I am a huge fan of Erin Hahn's YA books and that made me so excited to pick up her first adult romance-- Built to Last. This one is definitely not YA with a few open door romance scenes, so keep that in mind!

Built to Last is about two former child TV stars- Shelby Springfield and Cameron Riggs- who are now all grown up. Shelby and Cameron are reunited for a home improvement reality TV show, and as they work together to remodel a house for the show, old feelings for each other are reignited.

I really enjoyed the setting of the home improvement reality show. I have watched a gazillion of those shows, and it made for a cute setting for this story. Shelby and Cam were both likeable characters, and I enjoyed their friends as well (who I hear are going to get their own books someday as well).

I did think that the story was lacking conflict. Shelby liked Cam and Cam liked Shelby and they lived happily ever after. The end. It was a very nice, happy story, but I thought it needed more conflict and perhaps some more angst. It reminded me of The Suite Spot by Trish Doller, a book that I also had similar feelings about. However I know there are many readers who would prefer a pleasant, non-angsty romance, so this book could be just the right fit for someone out there!!

I didn't love everything about this one, but it was a quick and easy and happy book. I will still pick up whatever Erin Hahn writes next!!

This is Erin Hahn's first adult novel. I've read her YA novels and enjoyed them I thought Built to Last had a great premise, but it still read more like a YA book with some more swearing and a couple of sex scenes. Shelby and Cameron were child stars who have lost touch with each other. Their other co-star Lyle, tricks them into meeting up to do a reality show - flipping houses. Which for Shelby made sense because she's been working with her dad on refurbishing houses and furniture. It made little sense for Cameron to be involved - he did not do home improvement and Lyle hates him. This was a sticking point for me that I couldn't figure out why Lyle wouldn't cast himself in the show with Shelby since he seemed to want to cause her heartache. I finished the book because I enjoy Hahn's writing style. It was a cute feel good story. If you are looking for a light rom-com type book check this one out!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

4.5 ⭐️

GUYS MY HEART. I can’t. Do you like books where the male love interest is so smitten you can’t help but smile along to everything he says and does? Do you also love home renovation shows? Because this book is for you. Cameron is a literal Lumberjack of a Prince Charming… I would do anything to be loved the way he loves. My heart feels swollen- is that a thing? Can’t be healthy.

Shelby is also a great lead, it was hard not to love her (and her dad if I’m being honest).

Childhood stars, first loves, poor timing and the most honest miscommunication I have read in years. I love love loved this. This was my first book by Erin Hahn - thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC - but it most certainly will NOT be my last. If her other works were as cute as this I may have found a new favourite author.

The only reason I removed a half a star was because of the overall vision for HomeMade(the name of the home Reno show that brought Cam and Shelby back together). It was too much of a reality tv show to be a good home Reno show, and too much home renovation to be a reality tv show… although I understand why things were thrown into the mix, I wish there was a better way.

Recommended if you like: Love and Other Words, How to Love Your Neighbour, and People you Meet on Vacation.

Thanks to St Martin's Press and Netgalley for this advanced copy.

This was a delightfully and cozy second chance story of two former child stars who definitely weren't in love when they were on a tv show together in their teens (wink wink) but who find themselves thrown together to make a home improvement show now that they are all grown up. I adored this story of two people finding each other with fairly low stakes, just putting in the work and enjoying love. I wish there had been a little more drama, though their co-star (Shelby's ex and current showrunner) tried to manipulate them all the time, it sort of washes over them, which is great for the characters but not so great if you are itching for some emotional confrontations.

But this book didn't really need them. And I loved the cast of characters circling around Shelby and Cameron. Cameron's college roommate and wife, Shelby's best friend the famous country singer (her story is next, right? RIGHT?), all really rounded out the story.

It felt great to read this on a rainy day, all cozied up on my couch with big socks and a mug of something hot. I can't wait to read more of Hahn's books!

I’m often asked for “light” read recommendations and I think this one will be my new go-to.

This second chance at love rom com is one of my new faves. It’s the perfect uplifting, easy-to-read love story. It’ll especially be perfect after all of our dark, spooky reads this fall.

Built to Last by @erinhahn_author comes out October 18 so snag it once it does! Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this e-ARC!

Built to Last by Erin Hahn
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Second chance romance! Former child star Shelby Springfield has spent the last few years helping her dad flip homes. Now she is being guven the chance to co-host her own reality TV show flipping houses. Her co-host? Cam Riggs. Her former co-star and first love.
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This story was super cute and I loved it. Shelby and Cam were both such like able characters from the start. I couldn’t help rooting for them in both their romance and their everyday lives.

I loved the home renovation show aspect to this! It made me rethink that I need to start watching those shows.

And I loved all the side characters!! Beth and her Viking, Shelby’s dad, and Lorelai!!! (I am REALLY hoping that there will be a book about Lorelai one day 🥺)

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 If you love sweet romances then be sure to pick this one up.

Hallmarkie Romcom Within HGTV model. This is a Hallmark type romantic comedy where 90 min+ of movie (or, in this case, 300+ pages) could probably be condensed to about 15 (min or pages) if the characters would just *be honest with each other*. So if that kind of thing irritates the Hades out of you... know up front that this is the kind of story you're getting into here.

For everyone else, this is actually a smart and fun (and yes, steamy - again, if you don't like being in the room with characters having sex... not the book for you either) tale that name drops quite a bit from real-world Hollywood, including National Geographic, Chip and JoAnna Gaines, and several other HGTV home reno type couples. If you enjoy those types of shows and wish you could see more "behind the scenes", particularly as the couple first got together... this is going to be pretty much your ideal romance tale.

Overall this really was quite an enjoyable read, and seemed to read faster than its 300+ page count would generally indicate. Very much recommended.

The following review will be posted on my blog, Sunday, October 16th, 2 days before publication. It will be shared on Twitter and Instagram between that day and the day of publication, and has already been posted on Goodreads. The blog post includes links to order the books and to its Goodreads page, so readers can add it to their to-be-read books.





“On Sunday, I cut off all my hair.
Lyle said trim, so I get a bob. Not just because of Lyle. I wanted a definitive way to show the world I wasn’t that girl anymore. I don’t cry on cue, I don’t take shots of tequila in club bathrooms, I don’t flash my underwear on the red carpet, and I no longer let men make my decisions for me.”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 3 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Deals with alcoholism, insecurities, cheating, parental neglect, and Hollywood trauma.

“Built To Last” follows Shelby Springfield and Cameron Riggs, two childhood costars and lovers, after they’re reunited years later to take part on a home renovation show that’ll change their lives. Since their childhood show (and their breakup), Shelby hit rock bottom and moved back to Michigan to help in her father’s home reno business, while Cam got his college degree and joined Nat Geo, traveling around the world all alone. When their other former costar, Lyle Jessup, calls in to pitch them HomeMade, a new home renovation show, they don’t say no to that pilot, but aren’t too sure about everything else. Working closing with your ex you still love? Kind of a slippery slope to travel—but they’re set on tackling it.

This second-chance romance is the sweet break you’ve been waiting for. With some close proximity and mutual pining, Shelby’s and Cam’s love story is a somewhat slow-paced one, but one that’s worth the wait.

This is the first time I’ve read the “one room/one bed” trope where, in fact, they don’t end up sleeping in the same bed, and nothing actually happens throughout it. It was weird, and perhaps refreshing, being so sure something would happen, and then it didn’t.

The one thing I didn’t like about this book was it’s spicy content. The intimate scenes were weird and climax kept being described as a feeling of bonelessness, and that just really threw me off. Not that Shelby and Cam don’t have chemistry, because they do, it’s just those moments felt weirdly described to me.

All in all, I really enjoyed this read. I would recommend it specifically if you’ve enjoyed other reality tv show-ish books, like “For Butter or Worse” by Erin La Rosa, or if you just like those kinds of show in real life. But even if you’re not the biggest fans of these kinds of shows, like me, “Built To Last” is a cute, relatively short, lighthearted, second-chance romance with a HAE that’s definitely worth grabbing for this fall season.

If you click here, you’ll be redirected to Goodreads, so you can add the book to your TBR list.

Or you could click here, and be redirected to Amazon, so you can order the book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: October 18, 2022

What a delectable childhood sweethearts turned second chance romance! Hahn has become an auto-buy author for me, so I was BEYOND excited when I received an eARC of Built To Last on NetGalley. This book had me smiling every time I sat down to read it; it is beyond perfect.

As a reader, I am very character-driven and this book was jam packed with the best characters. Not only did I love them all (except those two - iykyk) at face value, but their depth and development had me obsessed. Though they were childhood co-stars, I really liked the fact that Lyle, Shelby and Cam all took very different paths following their show and yet, found themselves back together again many years later. I think it made for a diverse story, as we learn about their journeys, and also allowed the story to come to conclude with a full circle. Shelby and Cam’s connection was so stinking cute and I look forward to possibly having some updates about their relationship when Hahn publishes Shelby’s BSFs stories!

I also must mention, because it was a detail that I very much enjoyed… Hahn named all her chapters after popular song titles and I ate that shit right up! Not only did it give a little clue as to what that chapter had in store, but it also provided me with an internal playlist as I read. And I love, love, LOVE her overlap of book characters! To me, when author’s do this, it makes their stories that much more real in my head. If a character from a previous book I read, lives within the pages of another, unrelated book, it helps me to keep them alive forever!

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress @smpromance for putting this book in my hands before it’s publication!

DNF 80%.

I think this is more a me being in the midst of the worst reading slump ever but I just couldn't finish this. I couldn't fully connect to the characters and I didn't care that they got together. They were fine together and separately, but nothing was setting me on fire to know what happened next.

That being said, I will continue to read Erin Hahn's work as I have loved her past three books.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin, and Erin Hahn for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Can you feel that? That is the chemistry between Shelby and Cam. I absolutely love them. And the banter! Oh gosh, I loved it, Did I wish for me? Yes, but this is not me complaining. I promise. There were so many sweet moments, that I was left smiling ear to ear. I wish there was more to this book. I wasn't ready for it to end.

Erin Hahn you are NOW a auto read author - First it was Never Saw You Coming and now Built to Last.

This love story is years in the making, from their first encounter as kids on the set of their TV show to years later on the shores of Western Michigan. Shelby and Cameron come together to shoot a pilot for a home renovation show, only problem their nemesis is running the show and calling the shots.

Shelby escaped the Hollywood scene by coming home to Michigan landing a job with restoration work in older homes with her father. She's finally found her niche. Cameron has been living his best life since abruptly walking away from LA, jet setting across the world with National Geographic. His travels have kept him away from home, and this TV show gives him the perfect excuse to head back to Michigan to visit his mother.

This romance had adults facing years of hidden attraction, and finally admitting said love to each other. They communicate with each other, work through issues and DON'T break-up to make-up like many romance novels do at the end. The secondary characters are simply the best - we need a fandom to make the music video from Lorelai Jones!

Thank you St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for the advance reader copy.

2.5 rounded up to 3 stars.

I really wanted to like this, but it missed the mark for me. I am super picky about my second chance romances, and this just was not done right for me. There was no real conversations about the issues of the past, and it felt a bit glossed over when they got together.

We are told so many times how much chemistry Cam & Shelby have, but we’re never really shown the chemistry between them. I liked them separately, but I truly did not like them together or believe in their relationship.

Second-chance romances are typically a win in my book. This story was a fast read with wanting to see what would happen between Cameron and Shelby; throwing Lyle in was a good twist. I also love it when romance books give us a dual POV.
I would not recommend it for classrooms due to the sexual content in it.

A great read. Shelby and Cameron were child stars together but haven't seen each other for years. Will now be their second chance of will.interference from their other old co star ruin everything.
Hoping that Lorelei and Marem healthier own books next.

“There’s no exit plan, here. And yet, I can’t think of another place on earth I’d rather be.”

I’ve been lucky enough to receive an ARC of every one of Hahn’s books, and I always close her books feeling so happy.

Shelby is funny and caring, and she’s a world away from the girl she was in her youth. So when fate, in the name of her slimy ex-boyfriend, throws Shelby together with Cameron, her world might change yet again. When the trio worked together in their teens, Shelby and Cameron were drawn to each other like magnets. But life has a way of getting in the way, so even though Shelby and Cameron had one night, they’ve always yearned for more.

Poor Shelby. Users surrounded her entire youth. From her mother to Lyle, no one wanted what was best for Shelby. Now grown up, working a fulfilling career, she’s happy and settled, if single. I liked her instantly. I completely understand having people in your life that deny that a person can go through personal evolutions. We aren’t who we were yesterday, let alone a decade ago. It’s worse for Shelby because the entire nation is judging her. And really, Shelby was way too kind to some of these toxic people. Camera or not, I wouldn’t have put up with half of what she did, but that goes to show her true character.

This is a sweet read with some steamy times. It weaves the present and past together to show a love that can withstand time. I love the small-town vibe because it feels like home. That Shelby loved to restore furniture and Cameron got to work with her restoring houses was the icing on the cake. Thank you, St. Martin’s, for sending this along.

If you are looking for a sweet romance with child star + home reno vibes, "Built to Last" by Erin Hahn checks all those boxes! 4⭐

Shelby and Cameron were child stars together in Hollywood and had their first kiss together on screen. They fell apart with a bang and their lives moved on without each other. Years later, they've both done some growing up and they are given a chance to work together again (for their childhood nemesis, who is the producer). Together with Shelby's dad, they are going to renovate a house in her hometown with the cameras watching.

I love that Shelby's role as a carpenter is so central to the show they're making, and she's not just a pretty face on camera. Cameron was humble enough to learn a new skill of how to be a contractor, and there are many cameos from both of their family members that bring in some drama and lots of emotion.

I liked the ending - it was fun and felt realistic. It wrapped everything up in a bow but also set the stage for a possible sequel to tell Lorelai's story.

This book felt familiar in so many ways, like I had read it before but in a good way. It reminded me of "Birds of California" meets "Tools of Engagement," with a touch of "Every Summer After."

Thank you @smpromance and @netgalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Shareability: fans of Mhairi McFarlane, Farrah Rochon, Abby Jimenez, & Rachel Van Dyken will like this one.

Tropes: second chance romance, it was always you, pining

Spicy: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Pairs well with: a thermos of coffee ☕ and a raspberry Danish

Cute romance about two former teen stars who once secretly dated as kids and reunite as adults. There is a lot of good humor and one liners, and we’ll rounded cast of secondary characters, and plenty of chemistry. A fun one to read.

I enjoyed the unique story line for this novel, following former child stars as they reconnect for a home flipping reality show. It has tropes of friends to lovers, second chance, and slow burn. I would recommend this for romance readers who like light spice. I enjoyed Shelby's character development.

Shelby, Lyle, and Cameron spent their teen years together acting both on tv and for the paparazzi. Now, though, they're grown up and Shelby for one has built (literally) a good life back home in Michigan working on houses that she flips with her dad. What does she do when Lyle, who was meant to be her beau in their teens, comes roaring back to her life with a proposition- that she star in a home renovation show with0 wait for it- Cameron. Ah the second chance romance ! Shelby and Cameron make slow moves toward one another but Lyle is always there in the background because he's not as happy with what he's done. I liked this as much for the other characters and the behind the scenes look at television as I did for Shelby, Cameron and Lyle. Not too many twists and it won't be a spoiler to say that all ends as it should. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A fun read.