Jenny L. Howe is a delight, and so is this book! I absolutely adored the fat representation and the academia setting. There are so few books with good body diversity, and I can't wait to read more of Howe's!

Good second chance romance with hot competition. A good escape read.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I have to say, I always find second chance romance tropes hard to read through. There is always a reason why you broke it off. And I find it hard to believe that the couple can reunite again after having so many problems in the past. But I am always willing to give it a shot just in case it can change my mind.

I hate to say it, but this book was not for me. I really tried to give this book a try. But I found myself hating the characters as I kept on reading the book. They had way too many issues with each other that it made no sense for them to get together again. I really tried to figure out why they would give it a try again. They truly did not repair their problems; it was just a brush over. Never repaired.

And don’t get me started on the betrayal that happened toward the end. It was so maddening that she was willing to forgive him. I literally cannot read this book at all.

This book wasn't my favorite, however I did love parts about it.
Woman and the competitive nature in academics and working hard to make something of herself and her future, with all the struggles along the way.

Thank you St. Martin's Press for the ARC of The Make-Up Test in exchange for my honest review.

The Make-Up Test was high on my list of anticipated releases this year, so I was thrilled to receive both a physical and digital ARC to review.

In her debut Jenny L. Howe tell a story about former lovers, now rivals that' contains lovely fat rep, discussions about academia and career goals, knights in shining armor and a dog named after cheese. The Make-Up test is a second chance, slow burn romance that also tenderly explores parental relationships and setting healthy boundaries in life.

You will enjoy this book if you like:
- second chance romance
- slow burn romance
- fat rep
- academic rivals to lovers
- banter
- heavy academic settings

One thing that I particularly enjoyed in Howe's debut was the confident, casual fat representation that it contained. Allison is fat. She knows it and she really doesn't feel the need to change. This isn't a book focussed on changing her or making her feel better about herself. There is some fat shaming, but it's also used to show that Allison is confident with herself and it's others that need to change their view/attitude. I've read books where much of the plot has to do with the fat MC's body/weight and I think those books are incredibly important, but so are novels such as this that show that fat people deserve love, and romance and adventures that are not centered around their physical appearance.

This books is funny, and spicy, but it is also very very heavy at moments. It deals with difficult relationships with parents and familial grief. I truly loved how Howe explored these topics in The Make-Up Test. I thought that Allisons difficult relationship with her father really added a complexity to her character but also the narrative overall. There are moments in this book that sincerely broke my heart, but the writing and emotions it was able to provoke has me excited to read what Howe publishes in the future.

I will say, at some points the characters in this book are hard to love. Allison has good intentions but at times she can't seem to get out of her own way. Every time she lied or stretched the truth I wanted to scream. Colin is hard to root for as a love interest at times and he both unknowingly and knowingly hurts Allison in ways that could make a reader hesitate. As I neared the end I wasn't sure if I was rooting for them to be together honestly. But then I took a step back. Romance isn't always perfect, in fact it rarely is. I think what this book reminded me was that romance and people are messy, but perhaps the biggest sign of love is choosing to keeping going and work through it all together.

Allison has been accepted to the doctorate program of her dreams. Things are looking up for Allison- finally! Until her ex Colin Benjamin had to come along and ruin it. Colin and Allison end up acting as a TA to the same professor- who can only take one of them on as an advisee at the end of the semester. The competition is on and both are playing dirty- nothing is off limits, including their romantic past and inside knowledge of each other. As they battle to be the best TA, can Colin and Allison ever find their way back to each other?

I loved the banter from The Make-Up Test! Allison and Colin have great chemistry the entire time. Both Colin and Allison are dealing with family issues and health scares in their family, which eventually inspires them to stop competing against each other. I loved Allison’s spirit and how she worked relentlessly toward her dreams despite the many obstacles in her way. Of course, the cute animals were a great bonus! The conflict in the conclusion felt a little forced, though I was firmly on one character's side the entire time. I would recommend this to readers who love romance in academia, inclusive writing, and lovers to enemies…to lovers (my favorite!). I can’t wait to read what Jenny Howe write next! Thank you to Jenny L. Howe, St. Martin’s Griffin, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, Wordpress blog, and Barnes & Noble etc

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
This read was fun and cute but not a home run for me.
I really enjoyed reading a romance set in graduate school and especially loved how the author wove in plenty of detail related to the academic area the MCs are pursuing- medieval lit. Side characters had enough going on not to seem superfluous. And the chemistry with the MCs was good, as was the work the heroine did to come to terms with her fraught relationship with her father.
But I just couldn’t love this book. The main issue for me was the hero- while the heroine seems to think he’s grown, and her certainly made some strides, I just cannot get past the power imbalances present and the toxic nature of their first and second time giving things a go. I don’t really care what made him do it, he’s an idiot and I wanted better for the heroine than someone whose first instinct is to close off when under stress and to steal her work. Meh.

Things I liked:
- The academic rivals/academic setting
- Enemies to lovers trope
- Unique character details

Things I didn't like:
- The rest.

I didn't feel the connection between these two and I think if they were a real couple, they wouldn't last. I kind of hated the MMC and I don't think he changed enough from who he was to who he is for her to forgive him, let alone fall for him. This shouldn't have been a love story, it should've been women's fiction and focused on Allison finding herself, WITHOUT a man.

This was such a sweet and sassy, enemies to lovers, second chance, workplace competition, slow burn romance.

Love the plus size rep I'm a curvy girl too. I hate the pear shape name too. #banfoodlabelsforpeople I think I fail at hashtags.

Her mmc is constantly competing for the spot she wants and making it all about him but will it be different from college now that they are in the same phD program.

Man, getting your heart broken, getting over it, then having to work near/with said person is impossible to either not catch feelings again or kill them. Which will she choose🤣

Tw: there is someone who should be providing unconditional love that is a horribly oblivious fatshamer. Like could care less about her feelings or her for that matter 

✨ Saw a comedian on my feed the other day that was saying "I'm fat and people usually whisper like aw but you're beautiful. Yea I know I'm beautiful I didn't say I was ugly!" When did fat become synonymous with ugly and unacceptable. ((Cough fashion industry))

We accept everyone's differences as long as they are a certain size stfu. #moveonfromthattoxicity #toxicdump

Thank you stmartinspress and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

When I read the description of The Make-Up Test, I was interested because of the academic setting and the plus-size MC. I was leery of the second chance romance because I do not really care for the trope.
I really wanted to like this book but it dragged for me and I almost did not finish it. The writing itself is great and super descriptive. I felt like I was really in the moment several times.
My biggest problem with this book was Colin Benjamin. The ex and love interest. He was the most giant douche in the past and still kind of like that in the present. He did not have many redeeming qualities. I feel like Allison put up with them due to her relationship with her father. She is used to being treated like crap. She states that she does not like how her dad acted towards her mom but she seems to take it from Colin with no issue. She is a strong, female character in the beginning and she really can hold her own with others. Colin swoops in and repeats mistakes he made in the past because she makes him feel inferior. She then blames herself for not giving him the benefit. It made me upset that she let him treat her the same as before.
I again will give props to the author because she really does bring realism to these characters. Maybe too much, lol.
Thank you to NetGalley, Jenny Howe, and St Martin's Press for the e-ARC of this book. The opinions are all my own.

Personally, I didn’t like this. The whole reason I picked this up was because Ali Hazelwood did a blurb. I can see the appeal, this one just wasn’t for me.

I don’t like second/third chance romances. I didn’t like Colin. I actually think he’s a jerk and toxic. I liked Allison more, but how she “deals” with Colin- not a fan. Wasn’t attached to any of the characters- maybe only Monty. He was not incorporated nearly enough.

I didn’t understand/follow a good chunk of the literature references (even with my British Lit class background). That might have made this more fun.

A little more triggering than I anticipated. My dad had the same thing Jed had, threw me off a little.

1 spicy scene that was slightly explicit- also really quick. Other rounds were mentioned but skirted over.

Academic setting. Handful of funny scenes.
Novel read really easy, like I said I personally just didn’t like the storyline.

18+ check content warnings

Special thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for this digital ARC.

I think this was my very first Second Chance Trope that I've read and while I enjoyed the book for what it offered, I realized that I don't love second chance romances.

Allison and Colin are both academia students who are Teacher Assistants for the same Professor. Which means they are ultimately competing for a spot for a once in a lifetime research trip. They are also exes and have a very rocky history which makes the competition even that more important to Allison.

What I loved: Fat positive narrative - we need more books that embrace people in all sizes, shapes, and colors. I loved that they showed Allison's family as toxic and she refused to be a victim.

What I didn't love: Truly not much - except the idea of getting back together with an ex who damaged badly.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Allison Avery has spent her life trying to be the best so that she could achieve her dream job. She loves Medieval Literature and how romance come together. Into her life at college came Collin. How they met was funny. They studied, dated and fell in love. Till he won an award that she wanted and they broke up. Avery trying to get her life on track. Collin trying to get his life together. Thrown back together, can they let the past go and move forward or are they doomed to repeat the past. First everything needs to be put on the line. Only then can they move forward.

I can always appreciate a nerdy romance between two academies and a plus-sized main character. I enjoyed Allison's narration of her story I would have liked to have heard Collins's point of view.

Both characters had pretty significant flaws in character I did enjoy their banter between them. I feel like most of the situation could have been fixed if Allison had listened and allowed people to explain to them she could have saved herself some time

However, her father is the worst and I wish they left him as the villain throughout the story. her mother doesn't care how her father treats her and would instead her daughter is a punching bag her ex is upset - I wish that were leaned on more and less about the father's toxic behaviour.

The sex scenes were spicy enough spicier than I was expecting. Considering that Allison's father is the worst, I have to appreciate how Allison deals with the haters and those that give her grief about her size.

I appreciate that her size wasn't the focal point of this romance. I enjoyed reading this book

Second chance, enemies-to-lovers academia romance 💕📚
Allison Avery is a plus size intellectual PhD candidate hoping to be a professor of Medieval Literature. Colin Benjamin is her rival and former boyfriend. They are both in the running for an advisory position and a trip to Wales to study alongside the department chair. Chaos and romance ensues.
Absolutely love that Allison is a self assured woman, especially in today’s body conscious world and adore her brain (especially because Chaucer is NOT my fave!) Wasn’t so sure about Colin being a dreamy love interest, especially when the descriptions of him almost always include knobby kneed, pointy angles, etc. He sounded more like an injury waiting to happen.
I will say I will never look at a game of *SCRABBLE* the same way again!

This story brought medieval romance and modern day romance together. I was back and forth between hating Colin and loving him, but was very satisfied with the ending.

I also loved that this book embraces plus size women and brings to light the hurt that can be caused by body shaming.

When I read the synopsis to this book I knew I needed to read it since it had so many things I love. School, teaching, books AND romance….how could I pass that up?!?

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
What I loved:
Boundaries, Allison spends a lot of this story setting healthy boundaries with the people in her life and I think we all need more of that in our lives
Colin 2.0, as a second chance romance I really liked seeing the comparison of Colin from the first time around and the current Colin…hint the second version is better
Monty, Allison’s corgi puppy is a scene stealer throughout the story and his full name is 😹🤣
Cohort, Allison and Colin’s cohort in there program seem like such a great group who were there for Allison when she needed it most

I really wanted to like this book and there is a lot of good stuff but I had a hard time liking Allison. She spends a lot of the book making other people actions about her and that was hard for me to read and kept me from rooting for her. This is a cute book and if you are a fan of academic second chance romances I would recommend you give this a try!

This book is adorable. I actually laughed out loud at certain parts.

This was an enjoyable read and I look forward to more from this author

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

Thank you to NetGallery and the publisher for this ARC.

I had mixed feelings on this book and finally landed on it being just okay. Based on the cover and the synopsis I wanted to love it, but I did not like any of the characters individually, or feel any chemistry between the main characters. The writing style is solid and easy to read, but sometimes second chance romances just shouldn't happen, and this is one of those cases.

P.S. Colin is F**king AWFUL.

As a former English major in undergrad and publishing grad student, I definitely appreciated the medieval lit grad school setting. I felt for both Allison and Colin, though the book certainly leaned heavily on the miscommunications trope.