavior oftentimes didn’t match up with what they seemed to struggle with. And while I’m at it, I felt like their chemistry was forced and the description of their sex was over the top detailed and so surface level they didn’t seem to have feelings for each other, 5th were both just needing sex and the other was the closest option.
I didn’t love the writing style but I could have maybe got past it if the narrator wasn’t so rough. Her voice for the main male character was absolutely brutal and sounded so stereotypical that it made me want to roll my eyes at points.
I’m going to wrap it up with that. There was just too many things that didn’t work for me, but that’s my own opinion and I’m sure others will disagree.
Thanks to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for this audiobook arc in exchange for my review.

* I LOVED that trigger warnings were presented at beginning of this read. *

Asia and Walter meet as she is having an anxiety attack at the local Piggly Wiggly.. Little does she know, Walter is the grandson of a friend she plays bingo with. Walter's only in town to help his grandmother through her physical therapy then it's back to his safe place. Yet, sparks instantly fly for both of them... enough so that they make a pact. Each bingo game they win, sex will occur. What else could go wrong?

Jodie Slaughter crafts a dual point of view novel that touches heavily on anxiety and emotional attachment. However; this story went from insta love to omgosh just do it already. There were numerous mini plots thrown within that made the "bingo pact" seem lackluster and sometimes unnecessary. I enjoyed the premise of the story but wanted more of either a] Asia's and Walter's journey and no bingo or b] more bingo scenes and less character crafting.

I flipped back and forth between listening to the audio and reading on my Kindle. The narrators voice had a great tone for both characters and kept me invested throughout the story.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press romance and MacMillian audio for my arcs in exchange for my honest reviews. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was my first Jodie Slaughter book, but it will not be my last. Loved that bingo played a prominent role in this story. Also, the mental health representation in this book was amazing - Walker and Aja's anxiety felt so real, and even though no one experiences anxiety the same way, seeing them connect through having an idea of what the other dealt with gave me all the feels. There was very strong character development, and I felt like I really got to know Aja and Walker over the course of this story. Highly, highly recommend!

Walker Abbott meets Aja Owens with her head in the freezer at the local Piggly Wiggly while she works through a panic attack. Color them both shocked when they meet again at his grandma and her friend's senior bingo night. Immediately sparks fly yet they both know this can't end well but let the bingo game begin!

For fans of Jasmine Guillory and Talia Hibbert!!

This is a super quick, easy romance read with dual POVs and a small town, bingo hall setting that felt super cute and cozy.

The MCs both struggle with the same mental health issues which felt relatable and charming. I was happy they found themselves in someone else. They both also had very strong support systems in friends which is realistic and so nice to see as they tackle day to day issues.

Here's where I struggled with this read:
- I wish the author had dived into the FMC's anxiety disorder more. We explored the MMC's trauma and mental health history so much yet I didn't feel we truly understood the root of the FMC's.

- The characters felt rooted in reality but I couldn't buy into the romance. They didn't really speak to each other as it was noted often that they sat in silence and when they did, it was to trauma dump or express sexual attraction. It didn't feel like they really got to know each other!

- The spicy scenes were unexpected but good! However, I almost wish we could've traded them in for more conflict or banter between characters AND YALL KNOW I LOVE SPICE....but baby I need plot

- And finally, pacing was off with this one. The middle kind of dragged and not much happened which left me wondering where it was going often.

Overall, I think people will enjoy this one as a simple, spicy, small town romance read but I just wish it had that extra level of sparkle!

Sorry, but the chemistry was very weak in this one. I wasn't a fan of the main character and there was too much of a slow burn for me.

For me, the standout aspect of Bet on It by Jodie Slaughter was the emphasis on mental health and how both of our love interests were open about the impact on their lives and the importance of taking care of their mental health.

There were some really fun characters in this story, and I especially loved seeing the friendships that Aja developed as she started to put down roots in Greenbelt.

As I read the synopsis of the book, I was super intrigued by the "bingo-based sex pact", but ultimately felt like that was a rather flimsy part of the plot that was just thrown back in when it was convenient. In the end, I wasn't super sold on the romantic relationship between Aja and Walker, at least for as deep as it was supposed to be.

Thanks to the publisher for a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book. Mental health representation is so important and it is handled beautifully in this story. I loved the interaction of the two main characters. I love a steamy small town romance, but this book can get a little slow and dragging in some places. But in the end it is a great story, that touches on healing and learning from trauma and find love.

I absolutely loved this book and will be checking out more of this authors work. I loved the anxiety representation and the dynamic between both characters, I would recommend this to all my friends!

A touch on mental health was spot on. The romance part of this book was just slow and bored me to be truthful. Just was glad when the book ended.

Thanks to the author the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book

Anxiety and PTSD make strange bed partners, but hey when it works it works! These small town characters propel the plot and although their lives are complex and not exactly happy, their circumstances change with them and keeps hope alive.

This was such a beautifully overwhelming book by Jodie Slaughter. Slaughter tackles mental illness, panic attacks, lingering effects of childhood trauma, etc. in Aja and Walker her main characters. Aja and Walker have such care and understanding of each other and they really try to help each other experience new things while Walker is taking care of his grandmother in Greenbelt, South Carolina.

I thought that the continuous backdrop of the weekly bingo games was really cute. The prior bingo relationship that Aja had with Walker's grandmother was also a nice touch. It helped to emphasize the smallness of Greenbelt and made it a plausible way for Aja and Walker to keep seeing each other as their relationship grew.

The pacing of the book was a bit slow in places, but overall I didn't mind it. Knowing both Aja and Walker's thought processes on different situations and how they interacted with each other, more than made up for the pacing.

A slow burn romance that I couldn't help but fall in love. Both main characters have their own things they're working on....that somehow are bettered by being together. I also LOVE the spotlight that therapy received in this book.

I absolutely loved the mental health rep in this book. The anxiety rep and the PTSD - it all felt very very spot on with both MCs. I loved the two MCs and the way they struggled but still managed to communicate their needs to each other, I loved reading about the struggle to form friendships as an adult, I think that’s such a rare thing to write about in romance novels because usually the characters already have friends but here Aja, kind of new to town, is struggling to make social connections and I really enjoyed that aspect of it. I would say though, for a book that was basically instalust, at least on Walker’s part, the romance did feel a bit slow and bogged down.

CW: mental health rep, anxiety, on page panic attacks, complicated parental relationship, parental abandonment, off page drug addiction of minor character, complicated grand parental relationship, small town gossip

Title Bet On It
Author: Jodie Slaughter
Publisher: St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:
"Bet On It" by"Jodie Slaughter

My Assessment:

"Bet on It" was a good romance read that discussed some important things that go on in people's lives, and the mental health issue for both that was anxiety [panic attacks] and PTSD, as it was for Aja and Walker [Wally].

This author did an excellent job with these severe topics as she gave the reader something to think about long after the read. In addition, the friendship with Walker's grandmother and Aja's three friends added so much to this read, keeping the reader turning the pages till the end.

The story was cute in how this author brings out how love was being built not only 'on anxiety, pie, and bingo forgiveness, and oh yes, some love.' To get the whole story, one will have to pick up 'Bet on It' and see how this story comes out. It will be a good read in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the arc, for my honest opinion.

This was a beautifully told story of mental health issues and how that might impact a relationship where both parties suffer from debilitating anxiety, panic attacks, childhood trauma, and ptsd.

Aha meets Walker in a Piggly Wiggly during a panic attack when he recognizes the symptoms in her. They bond over that and both feel a powerful attraction to one another. And eventually enter into a bingo sex pact.

I enjoyed this overall, it was largely character driven through the mental health struggles, almost exclusively so. So much of the lens was focused on that issue for both parts of the couple that any other aspect of the story was lost. It was beautifully done, but I can see this being a lot for someone to read who struggles with anxiety themselves. The overall tone of the book was really heavy, definitely at odds with the cover.

I think if you go into this knowing you are getting more of a story about 2 people struggling with mental health and trying to live and thrive both alone and together, rather than a straight up romance you'll enjoy this.

But it hit a bit too close to home for me and seeing such trauma under a microscope wasn't a great time.

The shining star however was that the heroine was plus sized and her beautiful body was wildly accepted and described here.

CW: anxiety, panic attacks, ptsd, childhood abuse, parental addiction

DNF at 70%
I just didn't care about this couple. Their internal dialogues were so lengthy and repetitive; but they barely have conversations with each other. There was nothing that drew me as a reader to be invested in their relationship which consisted of bingo and public sex and not much more.

*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.

I LOVED. THIS BOOK!!! Steamy, swoony and so important! I loved all of the important points this story raised about mental health, anxiety and PTSD. The steaminess is seriously off the charts across the board.... the dirty talk is ON ANOTHER LEVEL! I love me a book with a good sex bet - throw in some funny second tier characters, and I'm sold! Really a cute, fast and steamy read!!