Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sarah Adams has become my go-to author over the last few years and this book only reinforced why. I’m not usually big on celebrity or pop-star stories, so I was a little weary of this one, but it was done well. There was very little name-dropping (this always drives me nuts) and Amelia’s celebrity lifestyle wasn’t front and center. This author may be a “fade to black” romance writer, but she is a queen of building up tension. Noah and Amelia were written so beautifully and the chemistry was there from the beginning. I’m crossing my fingers that this may turn into a series - so many opportunities for the side characters of Rome to get their own stories. My only (minor) complaint about this book is that the ending felt a little rushed and as a result a few strings weren’t completely tied off - nothing major, it didn’t ruin the story at all, but the pacing felt a bit more fast than the rest of the book.

I loved this book! Sarah Adam’s is one of my favorite authors! I liked how Amelia had a lot of character development and how hesitant Noah was to jump into things. Definitely would recommend this book to all my girlfriends! :)

This book was so good. I love the grumpiness in the leading man. It was a fun heartwarming story. The small town feel was amazing, made me want to live in one! Definitely will be reading again and again

pies. flowers. books.

This sums up Noah Walker. And also explains why I am done for.
Noah is the book boyfriend we never knew we needed, but are so glad we have!

When in Rome is a different pace for Sarah Adams - in my opinion it's a little edgier, a little steamier (still closed door. but maybe just a little cracked now...) a little more grit and a little less fluff. Not that I mind fluff - I love all of her other books - but When in Rome felt like it addressed deeper issues and more intense relationships than her other books.

Amelia is a pop super star looking for a change of pace. Noah is a hometown hero looking to stay in his lane. A chance meeting, a new friendship, and lots of town busybodies added into the mix make for lots of will they/won't they moments. Sarah Adams has that slow burn down to a science - and I am here for it!

When in Rome is a sweet love story of second chances, forgiveness, and the desire we have to love and be loved. know and be known. Such a great read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is my first time reading a book by Sarah Adams, and I ✨love✨ WHEN IN ROME!

This book follows Amelia “Rae” Rose, a lonely, international pop star on the verge of burnout. Needing a break from her life of yours and interviews, she takes inspiration from Audrey Hepburn’s film, Roman Holiday, and in the middle of the night, makes a secret getaway to Rome, Kentucky. It’s a fantastic idea… until her car breaks down in front of Noah Walker’s house, and they both find out it’ll take several weeks before her car can be fixed. He doesn’t have time to fall for a celebrity, no matter how beautiful and amazing he thinks she is. And, Amelia doesn’t want to break his heart by starting a relationship when she knows she’ll have to leave one day. Will they act on their attraction to each other?

This book is so good I read it all in one sitting! I really loved Amelia and Noah’s characters, their attraction to each other, the slow discovery of who they each are.

I also really, really enjoyed the side characters! Mabel and Noah’s sisters are some of my favorite characters in this novel. They breathe life into Noah and Amelia’s story, and add so much to the story.

I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read this advanced reader’s copy through @netgalley ! I highly recommend this book and hope you read it!

I absolutely loved this book. The walker sisters remind me of my two sisters. Always talking loudly and over each other but somehow carrying on a conversation. The story was light and fun. Naturally I am craving pies and pancakes. Highly recommend!

This is a really sweet, fun, clean rom-com modernization of the Audrey Hepburn/Gregory Peck classic, "Roman Holiday." Amelia is a burned out pop star taking a self-imposed break in small town Rome, Kentucky. The town is endearing, with lots of fun characters who add spunk to the storyline. Noah's sisters were a riot. Noah is the guarded, love-scorned pie shop owner who is good to the core, but grouchy as a defense mechanism. Overall, a clever, enjoyable read.

4.5- this book was super cute! A famous singer is tired of everyone controlling her life, so she takes a spontaneous trip to a small town a few hours away. The small town has a lot of fun characters, and makes you want to live in a town like it. I can’t wait to read more books by Sarah Adams.

Thank you NetGalley and Random house publishing group- ballatine for the early ARC I return for my honest opinions.

First of all, I love Sarah Adams. This book was great and I read it in a day. The characters were great and I loved the small town atmosphere. There were laugh out loud moments and I loved the way the romance grew. Highly recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House and Sarah Adams for the ARC.

First of all I want to start this review off by saying that I absolutely loved this book. I laughed, I cried, I could not stop reading… so much so that I finished this entire book in one sitting. This was not my first Sarah Adams book, but I think this was my favorite so far!

Amelia Rose (Rae Rose as fans know her) is a pop star sensation who needed escape from the hustle and bustle of her demanding career. She decided to replicate her favorite actress and “vacation” in Rome… except she doesn’t have enough time to go to actual Rome. Amelia instead lands herself in a small town of Rome off the beaten path. During her drive to her destination she breaks down and lands in Noahs front yard. Immediately both of them have instant chemistry.

Rome turns out to be exactly what Amelia needs. All the people she meets treat her like a real person and not just a celebrity. Amelia learns in the process during the short stay that she needs to stand up for herself and not let her agent dictate her entire life.

Noah is pie shop owner who came back to his small hometown after his brief engagement to an “out of towner” came to an abrupt halt. He has sworn to himself that he would never fall for another passerby girl to safe himself from heart break again. Noah is straight forward, abrupt, caring, trust and unapologetically himself… which is exactly what Amelia finds attractive.

The entire book is them denying this instant passion and connection and trying to be friends. Without spoiling the book I was 100 percent rooting for them. I absolutely loved the passion I felt between these two characters. The banter, the chemistry, the passion…I LOVED it.

The supporting characters in this book were all thought out and contributed well to give shape to the main characters. Everything in this book was well thought out and in the end it felt complete. I can’t wait to see what Sarah Adams comes out with next, but in the meantime do yourself a favor and read this book. Its a Gilmore Girls small town feel with a bit of It Happened Last Summer twist… I can assure you that you will instantly be consumed.

Do you want to read an escape to make your heart smile? Do you like pancakes? Sweet and feisty little old ladies? This book has it all. I picture Noah Walker almost as a younger version of Luke Danes; on the surface he’s a bit of a grump, but under the surface, he has a huge heart and is loved by everyone (with good reason!). Amelia is so down to earth and a little ray of sunshine wherever she goes. Sarah Adams has hit it out of the park with this one. Being that I’m from Kentucky only made me love this book even more. This book was the equivalent of a perfect hug.

It’s a story of Amelia Rose or known as Rae Rose the princess of pop music, and Noah Walker, a pie shop owner in Rome, Kentucky. They met first time in a scene that usually turns out to be a mystery thriller opening scene LOLOL. Amelia who is in the middle of stressful life fled to Rome, Kentucky, and somehow on the way there, her car broke down and that’s when knock knock on her window, a stranger came and said that he wanted to help her. It’s Noah Walker.

It’s clean, funny, fluffy, full of small city vibes contemporary romance book. It’s slow-paced but you can’t help but want to know how Amelia and Noah’s ending is. At first, after reading 85% of the book, I can’t think of any happy ending for both our MCs. The resolution and the ending are not my favorites but I still think they’re great and well-written, especially both our MCs’ baggage and how they overcome every fear they have before, how they can step out of their comfort zone, and how they change for each other. I love how Sarah Adams can write a fluffy romance with deep conversations and discussions. I teared up three or four times while I read it because damn it looks like a sad ending book. The cons of this book are the pacing and the smut scenes (I hope for smut scenes, but if there are none, it’s still okay). Sadly, the pacing is pretty slow and as someone who prefers fast-paced books, some parts in this book drag me). Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone who loves contemporary romance!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC!

Sarah Adams has done it again! I fell in love with Amelia and Noah and my only complaint for this book is that it wasn't longer! I read this book in one sitting and now I'm ready to pack my bags in the middle of the night with the hopes my car will also break down in front of a hot baker's house. This was the perfect grumpy and sunshine love story with just the right amount of emotion in it. The happily ever after was perfect and is it bad of me to ask for a sequel?
Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC!

SARAH ADAMS DOES IT AGAIN!! This is hands down my favorite book by her!! She captures the emotions and makes it feel real and the characters are sweet and perfect together. They’re a dream.

I binged this in under 24 hours because I couldn’t put it down but then I was so sad it was over. 😫
I LOVE a dual POV romance. I love grumpy x sunshine tropes. I love the stuck with you trope. I loved Noah’s sweet sisters. I loved everything about this cute heartwarming story.

Thank you to Random House, NetGalley, & Sarah Adams for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I’ve read most of Sarah Adams’s books, and love them all, so I was absolutely thrilled to get approved for the ARC of When In Rome. I had high hopes and boy, did she deliver!

Amelia, aka Rae Rose, a pop superstar, is overwhelmed and burned out. She makes a spontaneous decision to run away to Rome, a la Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday, just for a little break. Except, the Rome she heads to (incognito in her old Camry) is Rome, Kentucky, where her car breaks down on the side of the road. But it turns out, the side of the road was actually someone’s front yard.

From their first hilarious encounter when Noah steps out of his house and goes to check on this stranger that sputtered into his yard, the chemistry is UNDENIABLE! I love the playful banter between Noah and Amelia, the special bond Amelia forms with Noah’s three sisters, and how the residents of Noah’s tiny town accept Amelia as one of their own. But can Amelia drop her Rae Rose persona and let Noah see who she really is? Will Noah learn to trust again after heartbreak? And what happens when Amelia has to return to Nashville to prep for her international tour?

I just loved every minute of this book! I found myself wishing I could walk the streets of Rome, Kentucky and step into The Pie Shop for a slice of pie, or play a round of hearts with the Walker sisters. This is one I’ll read over and over, and recommend to anyone who will listen. Five stars from me!

Any new Sarah Adams contemporary romance is a must-read for me and When In Rome did not disappoint. Adams writes real characters with depth, community, and heart. You root for them and want to protect them at all costs. Though she writes tropes and you can guess how the story will unfold, the trials and missteps of her characters are not overly contrived, resulting in an enjoyable, steamy romance between two characters you care about.

This story has everything needed to step away from the world and get lost in a happy tale: game nights, broken rules, white knight moments, sunshine and grump, small town charm.

Thank you to the NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

If you’ve read a Sarah Adams book before, then you know what you are getting with her stories: cute, cheesy and funny; lots of silly scenes and swoony romantic moments; minimal angst but lots of heart. When in Rome follows in that same vein, so while the story itself feels familiar, it still stands out as something new and different from Sarah.

Our two MCs are the epitome of the grumpy/sunshine trope (which the reader is reminded of, often). Amelia is a runaway pop star and Noah is a surly pie shop owner. Their meet cute results in a forced proximity situation where both parties agree that a romantic relationship is the last thing they should pursue. But of course, we know how well that will go (*wink, wink, nudge, nudge*).

This was a fun read, and I enjoyed the meddling of the small town cast of characters and Noah’s sisters. I felt like there were a few missed opportunities for more story and character development (for example, Amelia is a world-famous singer, and Noah is a baker? Neither of those traits were explored in depth as their relationship develops), but there are plenty of sweet slow-burn romantic tension moments that make the reader root for these two to finally figure things out.

I think you need to be in the right mood for this type contemporary romantic comedy. It’s cheesy and silly, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not still a fun, sweet and romantic story that leaves the reader with a smile on their face.

4/5 ⭐️
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Level: Adult
Content: mild language (no f-words), closed-door romance

I like Adams’ closed door romances more than I thought I would when I first stumbled upon them. This one is especially lovely, in that the secondary characters are so well-developed. In addition, the setting practically serves as a character itself! It’s lovely and it’s easy to picture the places described. I’ll even get over the pretty predictable ending. It was all pretty sweet. And achingly romantic.

Ohmygodwhattheheck?! This book is the cutest book and I have no idea where @authorsarahadams thinks it’s totally okay to write the most precious southern modern rom com and just melt me like that, but she did and I forgive her. 🥰 Honestly, Rae had me in love with her by chapter 2. & Noah, oh sweet Noah. So many times did I just want to hug the hurt right out of him, but seeing him work through all of his layers with his charming friends and family really sealed it for me. I really don’t want to spoil this book, because it was truly a darling romcom about a Popstar with a love of Audrey Hepburn who finds herself “taking a break” from the fame in a small town filled with what felt like the cast of Gilmore girls (in the best way). Definitely recommend this one and thank you a million times over to @netgalley for getting me addicted to a new author 💜