I wanted to love this but ultimately it fell really flat. The blurb sounded totally up my alley, and enemies to lovers is a fav trope of mine. I just couldn’t connect with either of the characters to truly enjoy it. But I will say the concept with very unique and fun!

The premise of finding love while competing on a reality TV show mashup of Survivor/Amazing Race/Bachelor in Paradise was really fun! I especially liked that it was set in the Cascades. But, while the idea was interesting, the main characters never completely won me over.

This wasn’t a win for me, but could be for other readers! I’d recommend this one to anyone looking for an adventure romance, and who doesn’t mind insta-love or the miscommunication trope.

Book: Crush In The Cascade
Author: Lisa Gayle
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Review~

Crush In The Cascade is based off of a reality show. It is also a contemporary romance book.

Each contestant is fighting to win a grand prize of 1 million dollars. The competition takes place in the maintains and is fully of survival and athletic events.

Amity is one of the contestants who walked into the competition wearing a gown and heals to the competition making everyone thinking she is a spoiled brat and a princess who just wants screen time. Easton is another contestant who was paired with her and throughout the competition they grew really close to each use and had great chemistry.

Overall this book was amazing I highly recommended reading this book. If this was a real reality show I would definitely watch it. There physical connection was really good but I wish it would have been more honest with each other.

This book is about a group of people on a Reality TV adventure show. I loved the main character Amity. I like how the relationship grew over time and how they also how they misunderstood each other. It kept the book interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for this free ebook in exchange for my honest feedback!

Contestants are brought to the Oregon Cascade Mountains to compete in a new action-adventure reality TV show. Amity Rose and Easton Cooper are among the contestants, and after a horrible first impression of each other, they immediately get off on the wrong foot. As reality TV shows go, they are pitted against each other and a new forced-proximity / enemies-to-lovers trope is born.

The competitors are matched up in pairs for all of the different challenges, and our hero and heroine are learning more about each other as the show goes on. It's a bumpy road (or should I say trail), but they come to realize that this hate they feel for each other is actually an attraction and try to work together to win the million-dollar prize.

This book had such a cute premise but it just was not for me. I did not feel any sparks between the two MCs, and I really didn't like either one of them individually so it was hard to root for them. Also, being an incredibly indoorsy person, the roughing-it vibe with the heat, mosquitos, freeze-dried food, trail running, blisters, etc. was not the most romantic backdrop for me. Kinda sounds like hell honestly. I thought that Easton really treated Amity pretty badly throughout the book and I didn't think it was a healthy relationship.

Thank you again to NetGallery and BooksGoSocial for sharing this book with me. All opinions are my own. I do think the book was well written and would try reading another book by this author.

I really loved the premise of this book and absolutely LOVED the cover but struggled to finish. I love reality tv and while there were parts that had be giggling I think the characters could have been more developed. If you are looking for a light breezy read, this one is for you.

3.25 stars

It's funny but it didn't keep my attention as it requires a suspension of belief over my intention.
Not my cup of tea
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I couldnt really get into this one. I DNF at 25%. The "instant love" was just too unrealistic and there was way too much unnecessary information that made the book way too long. This could be a good book but the execution just isnt there for me.

I’m not going to lie- I DNFed this book. I love a good modern romance as much the next person, but I just could not get into this one. I don’t love reality tv in general but I didn’t think that would matter much, and it probably wouldn’t have if I’d enjoyed the rest of the story. The writing felt clumsy, the characters felt stiff and underdeveloped and I just wasn’t attached to the story at all. Just not for me.

I really liked the premise of this book and zoomed right through it. Amity is charming, though Cooper is admittedly less so. I found their chemistry a little forced and rushed, but enjoyed so many other pieces of the story. One of the best ARCs I’ve read in a long time, especially considering I chose it randomly just based on the cover.

Thank you for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

think of “the bachelorette” crossed over with “the hunger games” or “the selection” book series! as a fan of both of those books, i knew i’d be a fan of “crush in the cascades”… and it did not disappoint! this novel is full of friendships, love, adventure, and fun! having so many competitors in the competition, i thought i’d have a hard time putting names to faces. but this was not the case! maybe everyone’s assigned athletic-wear color helped but the descriptions of their personalities and quirks definitely contributed to connected to each of them!

from the start, i was on team amity! she’s definitely the underdog but showed off some serious girl power! i love how she didn’t let any of the guys hold her back! i instantly fell for her banter with easton, which is what i look for in any good enemies-to-lovers trope. i thought the pacing of this novel was *chef’s kiss*. sometimes i feel that after the couple has a big fight, one of the characters are quick to forgive and forget. but here, i thought that everything was spaced out perfectly without anything feels rushed or prolonged. i absolutely loved the set-up of this plot so i’m looking forward to learning about easton’s sister in the sequel!

I’m gonna be honest here: I picked up this book because of the cover. I didn’t know what it was about, and I really should have done my research first. No offense to the author: reality TV is really not my thing. I never could get into it. I thought it could be different in a book, but no. I still kept on reading, thinking I would get attached to the characters eventually. Alas, Easton was unlikable. The occasional misogyny and what he gave off rubbed me the wrong way. As for Amity, I’m sorry but I couldn’t bring myself to care about her. I skimmed through the book because I knew if I didn’t, I wouldn’t finish it. I got through it quicker than I should have, but that’s not the point. The point is, I’m convinced that these two don’t make it past the epilogue. They’re not that kind of couple. The basis for the relationship is not strong, too unstable for my tastes, and the emotional connection was lacking. Crush in the Cascades just isn’t for me.

This book is so adorable. Set up like a Survivor/Amazing Race hybrid game show. Both MCs are looking for money not love. But like an actual reality TV a showmance is born. I enjoyed the writing and the dual POV. Can’t wait to see what happens on the next “season”.

I had to DNF this story at 31%. This was labeled as enemies to lovers and forced proximity and I don't think either of those tropes matched this story. I'm not sure exactly what trope this would fall under in all honesty.

At 31% I couldn't see that Amity had any interest in Easton and the interest that Easton had in Amity was vague. He might have thought she was cute but that seemed to be the depths of his feelings for her. Oh, and she could run trails so that made him interested in her. I don't know about anyone else but I need a romance based off of something more than one's ability to run trails or chop wood.

I think the premise of the story has potential but something was lost in the execution. Perhaps as the story unfolded so did their budding romance but I wasn't invested enough in the story to find out.

a book about a romance set on a reality romcom tv show. it's an enimies to lovers, could've used more bantering and then it later turns to cute love.

this book is set in the Oregon Cascade mountains., an adventure reality show getwaway. there are two main characters, Easton Cooper who is there to win the money and Amity Rose who is there for the experience and adventure.

Two people who are really put off by one another but end up falling for each other, classic romrom.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This was an enjoyable book.

This is my first time reading something by Ms. Gayle and I found it to be quite entertaining. The story caught my attention from the beginning and held it all the way through. This was a fast-paced and easy read, just the thing if you're looking for a nice little pick-me-up . Amity and Easton are contestants on a dating reality show that is set in the outdoors, both competing for a chance at a million dollars. It definitely wasn't love at first sight for them, but sparks certainly did ignite and fly between these two. I had a lot of fun reading this book. It definitely left me with a smile on my face and a happy feeling afterwards.
The characters were interesting and I enjoyed their interactions and seeing them together. Both were complete opposites which made the story a lot of fun. The story was delightfully cute and a great escape. If you're looking for a fun, quick and light read, then you definitely will want to pick this one up.

I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

I absolutely loved the trope with enemies trapped together in a reality show. Sadly I could not connect to the characters at all. They seemed bland and their banter was fun until they got together and it just got boring. Easton especially was difficult to read about. He is flat out offensive and judgemental. So that is a hard pass from my end.

Honestly I enjoyed the setting and the plot but I wish the characters were written differently.

This one was just not for me. I’ve read a lot of “reality competition” based books in the past and have enjoyed almost every one of them and the concept of this book seemed right up my alley despite my lack of enjoyment of reality TV. Unfortunately for me, this book was all of the things I hate about reality TV and none of the things I usually like about such romances.

I dislike the characters. Even for enemies to lovers, they were terrible to each other and I couldn’t accept their beginning stages of attraction, let alone the developing feelings. I actually had to set my e-reader down lest I throw it at one point from the sheer rage I felt about these characters. But, just like with the plot, the characters perfectly fit what you would expect from a reality TV star.

The writing itself was really good and I won’t hesitate to pick up another book by this author. I found her voice and style enjoyable and wish I could have gotten past my dislike for the plot enough to enjoy it. If you’re a reality TV fan, pick this one up but if you’re like me and find the whole idea a little ridiculous I’d give this one a pass.

A fast paced read that will keep you interested. It's a case of opposites attract and enemies to lovers in a reality show in the great outdoors.

Laugh out loud funny and swoon worthy, you will enjoy this book


I received an ARC from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.